Letter: Protect Investments in Clean and Active Transportation

On Monday, September 29, 2025, The National Campaign for Transit Justice and over 180 partner organizations sent the following letter to members of the 119th U.S. Congress in response to the Trump Administration withholding millions of dollars that were promised for transportation projects around the country.

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Dear Members of Congress, 

We are writing to demand that you stop the Trump Administration’s illegal and unilateral pocket rescissions, protect the integrity of past and future federal funding agreements, and restore funds that have been stripped away from communities. 

Anything less is a betrayal of Congressional authority and will cause further harm to people, communities, and local economies throughout the country. 

Across the country, American families are struggling. Household finances are being squeezed by rising costs in housing, transportation, energy, food, and health care. The funds that have been rescinded without Congressional authority hit the very programs meant to ease those burdens. These rescissions strike at the heart of our daily lives — particularly the cost of transportation and housing, the two highest expenses for most households.

The cuts are not abstract. They are having real and devastating impacts across the country. From rural communities to urban neighborhoods, from Georgia and Alabama to Pennsylvania, New York, and Oregon, the administration has targeted and cancelled funding for projects providing essential infrastructure and economic relief. These projects make it easier for people to utilize more affordable modes of transportation to access jobs, healthcare, and other essential services, for farmers to provide food banks and the food-insecure families that visit them with their produce. . These include grants from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), many of which have already been awarded and are ready to deliver real, tangible improvements. 

The decision to cancel or defund these grants is not only unpopular and ineffective — it is illegal.

Let’s be clear: These rescissions are not backed by the majority of Members of Congress or Senators, nor would they ever survive the legislative process. That is precisely why the administration has resorted to circumventing Congress, breaking both precedent and the law in the process. This is not only a breach of public trust, but a constitutional crisis in real time. Arbitrary and capricious acts like these rip up the rule of law and undermine the very foundation of congressional power over the purse. In addition, it impedes the ability for state and local governments to seek discretionary federal funding.

Because of that, we call on Congress to take the following actions immediately:

1. Include explicit language in the Continuing Resolution (CR) and upcoming funding bills blocking any attempt to cancel or undermine legally awarded federal grants.
2. Require that all previously awarded grants — especially under the IIJA —be honored at their full project scope as authorized and appropriated by Congress.
3. Prevent similar unilateral rescissions from occurring in the future by enforceably reasserting Congressional authority and oversight.
4. Extend the availability of the funding for IIJA programs whose funding is expiring on Sept 30, 2025.

Considering the lack of safeguards to hold the administration to account for their disregard of existing appropriations, the bill that recently passed the House was anything but a clean CR. A significant amount of damage has already been done. Rescissions have impeded implementation, yanked away funding from shovel-ready projects, and left communities in limbo. 

If Congress cannot agree to uphold its own funding agreements through its next federal funding bill, then why should the American people — or their local governments — put their trust in any future negotiations, including the upcoming surface transportation reauthorization?

That is why the next Continuing Resolution must not only protect congressional intent and power, but also must restore the funding promised to communities in red and blue states. 

This moment demands more than words. It demands action. Protect the American people. Protect Congress’s power. And protect the communities counting on your leadership.

Sincerely,

National Campaign for Transit Justice, LeeAnn Hall
Transportation for America, Beth Osborne
America Walks, Mike McGinn
Green New Deal Network, Giancarlo Valdetaro
Sierra Club, Katherine Garcia
Union of Concerned Scientists, Kevin Shen
1000 Friends of Iowa, Kari Carney
1000 Friends of Wisconsin, Trevor Roark
A Just Harvest, David Zoltan
Accessible Resources for Independence, Betsy Hein
Acterra EC Charging for All, Dennis Murphy
Activate St Pete, Max McCann
Active Prince William, Allen Muchnick & Mark Scheufler
Active San Gabriel Valley, David Diaz
Active Transportation Alliance, Amy Rynell
Alabama Arise, Robyn Hyden
Allendale Strong, Dorothy Wiley
ArchPlan Inc, Klaus Philipsen
Arkansas Community Organizations, Neil Sealy
Better Eugene-Springfield Transportation, Rob Zako
BetterTransitNOW, Paul Sturm
Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, Chris Gale
Bike Cleveland, Jacob VanSickle
Bike Durham, John Tallmadge
Bike East Bay, Justin Hu-Nguyen
Bike HoCo – Bicycling Advocates of Howard County, Jack Guarneri
Bike JC, Beatriz Bofill
Bike&Walk Montclair, Paul Mickiewicz
BikeHouston, Joe Cutrufo
Bikemore, Jed Weeks
Bridge Forward Cincinnati, Brian Boland
Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled, Joseph G. Rappaport
BWRNC, James Jones
California Bicycle Coalition (CalBike), Jared Sanchez
Cambridge Bicycle Safety, Christopher Cassa
Capital Streets, James Rath
Car-Lite Long Beach, Kurt Canfield
Carl Maxey Center, Luc Jasmin lll
Catskill Mountainkeeper, Taylor Jaffe
Cedae Lane Unitarian Universalist Environmental Justice Ministry, Lee McNair
Central Maryland Transportation Alliance, Brian O’Malley
Chesapeake Climate Action Network Action Fund, Quentin Scott
Circulate San Diego, Colin Parent
Citizens for Regional Transit, Douglas Funke
City Of East Orange, NJ, Solomon Steplight
City of Wheat Ridge District 2, Rachel Hultin
Claiborne Avenue Alliance Design Studio, Amy Stelly
Clean Air Council, Titania Markland
Clean Power Lake County, Mayra Mendez
Clevelanders for Public Transit, Chris Martin
ClimatePlan, Lesley Beatty
Coalition Against the Mid-States Corridor, Mark Nowotarski
Coalition for Economic Justice, Jamal Davis
Coalition for Responsible Transportation Priorities, Colin Fiske
Coalition for Smarter Growth, Stewart Schwartz
Community Climate Collaborative, Carolyn Pugh
Community Design Rochester, Dawn Noto
Congress for the New Urbanism, Lauren Mayer
Conservation Law Foundation, Paulina Muratore
CultureHouse, Aaron Greiner
D.C. Transportation Equity Network, Kai Hall
Democracy for America Advocacy Fund, Charles Chamberlain
Denver Streets Partnership, Jill Locantore
Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund, Carol Tyson
Downshift Outdoors, Kimberly Huntress-Inskeep
Downtown Residents Advocacy Network (Baltimore), Paul Sturm
Drive Electric RVA, Charles Gerena
East Coast Greenway Alliance, Niles Barnes
East Metro Strong, William Schroeer
Elmont Cultural Center, Mimi Pierre Johnson
Families for Safe Streets, Thomas DeVito
Families for Safe Streets New Jersey, Sangeeta Badlani
Fix Maryland Rail, Diane Wittner
ForeverGreen Trails, Larry Leveen
Forth, Cat Plein
Friends of Irving Square Park, James Quinlan
GCRTA, Steve Canaly
GObike Buffalo, Justin Booth
Greater Greater Washington, Chelsea Allinger
Greenbelt Climate Action Network, Kathy Bartolomeo
GreenLatinos, Andrea Marpillero-Colomina
Hinge Neighbors, Suzanne Mayer
HollywoodDemocrats, Charles Chamberlain
Hudson Catskill Housing Coalition, Quintin Cross
Hudson County Complete Streets, Johan Andrade
I-475 Neighborhoods Coalition, Peggy Daly-Masternak
In the Public Interest, Donald Cohen
​​Institute for Policy Studies, Basav Sen
Joy Machines Bike Shop, Krissie Wells
Just Economics, Vicki Meath
Labor Network for Sustainability, Oren Kadosh
Latino Youth Development and Resource Center, Mercedes Vazquez Simmons
Law Office of Dennis M. Grzezinski, Dennis M. Grzezinski
League of Conservation Voters (LCV), Darien Davis
Living Streets Alliance, Vanessa Cascio
Los Angeles Walks, Alex Ramirez
Louisiana 4-Corners Coalition for Transportation Planning Reform, Kim Mitchell
Madison Area Bus Advocates, Susan De Vos
Mainers for Smarter Transportation, Myles Smith
Marin County Bicycle Coalition, Warren Wells
Mobilify Southwestern Pennsylvania, Chris Sandvig
Montgomery Bicycle Advocates (MoBike), Jack Cochrane
MountainTrue, Susan Bean
Move California, Eli Lipman
Move LA, Eli Lipmen
Move Minnesota, MJ Carpio
MOVE Ohio, Akshai Singh
Move Redmond, Kelli Refer
New Jersey Future, Peter Kasabach
New York Communities for Change, Olivia Leirer
Nikhil Badlani Foundation, Sangeeta Badlani
Nondrivers Alliance, Anna Zivarts
Nu-Voters Movement, Omari Shakur
OPAWL – Building AAPI Feminist Leadership, Tessa Xuan
Open Plans, Sara Lind
Oregon Environmental Council, Kristopher Fortin Grijalva
Oregon Walks, Zachary Lauritzen
Our Streets, Joe Harrington
Parks & Trails New York, Dylan Carey
Pennsylvania Downtown Center, Samantha Pearson
Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA (PCAC), Lisa Daglian
Philly Transit Riders Union, Nat Lownes
Pittsburghers for Public Transit, Laura Chu Wiens
Planning and Conservation League, Matthew Baker
Plug In America, Ingrid Malmgren
Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, Laura Martin
Property Rights Alliance, Mark Nowotarski
Providence Streets Coalition, Liza Burkin
PSOB Bike Committee, Marsha Hanchrow
Quaker Action Mid Atlantic Region, Liz Robinson
Reconnect Rochester, Cody Donahue
Reconnect South Park Coalition, Maria G. Ramirez
Regional Plan Association, Kate Slevin
ReImagine Appalachia, Dana Kuhnline
Ride Illinois, Dave Simmons
Ride New Orleans, Shirani Jayasuriya
Riders Alliance, Betsy Plum
Rise and Resist Elevator Action Group, Jessica Murray
Rockbridge Conservation, Jamie Goodin
Roosevelt Boulevard Subway Movement, Jay Arzu
Safe Roads Alliance, Emily Stein
Safe Streets Austin, Adam Greenfield
San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council, Christine Canaly
Santaoyála Consultores y Asociados, Gonzalo Contreras Pfäfflin
Scajaquada Corridor Coalition, Justin Booth
Seamless Bay Area, Adina Levin
Shenandoah Valley Bicycle Coalition, Kyle Lawrence
South Pas Active, Casey Law
Southwest Energy Efficiency Project, Travis Madsen
SPUR, Laura Tolkoff
St. Vincent’s Green Team, Bethany Gregg
Streets For All, Michael Schneider
Stronger Haven, Rishabh Mittal
Sunrise Movement KC, Anthony Cunningham
Sustain Charlotte, Meg Fencil
Syracuse United Neighbors (SUN), Phil Preen
TakeItBack.Org, Charles Chamberlain
The Black Institute, Tuulikki Robertson
The Crim Fitness Foundation, Madyson Quick
The New Haven Safe Streets Coalition, Max Chaoulideer
The People’s Lobby, Will Tanzman
The Street Trust, Sarah Iannarone
The Transit Coalition, Bart Reed
thirdspace pARTners LLC, Lillian Cho
Transbay Coalition, Carter Lavin
Transform CA, Abibat Rahman-Davies
Transit Columbus, Stevie Pasamonte
Transit For All PA!, Connor Descheemaker
Transit Riders Union of Connecticut, Fiona McElroy
Transit Trekker, Kimberly Huntress-Inskeep
TransitMatters, Caitlin Allen-Connelly
Transportation Alternatives, Elizabeth Adams
Transportation Choices Coalition, Kirk Hovenkotter
Transportation for Massachusetts, Pete Wilson
Transportation Riders United, Megan Owens
Tri-State Transportation Campaign, Renae Reynolds
Virginia Interfaith Power & Light, Faith Harris
Virginia Organizing, Brian Johns
Vision Long Island, Eric Alexander
Walk Bike Nashville, Wesley Smith
WalkMassachusetts, Brendan Kearney
Washington Area Bicyclist Association, Kalli Krumpos
We Are Revolutionary, Lukee Forbes
West Line Corridor Collaborative, Michael Hughes
Western New York Independent Living, Inc., Todd G Vaarwerk
Winchendon Community Action Committee, Miranda Jennings
Wisconsin Bike Fed, Mike Ridgeman
Working for Justice Ministry, St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, Michael DiMonte