Modal Parity in Permitting Act

Key Points

• This bill allows transit and passenger rail projects to use federal money to buy land earlier in the planning process. Currently, many projects have to wait for long environmental reviews to finish before they can secure the property they need.
• Under these new rules, agencies could purchase or lease land while they are still studying the environmental impact of a project. However, they are not allowed to start building or changing the land until all environmental studies are officially approved.
• The goal is to help projects move faster and potentially save money by locking in land prices before they go up. It also makes the rules for rail projects more like the rules that already exist for highway projects.
• The Federal Transit Administration would have six months to update its official rulebooks and guidance for local agencies if this bill becomes law. This ensures that city and state planners know exactly how to use the new flexibility.

Impact Analysis

Govbase has not yet run an impact analysis on this legislation.