Sponsor
Frederica Wilson
Representative · D-FL
Representative · D-FL
The bill invests in workforce training and technical assistance to improve transit worker skills, retention, and service reliability across jurisdictions, at the cost of new federal spending and some centralization of curriculum development that may not perfectly fit all local providers.
Frontline transit workers nationwide will receive more training, standards-based instruction, and support (including new technologies), which improves job readiness, increases retention, and can make passenger service safer and more reliable.
Public transit agencies in urban, suburban, rural, and Tribal areas will get technical assistance and workforce data to better recruit and retain staff, helping smaller and remote systems address staffing gaps.
Taxpayers and the federal budget will face additional costs because grants to a national nonprofit and program administration require federal funding, potentially crowding out other priorities.
Relying on a single national grantee to develop curriculum and standards concentrates influence over training content and may underrepresent the perspectives of smaller providers and frontline employees.
Smaller or remote local transit providers may find nationally developed training less tailored to their needs, creating extra coordination time and potential costs to adapt materials.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Creates a grant-funded Transit Workforce Center (run by a qualified national nonprofit) to develop training, technical assistance, outreach, and workforce analytics for frontline transit workers.
Creates a federally supported Transit Workforce Center that the Department of Transportation will fund by awarding a grant to a qualified national nonprofit. The Center will develop and deliver recruitment, hiring, training, and retention programs, produce educational materials, provide technical assistance and workforce analytics, and coordinate outreach for frontline public transit workers across urban, suburban, rural, and Tribal service areas. The law requires the grantee to consult with the Federal Transit Administration, transit providers, industry associations, and frontline employee representatives, and to respond to provider requests when designing training and assistance.
Official title: To amend title 49, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Transportation to establish a transit workforce center, and for other purposes.
Introduced March 24, 2026 by Frederica Wilson · Last progress March 24, 2026