Regional transit measure passes state legislature 

Caltrain projects an average annual deficit of $75 million starting in fiscal year 2027, and BART is averaging an ongoing structural deficit ranging from $350 million to $400 million starting in about a year.

SamTrans voted to opt the county into measure in August, though several San Mateo County leaders, including Assemblymember Diane Papan, D-San Mateo, and Supervisor Jackie Speier, have been critical of the accountability provisions in the bill, mostly related to BART. The bill currently authorizes a committee to adjudicate claims over a transit operator’s lack of adherence to its required financial review and analysis, potentially withholding funding. Papan and others wanted stronger accountability provisions that would allow each county to withhold their funding allocation if certain financial standards were not met. During the Assembly hearing last week, she urged other lawmakers to vote against the bill, saying that funding shouldn’t come at the expense of accountability.

However, David Canepa, president of the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors, said the vote was “significant on many levels” and he is confident voters would support the measure, regardless of whether leaders like Speier, Papan and Supervisor Ray Mueller oppose it. 

“There aren’t one or two elected officials that can sway an election,” he said. “The people who drive the message are the voters themselves.”

Without opting in, the county would have to rely on the county-specific Measure A funding, which could result in less funding for capital improvement projects, like grade separations or highway repairs if voters didn’t approve an increase. Caltrain has said the need is “existential,” with the possibility of service cuts in the future if significant funding is not restored.

“Without SB 63, we risk having to make service cuts that would put those gains at risk and push more cars back onto already congested roads. SB 63 offers a light at the end of the tunnel to keep riders moving, reduce traffic and build the sustainable transit system our region needs,” Caltrain Executive Director Michelle Bouchard said in a statement. 

Gov. Gavin Newsom has until Oct. 12 to sign the bill into law.