On Friday, the Mid-Atlantic Justice Coalition submitted a letter signed by 50 organizations to Governor Hogan, requesting that he sign HB141, the Transportation Equity Act, into law.
The Honorable Larry Hogan
Governor of Maryland
Maryland State House
100 State Circle
Annapolis, MD 21401-1925
May 6, 2022
Dear Governor Hogan,
The undersigned 50 groups ask that you sign HB141, the Transportation Equity Act, into law.
The Transportation Equity Act of 2022 provides enhanced Title-VI-equivalent protections at the state level, its signature strength and innovation. Maryland would take the lead among the states of the nation in assuring every resident equal access to the economic and environmental benefits of public transportation without regard to race, color, national origin, income, age, or disability.
When enacted, the bill will provide a unique instrument that will establish a basis in verifiable data to assess the equitable impacts of transportation policy and services. The assessment, in the form of prior transit equity and cost/benefit analyses, enables the transportation agency to make equity adjustments at lower costs than if delayed until the policy had been fully or partially implemented. The bill’s sponsors worked diligently with MDOT-MTA to address any potential concerns and to significantly reduce the bill’s fiscal note.
The Transportation Equity Act set an encouraging course during the 2022 legislative session of the Maryland General Assembly. The sponsors and over fifty witnesses supported the bill in hearings which heard no opposition. For this reason, our active and broad community of support make this appeal to you to sign the measure into law. It represents the will of the majority of the residents of the state.
As a result of the conscientious, diligent navigation by its sponsors and members of the legislature, the bill was passed with effective bipartisan support on both sides of the aisle.
Our groups, representing thousands of Marylanders across the state, support the Transportation Equity Act of 2022 and urge you to sign it into law to steer Maryland toward success in transportation planning in future administrations.
Sincerely,
Maryland Chapter of the Mid-Atlantic Justice Coalition
Baltimore County Government
Maryland State and DC AFL-CIO
Disability Rights Maryland
NAACP Maryland State Conference
League of Women Voters of Maryland
Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition
Clean Water Action
BRIDGE Maryland
CASA
Namati
Bus Workgroup14
Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility
Maryland United for Peace and Justice
Our Revolution Maryland
Indivisible Central Maryland
Echotopia LLC
1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East
HUB West Baltimore Community
Development Corporation
No Boundaries Coalition
SURJ Baltimore
Our Revolution- Howard County
WISE
Community Development Network of Maryland
SHARE Baltimore Inc.
Parent Advocacy Consortium
Baltimore Green Party
Chesapeake Climate Action Network and CCAN Action Fund
Our Revolution Baltimore City/Baltimore County
Central Maryland Transportation Alliance
Indivisible Howard County
Takoma Park Mobilization Environment Committee
MLC Climate Justice Wing
Environmental Justice Ministry, Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church
Maryland Sierra Club
Chesapeake Earth Holders
Climate XChange
Locust Point Community Garden
The Climate Mobilization, Montgomery County Chapter
Maryland League of Conservation Voters
Coalition for Smarter Growth
Sunrise Movement Baltimore
Sunrise Movement Maryland
Maryland Legislative Coalition
Baltimore County Progressive Democrats Club
HoCo Climate Action
Blue Water Baltimore
The Nature Conservancy, Maryland/DC
Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry of
Maryland
