O'Rourke's Transit Access Fund gets a hearing Nov. 17, a step the first version never reached

At-large Councilmember Nicolas O'Rourke's plan for a city Transit Access Fund is getting a committee hearing. Bill 260892 is the only item on the agenda for the Committee on Transportation and Public Utilities at 1 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 17 (meeting).

That is a step its predecessor never got. O'Rourke's 2025 package, which would have amended the Home Rule Charter to set aside 0.5% of the general fund for transit access, was never referred to a committee, the Inquirer reported last month. In Philadelphia, a bill that isn't referred can't get a hearing.

For riders, the fund is about the city programs that give free SEPTA rides to low-income residents and city workers, and whether that money is protected from year to year.

What the bill does

From the bill text:

• Creates the fund. The Finance Director would set up a separate Transit Access Fund. Money left at the end of a fiscal year would carry over, not lapse.
• Limits what it pays for to three things: the Zero Fare program, or a successor that gives free rides to residents near or below the poverty line; the city's free SEPTA Key Advantage benefit for city employees; and grants to employers, housing providers and schools to help them join SEPTA's Key Partner programs.
• Requires a yearly plan. The Managing Director's Office, or an agency the mayor picks, would publish an annual Transit Access Plan along with the mayor's budget and five-year plan. It would list spending on each program, how many people each serves and where they live.
• Sets no amount. The bill doesn't require any specific appropriation. Council would still decide each year's funding in the budget.

The bill's findings say Zero Fare, started in August 2023, provides free passes to 60,000 low-income Philadelphians.

What our records add

• 14 sponsors. Besides O'Rourke, our record lists Anthony Phillips, Curtis Jones Jr., Jamie Gauthier, Jeffery Young Jr., Jim Harrity, Katherine Gilmore Richardson, Kendra Brooks, Council President Kenyatta Johnson, Mark Squilla, Mike Driscoll, Nina Ahmad, Quetcy Lozada and Rue Landau. The three members not listed are Cindy Bass, Brian J. O'Neill and Isaiah Thomas.
• Timeline. Introduced Oct. 22; referred by the Council president Oct. 29; hearing Nov. 17, 26 days after introduction. Our first story on the scaled-back bill.
• Johnson's caution. Asked about costly proposals, Johnson told the Inquirer, "It has nothing to do if they are good ideas or bad ideas," and the paper reported he is scrutinizing big-ticket bills ahead of the next budget.
• Same committee, same week. The committee also hears youth safety on SEPTA and PGW shutoffs on Nov. 13.

The bigger SEPTA picture

The bill doesn't touch SEPTA's own operating budget, which depends heavily on Harrisburg. SEPTA faces a $192 million structural operating deficit in the coming fiscal year, raising the threat of service cuts, fare increases or both, the Inquirer reported Wednesday. With Democrats now set to control the governor's office and both legislative chambers, Gov. Josh Shapiro said, "We will fund mass transit," WHYY reported. Our story on the new majority.

Zero Fare began as a pilot paid for with federal pandemic relief money, and Mayor Cherelle L. Parker first proposed ending its funding before reversing course in budget talks, City & State Pennsylvania reported.

Another council member has proposed a different source of transit money: Jim Harrity's proposed tax on robot deliveries and driverless rides, meant to pay for free transit passes (our story).

What's next

• Nov. 17, 1 p.m.: committee hearing, Room 400, City Hall. Committee hearings usually take public testimony.
• If the committee approves it, the bill would get a first reading at a later stated meeting and become eligible for a final vote at the session after that. Council's remaining 2026 sessions are Nov. 19, Dec. 3 and Dec. 10.