The SCTA develops and approves an annual Coordinated Claim to coordinate the distribution of three fund sources – Transportation Development Act (TDA), State Transit Assistance (STA) County Block Grant, and Measure M – among transit operators with service areas that cross jurisdictional boundaries within Sonoma County. The Coordinated Claim documents existing inter-jurisdictional funding agreements for transit services in Sonoma County as they relate to the distribution of TDA, STA and Measure M funds. These funding sources support local and regional bus routes, ADA paratransit services, and regional passenger rail.
Transportation Development Act (TDA) is generated by a statewide ¼-cent sales tax for transportation. State Transit Assistance (STA) comes from a statewide tax on the sale of vehicle fuels, a portion of which SCTA is responsible for distributing through the County Block Grant. Measure M is a ¼-cent countywide sales tax managed by SCTA.
While the fund estimates are subject to fluctuation over the course of the fiscal year, the Coordinated Claim serves as the basis from which transit operators base their annual TDA & STA funding requests to MTC. Overall, the adequacy and sustainability of funding for transit operations is an ongoing challenge.