FTA's Memo Emergency IC Clearance for Transit COVID-19 Response Program

Administrator

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590

ACTION MEMORANDUM TO THE OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET
From:

Nuria Fernandez
Acting Administrator
202-366-4040

Prepared by:

Henrika Buchanan
Associate Administrator for Transit Safety and Oversight
202-366-1783

Subject:

Requesting Emergency Clearance from OMB for a New Information
Collection to Support the Transit Industry’s Coronavirus Disease 2019
Recovery Efforts

ACTION REQUESTED
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) requests the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) to provide an emergency clearance for a new information collection to inform FTA
actions in support of the transit industry’s Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) recovery
efforts and implementation of Federal mask requirements for public modes of transportation.
SUMMARY
The FTA is requesting emergency clearance to collect information regarding transit agencies and
transit workers to inform FTA’s efforts to support COVID-19 recovery efforts for transit systems
and compliance with Executive Order (E.O.) 13998, Promoting COVID-19 Safety in Domestic
and International Travel. Delay in acquiring this information may hinder federal efforts
regarding emergency funding, assessing the impacts of COVID-19 on the transit industry, and
assessing compliance with a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Order and
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Security Directive implementing E.O. 13998.
Such delays increase the risk associated with COVID-19 to transit systems, workers, and
passengers.
BACKGROUND
COVID-19 poses significant risk to the Nation’s communities and transit providers. In January,
the United States suffered the deadliest month of the COVID-19 public health emergency.1

1

https://covidtracking.com/data/charts/us-daily-deaths.

January 20, 2021, set records for the deadliest day of the pandemic with 4,409 deaths recorded.2
New, more transmissible variants of the virus have recently emerged.3 On January 15, 2021, the
CDC announced that it expects a new, more transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variant to dominate by
March—by some estimates, roughly 50% more transmissible—with “the potential to increase the
U.S. pandemic trajectory in the coming months”.4
Numerous transit providers have suspended service and a greater number have reduced service.
Yet, throughout the COVID-19 public health emergency, transit agencies across the country
continue to provide millions of trips to lifeline services, including transporting healthcare
personnel and other essential workers on the front line of the Nation’s COVID-19 response.
Transit agencies also offer additional essential services to support communities during the public
health emergency, such as meal delivery and Wi-Fi access in underserved areas, and have begun
offering transportation to vaccination sites. Accordingly, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure
Security Agency designates transit workers as essential critical infrastructure workers.
Transit agencies and other stakeholders have expressed concerns about the risk of COVID-19 to
the transit industry, along with the FTA, and have taken steps to address these concerns.
Numerous transit agencies have implemented mitigations to limit the transmission of SARSCoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, among their workers and within their systems. Despite
these efforts, frontline transit workers remain at high risk for work-related exposure to SARSCoV-2 because their work-related duties must be performed on-site and involve being in close
proximity (<6 feet) to the public or to coworkers. In addition, many transit workers fall within
racial and socioeconomic demographics that are at increased risk of getting sick and dying from
COVID-19.
In December 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued Emergency Use
Authorizations for two COVID-19 vaccines. Most States have prioritized distribution of the
vaccine to their populations consistent with CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization
Practices (ACIP) recommendations on the allocation of COVID-19 vaccines during the first
phase of vaccine delivery (Phase 1).5 Essential workers, including transit workers, are
recommended for vaccination in Phase 1b after health care personnel and long term care facility
residents. However, FTA’s review of State vaccination plans indicates that approximately 13
States have prioritized transit workers differently than CDC/ACIP guidance and placed another
group ahead of transit workers.6 It may take many months before all frontline transit workers
can be vaccinated, though their communities will continue to rely on them to provide critical
transportation services every day—including transportation to vaccination sites.
On January 21, 2021, President Biden issued E.O. 13998, “to save lives and allow all Americans,
including the millions of people employed in the transportation industry, to travel and work
safely,” requiring immediate Federal action to mandate masks on public forms of transportation,

2

Id.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/transmission/variant.html.
4
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7003e2.htm?s_cid=mm7003e2_w. 
5
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm695152e2.htm.
6
https://www.nga.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Phased-Allocation-of-COVID-19-Vaccines_Jan-7-2021.pdf.
3

including transit. On January 29, 2021, the CDC issued an Order7 requiring the wearing of
masks by travelers, including on public transportation, to prevent spread of the virus that causes
COVID-19. The CDC Order requires transportation operators to require that all persons wear
masks when boarding, disembarking, and for the duration of travel, with certain exemptions.
Operators of transportation hubs, which include bus terminals and subway stations, must require
all persons to wear a mask when entering or on the premises of a transportation hub.
Subsequently, the TSA issued a Security Directive8 on February 1, 2021, that implements the
CDC Order.
Without emergency clearance to collect needed information, FTA is ill-equipped to assess the
transit industry’s compliance with the Federal mask requirements and provide risk-based
guidance and support for the COVID-19 recovery efforts of the transit industry. This
information collection is essential to FTA’s safety oversight and grant-making roles—both
critical to the Agency’s mission of improving public transportation for America's communities.
Delay in acquiring this information may hinder recovery efforts including vaccination and
thereby increase the risk of COVID-19 to transit workers and passengers, potentially resulting in
additional morbidity and mortality in America’s communities.
To address this immediate information need, FTA is seeking emergency clearance to require
applicable FTA grant recipients to report data on three topics and submit updates up to every two
weeks:


Transit Worker Counts: Total number of transit operators, other frontline essential
personnel, and other workers during the reporting period. This data is not currently
available to the Federal Government. This information is critical to identifying the
number of transit workers supporting transportation for essential workers across the
country. The information may become necessary to inform the distribution of vaccine
doses based on risk to the transit workforce.



COVID-19 Impacts on Transit Agency Service Levels: Yes or no responses to
indicate if the agency suspended service, reduced service, or operated at normal levels
during the reporting period. This data is not currently available to the Federal
Government. This information is critical to understanding agency-level COVID-19
impacts and continued risk to transit agencies’ capability to provide transportation to
support essential services in communities across the country, including transportation to
vaccination sites.



COVID-19 Impacts on Transit Workforce: Cumulative counts of transit worker
COVID-19 positives, fatalities, recoveries, and unvaccinated employees during the
reporting period, to the extent that the grant recipient is able to compile such information
consistent with applicable privacy laws, and yes or no responses on whether the agency is
requiring workers to be vaccinated and whether the agency is implementing the CDC
Order that requires workers and passengers to wear masks. This data is not currently

7
8

 https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/pdf/Mask-Order-CDC_GMTF_01-29-21-p.pdf
https://www.tsa.gov/sites/default/files/sd-1582_84-21-01.pdf

available to the Federal Government. This information is critical to understanding
agency-level COVID-19 risk to transit workers and passengers, and the follow-on effects
of worker shortages on operational capacity. This information will help inform policy
and guidance regarding COVID-19 recovery efforts in transit with consideration for the
health and safety of transit workers and passengers.
FTA will collect this information via a fillable online application. FTA will require this
information, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 5334 and in response to the CDC Order and TSA Security
Directive, from recipients and subrecipients of FTA funds under the Urbanized Area Formula
Funding program (49 U.S.C. § 5307) or the Formula Grants for Rural Areas program (49 U.S.C.
§ 5311) that operate transit systems or pass through funds to subrecipients that operate transit
systems. Recipients of FTA funds under the Enhanced Mobility of Seniors and Individuals with
Disabilities program (49 U.S.C. § 5310) are requested to provide this information on a voluntary
basis.
FTA will begin collecting this data on the Monday following OMB approval and will continue
for up to 24 additional and consecutive biweekly to monthly collections, through December 31,
2021 or the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency, whichever comes first.
In addition to the emergency clearance, the FTA will also complete the normal OMB review
process and post the 60-Day and 30-Day Federal Register Notices following the Emergency
Federal Register Notice.
RECOMMENDATION
FTA recommends that OMB review and approve the new information collection to inform FTA
actions in support of the transit industry’s COVID-19 recovery efforts. Due to FTA’s urgent
need for this information collection, the FTA requests approval by [February 15], 2021.
Attachment
1. Federal Register Notice on Agency Information Collection Activity
The Office of Management and Budget
APPROVED:

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DISAPPROVED:

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COMMENTS:

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DATE:

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