State legislators, Bay Area officials call for protecting transportation funding in budget despite deficit

A group of state legislators called on leadership this week to protect funding for public transit systems after Gov. Gavin Newsom suggested cuts in his proposed budget.

The letter — addressed to Senate President pro Tempore Toni Atkins, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and the chairs of the budget committees and subcommittees in the Senate and Assembly — argues that the state’s transit agencies, still reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic, will require state funding support to stay afloat in the coming years.