Daines Announces over $700,000 in Funding for Tribal Transportation

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Senator Steve Daines today announced more than $700,000 in funding for tribal public transit services for the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, the Fort Belknap Indian Community and the Crow Tribe.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) provides approximately $5 million competitive grant funding through the Public Transportation on Indian Reservations Program (Tribal Transit Program) for FY14/15 to support planning, capital, and, in limited circumstances, operating assistance for tribal public transit services. 

Three Montana tribes were selected for these competitive grants, totaling:

  •  $300,000 for the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes
  •  $220,000 for the Fort Belknap Indian Community
  •  $193,731 for the Crow Tribe

“These grants will provide Montana tribes with critical funding to improve and increase the efficiency of public transit services for tribal members,” Daines stated. “I’m glad to see the Crow Tribe, the Fort Belknap Indian Community and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes succeed in this competitive grant process and appreciate their commitment to meeting the transportation needs of Montana’s tribal communities.” 

The Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, a five-year surface transportation reauthorization bill that was signed into law on December 4, 2015, authorized $35 million annually from FY2016 through FY2020 for the Public Transportation on Indian Reservations Program, a $5 million increase over previous years.

###