Recently, advocacy groups in Eau Claire, WI rallied to demand more funding for transit and to create a Regional Transit Authority (RTA) that would support future transit expansion.
Why are we interested in Eau Claire?
With fewer than 70,000 residents and representing the seventh largest metro in Wisconsin, a multi-year, organized transit advocacy effort across multiple organizations is unexpected. This effort refutes commonly held ideas that smaller metros don't want transit.
Which advocates are involved?
Stemming from news reports, the two most organized groups supporting this rally include JONAH and the Chippewa Valley Transit Alliance (CVTA). JONAH, a faith-based social justice non-profit created in 2007, and the CVTA, a 501(c)(3) representing the interests of the multi-modal transportation community within the Eau Claire region since 2019. In the past, the state-enabling legislation was sponsored by State Sen. Jeff Smith (D-31-Brunswick), but there’s no evidence that the bill was re-introduced this session.
And while public agencies don’t typically create advocacy arguments, Eau Claire Transit created an impassioned plea for more transit.
What change are they seeking?
Over the past few years, JONAH and the CVTA have advocated for more funding to expand transit services and state legislation to create an RTA.
A change to the 2023-25 Wisconsin biennial budget (pg. 526) authorized RTA’s in Dane County, Southeast Wisconsin, and the Fox Cities. Unfortunately, the authorization does not automatically extend to all metropolitan regions of the state, including Eau Claire. However, the budget does allow for two or more political subdivisions in the same metropolitan area to form an RTA with the passage of joint resolutions by the member jurisdictions. Within the budget language, Eau Claire is expressly permitted to pursue this path.
This authorization changes things a bit in that the Wisconsin State Senate no longer needs to pass a resolution and Eau Claire may be able to move forward with their local governments independently. It's very much a reversal of fortunes and a change from the 2011 legislative decision to strip authorizations from all RTA’s statewide.
Additionally, these advocates sought more funding for transit statewide. Wisconsin struggles to robustly fund transit on this level, leaving supporters to wonder who, if anyone, will advocate for transit inside the state legislature.
You can view WQOW's reporting on the rally below.
What questions do we have?
With this budget change, we are left wondering how Eau Claire’s advocates will change their strategy. Given that they held their rally when the state legislature wasn’t in session, they may not be targeting the development of support in the legislature. Additionally, given that the budget biennium was passed in 2023, have any new RTA's been formed under this new permission structure?
What's next for this campaign?
Absent the need for authorizing legislation, they may be able to move forward faster. If you want to learn more about their advocacy work, follow Eau Claire Transit on Facebook or take any number of actions with Jonah Justice.
