18 Organizations Call on U.S. Secretary of Transportation to Ensure Equity in Infrastructure Spending

WASHINGTON, DC — This week, the Appleseed Foundation, the Shriver Center on Poverty Law, and 16 members of the Appleseed Network and the Shriver Center’s Legal Impact Network joined together in an urgent letter to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. The organizations call on Secretary Buttigieg to ensure that all Americans, regardless of race, color, or national origin, benefit from the newly passed Bipartisan Infrastructure Law by putting Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 at the forefront of the federal government’s funding decisions and spending oversight.

​​Title VI forbids discrimination, denial of benefits, and exclusion from participation in any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance on the grounds of race, color, or national origin. By calling on Secretary Buttigieg to ensure the Office of the Secretary of Transportation has a robust and effective Title VI program, a process for public complaints and transparency in Title VI program evaluations, and vigilant enforcement of existing Title VI regulations that prevent discrimination, the organizations hope to guarantee that the benefits of the historic infrastructure package are felt by all.

Historically, transportation funding decisions have had lasting negative impacts on marginalized communities, particularly communities of color, across the country. As President Biden has acknowledged, “Many urban interstate highways were deliberately built to pass through Black neighborhoods, often requiring the destruction of housing and other local institutions. To this day, many Black neighborhoods are disconnected from access to high-quality housing, jobs, public transit, and other resources.”

“Laws and policies with an intent to forward equity rarely do so without accountability. The Biden Administration has an incredible opportunity to be intentional in sustaining and creating pathways for equity with the historic passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. We hope this letter can provide guidance on ways Title VI programs must hold the Office of the Secretary accountable to ensuring that the needs of all communities, regardless of race, color, or national origin, are not overlooked or ignored,” said Nyah Berg, executive director of New York Appleseed.

Renée Steinhagen, director of New Jersey Appleseed, added, “We look forward to the next few years, where the Department of Transportation will institutionalize and integrate the rhetoric of social and racial equity into all its programs, operations, and grants to local agencies.”

The letter concludes by acknowledging the urgency of the Department of Transportation affirmatively engaging with impacted communities to ensure Title VI compliance in the planning, implementation and operation of infrastructure projects and aggressively enforcing Title VI requirements.

“We’re encouraged by how seriously the Department is taking current Title VI complaints,” said Madison Sloan of Texas Appleseed, which filed a 2021 complaint against the further expansion of a Houston highway into communities of color. “Ensuring that grantees take the rights of the most affected communities seriously will result in a more sustainable and equitable transportation system for everyone.”

Read the full letter here.