Bracing for budget crisis, Metra agreed to pay lobbyist as much as $4.65M for work on transit fiscal cliff

Chicago Tribune

20-03-2025

Metra agreed to pay its lobbyist as much as $4.65 million in part for work related to a looming transit budget crisis, even as agency leaders brace for a potential shortage of cash caused by the same crisis.
The five-year lobbying contract is in effect as the the region's four transit agencies, including Metra, stare down a $771 million budget gap when federal COVID-19 relief funding runs out next year. Agency heads and advocates have warned that steep service cuts and fare hikes are at stake unless transit gets additional state money.
Yet last year alone, Metra spent more than $602,000 on lobbyists for help with the budget cliff, along with work on Metra's transition to a less commuter-focused service and advancing other Metra interests at the federal, state and regional level, according to public expense data and a copy of the lobbying contract, which took effect about a year ago.
Such spending on lobbyists is, perhaps, expected, but fails to follow the best interests of taxpayers and riders, said Justin Marlowe, director of the Center for Municipal Finance at the University of Chicago. The spending also makes the case for reform of the way transit is overseen, he said, as two proposals are debated in Springfield that call for either consolidating the region's four transit agencies or boosting coordination among them.
'What you have is an intergovernance structure where it is, in effect, a free-for-all,' Marlowe said. 'You have money being spent on lobbying to go advance the interests of one agency that may be completely at odds with other agencies.'
The spending was OK'd as part of Metra's latest agreement with Washington, D.C.-based Tai Ginsberg and Associates, a five-year contract that began in April 2024. One of the firm's principals, Jason Tai, is a former Illinois Department of Transportation official and U.S. House Transportation Committee staffer who worked for former Illinois congressmen William and Dan Lipinski, a father and son who were instrumental in bringing infrastructure funding for transportation back to Chicago. William Lipinski later turned to a career in transportation lobbying.
Working with Tai Ginsberg is lobbying firm Raucci and Sullivan, headed by former Republican state senator Dave Sullivan.
For their work, Tai Ginsberg bills a monthly retainer of $45,000, plus another $10,000 a month for Raucci and Sullivan. The firm can bill up to another $22,500 a month if specialty Black and Hispanic caucus advocacy firms or public affairs firms are used.
For those prices, the transit fiscal cliff has become a focus of the lobbyists.
'The looming fiscal cliff will take a major effort at both the federal and state levels in order to be solved,' the firm's contract with Metra noted, adding that it would work to 'engage groups to form a consensus around addressing the transit fiscal cliff with a focus toward Metra.'
Metra spokesman Michael Gillis said despite the most recent contract, Metra had scaled back its lobbying. The rail agency used to rely on several firms and now has one contract, and also scaled back its internal legislative affairs staff, he said.
In 2017, for example, Metra renewed contracts with six politically connected lobbying firms, including a previous firm Tai worked with, the Tribune reported at the time. The total for all the firms came to nearly $2.7 million — less than Tai Ginsberg's 2024 contract.
Since April, Gillis said, Tai Ginsberg has billed only the monthly retainer and not charged extra for specialty firms.
'Set aside whether the fiscal cliff is going on, we still think we need federal and state lobbyists,' Gillis said. 'And obviously the fiscal cliff is the biggest thing probably facing us since that contract started, so it shouldn't be too surprising that we'd want them to assist us with that.'
Discussions about the fiscal cliff and future of Chicago-area transit have gained steam in Springfield this year, as transit agencies push to boost funding and lawmakers focus on the way transit is overseen. The Regional Transportation Authority has warned that failure to fill the budget gap could lead to a 40% cut in service across the CTA, Metra and Pace, which would mean a Metra line that once had 90 trains per day would be down to 54.
'Unless the legislature solves the fiscal cliff that's looming in our 2026 budget, we may look back on the 2025 version as the calm before the storm,' Metra CEO Jim Derwinski said in a statement in October as he unveiled Metra's 2025 budget.
With much of the discussion in Springfield so far focusing on oversight of transit, Marlowe, from the University of Chicago, said the fact that Metra feels it needs to spend so much money on lobbying makes a strong case for reform.
Spending to convey Metra's message makes sense, given the current setup that has multiple transit agencies vying for resources. But a more effective option would be for all of the transit agencies to make a unified case in Springfield, he said.
'Right now, in the absence of a coherent strategy and so many different incentives and people working at cross purposes, that's exactly what you'd expect is for Metra to spend (about) $5 million lobbying Springfield on behalf of its own interests,' he said.
Gillis said Metra has unique challenges, such as issues involving freight railroads that share tracks and sometimes operations with Metra, so it is helpful to have its own lobbyists.
'We are still a separate agency, and we do have concerns that do not involve the CTA, RTA or Pace,' he said.
Keeping lawmakers informed about Metra needs and maintaining communication with D.C. and Springfield helped Metra secure $105.8 million in competitive grants in 2024, Gillis said, describing the lobbyists' work on those fronts as 'contributing factors.'
Tai said the lobbyists spend a 'significant portion of time' on the transit fiscal cliff, but it isn't the only issue they work on. His firm and Raucci and Sullivan coordinate approaches at the federal and state level, he said.
Tai Ginsberg is also working on advocating for Metra funding in a major federal transportation bill up for reauthorization in 2026, he said. The lobbyists work on quick responses to federal funding decisions or changes being made by the Trump administration, and Tai highlighted federal competitive grants that have been awarded to Metra.
Much of the fiscal cliff work is focused on Springfield lawmakers, he said, pointing to a recent visit by several state legislators to a Metra facility to learn about the agency and issues relating to the budget gap. But, although it will likely be an uphill battle, his firm is continuing to work on the budget gap issue at the federal level.
'All the so-called wins, they're really the result of the leadership, the people at Metra, the congressional delegation,' he said. 'We're here to just kind of advise and navigate the sometimes not-that-exciting policies that go behind this.'