SB 63: Connect Bay Area Act
Fact Sheet
March 2026
What is SB 63?
Senate Bill 63 (Wiener/Arreguín), the Connect Bay Area Act, was enacted in 2025 and authorizes a transportation funding measure to be placed on the November 2026 ballot in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.
An authorized measure would generate approximately $980 million annually to sustain and improve transit and would be funded by a 14-year regional transportation sales tax (0,5% in each county except San Francisco, where the rate would be 1%. Any measure would be administered by the newly established Public Transit Revenue Measure District (District), governed by the same board as the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC).
What is the purpose of SB 63?
• Prevent major service cuts on BART, Muni, Caltrain and AC Transit resulting from budget shortfalls following the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Improve the transit rider experience by making transit more affordable, easier to navigate, and more accessible for all riders, including seniors and persons with disabilities. • Make other transportation improvements in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.
Where would the money go?
Approximately 63% of the money raised goes to the operation of buses, trains and ferries on BART, Muni, Caltrain, AC Transit, San Francisco Bay Ferry, East Bay bus agencies and Golden Gate Transit.
About one-third is guaranteed for Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), SamTrans, Contra Costa Transportation Authority, and Alameda County Transportation Commission, who have the flexibility to use the money for transit infrastructure and vehicles, running transit service, or paving roads with regular bus service.
Around 5% would fund improvements to the rider experience by making transit faster, more affordable, more accessible for seniors and people with disabilities, and easier to navigate with improved signage.
Finally, up to 0.22% can be used for measure administration costs incurred by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the new Public Transit Revenue Measure District. Measure proceeds can also cover specified one-time costs, such as election costs.
This fact sheet was prepared by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission.
T METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION
mtc.ca.gov | 415-778-6700
Connect Bay Area Act Expenditure Plan
33%
Local
Transportation
Improvements , 5%
Rider-Focused
Improvements
63%
Preserving
Transit Service - 0.22%
Administration
Financial Efficiency Review and Oversight
SB 63 requires a two-phase financial efficiency review of BART, Muni, Caltrain and AC Transit directed by an oversight committee. The committee includes four independent experts, four transit agency representatives and the MTC Chair or their designee.
Phase 1 will be completed before a ballot measure and will identify cost-saving measures already taken by transit agencies and ways the agencies could improve service and the rider experience without new funding. If voters approve a measure authorized by SB 63 on the November 2026 ballot, additional oversight provisions will take effect, as described below:
• Independent Oversight Committee: SB 63 requires that the District appoint an Independent Oversight Committee to confirm money distribution follows the SB 63 expenditure plan. The Independent Oversight Committee will include at least one appointee from the five counties - Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara - that comprise the District. • Maintenance of Effort: BART, Muni, Caltrain, AC Transit, Golden Gate Transit and SF Bay Ferry along with East Bay bus agencies must maintain existing levels of funding for running their transit services (with some exceptions subject to MTC approval). This requirement is intended to ensure that dollars collected as a result of SB 63 will increase, rather than replace, current money used to provide transit service.
• Additional County-Level Transit Agency Accountability: Passage of the measure would provide each of the five counties in the District with additional oversight of BART, Muni, Caltrain and AC Transit.
If a transit agency's standards with respect to fares, services, station cleanliness or maintenance are inconsistent between counties, a county may convene a binding review committee of MTC commissioners from the relevant counties with the authority to withhold a portion of measure funds from the subject agency until the issue is corrected.
• Phase 2 Financial Efficiency Review: SB 63 requires a deeper evaluation of cost structures and strategies to support financial sustainability.
2 Connect Bay Area Act Expenditure Plan
Annual Funding by Purpose and Recipient, Fiscal Year 2028 Estimate'
PRESERVING TRANSIT SERVICE
Money must be used to run and maintain transit service.
BART $310M
Muni $155M
Caltrain $70M
AC Transit $50M
East Bay Bus Agencies? and Golden Gate Transit/Ferry $20M San Francisco Bay Ferry $6M
LOCAL TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENTS
Money must be used for transit infrastructure, running transit service, and/or paving roads with regular bus service.
Santa Clara VTA $245M
SamTrans $45M
Contra Costa Transportation Authority $25M
Alameda County Transportation Commission $10M
RIDER-FOCUSED IMPROVEMENTS
Money must be used to make transit faster, more affordable, more accessible for seniors and people with disabilities, and easier to navigate with improved signage.
Transit priority projects, Clipper® START discount program, free and discounted transfers, paratransit improvements and customer navigation. $45M
ADMINISTRATION
Money must be used by the District and MTC to oversee and administer funding and programs under the measure. $2M
1 Amounts shown are net revenue after state administrative fees, estimated at $7 million in FY 2028. The fees are subject to change, but this forecast assumes the current California Department of Tax and Fee Administration rate of 0.82% for 1/2- cent counties and 0.41% for SF (1% rate). Amounts shown do not reflect one-time costs that will be covered in early years of measure (including election cost reimbursements, SB 63 required financial efficiency review costs, potential legal costs and other one-time costs tied to administering the tax ordinance). 2 East Bay bus agencies include County Connection, Tri Delta Transit, Union City Transit, WestCAT and Wheels. • Sums may not total due to rounding. Amounts greater than or equal to $20 million are rounded to the nearest $5 million. Amounts less than $20 million are rounded to the nearest $1 million.
Source: MTC analysis of an October 2025 assessment of projected net revenues by HDL Companies • 3
Service Areas of Transit Agencies Funded by a Connect Bay Area Act Regional Measure
Vallejo
MARIN
PITTSBURG/
BAY POINT
ANTIOCH
CONCORD O
RICHMOND
CONTRA
WALNUT CREEK
COSTA
ORINDA
-MACARTHUR
OAKLAND •-19TH ST ""
EMBARCADERO -LAKE MERRITT
San Francisco OSF Oakland
24TH ST
MISSION COLISEUM
OAKO
*DALY BAYFAIR • DUBLIN/
PLEASANTON
CITY CASTRO VALLEY
O SOUTH
SAN FRANCISCO HAYWARD
ALAMEDA
UNION CITY
MILLBRAE
TRANSIT
SAN MATEO
CENTER
FREMONT ?
• WARM SPRINGS
REDWOOD
PALÓALTO MILPITAS
San Jose
• BERRYESSA N. SAN JOSE
MOUNTAIN VIEW
SAN
SUNNYVALE
MATEO SANTA CLARA
SAN JOSÉ DIRIDON
BART extension
under construction SANTA
CLARA
Caltra BLOSSOM HILL O
samTrans
ПЛИЛІ
MORGAN HILL
Transocitation
Authority 16
24 East Bay • Miles
Bus Agencies a Kilometers GILROY O
0 12 24 36
San Froncisco Bay Ferry
Source: TomTom North America, 2019
Notes: Golden Gate Transit is not shown on this map, although it is expected to receive approximately $1 million/year.
Funding for VTA and SamTrans is eligible for transit capital (i.e., infrastructure and vehicle costs), operations (i.e., costs needed to run the system) and local road repairs on roads served by regular transit service. Funding for all other agencies is available only for transit operating purposes (i.e., costs needed to run the system).
East Bay Bus Agencies refers to County Connection, Tri Delta Transit, Union City Transit, WestCAT and Wheels.
The above map was made for illustrative purposes, and the precise boundaries of each transit agency can be found on its website.
This map is accurate at the time of publication, and may be subject to change. 4