Contents

• Introduction
• Department of Transportation
• Federal Aviation Administration
• Federal Highway Administration
• Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
• Federal Railroad Administration
• Federal Transit Administration
• Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation
• Maritime Administration
• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
• Office of Inspector General
• Office of the Secretary
• Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

Summary

The Department of Transportation (DOT) is responsible for the federal regulation and funding of most modes of U.S. transportation. DOT is mainly organized into operating administrations that each oversee a mode of transportation (e.g., Federal Aviation Administration [FAA]) or maintain responsibility for a certain aspect of transportation (e.g., Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration). Two DOT offices—the Office of the Secretary (OST) and the Office of Inspector General (OIG)—have department-wide responsibilities. DOT also includes the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (GLSDC), a wholly owned government corporation that operates and maintains two locks on the St. Lawrence Seaway and other aspects of navigation infrastructure.

The Trump Administration's FY2027 budget request for DOT by operating administration and office was released in April 2026. This report compares the President's request with FY2026 enacted funding. This report also presents enacted funding for FY2022-FY2025 to provide additional context for the funding request. For surface transportation modes, FY2022-FY2026 is the period covered by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA; P.L. 117-58), which authorizes federal spending on surface transportation. Congress reportedly is developing new surface transportation reauthorization legislation, but such legislation had not been introduced as of the publication of this report. For aviation, FY2022-FY2026 spans time periods covered by the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-254) and the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 (P.L. 118-63). (FAA is the Federal Aviation Administration.) CRS derived requested and enacted funding data primarily from DOT's "budget estimates" documents.

Overall, DOT's budget request for FY2027 ($113.9 billion) is 23% lower than FY2026 enacted funding ($148.5 billion). The reduction comes mainly from

• the absence of a Trump Administration request for the provision of multiyear advance appropriations beyond FY2026 (as was provided in Division J of the IIJA), which would be a reduction of about $12.9 billion for Amtrak and other railroad grants alone;
• a requested reduction in annual appropriations for the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA's) Capital Investment Grant Program from $1.7 billion in FY2026 to $1.2 billion for FY2027;
• a requested reduction in annual appropriations for OST's National Infrastructure Investments from $145 million in FY2026 to $0 for FY2027; and
• a requested reduction in annual appropriations to OST for the Essential Air Service program from $514 million in FY2026 to $142 million for FY2027.

DOT's budget request proposes a funding increase for some of its areas of responsibility, including funding increases for

• FAA to hire more air traffic controllers,
• shipbuilding programs administered by the Maritime Administration (MARAD), and
• OST to establish a "DC Safe & Beautiful Fund."

The FY2027 budget request would increase DOT full-time equivalent (FTE) staff by about 1,400, from 52,600 in FY2026 to 54,000 in FY2027. Most of the increase would come from adding employees at FAA. MARAD FTE staff also would increase. The budget request would reduce FTEs in most other administrations and offices, mainly expected from centralization of some administrative support services (e.g., information technology) in OST. According to data from DOT, some modal administrations had fewer staff in FY2026 than in FY2025. The agencies that experienced some of the largest staff reductions in percentage terms from FY2025 to FY2026 were the Federal Highway Administration (-24%), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (-23%), FTA (-20%), Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (-10%), and Federal Railroad Administration (-9%).

Introduction

The Department of Transportation (DOT) is responsible for the federal regulation and funding of most modes of U.S. transportation. DOT is organized mainly into operating administrations that each oversee a mode of transportation (e.g., Federal Aviation Administration [FAA]) or maintain responsibility for a certain aspect of transportation (e.g., Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration [FMCSA]). Two offices—the Office of the Secretary (OST) and the Office of Inspector General (OIG)—have department-wide responsibilities. DOT also includes the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (GLSDC), a wholly owned government corporation that operates and maintains two locks on the St. Lawrence Seaway and other aspects of navigation infrastructure.

This report provides information on the Trump Administration's FY2027 budget request for DOT by operating administration and office in comparison with FY2026 enacted funding. Enacted funding for FY2022-FY2025 is presented for additional context for the funding request. For surface transportation modes, the FY2022-FY2026 period is covered by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA; P.L. 117-58), which authorizes federal spending on surface transportation. Congress reportedly is developing new surface transportation reauthorization legislation, but such legislation had not been introduced as of the publication of this report.¹ For aviation, FY2022-FY2026 spans periods covered by the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-254) and the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 (P.L. 118-63). Requested and enacted funding data are primarily derived from DOT's "budget estimates" documents.²

Along with funding information, this report describes the workforce of each administration and office in terms of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees and the requested number of FTEs for FY2027.

Department of Transportation

Overall, DOT's budget request for FY2027 ($113.9 billion) is 23% lower than FY2026 enacted funding ($148.5 billion) (Table 1). The reduction comes mainly from

• the absence of a Trump Administration request for the provision of multiyear advance appropriations beyond FY2026 (as was provided in Division J of the IIJA), which would be a reduction of about $12.9 billion for Amtrak and other railroad grants alone;
• a requested reduction in annual appropriations for the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA's) Capital Investment Grants (CIG) program from $1.7 billion in FY2026 to $1.2 billion for FY2027;
• a requested reduction in annual appropriations for OST's National Infrastructure Investments grants from $145 million in FY2026 to $0 for FY2027; and
• a requested reduction in annual appropriations to OST for the Essential Air Service (EAS) program from $514 million in FY2026 to $142 million for FY2027.

The budget request proposes funding increases for some of DOT's areas of responsibility. These include increases in funding for

• FAA to hire more air traffic controllers,
• shipbuilding programs administered by the Maritime Administration (MARAD), and
• OST to establish a "DC Safe & Beautiful Fund."³

Since early 2025, the Trump Administration has taken several actions to restructure the federal workforce with the stated goal of increasing government efficiency, including by removing probationary employees; offering employees opportunities for deferred resignation; and pursuing mass layoffs, often referred to as "reductions-in-force."⁴ In some instances, the Administration has attempted to hire more employees for certain purposes, such as air traffic control.⁵

The President's FY2027 budget request, if enacted, would increase DOT FTE staff by about 1,400, from 52,600 in FY2026 to 54,000 in FY2027 (Table 2). Most of the increase would come from adding employees at FAA. MARAD FTE staff also would increase. The budget request would reduce FTEs in most other administrations and offices, mainly expected from centralization of some administrative support services (e.g., information technology) in OST. According to data from DOT, some modal administrations had fewer staff in FY2026 than in FY2025. The following agencies experienced some of the largest staff reductions in percentage terms: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) (-24%); National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA) (-23%); FTA (-20%); Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) (-10%); and Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) (-9%).

Federal Aviation Administration

FAA programs are funded under four broad budget accounts: Operations and Maintenance (such as air traffic control and aviation safety functions); Facilities and Equipment (such as control towers and navigation beacons); grants for airports under the Airport Improvement Program (AIP); and Research, Engineering, and Development. Some potential concerns for FAA include the modernization of the air traffic control system, air traffic controller staffing, and aviation safety, including airline safety and aircraft certification.

FAA programs and activities are funded primarily through the Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF), a dedicated U.S. Treasury fund. Revenue sources for the AATF include passenger ticket taxes, segment fees, air cargo fees, and fuel taxes paid by commercial and general aviation aircraft. The majority of FAA funding comes from the AATF; supplemental appropriations provide additional funding from the General Fund of the U.S. Treasury (general fund). P.L. 119-21, the FY2025 reconciliation law, provided an additional $12.5 billion in FY2025 (available through FY2029) for air traffic control modernization initiatives.

The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 (P.L. 118-63) authorized AATF taxes and revenue collections and civil aviation program expenditures through FY2028.⁶ Some funding for FAA was provided by the IIJA as multiyear advance appropriations for FY2022-FY2026 (Table 3).⁷

Enacted FAA funding for FY2026 was about $27.2 billion. The Trump Administration's request for FY2027 is about $22.4 billion. This reduction reflects the absence in the FY2027 request of funding from the general fund for a continuation of the IIJA appropriation and supplemental annual appropriations. The President's requested funding allocation across the four FAA funding accounts is as follows: Operations and Maintenance (a requested increase of 4% in FY2027 from FY2026); Grants-in-Aid to Airports or AIP (no change); Facilities and Equipment (no change); and Research, Engineering, and Development (a requested decrease of 43% in FY2027 from FY2026).

FAA's workforce funded directly through appropriations had approximately 43,330 FTEs in FY2026. The FY2027 President's budget request seeks an increase of about 980 FTEs in FY2027 compared with FY2026 levels, largely reflecting a surge in air traffic controller hiring (Table 2).⁸

Federal Highway Administration

Federal funding for public roads is provided primarily through highway programs administered by FHWA. Congress periodically authorizes and provides funding for the highway programs through surface transportation reauthorization acts.⁹ The most recent surface transportation reauthorization legislation, the IIJA (P.L. 117-58), provided funding for the highway programs from FY2022 through FY2026.¹⁰

In the IIJA, Congress funded the highway programs with both contract authority from the Highway Trust Fund and multiyear advance appropriations from the general fund.¹¹ Contract authority from the Highway Trust Fund is the primary source of funding for the highway programs. Congress has appropriated additional funds for certain highway programs in subsequent appropriations acts. Table 4 shows FHWA funding provided in the IIJA and appropriations acts from FY2022 through FY2026. It also shows the President's budget request for FY2027. The Trump Administration's FY2027 budget request would result in a 12% decrease in funding for FHWA from FY2026, mainly due to the discontinuation of multiyear advance appropriations.¹² Contract authority from the Highway Trust Fund is requested to increase by 2%, the same year-to-year increase in contract authority provided under the IIJA from FY2022 through FY2026.¹³ The Trump Administration also requests an appropriation of $1.5 billion from the general fund. In FY2022-FY2026, Congress provided the highway programs with between $340 million and $3.4 billion per fiscal year in annual appropriations.

As in the FY2026 President's budget request, the FY2027 President's request proposes to cancel unobligated balances from prior years for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program and the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Grant Program, two federal highway programs focused on electric vehicle charging infrastructure. In February 2026, after publication of the FY2026 President's budget request and before publication of the FY2027 President's request, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 (P.L. 119-75). Among other things, this act transferred $879 million¹⁴ in unobligated funds from the NEVI Formula Program to other highway programs and activities.¹⁵ The FY2027 President's budget request would cancel $2.7 billion in unobligated NEVI funds and $1.6 billion in unobligated CFI funds.¹⁶

The Trump Administration proposes appropriating $770 million from the general fund for the Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight and Highway Program, also known as INFRA. Under the IIJA, INFRA received each fiscal year $1.0 billion from the Highway Trust Fund and $640 million in multiyear advance appropriations.

The Trump Administration also proposes appropriating from the general fund $714 million for the Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation Program, also known as the Bridge Formula Program. Under the IIJA, the Bridge Formula Program received $5.5 billion per fiscal year in multiyear advance appropriations.¹⁷ The FY2027 President's budget request would result in an 87% decrease in funding for the Bridge Formula Program.¹⁸

The FY2027 President's budget request for FHWA FTEs is 2,146, about 50 fewer FTEs than in FY2026. Some of this proposed reduction reflects a request to consolidate some functions in OST. A workforce of 2,146 would be a reduction of 750 FTEs from FY2025 (a decrease of 26%) (Table 2).¹⁹

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

FMCSA was established in 2000 to improve highway safety through regulation of equipment and operating standards for commercial motor vehicle operators. The IIJA authorized funding for FMCSA from FY2022 through FY2026. As with previous authorization acts, the IIJA provided budget authority mainly in the form of contract authority, with funds drawn from the Highway account of the Highway Trust Fund. The IIJA also provided funding through multiyear advance appropriations from the general fund. FMCSA has not received annual appropriations over the FY2022-FY2026 period (Table 5).

The President's FY2027 request for FMCSA totals $946 million in contract authority, with no multiyear advance appropriations as provided in FY2022-FY2026. This would be a 2% increase in contract authority and an 11% decrease overall from the FY2026 funding level. According to DOT, FMCSA's workforce in FY2026 was 1,151 FTEs. The Administration is proposing to increase staffing from 1,151 FTEs in FY2026 to 1,189 FTEs in FY2027, a 3% increase (Table 2). Most FMCSA FTEs are funded by contract authority, so staffing is generally not affected by the lack of multiyear appropriations. For FY2027, the Office of Safety would account for 80% of FMCSA's staff.²⁰

Federal Railroad Administration

FRA provides funding to monitor and enforce compliance with rail safety regulations, conduct rail research and development, subsidize the capital and operating expenses of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak), and award grants to improve passenger and freight rail infrastructure, service, and equipment.

The FRA Safety and Operations account supports the agency's headquarters staff and its safety management teams distributed across the country. FRA administers annual funding for Amtrak, which is divided into separate grants for the Northeast Corridor (the line connecting Boston, New York City, and Washington, DC) and the National Network (including short-distance routes that receive operating support from states and long-distance routes fully funded by Amtrak). FRA administers numerous grant programs that make funding available for states and/or rail carriers to improve or expand their infrastructure. These include the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvement (CRISI) grant program established by the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (P.L. 114-94; FAST Act), which can fund a wide variety of rail projects, and the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail program (FSP; also called the National Rail Partnership) established by the IIJA, which is limited to projects that improve or expand intercity passenger—as opposed to commuter or freight—rail service.

Unlike the authorizations for highways and public transportation, the authorization for freight and passenger rail does not provide contract authority; until the IIJA was enacted, all rail programs relied exclusively on annual appropriations. The IIJA provided a large nominal increase in annual federal funding for rail programs when compared with amounts appropriated pursuant to the previous authorizing legislation (the FAST Act) and provided $66.0 billion in multiyear advance appropriations for Amtrak and several competitive discretionary grant programs from FY2022 to FY2026.²¹

The President's FY2027 budget request includes $2.8 billion in annual appropriations for FRA programs, an increase of $817 million from the $2.0 billion appropriated in FY2026.²² FY2026 appropriations included a rescission of $929 million that was originally appropriated for high-speed rail development grants in FY2010; not counting this rescission, annual appropriations would instead decrease by $112 million relative to FY2026. Overall funding for Amtrak would be reduced from $2.4 billion to $2.1 billion, with a $200 million reduction in the Northeast Corridor allocation (reducing it to $650 million, a 24% decrease) and a $127 million reduction for the National Network (reducing it to $1.5 billion, an 8% decrease).²³ Amtrak does not intend to publish a separate budget request for FY2027 as it has in the past. Amtrak's FY2024-FY2029 "Five-Year Plans" for Service and Asset Lines appear to assume a larger federal funding commitment than what is included in the FY2027 President's budget request.²⁴ Funding levels for FRA Safety and Operations in the President's FY2027 budget request are proposed to be increased by $6 million, while Research and Development funding is proposed to be reduced by $14 million to $26 million, which would be its lowest level (in nominal terms) since FY2001.

The President's FY2027 budget requests $300 million for the CRISI program and $100 million for the Railroad Crossing Elimination program established by the IIJA, with no additional funds requested for FSP or other programs. In FY2026, in addition to the final year of advance appropriations from the IIJA, Congress appropriated roughly $135 million for CRISI, $64 million for FSP, and no funding for Railroad Crossing Elimination. The CRISI program is popular among smaller freight railroad companies looking to upgrade their infrastructure or equipment.²⁵ Capital projects to support intercity passenger rail service are eligible uses of CRISI funds as are projects to improve safety at railroad crossings, including by eliminating the crossing. In the absence of funds dedicated for those specific purposes, FRA and the Secretary would be able to exercise discretion in awarding grant funds among passenger, freight, or safety projects that meet eligibility criteria, potentially reducing available funding for some project types. Projects identified as part of corridor plans funded through the Corridor Identification and Development program established by the IIJA are set to be entitled to receive selection priority under FSP but not under other programs. The FY2027 President's budget request does not include any multiyear advance appropriations for rail programs, and FY2026 was the final year such funding was made available under the IIJA (Table 6).²⁶

FRA staffing grew from 893 FTEs in FY2022 to 1,112 FTEs in FY2025 as its portfolio of programs expanded, before decreasing to 1,010 FTEs in FY2026.²⁷ The President's FY2027 budget proposes a further reduction to 997 FTEs, a reduction of 13 FTEs (or 1%) relative to the previous year, and 115 FTEs (or 10%) relative to the FY2025 peak (Table 2).

Federal Transit Administration

Federal funding assistance to public transportation agencies is provided primarily through the public transportation programs administered by FTA.²⁸ The Trump Administration's request for FTA in FY2027 would be a 22% reduction from the amount provided in FY2026. The reduction primarily would be due to not requesting a continuation of multiyear advance appropriations provided in the IIJA ($4.9 billion in FY2026). The request includes $15.0 billion in contract authority (with funds drawn from the Mass Transit account of the Highway Trust Fund) that would be provided in surface transportation legislation, a 2% increase from FY2026, and $1.4 billion in annual appropriations, 27% less than in FY2026 (Table 7). The FY2027 annual appropriations request would reduce funding for the CIG program (49 U.S.C. §5309) to $1.2 billion, a 29% reduction, and eliminate funding for other purposes, including Transit Infrastructure Grants and Technical Assistance and Training funding. In FY2026, Transit Infrastructure Grants provided funding for ferries, community project funding/congressionally directed spending, and transit agency operating expenses related to safety, among other things. The FY2027 request would maintain annual appropriations for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) at $150 million.

According to DOT, FTA's workforce in FY2026 was 552 FTEs. The budget request proposes to reduce staff to 547 FTEs in FY2027. This would be a smaller workforce than existed in FY2024 when FTA had 781 FTEs (Table 2).²⁹

Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation

GLSDC is a wholly owned government corporation that operates and maintains two locks on the St. Lawrence Seaway at Massena, NY, as well as other aspects of navigation infrastructure. (Canada owns and operates the other 13 locks on the seaway.) GLSDC's budget is entirely funded from the Harbor Maintenance Tax, which is an ad valorem tax on imported and domestic cargo shipped through U.S. coastal and Great Lakes ports.

Steel manufacturers are the primary users of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence waterways, using the waterways to ship iron ore from northern Minnesota mines to steel plants located on southern shores of the Great Lakes and to import intermediate steel products through the seaway. Cargo volumes are in long-term decline largely because waterborne shipment of iron ore is no longer advantageous to newer methods of steelmaking that use scrap metal shipped by rail and truck.³⁰ Although Lake Erie is in proximity to Marcellus Shale natural gas production, this has not led to a boom in shipping gas from Lake Erie ports as it has for other U.S. ports. The Marcellus Shale gas is transported from western Pennsylvania by pipeline to the Port of Philadelphia, and natural gas has displaced the need for shipping coal on the Great Lakes, traditionally the second leading commodity after iron ore. The locks are closed in the winter due to ice and for repair and maintenance.

The President's FY2027 budget request for GLSDC is $50 million, a 31% increase from FY2026 (Table 8). The request includes a $9 million increase for GLSDC's infrastructure, 56% more than in FY2026. Requested FTE's for FY2027 are 128, which would be an increase from 125 in FY2026 (Table 2).

Maritime Administration

MARAD supports the U.S.-flag ocean shipping fleet and U.S. commercial shipyards; thus the agency is central to the President's goal of revitalizing the U.S. maritime industry.³¹ The President's FY2027 request proposes the creation of a Maritime Security Trust Fund that would provide an additional $1.4 billion to the agency. Most of this $1.4 billion would supplement discretionary funding to existing MARAD programs; $250 million would fund a new grant program for large shipyards (shipyards with more than 1,200 employees) (Table 9). Specifics of how revenue would be raised for the trust fund are not provided in the budget request other than stating the trust fund "would receive revenue from a variety of existing sources, including various existing maritime related taxes, duties, penalties, and fees."³² A bill in the 119^th Congress also calls for creation of such a trust fund, including specific taxes or fees to support it.³³

The President's FY2027 budget request also seeks a large increase in grants for small shipyards (shipyards with fewer than 1,200 employees).³⁴ This request is consistent with the President's goal of reviving commercial shipbuilding, although the requested increase for the Title XI loan program is for administering the program, not for expanding the loan portfolio.

The President also is proposing to double the size of the U.S.-flag tanker security fleet, from 10 tankers to 20 tankers, with a $168 million request. These are privately owned tankers that carry fuel for the military. The funding is designed to offset the higher cost of sailing under U.S. flag with U.S. crews and would be provided as an annual operating subsidy to enrolled carriers.³⁵ The FY2027 budget request also includes a $48 million increase for the federal Merchant Marine Academy to be used for both capital improvements and operating expenses.

Another stated objective of the Trump Administration has been to expedite the approval process for offshore oil tanker loading terminals (also known as "deepwater ports"), for which MARAD is the approving agency.³⁶ MARAD is mentioned as receiving additional FTEs in the Operating account. Deepwater ports consist of an offshore pipeline to load and unload tankers too large for harbor transit.

The proposed FTE increase from 922 in FY2026 to 982 in FY2027 would be largely for staffing the strategic sealift office (40 FTE increase) and specifically the Ready Reserve Force, which is a fleet of inactive, standby government-owned cargo ships to be used for rapid military surge deployment in the event of a national contingency (Table 2). The budget request does not indicate a reason for the requested FTE increase for the Ready Reserve Force.³⁷

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

NHTSA is responsible for motor vehicle safety, highway safety, behavioral safety programs, motor vehicle information, and automobile fuel economy programs.³⁸ NHTSA conducts research to inform safety standards on various timelines. NHTSA studies and rulemakings sometimes do not meet the deadlines set by Congress.³⁹ As technologies and designs of vehicles advance, NHTSA seeks to maintain regulations and programs at a pace that aligns with industry advancement.⁴⁰

The IIJA provided NHTSA with contract authority from the Highway Trust Fund and supplemental multiyear advance appropriations from the general fund for FY2022-FY2026. NHTSA also has received annual appropriations. The Trump Administration's FY2027 budget request of $1.3 billion would be an 11% decrease from the amount provided in FY2026 (Table 10).⁴¹ The request includes a proposed $22 million increase in amounts provided in contract authority and a $12 million increase annual appropriations compared with FY2026. Unlike in previous budget requests, there was no specific request for annual appropriations for rulemaking, enforcement, and research and analysis. The FY2027 funding request does not include advance appropriations, which provided $193 million in FY2026.

According to DOT, NHTSA's staff in FY2026 was 590 FTEs. The Trump Administration proposes staffing levels of 544 FTEs in FY2027 (Table 2). The number of FTEs at NHTSA was 762 in FY2025, up from 646 FTEs in FY2022. NHTSA has previously cited resources, funding, and workforce as factors that may affect the agency's ability to meet deadlines set by Congress to complete rulemakings, reports, and safety research.⁴²

Office of Inspector General

OIG conducts independent audits, investigations, and evaluations of DOT programs and operations, including contracts and grants. OIG is funded by annual appropriations and from FY2022 to FY2026, also was funded in part by a transfer of multiyear advance appropriations (IIJA, Division J) from other accounts. In total, OIG funding in FY2026 was $117 million. The Trump Administration has requested $105 million for FY2027, an 11% decrease (Table 11). OIG had 380 FTEs in FY2026. The Trump Administration is requesting 350 FTEs in FY2026 (Table 2).⁴³

Office of the Secretary

The Secretary of Transportation leads DOT and is the principal adviser to the President on transportation and federal transportation programs. OST develops and oversees national transportation policy and administers some grant, research, and credit programs. OST is funded by contract authority and annual appropriations. OST received multiyear advance appropriations in FY2022-FY2026 (IIJA, Division J).

The Trump Administration has requested $1.0 billion for OST in FY2027, down from $5.3 billion in FY2026 (Table 12).⁴⁴ Most of the reduction would result from the President's budget not requesting funding for the multimodal programs funded with multiyear advance appropriations in Division J of the IIJA. Some of the decrease relates to the programs funded from the Highway Trust Fund, which amounted to $359 million in FY2026 and for which the FY2027 request is $0. DOT notes that FY2027 funding is dependent on surface transportation reauthorization.⁴⁵ The request does not include annual appropriations for the National Infrastructure Investment programs MEGA and BUILD, which provide competitive grants for a wide variety of transportation projects. The request proposes a reduction in the appropriation for Payments to Air Carriers, which helps fund the EAS program, from $514 million in FY2026 to $142 million in FY2027. The EAS program provides subsidies to airlines to provide service in certain small communities.

As in the FY2026 budget request, the FY2027 request proposes to consolidate the functions of the Office of Civil Rights and the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization and Outreach into OST's Salaries and Expenses account (included in "Other" in Table 12). There is a proposed increase for Cybersecurity Initiatives to address threats to DOT's information technology and industrial control systems. The President's budget also proposes no new funding for the Rural and Tribal Infrastructure Advancement Program. The President's budget includes $403 million for a new "DC Safe and Beautiful Fund" and $60 million for DOT headquarters building consolidation.

FTEs in OST for FY2027 are requested to be 2,228, up from 1,763 in FY2026 (Table 2). According to DOT, this increase is requested to consolidate support functions into OST, such as human resources, information technology, procurement, government affairs, and communications and civil rights.

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

PHMSA is responsible for pipeline safety and the safe transport of hazardous materials (hazmat) by all transportation modes. The President is requesting $350 million for FY2027, 23% less than FY2026 (Table 13). The President's budget request does not include a continuation of multiyear advance appropriations provided in Division J of the IIJA for FY2022-FY2026. The President's budget request is proposing to reduce FTEs by 21, from 558 in FY2026 to 537 in FY2027, mostly in PHMSA's administration and financial offices (Table 2).⁴⁶

PHMSA is primarily responsible for the formulation, administration, and oversight of onshore pipeline safety regulations in the United States. The agency carries out such responsibilities through its Office of Pipeline Safety, which oversees pipeline operators, supports state pipeline safety agencies, and cooperates with other federal agencies that have pipeline safety responsibilities, among other duties. In executing its pipeline safety functions, PHMSA conducts programmatic inspections of management systems and procedures, inspects facilities and construction, investigates safety incidents, and maintains a dialogue with pipeline operators. The agency clarifies its expectations through orders, guidance manuals, and public meetings. It also administers a pipeline safety research and development program to address emerging risks and new technologies.⁴⁷

PHMSA also regulates the safe packaging of hazmat by road, rail, and water transport and provides grants for training emergency personnel to respond to hazmat incidents. PHMSA's FY2027 budget request states the following:⁴⁸

There has been tremendous growth in the shipment of hazardous materials over the past decade, largely fueled by the expansion of direct-to-consumer e-commerce sales, domestic demand for lithium-ion battery powered electronics and international demand for American energy products and chemicals.

PHMSA reports that the annual number of safety incidents involving highway transport of hazmat increased by 54%, from 16,528 incidents in 2016 to 25,423 in 2025, but the total number of injuries from those incidents decreased from 148 in 2016 to 62 in 2025.⁴⁹ This suggests that the severity of the incidents declined, emergency response capabilities improved, or both.

Footnotes