Sacramento Transportation Authority Regular Meeting - October 14, 2026

This regular meeting of the Sacramento Transportation Authority (STA) was called to order with a quorum present. The transcript identifies the meeting as the October 8th regular meeting, while the date provided for this summary is October 14, 2026. Board members heard a presentation on SB1 competitive grant nominations, approved those nominations, received the annual debt program presentation, and received the executive director's report. No public comment was offered on the consent calendar or most agenda items, but one comment was made during the executive director's report.

Consent Calendar

• The consent calendar was moved by Director Talamantes, seconded by Director Sing Allen, with additional seconds from Director Gatewood. It passed unanimously by voice vote, with no public comment.

Public Comments & Testimony

• No public comments were submitted for non-agenda matters, the consent calendar, Item 8, or Item 9.
• Chad Houston, identified as an advisor to the executive director of the California Alliance for Jobs, commented during the executive director's report. He expressed the organization's interest in partnering with the STA's new transportation funding subcommittee on funding priorities, community polling, and evaluation of the current measure. He noted that his colleague Joshua Arce had previously shared polling on area projects and offered the California Alliance for Jobs as a resource for 2028 planning.

Discussion Items

• SB1 Competitive Grant Nominations (Item 8): Staff presented an overview of SB1 grant applications expected to be submitted in November. Three SB1 competitive programs have approximately $2 billion available biennially: $151 million under the Local Partnership Competitive Program, $550 million under Solutions for Congested Corridors, and $1.3 billion under the Trade Corridor Enhancement Program. Nominations are due in November, with awards expected in June 2027. The Local Partnership Program nomination is the Grant Line Road Safety Improvements Project, consisting of reconstructing 3.6 miles of Grant Line Road between White Rock Road and a location stated as Chrysanthe in the transcript, including a Class I multi-use trail, and leveraging a $25 million RAISE grant match. The Trade Corridor Enhancement Program nomination is the SAC5 managed lanes project on I-5 between US 50 and the Sacramento County/Yolo County line, adding one new high-occupancy toll lane in each direction and requesting $20 million for design funding. For Solutions for Congested Corridors, STA is advancing two nominations: the US 50 Multimodal Corridor Connections project, the highest-scoring SACOG regional priority, with five construction projects totaling $65.7 million along the US 50 corridor in Folsom, Rancho Cordova, Sacramento, and unincorporated Sacramento County; and the Placer Sacramento Gateway Phase 4 project, which includes four projects, including the Auburn Boulevard/Greenback Lane ITS project with Citrus Heights and Blue Line Light Rail Vehicle Replacements for Sacramento RT. The requested action was to authorize the executive director to submit these nominations and any necessary agreements.
• Annual Debt Program Presentation (Item 9): Staff presented a receive-and-file update on STA debt. Outstanding principal was reported as $301.76 million, all in fixed-rate debt. The 2022 bonds are expected to be paid off in fiscal year 2028, and the 2023 bonds are callable in 203 as stated in the transcript. Annual debt service currently ranges from about $20 million to a maximum of about $35 million. Debt service coverage ratios are well above the required 2.0x, and all covenants are being met. Staff stated that refinancing today would be financially unfavorable and that rates would need to improve by about 25 basis points, or 0.25%, to reach break-even, but noted the next call date is still about seven years away. A 35-year historical average chart showed current rates significantly above that average.
• Executive Director's Report (Item 10): The executive director noted that the SACOG board took action in September on the SB1 regional project prioritization after a delayed quorum, and that all submitted grants are regional priorities. In SACOG's federal funding cycle, about $46.2 million was available in the first System Preservation Program awards; Sacramento County and its cities received about $22.97 million, roughly 50%, after Sacramento County and the City of Sacramento worked together to secure a different allocation option that benefited jurisdictions that otherwise would have received no awards. The executive director also mentioned a new transportation funding subcommittee and said interest was still being accepted. On Measure A transportation awards, there were 12 applications across the five award categories, with the executive director stating that there were 11 applications across two categories and one in one category; the ITOC will meet the following Tuesday to recommend selections, with a report to the SDA board in November.

Authority Member Comments

• One board member reported that their board approved its budget and that it was the only action item, in reference to Carta. No other member comments were offered.

Key Outcomes

• The consent calendar passed unanimously.
• The board voted unanimously to authorize the executive director to submit the SB1 competitive grant nominations, including the Solutions for Congested Corridors nominations, and to execute any agreements needed to submit the applications.
• The debt program presentation was received and filed with no action required.
• No additional board action was taken on the executive director's report.