OFFICE OF FISCAL ANALYSIS
Legislative Office Building, Room 5200
Hartford, CT 06106 (860) 240-0200
http://www.cga.ct.gov/ofa
SB-345
AN ACT EXEMPTING VETERANS FROM PAYMENT OF THE
FARES FOR BUS PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SERVICES.
Primary Analyst: PM 3/25/22
Contributing Analyst(s): LD
Reviewer: MM
OFA Fiscal Note
State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 23 $ FY 24 $
Department of Transportation TF - Cost See Below See Below
Department of Motor Vehicles TF - Potential
Revenue Gain
Potential Potential
Note: TF=Transportation Fund
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill requires the Department of Transportation (DOT) to exempt
individuals who have a license/ID card indicating they are a veteran
from fares on state-owned or controlled buses. There are an estimated
149,000 veterans in Connecticut; however, there are only an estimated
12,150 veterans who have a license/ID card indicating they are a
veteran
1
, which is a requirement for receiving free bus service under the
bill.
The number and frequency of veterans who currently ride the bus is
unknown, therefore a range of potential costs will be discussed. If
veterans license/ID holders ride the bus at the same rate as the
population
2
, then the annual cost to the STF would be approximately
$234,000. If this population uses the bus twice as much as the population
1
According to data from the Department of Motor Vehicles.
2
The CT population is 3.6 million and there are approximately 39 million state
passenger bus trips per year, or approximately 11 trips per person per year. 2022SB-00345-R000225-FN.DOCX Page 2 of 2
then the cost would be approximately $468,000 annually. Alternatively,
and to illustrate a plausible high-end scenario, if 10% of eligible veterans
are heavy users of public bus services, meaning they regularly buy $63
monthly bus passes, then the annual cost to the STF could be up to
$919,000.
Additionally, the bill results in a potential revenue gain to the STF
due to individuals choosing to pay the $30 fee for a veterans status
license/ID card prior to their renewal date (adding the status during the
standard renewal timeframe is free).
The Out Years
The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would
continue into the future subject to inflation and the number of veterans
license /ID card holders.