Sean Duffy

2025-04-24
Sean Duffy letter to AIP applicants on DOT compliance requirements

In an April 2025 letter, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation reminded all DOT funding recipients — including state and local governments — that they must comply with federal anti-discrimination laws, including prohibitions on race- and sex-based preferences, and must cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. The letter warns that programs or policies tied to 'diversity, equity, and inclusion' goals may violate federal law, and that issuing driver's licenses to undocumented individuals or otherwise impeding ICE could constitute noncompliance. Recipients who fail to meet these obligations risk losing federal transportation funding, facing audits, or having grant agreements terminated.

CategoriesCorrespondenceTagsDEI, Department Of Transportation, DOT, Immigration Enforcement, letter, Sean Duffy

As the source for federal transportation grants, the Puget Sound Regional Council was charged with developing a system to meet the growing need for commercial aviation. When the search for a second airport failed, they authorized the Port of Seattle to build the Third Runway, with a mandate to develop a noise abatement and mitigation program. In their effort to stop the Third Runway, the ACC argued over every detail of the Port's efforts--including property buyouts and sound insulation. The dispute was meant to be settled by a three member Expert Arbitration Panel. This is their final report. It finds 2-1, that the Port's program was insufficient in several respects. Despite that, funding for the Third Runway was approved by the PSRC, and the 'Port Package' program, proceeded largely unchanged. Expert Arbitration Panel's final decision finding that the Port of Seattle had not shown sufficient reduction in real on-the-ground noise impacts to satisfy noise reduction conditions required for approval of a third runway at Sea-Tac International Airport. The majority decision concluded the Port's noise abatement programs were insufficient despite being impressive in scope.

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