April 24, 2019 Sound Transit Board of Directors Mr. Peter Rogoff, CEO 401 S Jackson St Seattle, WA 98104 Dear Mr. Rogoff and Boardmembers: We are writing to express support for reforming Sound Transit’s fare enforcement program. We appreciate the recent discussion of and attention to this urgent equity issue at the March 28th board meeting and the April 16th Regional Transit Committee meeting. As a next step in this process, we would like to request that Sound Transit work closely with impacted communities, advocates, and agency partners, in order to achieve regional consistency and more equitable outcomes. While Sound Transit currently conducts fare enforcement similarly to many agencies around the country, recent studies​ suggest that these practices lead to inequitable outcomes by race, immigration status, income, and housing status, are conducted at significant cost to the public, and have questionable effectiveness in reducing fare evasion. Faced with new evidence, ​a number of agencies​ across the country, including Portland’s TriMet, Washington D.C.’s Metro, and King County Metro have begun to reform their fare enforcement practices. We hope that Sound Transit can make similar policy and program shifts based on the needs of its riders. We are encouraged by the work of the new Office of Equal Employment Opportunity, Equity & Inclusion. We are thrilled to hear that an internal Sound Transit workgroup has begun discussing fare enforcement reform and that the agency also plans to develop a broader equity policy. As this work progresses, we ask you to consider the following: 1. Engage with impacted communities and advocates throughout Sound Transit’s tri-county district​. Equitable outcomes and program success are most achievable with community engagement and buy-in. This includes directly engaging, through focus groups, surveys, interviews, and/or a steering committee process, with riders who are disproportionately impacted by the outcomes of fare enforcement interactions and citations. 2. As part of this engagement, use fare enforcement interactions to better understand upstream issues​. While designing a new approach, enter a period of “Education Mode” where Fare Enforcement Officers conduct a brief survey with riders who cannot show proof of payment, instead of issuing a warning or citation. This is an opportunity to collect information on causes of fare non-payment and invite rider participation in program design, as well as to inform riders of existing reduced fare programs. 3. Collaborate with partner agencies​. With the close integration of Sound Transit Link Light Rail and current and future bus service throughout the tri-county district, consistency of fare enforcement policies across these agencies reduces rider confusion. This is an important opportunity to engage authentically with the community and advance values of equity and inclusion by making sure that our regional transportation system works for all people, regardless of race, immigration status, income, housing status, gender, LGBTQ+ status and more. The public’s investments in the transit network has the potential to transform the prosperity, health, and sustainability of our region for the better — and a primary duty of the agency is to ensure the greatest number of people can benefit from these investments and that the institutional power of Sound Transit is oriented toward access, justice, and equity. Sincerely, Puget Sound Sage Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness Transportation Choices Coalition Transit Riders Union One America 350 Seattle Mother Nation Asian Counseling & Referral Services Puyallup Watershed Initiative Active Transportation Community of Interest Ballard Community Task Force on Homelessness and Hunger Rainier Beach Action Coalition Casa Latina Real Change Cascade Bicycle Club Rooted in Rights Cham Refugee Community Seattle Debre Mihret St. Michael Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church Chief Seattle Club Seattle Human Services Coalition Church Council of Greater Seattle Seattle Indian Health Board Coalition to End Urban Indigenous Homelessness Seattle Indian Services Commission Colectiva Legal del Pueblo Seattle Neighborhood Greenways Downtown on the Go Seattle Subway East African Community Services Seattle Women's Commission El Centro de la Raza Sierra Club Front and Centered Tacoma-Pierce County Affordable Housing Consortium FUSE Washington Tenants Union of Washington State Futurewise UAW 4121 Got Green UFCW 21 Homesight United Indians Housing Development Consortium Washington CAN Interim CDA Youth Care LGBTQ Allyship