A seasoned panel of legal experts joined APTA’s Center for Transportation Excellence (CFTE) for its second webinar of 2026,“Route to Transit Ballot Success: What to Ask Your Lawyer & When.” The webinar broke how transit campaigns can work effectively with legal counsel to navigate the legal components and requirements of your ballot initiative.

Moderated by Jessica Grennan, Executive Director of CFTE, the discussion featured insights from the following: 

  • Shayna van Hoften, Hanson Bridgett LLP Public Transit & Transportation Practice Group Chair, a government ethics and governance expert.
  • John Putnam, Kaplan Kirsch LLP Partner, an attorney who represents transit, rail, and other transportation-related public-sector clients across the country.
  • Jonathan Gaul, City of Atlanta Department of Law Deputy Operations Division Chief,  an attorney working with the City’s Department of Transportation (“ATLDOT”) on range of transit legal issues.

Each shared practical lessons on navigating the legal, political, and strategic realities behind transit ballot initiatives, including:

Legal strategy must start early: Bring legal counsel in at the very start of the planning process, not after key decisions have already been made. Early engagement helps agencies confirm they have the legal authority to pursue a ballot measure in the first place. As van Hoften put it:”If you’re looking at a tax and you haven’t called your lawyer yet, you’re already late.”

Know the rules, and understand they vary by state: Putnam stressed the importance of fully understanding the legal “rules of the game” before drafting a measure. That preparation includes assessing political feasibility, identifying legal constraints, and considering long-term risks tied to project execution and public trust. It is also crucial to have state-specific legal expertise, because tax structures, funding mechanisms, and ballot language requirements differ from state to state and locality to locality.

Separate agency activities from campaign activities: In many states, public agencies are prohibited from using public resources to advocate for or against a ballot measure, even while educating the public about the proposal. Attorneys can help agencies avoid compliance issues by establishing those boundaries early.

Do your homework on political and operational feasibility: Legal preparation should go hand in hand with assessing political viability, identifying constraints, and anticipating long-term execution risks. Gaul encouraged agencies to use polling, stakeholder outreach, and community engagement not just as campaign tactics, but as tools for realistic self-assessment of both voter appetite and agency capacity to deliver.

Think beyond election day: Ballot initiatives aren’t isolated campaigns; they set expectations and shape public trust for years to come. Agencies should consider how future economic conditions, competing measures, or project delays could affect their ability to follow through on commitments made to voters.

For APTA members, the webinar reinforced a central lesson: successful transit ballot initiatives require more than public support. They depend on early legal guidance, strategic coordination, realistic planning, and a clear understanding of both the opportunities and risks involved. As agencies continue exploring local funding solutions, these lessons will remain critical to building durable and trustworthy transit investments.

A recording of this webinar, and past webinars, is available on APTAU.

This re-cap was repurposed from an article by Nicole Watkins, CFTE Research Director, and was originally published on Passenger Transport, APTA’s news center, on May 28, 2026.