To Streamline Process, OCTA Revises Rate Policy for Mentally Ill Bus Riders

Orange County transit board members on Monday approved a revised reduced-fare policy for mentally ill bus riders. The streamlined application process should make it simpler to qualify for the lower fares.

Advocates for the mentally ill had argued that Orange County’s requirements were too stringent and had resulted in many individuals with conditions that qualified them for federal assistance being turned away. The new procedures should go into effect before July 11.

The board also approved its largest budget ever, $695 million, for the next fiscal year. The Orange County Transportation Authority’s budget includes money for 71 new employees to aid in a planned increase in bus service.

In other business, board members voted 10 to 1 to send a letter of rebuke to the Orange County Grand Jury in response to a report issued in May. The report harshly criticized transit officials, saying they were promoting a billion-dollar rail system proposed for the county instead of studying its merits.

Supervisor Tom Wilson, chair of the transit board, wrote that the grand jury had “unjustly attacked” its efforts. Supervisor Todd Spitzer was the only board member to vote against sending the reply.