Santee Wateree Regional Transportation Authority

Santee Wateree Regional Transportation Authority (SWRTA), a U.S. local government transit authority headquartered in Sumter, South Carolina, receives Federal Transit Administration (FTA) formula grant funding to operate shared-ride public transportation services and maintain transit assets serving the urbanized areas of Sumter and Kershaw Counties. SWRTA is a prime grant recipient, not a federal contractor, and does not hold federal procurement contracts or seats on contract vehicles; the organization competes for and receives FTA formula grants under CFDA 20.507 (Federal Transit Formula Grants) and related programs.

SWRTA's federal funding footprint is concentrated entirely within the Department of Transportation's Federal Transit Administration, which accounts for 28 of 32 awards (91% coverage). Recent prime grant awards include $2.136 million obligated May 13, 2026, for preventive maintenance ($500,000) and operating assistance ($755,855) under the Federal Transit Formula Grants program, with completion March 30, 2032; $4.17 million awarded September 3, 2025, combining FY2020 and FY2021 Section 5307 funds for bus rolling stock, transit enhancements, support equipment and facilities, preventive maintenance, and operating assistance, with completion March 30, 2034; and $1.168 million in FY2018–FY2019 Section 5307 funds awarded March 2, 2022, for capital purchases, preventive maintenance, and operating assistance, with completion June 30, 2025. SWRTA has also received American Rescue Plan Act emergency relief grants: $824,267 in FFY2021 Section 5307 funds awarded January 14, 2022, and $274,516 awarded August 17, 2021, both designated 100% federal share for preventive maintenance and operating assistance. An additional $8,479 in FFY2021 Section 5310 funds was awarded September 20, 2024, for operating assistance in Kershaw County coordinated with the United Way. SWRTA also holds a Section 5339 capital grant award of $400,000 in federal funds (plus $100,000 in state funds) from July 30, 2022, for bus rolling stock and support equipment and facilities. As a sub-recipient, SWRTA has received three sub-grant awards from a pass-through entity for Section 5311 rural transportation funding (July 1, 2022, July 1, 2023, and July 1, 2024) supporting administration, operations, and capital assistance. Combined obligated dollars across all awards total $28.5 million, with activity concentrated in the past five years: four awards in 2022, one in 2023, two in 2024, one in 2025, and one in 2026. SWRTA's federal role is exclusively as a grant recipient delivering public transportation operations and asset maintenance to rural and urbanized populations in Sumter and Kershaw Counties; the organization does not serve as a federal contractor, subcontractor, or procurement sub-recipient.