Up to 400 employees at the Regional Transportation District will be subject to layoffs under the agency’s approved budget, along with the elimination of hundreds of vacant positions.

The Denver Post reported that RTD’s board of directors approved the $1.2 billion budget on Tuesday by a vote of 11-4. Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1001, RTD’s largest labor organization, had stridently opposed layoffs. The budget also included salary cuts of between 3.5% and 7.5% for those earning more than $120,000.

That same day, Gov. Jared Polis sent a letter to RTD saying he was “deeply concerned” about the layoffs and requested more transparency about the $232 million in federal funding the agency received through the CARES Act this year to relieve costs of the COVID-19 pandemic. He also asked for a briefing to the new independent accountability committee about RTD’s moves to cut salaries and lower overhead costs.

“Notably, it is particularly important that these front line layoffs be delayed until it is clear whether Congress will be providing more relief to struggling transit agencies and local governments,” Polis wrote.

Prospects for another round of federal stimulus remain uncertain, with talks between the White House, House Democrats and Senate Republicans stalled since before the election.

“We have to get something and we have to get it done very soon,” U.S. Rep. Jason Crow said on Tuesday night during a telephone town hall with constituents.

“I’m working hard and pushing hard to get another stimulus bill passed,” he added. “I’m a firm believer that a stimulus or relief bill that comes too late is not a relief bill. If the money does not come at the right time, when businesses and families need it the most, then it’s not going to be helpful to anybody.”

Even if another COVID-19 relief bill makes it to the president’s desk this year, there is a good chance the kind of aid Polis and the union anticipate will not be part of it: assistance to state and local governments – including entities like RTD – has been a major sticking point in negotiations.