Local Standards: Transportation

Disclaimer: IRS Collection Financial Standards are intended for use in calculating repayment of delinquent taxes. These Standards are effective on April 1, 2013 for purposes of federal tax administration only. Expense information for use in bankruptcy calculations can be found on the website for the U.S. Trustee Program.

Download the transportation standards in PDF format for printing. Please note that the standard amounts change, so if you elect to print them, check back periodically to assure you have the latest version.

The transportation standards for taxpayers with a vehicle consist of two parts: nationwide figures for monthly loan or lease payments referred to as ownership costs, and additional amounts for monthly operating costs. The operating costs include maintenance, repairs, insurance, fuel, registrations, licenses, inspections, parking and tolls (These standard amounts do not include personal property taxes).

Ownership Costs

The ownership costs, shown in the table below, provide the monthly allowances for the lease or purchase of up to two automobiles. A single taxpayer is normally allowed one automobile. For each automobile, taxpayers will be allowed the lesser of:

1. the monthly payment on the lease or car loan, or
2. the ownership costs shown in the table below.

If a taxpayer has no lease or car loan payment, the amount allowed for Ownership Costs will be $0.

Operating Costs

In addition to Ownership Costs, a taxpayer is allowed Operating Costs, by regional and metropolitan area, as shown in the table below. For each automobile, taxpayers will be allowed the lesser of:

1. the amount actually spent monthly for operating costs, or
2. the operating costs shown in the table below.

Public Transportation

There is a single nationwide allowance for public transportation based on Bureau of Labor Statistics expenditure data for mass transit fares for a train, bus, taxi, ferry, etc. Taxpayers with no vehicle are allowed the standard amount monthly, per household, without questioning the amount actually spent.

If a taxpayer owns a vehicle and uses public transportation, expenses may be allowed for both, provided they are needed for the health and welfare of the taxpayer or family, or for the production of income. However, the expenses allowed would be actual expenses incurred for ownership costs, operating costs and public transportation, or the standard amounts, whichever is less.

If the amount claimed for Ownership Costs, Operating Costs or Public Transportation is more than the total allowed by the transportation standards, the taxpayer must provide documentation to substantiate those expenses are necessary living expenses.

Public Transportation

National	$182

Ownership Costs

	One Car	Two Cars
National	$517	$1034

Operating Costs

	One Car	Two Cars
Northeast Region	$278	$556
Boston	$277	$554
New York	$342	$684
Philadelphia	$299	$598
Midwest Region	$212	$424
Chicago	$262	$524
Cleveland	$226	$452
Detroit	$295	$590
Minneapolis-St. Paul	$216	$432
South Region	$244	$488
Atlanta	$256	$512
Baltimore	$250	$500
Dallas-Ft. Worth	$277	$554
Houston	$312	$624
Miami	$346	$692
Washington, D.C.	$277	$554
West Region	$236	$472
Los Angeles	$295	$590
Phoenix	$291	$582
San Diego	$301	$602
San Francisco	$306	$612
Seattle	$192	$384

For Use with Allowable Transportation Table

The data for the Operating Costs section of the Transportation Standards are provided by Census Region and Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA).  The following table lists the states that comprise each Census Region.  Once the taxpayer’s Census Region has been ascertained, to determine if an MSA standard is applicable, use the definitions below to see if the taxpayer lives within an MSA (MSAs are defined by county and city, where applicable).  If the taxpayer does not reside in an MSA, use the regional standard.

MSA Definitions by Census Region

Northeast Census Region:  Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey

MSA	COUNTIES
Boston	in MA: Bristol, Essex, Hampden, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, Suffolk, Worcester
	in NH: Hillsborough, Merrimack, Rockingham, Strafford
	in CT: Windham
	in ME: York
New York	in NY: Bronx, Dutchess, Kings, Nassau, New York, Orange, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk, Westchester
	in NJ: Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union, Warren
	in CT: Fairfield, Litchfield, Middlesex, New Haven
	in PA: Pike
Philadelphia	in PA: Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, Philadelphia
	in NJ: Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Salem
	in DE: New Castle
	in MD: Cecil

Midwest Census Region: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa

MSA	COUNTIES (unless otherwise specified)
Chicago	in IL: Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, Will
	in IN: Lake, Porter
	in WI: Kenosha
Cleveland	in OH: Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage, Summit
Detroit	in MI: Genesee, Lapeer, Lenawee, Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, St. Clair, Washtenaw, Wayne
Minneapolis-St. Paul	in MN: Anoka, Carver, Chisago, Dakota, Hennepin, Isanti, Ramsey, Scott, Sherburne, Washington, Wright
	in WI: Pierce, St. Croix

South Census Region:  Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, District of Columbia, Delaware, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama

MSA	COUNTIES (unless otherwise specified)
Atlanta	in GA: Barrow, Bartow, Carroll, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry, Newton, Paulding, Pickens, Rockdale, Spalding, Walton
Baltimore	in MD: Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, Howard, Queen Anne’s, Baltimore city
Dallas-Ft. Worth	in TX: Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Henderson, Hood, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant
Houston	in TX: Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, Waller
Miami	in FL: Broward, Miami-Dade
Washington, D.C.	in DC: District of Columbia
	in MD: Calvert, Charles, Frederick, Montgomery, Prince George’s, Washington
	in VA: Arlington, Clarke, Culpeper, Fairfax, Fauquier, King George, Loudoun, Prince William, Spotsylvania, Stafford, Warren, Alexandria city, Fairfax city, Falls Church city, Fredericksburg city, Manassas city, Manassas Park city
	in WV: Berkeley, Jefferson

West Census Region:  New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Nevada, Utah, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California, Alaska, Hawaii

MSA	COUNTIES (unless otherwise specified)
Los Angeles	in CA: Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura
Phoenix	in AZ: Maricopa, Pinal
San Diego	in CA: San Diego
San Francisco	in CA: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma
Seattle	in WA: Island, King, Kitsap, Pierce, Snohomish, Thurston

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