Thomas A. Rubin
Mobility Project Advisory Board
CPA, CMA, CMC, CIA, CGFM, CFM
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Thomas A. Rubin, CPA, CMA, CMC, CIA, CGFM, CFM has over thirty years of public transit experience as a senior executive in major transit agencies and as an auditor, consultant, and author. He has served well over 100 transit operators of all sizes operating almost all transit modes, metropolitan planning organizations, state departments of transportation, the U.S. Department of Transportation, industry associations, suppliers to the industry, and transit labor unions. He is currently a sole practitioner consultant specializing in major transit and educational capital projects and long-term transit capital/operations/financial planning.

Mr. Rubin founded and directed the transit industry practice of what is now Deloitte & Touche, LLP, growing it to the largest in the accounting/consulting industry, and personally selling over $100 million worth of services. He has managed projects including financial, grant, performance, and contract audits; design and implementation of management information systems; construction project management oversight; long-term operating/capital/financial planning and modeling and preparation of bond official statements and tax revenue projections; grant applications and indirect cost allocation systems; fare collection security reviews; merger and reorganization; subsidy allocation; privatization and contracting, labor negotiation, expert/expert witness work, and many other types of projects.

For the last four years, he has provided construction management oversight services for the Los Angeles Unified School District’s $14+ billion school construction and modernization program, currently the largest municipal government construction program in the U.S.

As the Chief Financial Officer of the Southern California Rapid Transit District in Los Angeles and the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District in Oakland, he was responsible for accounting, finance, information technology, management and budget, purchasing and stores, risk management, and treasury functions. At SCRTD, he directed a staff of over 300 managers, technicians, and clerical and operational employees and was responsible for a budget of approximately $200 million and served as acting General Manager on several occasions. He was responsible for the financial and compliance management of the then-largest Federal transit grant in the nation for construction of the Los Angeles Red Line subway.

Mr. Rubin has been active in the American Public Transportation Association for many years, serving on the Associate Member Board of Governors, was selected to serve as an APTA Director, and has served on numerous committees. He was a member of the Executive Committee (Board of Directors) of the California Transit Association, was Chair of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Public Transit Task Force, among other professional and industry associations.

He has made well over 100 presentations at professional and industry association seminars, including APTA, Transportation Research Board, several state transit associations, and guest lectures at major universities. In addition to dozens of professional papers, including several in peer reviewed publications, he has also frequently authored commissioned pieces for institutions such as the Reason Foundation, the Texas Public Policy Foundation, and Environmental Defense. He has testified before Congressional Committees and several state legislative committees.

He holds a B.S.B.A. in Accounting and Finance from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a M.B.A. from Indiana University-Bloomington. As a Navy Supply Corps Officer, he is a Vietnam veteran. He is a Certified Public Accountant in California and the District of Columbia (inactive), a Certified Management Accountant, a Certified Management Consultant, a Certified Internal Auditor, a Certified Government Financial Manager, and Certified in Financial Management. He served as a Director of Institute of Management Accountants and two terms on the Board of Regents of the Institute of Certified Management Accountants and a member and officer of many other civic, professional, and industry associations.

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