Skip to content
CapRadio

CapRadio

listen live donate
listen live donate
listen live
donate
  • News
    • News

    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
    News
    • News

    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
  • Music
    • Music

    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic

    • Daily Playlist
    Music
    • Music

    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic

    • Daily Playlist
  • Podcasts & Shows
  • Schedules
  • Events
  • Support
    • Support
    • Ways to support
    • Evergreen Donation
    • One-Time Donation
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Giving
    • Legacy Giving
    • Endowment Support
    • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • Member Newsletter

    • Fund drives
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
    Support
    • Support
    • Ways to support
    • Evergreen Donation
    • One-Time Donation
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Giving
    • Legacy Giving
    • Endowment Support
    • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • Member Newsletter

    • Fund drives
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
  • About
  • Close Menu
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
  • State Government
  •  

High Speed Rail Board Looks To Use Prop. 1A Bonds For The First Time

  •  Ben Bradford 
Tuesday, December 13, 2016 | Sacramento, CA
Listen
/
Update RequiredTo play audio, update browser or Flash plugin.
California High-Speed Rail / Flickr
 

California High-Speed Rail / Flickr

Eight years after California voters approved bonds for a high-speed rail train, the project is seeking to tap those funds. The High Speed Rail Authority authorized the first use of Proposition 1A bonds Tuesday. The money comes with lots of strings and has prompted a new lawsuit.

So far, the project has relied on a mix of state, federal, and local funding, because once the bond funding is used, Proposition 1A sets out tight requirements for the project, from speeds the trains must reach to route lines they have to take.

The idea was to make sure the state didn’t divert the money to other projects, but rail authority board chairman Dan Richard says it also complicates build-out of the bullet train.

"I would suggest to people in the future who want to do something like this that writing engineering standards into a ballot measure might not be the best thing to do," Richard says. "But it is the law, that was the way the law was written, and we are complying with the law."

That compliance has required careful navigation. The bonds must be used to 1) complete segments of track, 2) where high-speed rail can run 3) without state subsidies.

The authority voted to use about a third of the bond money to help fund a 119-mile segment of track in the Central Valley and electrification of Caltrain lines from San Francisco to San Jose.

To comply with the ballot measure, the Central Valley segment will be built so that high-speed trains could run on it, but none will.

"It will not provide standalone high-speed rail operations until it is connected to the wider high-speed rail system," says a report from an independent consultant hired by the rail authority.

Since no high-speed trains will run in the sparsely-populated region, the segment will not require subsidies.

Meanwhile, in the Bay Area, electrification benefits Caltrain in the near-term, but high-speed rail will ultimately connect to it and run along the tracks.

The board argues these uses meet the bond measure's requirements.

The arguments will be tested in court. An attorney for project opponents, Stuart Flashman, told the board he’s filed a new lawsuit.

"What you should be doing is going back to voters and saying 'this is what we want to do with this money,' and 'please give us permission to do it.' You haven’t done that," Flashman said.

Flashman lost a previous court challenge in March. The judge ruled the project could not be out of compliance with what voters approved since it had not touched the bond money.


Follow us for more stories like this

CapRadio provides a trusted source of news because of you.  As a nonprofit organization, donations from people like you sustain the journalism that allows us to discover stories that are important to our audience. If you believe in what we do and support our mission, please donate today.

Donate Today  

    Related Stories

  • Nadine Sebai / Capital Public Radio

    Backers of Proposition 6 ‘Gas Tax Repeal’ Reveal New 2020 Ballot Initiative

    Tuesday, September 25, 2018
    Backers of a plan to repeal the gas-tax increase unveiled a new 2020 ballot initiative on Tuesday. Vote in support of Prop. 6, they say, and this new measure will get roads fixed and transportation projects funded.

 high speed rail

Ben Bradford

Former State Government Reporter

As the State Government Reporter, Ben covered California politics, policy and the interaction between the two. He previously reported on local and state politics, business, energy, and environment for WFAE in Charlotte, North Carolina.  Read Full Bio 

 @JBenBradford Email Ben Bradford

Sign up for ReCap and never miss the top stories

Delivered to your inbox every Friday.

 

Check out a sample ReCap newsletter.

Thanks for subscribing!

Thank you for signing up for the ReCap newsletter! We'll send you an email each Friday with the top stories from CapRadio.

Browse all newsletters

More State Government Stories

Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

California announces plan to convert 3 office buildings in downtown Sacramento into housing

January 31, 2023

Aaron Kehoe/AP

Backed by Newsom, California Democrats revive changes to state concealed carry law

February 1, 2023

Ariana Drehsler / CalMatters

California reparations task force zeroes in on who’d be eligible for compensation

January 30, 2023

Most Viewed

10 new California laws that go into effect in 2023

Backed by Newsom, California Democrats revive changes to state concealed carry law

Still testing positive after day 10? How to decide when to end your COVID isolation

Behind The I-80 Castle: A Drag-Racing, Beauty School Mogul’s Dream House

California coronavirus updates: Sacramento County COVID-19 transmission level is reduced to low by CDC

We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter

Most Viewed

10 new California laws that go into effect in 2023

Backed by Newsom, California Democrats revive changes to state concealed carry law

Still testing positive after day 10? How to decide when to end your COVID isolation

Behind The I-80 Castle: A Drag-Racing, Beauty School Mogul’s Dream House

California coronavirus updates: Sacramento County COVID-19 transmission level is reduced to low by CDC

Back to Top

  • CapRadio

    7055 Folsom Boulevard
    Sacramento, CA 95826-2625

    •  
      (916) 278-8900
    •  
      (877) 480-5900
    •  Contact / Feedback
    •  Submit a News Tip
  • About

    • Mission / Vision / Core Values
    • Stations & Coverage Map
    • Careers & Internships
    • Staff Directory
    • Board of Directors
    • Press
  • Listening Options

    • Mobile Apps
    • Smart Speakers
    • Podcasts & Shows
    • On-Air Schedules
    • Daily Playlist
    • Signal Status
  • Connect

    •  Facebook
    •  Twitter
    •  Instagram
    •  YouTube
  • Donate

  • Listen Live

  • Newsletters

CapRadio stations are licensed to California State University, Sacramento. © 2023, Capital Public Radio. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Website Feedback FCC Public Files: KXJZ KKTO KUOP KQNC KXPR KXSR KXJS. For assistance accessing our public files, please call 916-278-8900 or email us.