BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 615|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 615
Author: Bonnie Lowenthal (D), et al.
Amended: 9/2/11 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 6-2, 7/5/11
AYES: DeSaulnier, Huff, Kehoe, Lowenthal, Pavley, Rubio
NOES: Gaines, Harman
NO VOTE RECORDED: Simitian
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 6-3, 8/25/11
AYES: Kehoe, Alquist, Lieu, Pavley, Price, Steinberg
NOES: Walters, Emmerson, Runner
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : Not relevant
SUBJECT : High-speed rail
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill appropriates $4 million for planning
phase II high-speed rail service between Los Angeles and
San Diego via Riverside.
Senate Floor Amendments of 9/2/11 delete all language in
the bill except for a $4 million appropriation for
high-speed rail planning.
ANALYSIS : In November 2008, California voters approved
Proposition 1A, the Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger
CONTINUED
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Train Bond Act for the 21st Century of 2008 (Proposition
1A). The $9.95 billion bond measure provides $950 million
for improving conventional rail services connecting to the
high-speed rail line and $9 billion for high-speed rail
development. Of the remaining $9 billion, $900 million is
for the project's planning, environmental analysis, and
preliminary engineering. Proposition 1A limits the
expenditure of the $8 billion available for construction to
not more than 50 percent of the cost of building the
systems. Proposition 1A identifies the Phase I corridor
for high-speed rail as an alignment from the San Francisco
Transbay Terminal to the Los Angeles Union State and
Anaheim via the San Joaquin Valley. The total estimated
cost of Phase I is between $43 and $65 billion.
Proposition 1A defines the capital cost for which bond
revenues may be used to include acquisition of property,
acquisition and construction of tracks, structures, power
systems, and stations; acquisition of train equipment;
mitigation of direct and indirect environmental impacts;
relocation assistance; and other related capital
facilities, including financing and refinancing if
authorized by a subsequent statute. It also authorizes the
HSRA to contract for services and equipment for developing
and operating the high-speed train service.
In January 2010, HSRA received an American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA) grant of $2.25 billion to aid in
the development of the Phase I project. Of that amount,
$400 million is for constructing the basement of the new
Transbay Terminal in San Francisco to accommodate
high-speed trains. According to the Federal Railroad
Administration's (FRA) announcement of its ARRA award, the
remaining $1.85 billion is for purchasing right-of-way,
constructing track, signaling systems, and stations, and
completing environmental reviews and engineering documents
for the Los Angeles/ Anaheim segment, the San Francisco/San
Jose segment, the Fresno/ Bakersfield segment, and the
Merced/Fresno segment. In a second round of federal
funding the HSRA received approximately $1.3 billion, and
in a third round of funding the HSRA received $300 million
from funds declined by Florida. The HSRA and the FRA
jointly selected a segment from near Fresno to near
Bakersfield as the first construction segment. Between
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federal funds and state bond funds, the HSRA has committed
about $5.7 billion for this Central Valley project. As a
condition of the ARRA grants, the HSRA must complete
construction by September 30, 2017.
This bill appropriates $4 million from the High-Speed
Passenger Train Bond Fund for acquisition and design of the
Los Angeles to San Diego segment.
Comments
The Budget Bill includes an appropriation for phase II
planning on the high-speed rail segments from Sacramento to
Merced and from Stockton to the Bay Area via Altamont Pass.
The San Diego planning money was inadvertently excluded
from the Budget.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: Yes Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 9/6/11)
California High-Speed Rail Authority
Californians for High-Speed Rail
JJA:mw 9/6/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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