California High Speed Rail Rejected for $15 Billion Loan
The California High-Speed Rail Authority can’t seem to solve their most pressing problem, one that has hung over them since the conception of the project. The state doesn’t know where to find all of the $64-billion it will cost to complete the bullet train that will run from San Francisco to Los Angeles. So,… Read more »
Billions to Be Unlocked After Approval By The High Speed Rail Board
Through a unanimous decision, the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s board, approved to unlock billions of dollars in state bonds funds that it needs to continue construction in the Central Valley and San Francisco-San Jose segments. The board approved $3.2 billion in funding from the nearly $10 billion that voters approved for a California high-speed… Read more »
Does the High Speed Rail Have Enough Funding?
Demand for the California pollution permits rebounded in the latest carbon auction after plummeting earlier this year, according to an article in The OC Register. However, the permits did not sell out. Buyers purchased just 88% of available credits, whose sales are meant to supply funding for the high-speed rail project. This is a… Read more »
What Happens If The Bullet Train Fails?
There’s a possibility that California’s bullet train project never gets beyond the current work in the San Joaquin Valley — a couple of stations and about 100 miles of track. The high speed rail project is having trouble securing the funding for the $68 billion project, and that, of course, could mean the demise of… Read more »
Proposition 53 Threatens Major California Projects, Including High Speed Rail
The political arena in California heated up over the last week as Gov. Gerry Brown stepped up his campaign against Proposition 53, which will be on the Nov. 8 ballot. Dean Cortopassi, a wealthy Central Valley farmer and tomato cannery owner, contends that proposition 53 is necessary because politicians refuse to either fully disclose or… Read more »
A California Bill Just Made Using Eminent Domain Easier
Only four years after signing legislation to dissolve more than 400 redevelopment agencies, Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill — AB 24942 — that just made it easier for local government to seize homes and small businesses. This recent legislation will move California closer to the old Kelo-style laws that ignited a political firestorm. Redevelopment… Read more »
Critics of the High-Speed Rail Score Wins in Legislative Efforts
Two bills aimed at the controversial bullet-train program created a significant win for critics of California’s high-speed rail project. Recently, Governor Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill 940 — a bill by state Sen. Andy Vidak, R-Hanford. In the event land taken through eminent domain or purchased by the state for right of way is no… Read more »
High-Speed Rail Project Becoming More and More Expensive
A series of events over the last month has increased the cost of the high-speed rail project. First, the relocation of Highway 99 in Fresno — a key part of the project — is six months behind schedule and, according to Caltrans’ most recent projections, is going to cost an extra $35 million above previous… Read more »
California Supreme Court Restores Public Agencies’ Ability to Conduct Surveys Without First Filing Eminent Domain
On Thursday of last week, the California Supreme Court in the case Property Reserve, Inc. v. Superior Court of San Joaquin County ruled that government officials don’t need to go through a formal eminent domain process before they can survey private property. This decision reverses the ruling made by the Court of Appeal, which concluded… Read more »
New November Ballot Initiative Could Stop High Speed Rail Project Dead in Its Tracks
The No Blank Check Initiative, which is set for the November, 2016 ballot, would give voters the right to decide whether to fund — with revenue bonds — projects that cost more than $2 billion. If passed, this would put the funding for the high-speed rail project up for another vote. Revenue bonds are… Read more »