Kay Bailey-Hutchison and Amtrak
Connie Clark
connie_3c@yahoo.com
Wed, 30 Jul 2003 06:14:19 -0700 (PDT)
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Apparently, passenger rail service has a Republican friend.
two articles today show that Kay is fighting for Amtrak, against Bush and other Republicans. In the past, I have noted that she has been an outspoken friend to bike and pedestrian issues as well. Goes to show ya, we should look for help any place we can find it.
CC
Hutchison says Bush Amtrak plan is off-trackSenator: Proposed privatization too costly for statesBy KAREN MASTERSON
Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration announced a plan Tuesday to privatize Amtrak and shift much of the financial burden to states, a move GOP Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison said would kill the passenger rail service.
Hutchison, among the most influential Amtrak advocates in Congress, introduces her own bill today that puts her at odds with the president.
While the two Texas Republicans are allies on most issues, they could not be further apart on how to save the financially troubled Amtrak Corp.
According to the Bush plan, interstate passenger rail service would be opened to competition, leaving states to pick up more of the capital costs if they decide it's worth the investment.
"I believe our states and localities, in partnership with the federal government, are best suited to decide how and when to operate passenger rail service," said Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta.
Hutchison, who chairs the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Surface Transportation, said Bush's plan is shortsighted because it fails to take into account the probability that cash-strapped states can not afford costs currently covered by the federal government.
"If one state doesn't keep its commitment, even if other states do, then Amtrak fails," she said of the Bush plan.
The nation's only federally subsidized interstate rail service has been losing money since it was created in 1971. And for years fiscal conservatives, including House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, have sought to reduce Amtrak's dependency by cutting its budget.
Those lawmakers are trying again this year. The House voted last week to reduce Amtrak's requested budget by half. Without Senate intervention, money-losing Amtrak lines -- including the only train that runs through Houston, the Sunset Limited -- would be eliminated.
Hutchison and other Amtrak enthusiasts say they believe they have the votes to secure the $1.8 billion Amtrak needs to keep all current trains running through the 2004 budget year, which begins Oct. 1.
But with the administration now firmly on the side of so-called "Amtrak reformers," Hutchison said it will be harder to protect rail service from future cuts.
In addition to taking on the president, her position also takes on Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., the chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
He intends to formally introduce the president's proposal by the end of this week. And while he does not agree with all aspects of the Bush plan, he did say that he is philosophically in agreement that taxpayers should no longer foot the bill for money-losing train service.
"(Bush's) legislative proposal deserves to be introduced; that's a courtesy we give to all presidents," McCain said Tuesday. "And we need to have the debate. We need to make sure that everybody is well educated on the present and future of Amtrak."
Amtrak President David Gunn said he wasn't consulted on the proposed legislation and that his agency is still studying the plan.
But he added that the capital costs needed to keep trains in the Northeast corridor running efficiently are dire and need to be addressed immediately.
In the last 32 years, Amtrak has cost taxpayers $26.6 billion in federal subsidies.
Supporters say that money is an important investment in a national rail system that will need even more support, not less, if it is to remain viable.
"Opposition tends to come from the direction of conservative think tanks, who believe that ... mass transit is an icky form of socialism," said Scott Leonard, assistant director of the National Association of Railroad Passengers.
He predicted that Texas Amtrak service would end under the president's plan because the state has never invested in Amtrak service, as some states have. For that reason, there is no intrastate service in Texas. And the three Amtrak lines that do run through the state are supported by other states.
Hutchison said her plan includes incentives for Texas to support Amtrak, including a Houston-to-Dallas route that stops in College Station.
"It would open up Texas A&M to a wonderful accessibility that it does not now have," she said.
July 29, 2003, 8:46PM
ON DIFFERENT SIDES
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's bill
Would authorize $60 billion for Amtrak over six years, including the creation of:
· A national passenger rail system, building off Amtrak's current routes;
· An independent nonprofit organization -- the Rail Infrastructure Finance Corporation, or RIFCO -- to underwrite $48 billion in government-backed tax credit bonds and administer a trust fund to repay the bonds over 20 years;
· A rail office at the Department of Transportation to be responsible for recommending capital projects for funding by RIFCO;
· A framework for dispute settlement between freight companies and Amtrak to reduce delays in Amtrak's service;
· A process to eventually hand Amtrak's Northeast corridor over to the Department of Transportation as a separate entity.
President Bush's plan
Would restructure Amtrak over six years to create a competitive marketplace for passenger rail service under which:
· States sponsor rail service through contracts with other companies, including Amtrak;
· States create multistate compacts to operate and invest in passenger service;
· States pick up the operating costs currently paid for by the federal government. But the federal government would pay for 50 percent of infrastructure costs;
· A separate company is created to operate and maintain the Northeast corridor.
---------------------------------
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<DIV>
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<H2><FONT size=2>Apparently, passenger rail service has a Republican friend.</FONT></H2>
<P>two articles today show that Kay is fighting for Amtrak, against Bush and other Republicans. In the past, I have noted that she has been an outspoken friend to bike and pedestrian issues as well. Goes to show ya, we should look for help any place we can find it.</P>
<P>CC</P>
<H2>Hutchison says Bush Amtrak plan is off-track</H2>
<H3>Senator: Proposed privatization too costly for states</H3><B>By KAREN MASTERSON</B><BR><B>Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau</B>
<P>
<P>WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration announced a plan Tuesday to privatize Amtrak and shift much of the financial burden to states, a move GOP Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison said would kill the passenger rail service.
<P>Hutchison, among the most influential Amtrak advocates in Congress, introduces her own bill today that puts her at odds with the president.
<P>While the two Texas Republicans are allies on most issues, they could not be further apart on how to save the financially troubled Amtrak Corp.
<P>According to the Bush plan, interstate passenger rail service would be opened to competition, leaving states to pick up more of the capital costs if they decide it's worth the investment.
<P>"I believe our states and localities, in partnership with the federal government, are best suited to decide how and when to operate passenger rail service," said Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta.
<P>Hutchison, who chairs the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Surface Transportation, said Bush's plan is shortsighted because it fails to take into account the probability that cash-strapped states can not afford costs currently covered by the federal government.
<P>"If one state doesn't keep its commitment, even if other states do, then Amtrak fails," she said of the Bush plan.
<P>The nation's only federally subsidized interstate rail service has been losing money since it was created in 1971. And for years fiscal conservatives, including House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, have sought to reduce Amtrak's dependency by cutting its budget.
<P>Those lawmakers are trying again this year. The House voted last week to reduce Amtrak's requested budget by half. Without Senate intervention, money-losing Amtrak lines -- including the only train that runs through Houston, the Sunset Limited -- would be eliminated.
<P>Hutchison and other Amtrak enthusiasts say they believe they have the votes to secure the $1.8 billion Amtrak needs to keep all current trains running through the 2004 budget year, which begins Oct. 1.
<P>But with the administration now firmly on the side of so-called "Amtrak reformers," Hutchison said it will be harder to protect rail service from future cuts.
<P>In addition to taking on the president, her position also takes on Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., the chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
<P>He intends to formally introduce the president's proposal by the end of this week. And while he does not agree with all aspects of the Bush plan, he did say that he is philosophically in agreement that taxpayers should no longer foot the bill for money-losing train service.
<P>"(Bush's) legislative proposal deserves to be introduced; that's a courtesy we give to all presidents," McCain said Tuesday. "And we need to have the debate. We need to make sure that everybody is well educated on the present and future of Amtrak."
<P>Amtrak President David Gunn said he wasn't consulted on the proposed legislation and that his agency is still studying the plan.
<P>But he added that the capital costs needed to keep trains in the Northeast corridor running efficiently are dire and need to be addressed immediately.
<P>In the last 32 years, Amtrak has cost taxpayers $26.6 billion in federal subsidies.
<P>Supporters say that money is an important investment in a national rail system that will need even more support, not less, if it is to remain viable.
<P>"Opposition tends to come from the direction of conservative think tanks, who believe that ... mass transit is an icky form of socialism," said Scott Leonard, assistant director of the National Association of Railroad Passengers.
<P>He predicted that Texas Amtrak service would end under the president's plan because the state has never invested in Amtrak service, as some states have. For that reason, there is no intrastate service in Texas. And the three Amtrak lines that do run through the state are supported by other states.
<P>Hutchison said her plan includes incentives for Texas to support Amtrak, including a Houston-to-Dallas route that stops in College Station.
<P>"It would open up Texas A&M to a wonderful accessibility that it does not now have," she said. </P>
<P> </P>
<P><EM>July 29, 2003, 8:46PM<BR><!--/htdig_noindex--></EM></P>
<H3>ON DIFFERENT SIDES</H3>
<P>
<P>
<P>
<P><STRONG>Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's bill</STRONG>
<P>Would authorize $60 billion for Amtrak over six years, including the creation of:
<P>
<P>· A national passenger rail system, building off Amtrak's current routes;
<P>· An independent nonprofit organization -- the Rail Infrastructure Finance Corporation, or RIFCO -- to underwrite $48 billion in government-backed tax credit bonds and administer a trust fund to repay the bonds over 20 years;
<P>· A rail office at the Department of Transportation to be responsible for recommending capital projects for funding by RIFCO;
<P>· A framework for dispute settlement between freight companies and Amtrak to reduce delays in Amtrak's service;
<P>· A process to eventually hand Amtrak's Northeast corridor over to the Department of Transportation as a separate entity.
<P>
<P><STRONG>President Bush's plan</STRONG>
<P>Would restructure Amtrak over six years to create a competitive marketplace for passenger rail service under which:
<P>· States sponsor rail service through contracts with other companies, including Amtrak;
<P>· States create multistate compacts to operate and invest in passenger service;
<P>· States pick up the operating costs currently paid for by the federal government. But the federal government would pay for 50 percent of infrastructure costs;
<P>· A separate company is created to operate and maintain the Northeast corridor. </P></DIV></DIV></DIV><p><hr SIZE=1>
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