Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

15 hours ago

Will Valadao Spoil Trump’s Plan for July 4th ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ Signing?

17 hours ago

Shaver Lake and Reedley 4th of July Shows Are Wednesday. Who Else Is Celebrating?

20 hours ago

Elon Musk Says Senate Bill Would Destroy Jobs and Harm US

20 hours ago

Israel Strikes Pound Gaza, Killing 60, Ahead of US Talks on Ceasefire

21 hours ago

Trump’s Administration Finds Harvard Violated Students’ Civil Rights, WSJ Reports

22 hours ago

How Did the Supreme Court Rule? Here’s a Look at the Big Cases

3 days ago
Trump Administration Cancels $1 Billion for Bullet Train
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
May 16, 2019

Share

SACRAMENTO — The Trump administration canceled nearly $1 billion Thursday in federal money for California’s high-speed rail project, further throwing into question the future of the ambitious plan to connect Los Angeles and San Francisco.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom immediately pledged to take the administration to court.

“The Trump Administration’s action is illegal and a direct assault on California.” —  Gov. Gavin Newsom

“The Trump Administration’s action is illegal and a direct assault on California,” he said in an emailed statement. “This is California’s money, appropriated by Congress, and we will vigorously defend it in court.”

The Federal Railroad Administration’s official word it was canceling the money came several months after President Donald Trump and Newsom sniped at each other over the project. The FRA said in a statement that it’s still exploring whether it can force California to return $2.5 billion the state has already spent.

Trump made the rail line an issue when he seized on Newsom’s remarks in February that the project as planned would cost too much and take too long.

Feds Say California Hasn’t Made ‘Reasonable Progress’ on Project

Newsom has shifted the project’s immediate focus to a 171-mile line in the Central Valley, from Bakersfield to Merced, but he said he’s still committed to building the full line.

Still, federal officials said California has repeatedly failed to make “reasonable progress” and abandoned the original vision.

Voters initially approved about $10 billion in bond funds for the project in 2008. It faced repeated cost overruns and delays since then. It’s now projected to cost more than $77 billion and be finished by 2033.

While the $929 million is a critical piece of the project’s funding plan, state rail officials were not expecting to access the money until 2021, according to a recently released project update. If a court battle over the money drags on, that could put the state in position to win the money back or get more from the federal government if Democrats win the White House and control of Congress in 2020.

Still, the move to withdraw the money is a problem for the project, which is chronically underfunded.

The $3.5 billion the state has been awarded in federal money is dedicated to pay for an initial segment of track under construction in the Central Valley and to complete environmental reviews on the entire 520-mile line.

The $1 billion the administration has withdrawn is about one-twelfth of the money the state is counting on to pay for the initial line.

Officials highlighted the possibility of losing the money in a new business plan released in early May. They said losing the money would force the state to re-evaluate whether it can provide early train service in the Central Valley and require rail officials to look for funding elsewhere.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Clovis Police Seek Public’s Help in Finding Missing 82-Year-Old Woman

DON'T MISS

Fresno Woman Killed in Head-On Collision, CHP Investigating

DON'T MISS

Musk Vows to Punish Lawmakers Who Back Trump’s Spending Bill

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Sentenced to Nearly 6 Years for $4.2 Million Tech Startup Fraud

DON'T MISS

Bryan Kohberger Pleads Guilty in Murders of Four Idaho Students, ABC News Reports

DON'T MISS

Wildfire Near Lake Madera Country Estates Burns 12 Acres, Now 100% Contained

DON'T MISS

Fresno County CHP Arrest Two in Interstate 5 Drug, Gun, and Counterfeit Money Bust

DON'T MISS

California Seizes Over 600,000 Pounds of Illegal Fireworks. Newsom Calls for Safe Celebrations

DON'T MISS

Where Trade Talks Stand With Major US Partners Ahead of Tariffs-Hike Deadline

DON'T MISS

Labor Icon Huerta Breaks Ground on Fresno Park Bearing Her Name

UP NEXT

Buying a Home With Solar? Beware of CA Bill Written by Former Utility Co. Exec

UP NEXT

Trump Administration Sues Los Angeles Over Immigration Enforcement

UP NEXT

Immigration Raids Leave Crops Unharvested, California Farms at Risk

UP NEXT

CA’s Population Shrank in Trump’s First Immigration Crackdown. It Could Happen Again

UP NEXT

Controversial Climate Rule That Could Raise Gas Prices About to Take Effect

UP NEXT

California’s Newsom Sues Fox News for $787 Million for Defamation Over Trump Call

UP NEXT

US Justice Department to Probe Hiring Practices at University of California

UP NEXT

Newsom and Legislature Tangle With Construction Unions Over Minimum Wage

UP NEXT

4 Million Acres of California Forests Could Lose Protection. What Trump’s ‘Roadless Rule’ Repeal Could Do

UP NEXT

Trump Administration Orders CA to Strip Trans Athlete of Medals

Fresno Man Sentenced to Nearly 6 Years for $4.2 Million Tech Startup Fraud

14 hours ago

Bryan Kohberger Pleads Guilty in Murders of Four Idaho Students, ABC News Reports

14 hours ago

Wildfire Near Lake Madera Country Estates Burns 12 Acres, Now 100% Contained

14 hours ago

Fresno County CHP Arrest Two in Interstate 5 Drug, Gun, and Counterfeit Money Bust

14 hours ago

California Seizes Over 600,000 Pounds of Illegal Fireworks. Newsom Calls for Safe Celebrations

14 hours ago

Where Trade Talks Stand With Major US Partners Ahead of Tariffs-Hike Deadline

14 hours ago

Labor Icon Huerta Breaks Ground on Fresno Park Bearing Her Name

15 hours ago

DOJ Announces Arrest, Indictments in North Korean IT Worker Scheme

15 hours ago

Fresno Man Arrested in Clovis for Sex-Related Crimes Against Minor

15 hours ago

Dyer’s Lobbying Works. Fresno Gets $100M for Downtown From State

15 hours ago

Clovis Police Seek Public’s Help in Finding Missing 82-Year-Old Woman

The Clovis Police Department is asking for the public’s help in locating an at-risk missing adult last seen on Thursday. Pathmani Goonawarde...

12 hours ago

Clovis Police are searching for Pathmani Goonawardena, 82, who went missing nearly three weeks ago and was last seen driving a white Volvo near Copper and Auberry, possibly en route to Coarsegold. (CHP)
12 hours ago

Clovis Police Seek Public’s Help in Finding Missing 82-Year-Old Woman

fresno
13 hours ago

Fresno Woman Killed in Head-On Collision, CHP Investigating

President Donald Trump and Elon Musk attend a press conference in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 30, 2025. (Reuters File)
14 hours ago

Musk Vows to Punish Lawmakers Who Back Trump’s Spending Bill

14 hours ago

Fresno Man Sentenced to Nearly 6 Years for $4.2 Million Tech Startup Fraud

Bryan Koberger, who is accused of killing four University of Idaho students, listens during a hearing to overturn his grand jury indictment in Moscow, Idaho, U.S., October 26, 2023. (Reuters File)
14 hours ago

Bryan Kohberger Pleads Guilty in Murders of Four Idaho Students, ABC News Reports

The Blanca Fire, burning 12 acres northwest of Lake Madera Country Estates in Madera County, remains active with 0% containment and no reported injuries or structural damage as the cause is under investigation as of Monday, June 30, 2025. (CalFire)
14 hours ago

Wildfire Near Lake Madera Country Estates Burns 12 Acres, Now 100% Contained

Fresno County CHP arrested two on Interstate 5 after finding about one kilogram of suspected cocaine, a loaded ghost gun, and counterfeit money during a vehicle search on Sunday, June 29, 2025. (CHP)
14 hours ago

Fresno County CHP Arrest Two in Interstate 5 Drug, Gun, and Counterfeit Money Bust

Gov. Newsom warns Californians to celebrate the Fourth of July safely, emphasizing zero tolerance for illegal fireworks which have surged to over 600,000 pounds seized this year. (Shutterstock)
14 hours ago

California Seizes Over 600,000 Pounds of Illegal Fireworks. Newsom Calls for Safe Celebrations

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend