WASHINGTON — A Northern California member of Congress said he will introduce legislation to prevent further federal funding for California’s high speed rail project, a target of two advisors to President-elect Donald Trump.
U.S. Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Roseville, Calif.) said in a press release that the legislation would make the project ineligible for additional federal money and cited his support for a previous Appropriations bill that would include highway funding while eliminating support for high speed rail.
“California’s high-speed rail project has failed because of political ineptitude, and there is no plausible scenario where the cost to federal or state taxpayers can be justified,” Kiley said in the release. “Our share of federal transportation funding should go towards real infrastructure needs, such as improving roads that rank among the worst in the country.”
The Sacramento Bee reports that Kiley is working with billionaires Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who co-chair what has been dubbed the “Department of Government Efficiency,” which will make recommendations to cut federal spending and bureauracy. Not actually a government department, the suggestions it generates will have to be approved by both Trump and Congress. Musk has long been critical of the California project.
Kiley is a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
