Silicon Valley railroad funding removed from coronavirus relief bill
By: Michael Ruiz (Fox Business)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
A controversial $100 million slated for a subterranean rail project in California's Silicon Valley has been removed from the latest coronavirus relief bill, according to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office.
The money would have gone toward an expansion of the Bay Area Rapid Transit system beneath San Jose, as House Democrats had argued that transportation funding in the relief bill would support construction and transit jobs.
But critics have derided the BART expansion as Pelosi's "Subway to Nowhere."
But because it would have been a pilot project, the Senate parliamentarian concluded that it was not eligible for an exemption to be a part of the bill, according to Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill.
Similarly, $1.5 million for the slated Seaway International Bridge in GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik's district has also been removed -- the so-called "Bridge to Nowhere."
"Now that the two projects that Republicans misled the public about in the House bill have been removed, it is unclear how Republicans will justify their opposition to the American Rescue Plan, which has strong bipartisan support among the public," Hammill claimed.
The American Rescue Plan is the White House's COVID-relief legislation, which President Biden has asked the Senate to pass. It also includes a strategy for distributing coronavirus vaccines, reopening schools and sending $1,400 relief checks to eligible families.
The San Jose BART funding was approved during the Trump administration for the expedited delivery of a federal Capital Investment Grant.
The subsidy for the project, phase two of the BART expansion, was tucked into the House Transportation Committee's section of the relief bill under a provision for "all projects under section 3005(b) of Public Law 114-94 that received allocations for fiscal year 2019 and 2020" except "projects open for revenue service."
But there is only one such project that fits that definition -- the BART phase 2 extension, documents reviewed by Fox Business reveal.
A Federal Transit Administration spokesperson told Fox Business that the FTA doesn't comment on legislation that is still in Congress.
Under the distribution formula of that section of the bill, documents reviewed by Fox Business indicate that the BART project would get approximately $112 million.
So, Let's see, the minimum wage provision is gone and now the Pelosi railroad project is gone - that leaves the money for state aid and the racial farm aid to be removed and we might just have a covid aid bill that everyone can vote for!
Trump & his supporters & I are off topic.
There must be several more pounds of fatty pork in the bill that could be trimmed
Speaking of trains in California....
Have you read of the farm bill in there?
How did the media keep a lid on that one?
They try hard to conceal, but the truth eventually leaks out
Greg, believe it or not it goes like this:
"The $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus package being pushed by President Biden puts more than $1 billion toward "socially disadvantaged" farmers and related groups — including an equity commission, agricultural training and other assistance to advance racial justice in farming.
"Socially disadvantaged" farmers are defined as those who are part of a group that has been discriminated against because of their race or ethnicity.
"By denying or delaying Black farmers the same loans, subsidies and other payments made to white farmers, USDA engaged in systematic racism that led to a dramatic decline in the number of Black farmers. This is not in dispute," John Boyd, president of the National Black Farmers Association, told Fox News in a statement."
I don't even know if that is constitutional - favoring one race over another!
The sad thing is another package like this one will be needed this summer to stimulate the economy. The writing is already on the wall. That's when the pork can be packed.
The current relief bill should be used to build bipartisanship. Democrats are trying to reach too far, too fast. But that's not too surprising considering who is in charge.
Underground railway( subway) in cali?
Show me someone that would use same in an earthquake prone area , and i will show you a darwin award winner.
I can just imagine it , riding along nicely on the P line , your underground and an eathquake hits ..... looks good to me.....
Better use of money would be to improve dinning cars on Amtrak