Hotline #977 - April 11, 1997

The Texas House Appropriations Committee met April 8 and voted to approve a proposed loan to Amtrak to keep the Texas Eagle running. The Committee voted 21-0 on the overall emergency supplemental bill, which includes the Eagle loan money. It also voted 20-3 on a separate, Eagle-only bill to enable the loan. There is still a lot to do, since both bills must pass the full House.

Amtrak and the Texas mayors have been working hard on this. For a long time, the chairman of the appropriations committee was skeptical about Amtrak's collateral or assurances that the loan would be repaid. In the end, in an emergency meeting the night of April 7, the cities joined the state in guaranteeing the loan. Also, Amtrak's collateral was raised twice. It was at three Santa Fe Hi-Level cars when the Texas Senate voted. This later was increased, first to 12, and finally to 20 before the House committee vote.

About 20 NARP members and other Amtrak supporters met yesterday in Washington for an Amtrak lobby day. They got a briefing in the morning from Tim Gillespie, Amtrak Vice President for Government Affairs, and then spent the afternoon visiting their Members of Congress. Gillespie said that adequate 1998 appropriations for operations is the biggest challenge right now.

There are now several Senate authorizing bills pertaining to Amtrak, which either have been introduced or are in the works. First, there is S.436, the Roth-Moynihan bill to give Amtrak a half cent of the 4.3 cents of the gas tax now going to deficit reduction. Second is a Moynihan-Chafee ISTEA bill retaining the current, basic structure of ISTEA and giving states flexibility to invest in passenger rail. Third is a Specter-Santorum transit bill that would move the 4.3 cents to transportation and give a half cent to Amtrak.

Fourth is a Graham (Fla.) bill to move the 4.3 cents to transportation, environment, and education, and give a half cent to Amtrak. Fifth is a Baucus-Warner bill to move the 4.3 cents to highways only, except for a half cent for Amtrak, which would go to transit after five years. Sixth is S.468, the Administration's NEXTEA bill, which provides for inadequate levels of Amtrak operating and capital funding from the Highway Trust Fund, and gives states flexibility to invest in passenger rail.

For the first time, Sen. John Warner (R.-Va.), transportation chairman on the Environment and Public Works Committee, favors a form of the half cent for Amtrak. He long has opposed any highway funds going to passenger trains. But now, he evidently shares Bud Shuster's view that the Amtrak half cent might be helpful in getting the full 4.3 cents of deficit-reduction gas tax redirected to transportation.

The Empire Builder has been struck hard by snow and floods in the upper Midwest. Anyone traveling to any Empire Builder point in the near future between Milwaukee, Wis., and Whitefish, Mont., should check with Amtrak before departure.

An Amtrak employee shot one co-worker to death yesterday morning and injured two others at the locomotive repair shop at Wilmington, Del. He was killed by Wilmington police, who are investing the incident with the Amtrak Police.

Norfolk Southern and CSX formally agreed to a plan to split Conrail among them, on April 8. As stated earlier, CSX would get the Lake Shore Limited route east of Cleveland, the Three Rivers route south of New Castle, Pa., and the Cardinal route between Indianapolis and Crawfordsville. Norfolk Southern would get all other Conrail routes with Amtrak trains on them, along with Conrail freight rights on the Northeast and Keystone Corridors.

Amtrak says former president George Bush was a passenger on the Cardinal in February. He and his party were traveling from Culpeper, Va., to White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., on their way to the Greenbrier Resort. Amtrak said that Bush said he was impressed by the friendly employees, the equipment, and the train being on time.

 

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