Hotline #279 - January 24, 2003

The full Senate last night approved the fiscal 2003 omnibus appropriations package, H.J.Res.2, on a 69-23 vote. The $390-billion bill includes funding for 11 of the 13 appropriations bills that are normally approved separately.

The Senate included a 2.9% across the board cut, which we understand applies to everything but "obligation limitations" -- that is, trust fund accounts. This would mean a $34.8 million cut from Amtrak's $1.2 billion -- making the Amtrak number $1.165 billion. American Public Transit Association reports it also means a $42 million cut from the transit's general fund total of $1.4 billion. (Transit is funded both from general funds and the Highway Trust Fund; the transit total in the omnibus bill as originally introduced was $7.2 billion.) It means no cut at all in the bill's $31.8 billion for highways.

The next step is a House-Senate conference committee. The House earlier this month passed a version of H.J.Res.2 that was a "clean slate" template sent to the Senate with the expectation that the Senate would fill in all the numbers. Although Representatives certainly remember the $762 million their appropriations committee approved for Amtrak in the last Congress, it is far from clear what will happen in conference; Amtrak and other programs might even wind up closer to the Senate's pre-2.9%-cut numbers.

Key players in the conference committee will be the two appropriations chairmen -- Sen. Ted Stevens (R.-Alaska) and Rep. Bill Young (R.-Fla.), and the chairmen of the various subcommittees involved. For transportation (and Amtrak), that will be Sen. Richard Shelby (R.-Ala.) and Rep. Harold Rogers (R.-Ky.). Also involved will be committee ranking Democrats, Sen. Robert Byrd (W.Va.) and Rep. David Obey (Wis.) and transportation subcommittee ranking Democrats, Sen. Patty Murray (Wash.) and Rep. Martin Olav Sabo (Minn.).

If you are represented by one of the above, be sure to contact him or her and urge full funding of Amtrak ($1.2 billion). If not, ask your own legislators to contact these people in favor of full funding. Click here for ways to make contact.

You can also tell President Bush to increase funding for Amtrak in fiscal 2004. The President plans to release his 2004 budget proposal on February 3.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors had its winter meeting this week in Washington, and on January 22 was addressed by Amtrak President David Gunn. According to a Reuters story, Gunn "forcefully criticized" the Bush Administration's vision of intercity passenger train service, which focuses on pushing operating costs onto states and privatization. While Amtrak has pursued increasing state payments for short-distance trains, it recognizes that having long-distance trains covered in the same way, as proposed by the Administration, is highly impractical.

"We need some leadership out of the federal government," Gunn said. "They have no policy. There is no planning."  He also said, "There is no one in the private sector dying to take over Amtrak ... There is no quick fix. It's going to take time and money, unless you just want to destroy the company and put it into bankruptcy."

Gunn repeated his claim that Amtrak needs $1.2 billion in the current fiscal year (2003), but also said that over the next five years, Amtrak would need "up to" $2 billion annually. That would fully fund Amtrak's operations and provide capital funding needed to support those operations. "With some stability, we can make the thing a lot better," he said.

Amtrak President David Gunn was a guest on the CNN Moneyline program on January 23. It was clear from the questioning that the orientation of the substitute host, Jan Hopkins, was on Amtrak being a "bottomless pit" -- as if the supplemental funding Amtrak got last summer was meant to run the railroad forever and ever -- and that Amtrak needs to "make money".

Gunn elaborated somewhat on his funding call over the next five years. He said, "The bulk of the money is going into capital. What's happened over the years is, there's been a lot of deferred investment or maintenance in our facilities, for example, in the Northeast Corridor ... We have to restore that facility and our equipment to a state of good repair."

Asked again about "spinning off" routes that are "potentially more profitable" and shutting the others down, Gunn said, "Well, one of the myths surrounding Amtrak is that it can make money. Amtrak was created when the private sector ... gave up on passenger service. They could not make money in a much easier time ... While there may be somebody out there that thinks they can run some of our routes at a profit, God love them ... they're welcome to put forward proposals. But I think, realistically, passenger rail service is not going to be profitable. Even the Northeast Corridor covers its operating costs, but it doesn't generate capital."

Downeaster trains began stopping daily at Durham, N.H., January 20.

The southbound Heartland Flyer will leave an hour later from Oklahoma City temporarily, from January 20 to February 24, to accommodate a BNSF track project.  The train will leave Oklahoma City at 9:25 am and arrive at Fort Worth at 2:05 pm.

Amtrak announced today that it was closing its Chicago reservations center December 31, 2003, because increased used of the internet has resulted in a reduction in call volumes. Amtrak says its excess capacity roughly equals capacity at the Chicago center (which is in leased space), whereas closing either of the other two centers (Riverside, California, or Philadelphia) would leave the company with inadequate capacity.

The Bush Administration announced on January 22 that the new Homeland Security Department would be located in Northwest Washington. Two weeks ago, it looked like transit-unfriendly places in Northern Virginia would be picked, but now the choice is a Navy installation near American University.