Amtrak Funding, Its CEO and the National Network

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Amtrak Funding, Amtrak’s CEO, and the National Network

Friday, January 13, 2012

Under the debt ceiling law enacted in August, if the supercommittee failed (which it did), domestic discretionary programs would be cut 7.8% in Fiscal 2013, which starts October 1, 2012. That would mean yet another Amtrak funding reduction, this one exceeding $100 million. Three other wild-card factors could affect the outcome:

**Amtrak’s westbound Sunset Limited arriving at Palm Springs,CA.**

[Image: Florian Boyd on Flickr.com]

Efforts to reduce the impact of sequestration on the Pentagon by increasing the magnitude of cuts for other programs.
Flexibility in application of the 7.8%. If it applies only to the transportation/housing appropriations subcommittee’s overall total, the subcommittee almost certainly would hit some programs harder in order, for example, to protect the Federal Aviation Administration, which is being forced to “lay off more than 2,000 employees…close 246 air traffic control contract towers.” The 7.8% cut applied across-the-board also would “cause significant delays of FAA’s NextGen program which is needed to modernize an already aging air traffic control system.” See House Appropriations Chairman Harold Rogers’ (R-KY) “failure-is-not-an-option” letter of October 14 to the supercommittee (FAA paragraphs are on page 6). Particularly given the amount of new equipment authorized (both Amtrak’s orders already placed and planned orders for California and Midwest states), it would appear that Amtrak will have to fight hard just to be exempt from the hunt for “offsets” to protect the FAA.
If funding for 2013 remains unresolved by November, the outcome of the elections could bring an even darker future for Amtrak, considering the statements that some candidates have made.

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