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By Theo Burman
Live News Reporter
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California lawmakers have urged the legislature to commit $1 billion a year from cap-and-trade revenues to sustain the state's high-speed rail program, saying the funding was critical as the project reached a pivotal moment.
In a press conference Monday, lawmakers framed the annual commitment as necessary to keep construction moving and to attract private partners.
Why It Matters
California's high-speed rail is in an awkward position. Years of delays and an inflated budget have damaged public and political faith in the project, but the past few years have seen progress—with construction happening throughout the state and tracklaying set to start later this year. To call off the project now, as many of its detractors in the White House desire, would waste years of advancement.
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That has not stopped Trump, a long-standing critic of the project, from regularly threatening to take away the federal funding that has been vital to the project's progress so far—a threat he and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy carried out in July.
What To Know
State lawmakers urged the legislature to reserve $1 billion a year from cap-and-trade auction proceeds to support the high-speed rail program, a policy change advocates said would provide predictable financing through 2045.
"We can't build a 21st-century transportation system on one-time money alone or with limited resources that don't get us where we're trying to go," State Senator Dave Cortese said in a press conference later shared on his website.
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Lola Smallwood Cuevas, another state senator, said, according to the LA Times: "Every investment will and must deliver for workers, for the poor, for excluded communities facing barriers to employment."
Governor Gavin Newsom had proposed dedicating $1 billion annually in his revised fiscal 2026 budget as part of broader state support for the project.
Officials say the full-system cost has risen far beyond the initial $33 billion estimate, creating a gap that proponents argued required steady state support.
The authority reported that construction work had been active across 119 miles in the Central Valley and that roughly $13 billion had been invested to date.
What People Are Saying
Ian Choudri, chief executive of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, told the authority's press release on May 15: "Now is the time for California to show leadership by seizing this 'once in a project lifetime opportunity' to unlock private capital and build the future of transportation in California."
Governor Gavin Newsom, in a July 31 statement, said: "California's high-speed rail project is a critical investment in our future, and we must remain focused on policies that help clear the path to completion."
What Happens Next
Legislators faced a coming session deadline to decide whether to authorize steady cap-and-trade allocations or other measures to extend funding beyond current sunsets.
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