Hotline #779

The House plans to consider H.R.2490, the 1994 DOT appropriations bill, on June 29. There may be an amendment from Rep. Billy Tauzin (D.-La.) cutting Amtrak's operating figure by $20 million -- from $351 million to $331 million, transferring the $20 million to the Coast Guard. Please urge your Representative to vote and work against this or any similar amendment. The Capitol switchboard is 202/224-3121. This clear Amtrak vs. Coast Guard vote may be a first -- the Coast Guard could be a powerful vote-getter. President Clinton might not help because this restores Coast Guard money he requested and would not cut Amtrak money he requested. Yet the $331 million obviously would mean trouble -- probably some daily trains cut to tri-weekly -- since it is $30 million less than what the House has approved for fiscal 1993, including the supplemental bill that now goes to House-Senate conference.

The full House Appropriations Committee on June 22 approved H.R.2490 with the same Amtrak figures as approved June 10 by the Carr subcommittee. Report language prohibits Amtrak from spending money on high-speed train sets in 1994 or on the plan to move Penn Station in Manhattan to the Farley post office building. It charged Amtrak with underestimating its operating-grant needs and asked for a General Accounting Office investigation of Amtrak finances and subjects Amtrak to the full force of the Anti-Deficiency Act, which could hamper Amtrak's ability to get private financing or commuter-rail contracts.

The full Senate passed H.R.2118 on June 22, which is their version of the 1993 supplemental funding bill. It goes next to conference. The Senate version has $50 million for Amtrak, evenly divided between operations and capital. The House version, H.R.2244, has $30 million for operations and $21 million for capital.

The Senate passed the Democratic deficit-reduction bill early this morning, on a 50-49 vote, with Vice President Gore voting. Yesterday, the Senate defeated by 50-48 an amendment by Nickles, Shelby, and Kohl that would have killed the 4.3-cent transportation fuel tax, then adopted by a voice vote a Gorton amendment exempting jet fuel from that tax.

Amtrak vacated San Francisco's Transbay Terminal abruptly on June 18 after a shooting incident and is seeking a replacement facility. The main Thruway stop for San Francisco now is the CalTrain station (4th & Townsend). For now, the city has no Amtrak ticketing or outbound checked baggage service.

The X2000 will be on display tomorrow at Chicago Union Station, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. On June 28, it leaves Chicago at 2:00 pm and arrives Milwaukee at 7:00 pm, due to deviations from the normal route due to curve restrictions. On June 29, it is on display at the Milwaukee station, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. On June 30, it makes two round trips to Columbus. On July 1, it leaves Milwaukee at 9:00 am, arriving Red Wing 2:15 pm and St. Paul at 4:00 pm, with display from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm, leaving again at 8:00 pm. On July 2, it is keeping a few hours ahead of the Empire Builder on its way west, arriving Seattle at 7:00 am on July 3. On July 4, it will be on display at Seattle from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, leaving at 7:30 pm and arriving Portland at 11:30 pm.

The House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures held a hearing on June 22 on several tax proposals, including one by Mel Reynolds' intercity passenger rail trust fund bill. NARP Executive Director Ross Capon testified in support, and Ed Harper of the AAR testified against it. Rep. Peter Hoagland (Neb.) asked why there shouldn't be a passenger rail ticket tax. Capon said that Amtrak fares are already set to maximize revenues and that raising fares to pay the tax would cut revenues. "We are trying to change a system that developed over decades during which passenger trains were operated by private railroads, whose tax payments helped build air and road facilities that helped build air and road facilities that siphoned passengers off the trains," Capon said.