…The last Info I saw was the House of Rep. were stuck on limiting Amtrak to 700 some Mil…and Gunn says 1.2 Bil is needed to keep the system running…Anyone know the latest on the subject.
QM
So far nothing has been said about the House version of the FY 03 spending bill, but whatever happens they will most likely compromise between the Senate’s $1.2 billion and the Houses $700 million. But, President Bush had only recommended $521 million for Amtrak for FY 03 so the real question is whether he will sign or veto a spending bill where the Amtrak funding exceeds his recommendation. Stay tuned.
…I understand there was to be an attempt to attach it to a “must have” spending bill for President Bush. Bush’s 500 Mil will still get the system shut down according to what G M Gunn indicated a week or so ago…
QM
I forgot to mention that the House was not in session, and they won’t be in session until after January 27 when President Bush is scheduled to give his State of the Union address. Actually anything less than $1.2 billion for FY 03 will cause Amtrak to have to shut down.
…Yes, I believe this time Gunn will stick to his “guns”…
QM
Since the fiscal year started back at the first of October, any significant cut in late January or early February would result in a complete shutdown. Yet, I have a feeling that if the cut is very small, say $1 billion or $1.1 billion instead of the $1.2 billion, Mr. Gunn might have the ability to save the northeast corridor. However, I do not think the Senate will fund just the northeast corridor: It is either all or none.
If the Senate and the House agreeded before the fiscal year, say in late August or early September, Amtrak would have had the opportunity to cut half of the routes and keep half of the routes. But it is much too late, now, literally one quarter of the way through the fiscal year to do such a cut.