Insider, 7/20/23
Republicans want to shred Amtrak funding as the railroad plans a historic Sunbelt and Western expansion
- House Republicans are proposing slashing funding for Amtrak and other infrastructure in the 2024 budget.
- Amtrak says the cuts would force it to dramatically reduce or even suspend some of its service.
- This comes as the railroad is planning its biggest-ever expansion following an influx of federal funding.
Republicans in Congress are proposing slashing funding for Amtrak and other infrastructure priorities in the 2024 budget. At the same time, the passenger railroad is proposing its largest-ever expansion after Congress sent tens of billions in funding as part of the 2021 infrastructure law.
The recent GOP proposal from the House Transit, Housing, and Urban Development subcommittee on appropriations includes cutting Amtrak funding by $1.577 billion in 2024, which would reduce the rail system's yearly federal funding by almost two-thirds. The funding cuts are in large part aimed at the Northeast Corridor that ranges from Washington, DC to Boston, with more than $1 billion in cuts to that region.
The spending cuts, which would put Amtrak funding below 2003 levels, would also undermine the railroad's major plans to expand its routes and improve infrastructure in the Sunbelt and West.