Full Bill Text

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that authorizes $11.44 billion in appropriations for Amtrak through 2012.

Highlights:

• Requires Amtrak and the Secretary of Transportation to develop a standardized method for allocating Federal funding equally among the states for capital and operating costs on Amtrak routes (Sec. 206).

• Requires Amtrak to complete studies within a year to determine if the Pioneer Route and the North Coast Hiawatha Route between Seattle and Chicago through Southern Montana should be reinstated as passenger routes (Sec. 207).

• Encourages Amtrak to increase partnerships and funding received from the private sector in order to minimize Federal subsidies (Sec. 220).

• Requires that recipients of Federal grants for capital investment supporting intercity passenger rail service must purchase only supplies and materials that are produced in the United States or articles that are manufactured in the United States from materials and supplies primarily produced in the United States (Sec. 301).

• Requires the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct a study comparing the passenger rail system in the United States to those in Canada, Germany, Great Britain, and Japan (Sec. 306).

• Requires Amtrak to consult with the Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Washington State Department of Transportation, and the owners of relevant railroad infrastructure to develop a plan that expands passenger rail service between Vancouver, British Columbia, and Eugene, Oregon, during the 2010 Olympic Games (Sec. 401).

Full Bill Text

Full Bill Text