Senate Increases Funding, and Outlook for Amtrak

November 6, 2007

The U.S. Senate on October 30 voted to support high-quality rail service by authorizing a sharp increase in federal funding for Amtrak.

The Senate’s approval of the Passenger Rail and Improvement Act will increase the government subsidy to Amtrak to approximately $1.9 billion per year for the next 6 years, nearly $1 billion a year more than Amtrak had previously received.

“For both riders and employees, Amtrak has been running on empty for too long,” said Railroad Department Director Bill Bohné. “The Senate’s decision to increase funding and put the railroad on more stable financial footing is long overdue.  We thank them for their foresight and support of this system that is so vital to our economy.”

The IBEW represents approximately 1,200 employees at Amtrak.

The 70-22 bipartisan vote was also a rebuke to the Bush administration, which has proposed slashing Amtrak’s budget and privatizing services on the publicly funded railroad.

“We’re giving (the American people) relief,” said New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg (D), one of the sponsors of the bill. “Relief from traffic congestion, relief from lines at the airport, relief from planes lined up on the tarmac.” 

The House has not acted on the bill.

“This bipartisan Amtrak reauthorization bill, if signed by the President, will enable us to bring the Northeast Corridor into a state of good repair over the next several years,” said Democratic Senator Tom Carper of Delaware, a staunch supporter of Amtrak and a regular passenger. “Those appropriations would also provide the funds needed to fund pay raises for rank-and-file employees going forward and for a portion – but not all – of the back pay that is being sought by employees and their unions.”