(The Associated Press circulated the following article on February 1.)
WASHINGTON — President Bush, who last year included no funding for Amtrak in his budget proposal, will offer some financial assistance for the railroad this fiscal year, congressional aides said Wednesday.
How much money Bush will include in his budget proposal next week for Amtrak remains unclear, said the aides, speaking on condition of anonymity because several amounts were still being discussed, including a $900 million subsidy.
Amtrak chairman David Laney did not return a telephone call seeking comment Wednesday.
Bush had proposed no money for Amtrak last year, but Congress agreed to grant the railroad $1.3 billion in subsidies.
In its 34-year history, Amtrak has never turned a profit. It has debt of more than $3.5 billion and its operating loss for 2005 topped $550 million.
Amtrak had a rocky 2006. Its board fired president David Gunn and problems were discovered with its high-speed Acela service between Washington and Boston due to cracks in the brake discs.
A report issued last year by the Government Accountability Office, the auditing arm of Congress, said the railroad needs to improve the way it monitors performance and oversees its finances in order to reach firm financial footing.