(The following appeared at www.thehill.com on May 18, 2011.)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Obama administration officials on Tuesday defended the president’s proposal to place Amtrak under an executive agency budget instead of being reliant on direct appropriations from Congress.
Currently, Congress subsidizes Amtrak operations, but President Obama in his 2012 budget proposal called for placing its funding under the Federal Railroad Administration.
FRA Administrator Joseph Szabo told a Senate committee the plan makes sense.
Also, Amtrak CEO Joseph Boardman said that spending money on Amtrak now could save Congress more down the road.
Full story: www.thehill.com