Key Vote Alert – “NO” on Amtrak Reauthorization (HR 749)

KEY VOTE ALERT

“No” on Amtrak Reauthorization (HR 749)

The Club for Growth urges all House members to vote “NO” on the Passenger Rail Reform and Investment Act of 2015 (HR 749), a bill that reauthorizes Amtrak.  A vote is expected later this week.  This vote will be included in the Club’s 2015 Congressional Scorecard.

In the official 2012 GOP platform, it states, “Amtrak continues to be, for the taxpayers, an extremely expensive railroad.”  Indeed, most Republicans claim they want to end or greatly reform Amtrak.  But this bill doesn’t do that, even though it was drafted and supported by House GOP leaders.  Spending authorization levels go up, not down, between fiscal years 2016 and 2019.  Worse, the bill allows taxpayer-backed debt to be more easily accessed – up to a whopping $35 billion.

Unless serious and substantial reforms are made to this bill, House members should vigorously oppose it.

Our Congressional Scorecard for the 114th Congress provides a comprehensive rating of how well or how poorly each member of Congress supports pro-growth, free-market policies and will be distributed to our members and to the public.