California Elimination of the High-Speed Rail Authority (2012)
| Not on Ballot |
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| This measure was not put on an election ballot |
A California Elimination of the High-Speed Rail Authority Initiative (#11-0084) was approved for circulation in California as a contender for the November 6, 2012 ballot.
Its sponsors, however, did not submit any signatures to election officials by the deadline.
If the initiative had qualified for the ballot and been approved by the state's voters, it would have:
- Eliminated the California High Speed Rail Authority.
- Barred the State of California from paying for high speed rail unless the people passed a new constitutional amendment that specifically authorized the state to pay for high speed rail.
Peter Seidel, the initiative's sponsor, referred to the measure as the "No Train Please Act." It was a response to the financial woes of 2008's Proposition 1A, the High-Speed Rail Act.
A separate initiative with a similar objective, "Stop the $100 Billion Bullet Train to Nowhere" Initiative, was filed by a different set of sponsors.
Text of measure
Ballot title:
Official summary:
- "Eliminates High Speed Rail Authority. Bars the State of California from paying for high speed rail unless the people pass a new constitutional amendment specifically altering this prohibition."
Fiscal impact statement:
Note: The fiscal impact statement for a California ballot initiative authorized for circulation is jointly prepared by the state's legislative analyst and its director of finance.
- "State debt service savings of up to $650 million annually from not using state bond funds to support highspeed rail. A one-time loss of $3.3 billion in federal funds would reduce somewhat the level of economic activity in the state over the next several years, resulting in some reduction in state and local revenues."
Path to the ballot
- See also: California signature requirements
- Peter Seidel submitted a letter requesting a ballot title on November 23, 2011.
- The ballot title and ballot summary were issued by California's attorney general's office on January 23, 2012.
- The 150-day circulation deadline for #11-0084 was June 21, 2012.
- 807,615 valid signatures were required for qualification purposes.
- No signatures were filed by the filing deadline.
