ST. PAUL, Minn. — Bills introduced in the Minnesota legislature are seeking to redirect to highway maintenance money the state has already set aside for a Twin Cities-Duluth passenger train.
HF 1167, introduced by Rep. Patti Anderson (R-Dellwood), and SF 250, introduced by five Senate Republicans, would block the spending of $194 million allotted by legislators in 2023 for the Northern Lights Express passenger train [see “Minnesota legislature approves …,” Trains News Wire, May 22, 2023].
Both versions would prohibit the state commissioner of transportation and the Metropolitan Council, the Twin Cities governmental agency, from spending money for “studying, planning, engineering, design, land acquisition, or construction” of the service. The House version specifies the money must be transferred to the general highway fund; the Senate version does not address where the money goes. (Both erroniously refer to the Northern Lights Express as a “high-speed passenger rail project.”)
The Minnesota Star-Tribune reports that Anderson said in a March hearing that “we need to face reality and take care of what we have,” saying the Trump administration is unlikely to support the project. Current plans call for the Federal Railroad Administration to fund 80% of the $719 million startup costs.
The Minnesota House of Representatives is currently split 67-67 between Republicans and Democrats, while Democrats hold a 34-32 edge in the Senate, with one vacancy, according to Ballotpedia.
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