May 7, 2009
SPECIAL REPORT
Federal officials have announced that President Obama’s proposed Fiscal Year 2010 budget includes $200 million to construct the new rail tunnel under the Hudson River. The budget also recommends the Tunnel for an "Early Systems Work Agreement" which demonstrates the project has the full backing of the federal government.
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood made the announcement in a phone call to Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) on Thursday. Alliance President Philip K. Beachem said: "The Tunnel project is now one step closer to breaking ground in June and I credit Governor Corzine, Senators Lautenberg and Bob Menendez, as well as the entire New Jersey House of Representatives delegation for working to have the money placed into the President’s budget."
In January, bipartisan members of the New Jersey and New York congressional delegations wrote to President Obama and congressional leaders to stress the importance of this project and seek support for it in the Economic Recovery Act.
The Economic Recovery Act included provisions to give the Federal Department of Transportation $1.5 billion in new federal commitment authority for large-scale transit projects. It is that $1.4 billion in new authority that will allow the federal government to sign an Early Systems Work Agreement (ESWA) for the new rail tunnel. As opposed to funding for a single year, which would be included in a budget request or appropriations law, an ESWA is a long-term commitment by the federal government to fund a substantial share of a large scale project.
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