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Jul 24, 2014 — PLEASE
WRITE THE PRESIDENT and THE GOVERNOR! The RRIF loan will be decided by
the Federal Railroad Agency and the Office of Management and Budget.
That is right, President Obama himself will approve or disapprove of the
RRIF loan. Please, write, call or e-mail President Obama today and let
him know how detrimental this project is for our area and that we do not
want one penny of our tax dollars being used to front this project for a
private company. Especially for a business model that has not proven
profitable in the United States for decades! Let AAF use their own funds
or acquire private funding. Here is a sample letter you can use or
write your own.
President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
202-456-1111
E-mail: http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/submit-questions-and-comments
Governor Rick Scott: rick.scott@eog.myflorida.com
Dear President Obama:
Dear Governor Rick Scott:
We are seeking your help to stop a project that is important to all Floridians. As you may know, All Aboard Florida has applied to the Federal Railroad Administration for the largest federal railroad loan ($1.5 billion) in history. The purpose of the loan is to start a passenger railroad service from Miami to Orlando. The loan application is based on false premises and would result in an irresponsible waste of taxpayer money.
The great flaw in the application is that passenger railroad services have never been profitable. Yet All Aboard Florida has claimed that it would be profitable and privately funded with no financial burden to the State of Florida. Simply stated, there is no precedent for the claims made by All Aboard Florida.
Also important is the experience here in Florida. First, we already have a passenger service from Miami to Orlando. It is AMTRAK’s Sunset Limited, and it survives with large federal subsidies. Furthermore, the State of Florida has gone to a great effort to study the feasibility of three other railroad passenger services for Florida — and turned them down because it was determined that they lacked economic feasibility. The first was the Florida Overland Express, the so-called Bullet Train in the 1990s. In 2004, a constitutional amendment to Florida’s constitution was repealed based on the endorsement of Governor Jeb Bush to kill a proposal for a second passenger service. Finally, in 2010, Governor Rick Scott rejected federal funds of $1.25 billion for another proposed passenger service because it would be “far too costly for taxpayers” and “the risk far outweighed the benefits.” These considered judgments were based on serious state studies.
An editorial in the Palm Beach Post on May 17, 2014 went right to the heart of the matter. It called All Aboard Florida’s business plan “odd,” and quoted an economist as saying it “was pie in the sky.” On top of this a thoughtful article by the well-known author Carl Hiaasen pointed out that All Aboard Florida has sued to keep its ridership surveys a secret. All Aboard Florida is trying to foist upon us a pig in a poke. In the coming weeks the Federal Railroad Administration will issue an Environmental Impact Study and give the public an opportunity to comment on the loan application. Please give your attention to this matter and lend us your support. The project lacks any objective basis and the loan should be rejected. We are counting on you to protect the public interest.
President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
202-456-1111
E-mail: http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/submit-questions-and-comments
Governor Rick Scott: rick.scott@eog.myflorida.com
Dear President Obama:
Dear Governor Rick Scott:
We are seeking your help to stop a project that is important to all Floridians. As you may know, All Aboard Florida has applied to the Federal Railroad Administration for the largest federal railroad loan ($1.5 billion) in history. The purpose of the loan is to start a passenger railroad service from Miami to Orlando. The loan application is based on false premises and would result in an irresponsible waste of taxpayer money.
The great flaw in the application is that passenger railroad services have never been profitable. Yet All Aboard Florida has claimed that it would be profitable and privately funded with no financial burden to the State of Florida. Simply stated, there is no precedent for the claims made by All Aboard Florida.
Also important is the experience here in Florida. First, we already have a passenger service from Miami to Orlando. It is AMTRAK’s Sunset Limited, and it survives with large federal subsidies. Furthermore, the State of Florida has gone to a great effort to study the feasibility of three other railroad passenger services for Florida — and turned them down because it was determined that they lacked economic feasibility. The first was the Florida Overland Express, the so-called Bullet Train in the 1990s. In 2004, a constitutional amendment to Florida’s constitution was repealed based on the endorsement of Governor Jeb Bush to kill a proposal for a second passenger service. Finally, in 2010, Governor Rick Scott rejected federal funds of $1.25 billion for another proposed passenger service because it would be “far too costly for taxpayers” and “the risk far outweighed the benefits.” These considered judgments were based on serious state studies.
An editorial in the Palm Beach Post on May 17, 2014 went right to the heart of the matter. It called All Aboard Florida’s business plan “odd,” and quoted an economist as saying it “was pie in the sky.” On top of this a thoughtful article by the well-known author Carl Hiaasen pointed out that All Aboard Florida has sued to keep its ridership surveys a secret. All Aboard Florida is trying to foist upon us a pig in a poke. In the coming weeks the Federal Railroad Administration will issue an Environmental Impact Study and give the public an opportunity to comment on the loan application. Please give your attention to this matter and lend us your support. The project lacks any objective basis and the loan should be rejected. We are counting on you to protect the public interest.
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