CSAC Opposes some of the High Speed Rail Authority CEO’s 2026 Legislative Priorities  

CSAC and other local government groups have submitted a letter opposing the High-Speed Rail Authority’s 2026 legislative priorities that would have negative impacts on county revenue systems, land‑use authority, infrastructure responsibilities and communities. Additionally, CSAC provided public comment at the High-Speed Rail Authority Board’s March 4 meeting outlining these concerns with the following specific Authority 2026 Legislative Priorities: 

Boosted Land Use Authority and Value Capture Mechanisms:  

• Expanded Authority control over station‑area land use and value capture districts would be precedent setting role for the state and require constitutional amendments to provide the Authority with land use authority. Specifically, we are concerned that this proposal would: 
• Undermine constitutionally provided land‑use authority afforded to cities and counties which would allow the Authority to enact it’s own General Plans and zoning regulations which would provide the authority with exclusive decisional responsibility for development decisions in these areas.   
• Allow the Authority to redirect property-tax increment and other value‑capture revenues away from counties, cities, and special districts—entities responsible for public safety, social services, public utilities, and transportation. 
• Create conflicts with existing enhanced tax increment financing districts that are within half a mile of the Authority’s existing planned stations.  

Sales Tax Exemption for Construction Materials 

A materials sales‑tax exemption would have direct and significant fiscal impacts local governments by: 

• Potentially reducing Bradley‑Burns 1% local sales‑tax revenues, a foundational general‑purpose revenue that funds public safety, parks, libraries, and emergency services. 
• Seven of the nine counties in the Phase 1 alignment are “self-help counties” with voter approved local sales-tax measures dedicated to transportation projects. Any reductions to local sales tax revenues in these counties proposed for this priority would reduce revenues that support these transportation projects.   

Utility Relocation Streamlining and Third-Party Management 

The Authorities past proposals for being granted with statutory authority in the relocation of county public utilities could: 

• Create significant costs for local government owned utilities with the potential for these costs to be unnecessarily funded by rate payers 
• Categorize necessary changes needed to relocate the facility and ensure continued operations as a ‘betterment’ not eligible for reimbursement.  
• Increase the risk of design conflicts and legal exposure if local engineering review is forced into compressed timelines. 
• Shift liability and cost‑overrun exposure from the Authority to local agencies without clear reimbursement mechanisms. 

Being Allowed to Spend Outside the Central Valley project section (SB 198 changes) 

The legislature passed SB 198 (2022) to ensure that the Authority would focus it’s limited capitol funds for the project on completing the 119 mile segment in the Central Valley. Central Valley residents in the 5 valley counties have been bearing all of the disruptions associated with construction projects for year. Given the authorities present funding realities as disclosed in past Business Plans and Project Update Reports, we are concerned that allowing the Authority to spend more than $500 million outside of the Central Valley project section will: 

• Jeopardize the Authority’s ability to deliver a suitable and ready high speed rail segment 

• Extend existing construction delays & disruptions while delivering non of the promised passenger rail improvements promised by the Authority  
• Further erode trust of residents in the Central Valley and Southern California project sections that the project will ever get built. 

CSAC will continue to update members on this issue as it evolves.