Another State Rejects High-Speed Spending

by Mark Cavers Bloomberg Business Week reports that legislators in Missouri are moving to reject some federal money to fund work that would speed up rail travel between St. Louis and Kansas City. The mounting concerns over future costs to Missourians echo similar concerns in a host of other states that have rejected federal money. Over...

by Mark Cavers

Bloomberg Business Week reports that legislators in Missouri are moving to reject some federal money to fund work that would speed up rail travel between St. Louis and Kansas City. The mounting concerns over future costs to Missourians echo similar concerns in a host of other states that have rejected federal money. Over the past few months Ohio, Wisconsin, Florida, and New Jersey have all taken the fiscally smart step of turning down federal funds which will likely lead to higher state spending. Missouri State Representative Dwight Scharnhorst sums up the feelings of a lot of the elected officials who are held accountable when spending overruns force budget deficits or cuts in other programs:

“It’s just irresponsible for us to advocate something like this with no idea of the ultimate price”

Meanwhile, here in Illinois, our Governor and Senior Senator have pledged to continue using limited state resources to build a track from Chicago to St. Louis that if completed will increase average train speeds to between 60 and 75 miles an hour. With $5.2 billion in unpaid bills, $85 billion in unfunded pension liabilities, and projected deficits of $3 billion by fiscal year 2016, maybe it is time for Illinois to start budgeting responsibly instead of chasing costly new programs.