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Tag: central valley

  • Gavin Newsom touts high-speed rail during Central CA visit, blasts Donald Trump, Texas

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    During a Tuesday visit to a California High-Speed Rail facility, Gov. Gavin Newsom touted the train’s investment in the Central Valley and said the Trump administration gave the region “the middle finger” when it decided to pull $4 billion of the project’s federal money last year.

    The governor described President Donald Trump as “temporary” and also took shots at the state of Texas, which he said has been incapable of making any progress on its own high-speed rail plans.

    Newsom’s comments came during a speech at the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s railhead facility, a 150-acre yard in Kern County that will receive, store and send out materials for track construction on 119 miles between the Shafter area and the Fresno-Madera area.

    The governor joined rail authority CEO Ian Choudri to announce the completion of the facility and suggested the project, historically plagued by delays and cost increases, has reached better days. The rail authority says the facility will be filled with workers and materials this year, as it is scheduled to begin laying the project’s first tracks in the Central Valley before the end of 2026.

    “We’re there, we’re on the other side of the hardest part of this project,” he said.

    The rail authority has a big to-do list this year as it tries to advance the project without help from the federal government, which has been hostile toward the California project with Trump in office. Besides beginning to lay tracks in the Central Valley, the agency is attempting to leverage its renewed financial backing from the state — $20 billion through 2045 — to secure private partners who can pay for construction up front and build faster.

    The project has grown controversial since California voters in 2008 approved $9.95 billion in bonds for a train that would connect the state’s major metro areas at a total cost of about $45 billion. Today, after years of delays and cost increases, the focus is first on completing a 171-mile Merced-to-Bakersfield segment that the rail authority estimates could cost at least $36.75 billion and would be operational by 2033.

    But Newsom said the project has now obtained environmental clearance on 463 miles between Los Angeles and San Francisco, and that track construction on the first 119 miles in the Central Valley is fully-funded.

    “This is the phase everybody’s been waiting for,” he said. “Can’t believe what you can’t see? Well, you’re about to see a lot.”

    Newsom says Trump policies hurt Central Valley, Texas failing on high-speed rail

    The governor blasted the Trump administration’s decision to pull $4 billion for California high-speed rail last year, but said only 17% of the money the project has ever spent has come from the federal government.

    The rail authority has pivoted toward more reliance on the state, which last year committed long-term financial support for high-speed rail through its Cap-and-Invest program. The program generates public dollars from companies that buy credits at state auctions to offset their greenhouse gas emissions.

    But Newsom said the Trump administration’s decision to pull money dedicated to the project by past presidents was a move that “pulled the rug out from under” residents of the Central Valley, who he said would have been “the biggest beneficiaries” of that money through new jobs. He also slammed the cuts to healthcare pushed through by the Trump administration, which experts have warned could have serious impacts in the San Joaquin Valley and other high-poverty regions in the coming years.

    “He’s temporary,” Newsom said about the president. “A couple years go by in a flash. By the time he’s out, we’ll have substantially completed this rail line.”

    He added that California could try to seek new federal dollars for high-speed rail when there is a new administration in the White House.

    Newsom also took jabs at a Texas high-speed rail project, which he described as “abandoned” by that state. That plan, a Houston-to-Dallas train, was proposed as a private venture shortly after California’s project began. But the Texas plan has also sought federal dollars.

    “They couldn’t get anything done there,” Newsom said. “Big, red state of Texas, supposed to show us how to do it. They couldn’t get a damn thing done.”

    Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at the California High-Speed Rail’s railhead facility in Kern County on Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026.
    Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at the California High-Speed Rail’s railhead facility in Kern County on Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026. GOVERNOR’S PRESS OFFICE

    This story was originally published February 3, 2026 at 7:54 PM.

    Related Stories from Fort Worth Star-Telegram

    Erik Galicia

    The Fresno Bee

    Erik is a graduate of the Missouri School of Journalism, where he helped launch an effort to better meet the news needs of Spanish-speaking immigrants. Before that, he served as editor-in-chief of his community college student newspaper, Riverside City College Viewpoints, where he covered the impacts of the Salton Sea’s decline on its adjacent farm worker communities in the Southern California desert. Erik’s work is supported through the California Local News Fellowship program.

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    Erik Galicia

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  • More L.A. rain is on the way: A timeline of what to expect

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    After days of rain, Southern California will get a small reprieve before another storm moves in Thursday.

    Tuesday

    There is a small chance of scattered showers before conditions clear.

    The cold front will have moved away from Los Angeles, but the cold core of the low-pressure system will still be around. “This will bring enough instability to the area for a slight chance of thunderstorm development,” the National Weather Service in Oxnard said.

    Snow levels were at around 7,000 feet on Monday but were expected to drop to 5,000 feet by Tuesday. Officials issued a winter weather advisory for the eastern San Gabriel Mountains and the northern Ventura County mountains that is set to last through Tuesday night. About 2 to 5 inches of snow could fall in the mountains.

    “As for the Grapevine area, there is a chance of a dusting of snow Tuesday morning as the snow levels lower,” the weather service said. The Grapevine is a key travel corridor on the 5 freeway that connects L.A. and Santa Clarita with the Central Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area.

    The highest point of the Grapevine section is the Tejon Pass, which peaks in elevation at 4,144 feet above sea level. At that location, “some non-accumulating snow is possible,” the weather service said.

    Temperatures have chilled with the latest storm. While the L.A. coast and San Gabriel Valley on Monday reached the mid-60s, due to late arriving rain, most of L.A. County’s coastal areas and valleys “struggled to get out of the 50s,” the weather service said.

    Wednesday

    Sunny skies but cool. Highs in the high 50s.

    Thursday

    Thursday’s storm is expected to drop from 0.25 to 0.75 inches of precipitation. That’s on top of the 0.74 inches of rain that fell on downtown L.A. in the 24-hour period that ended at 9 p.m. Monday. Before that, the weekend storm that began Friday brought 2.68 inches of rain to downtown.

    Friday

    A chance of rain but conditions clearing.

    Saturday

    Mostly sunny, highs in low 60s.

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    Rong-Gong Lin II, Clara Harter

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  • High-speed rail project slated to received $20 billion in state funding

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    California’s high-speed rail project is slated to receive $1 billion a year in funding through the state’s cap-and-trade program for the next 20 years — a relief to lawmakers who had urged the Legislature to approve the request as billions of dollars in federal funding remain in jeopardy.

    State leaders called the move, which is pending a final vote from the Legislature, a necessary step to cementing investments from the private sector — an area of focus for project officials. And the project’s chief executive, Ian Choudri, said the agreement is crucial to completing the current priority — a 171-mile portion from Merced to Bakersfield — by 2033.

    “This funding agreement resolves all identified funding gaps for the Early Operating Segment in the Central Valley and opens the door for meaningful public-private engagement with the program,” Choudri said in a statement. “And we must also work toward securing the long-term funding — beyond today’s commitment — that can bring high-speed rail to California’s population centers, where ridership and revenue growth will in turn support future expansions.”

    The project was originally proposed with a 2020 completion date, but so far, no segment of the line has been completed. It’s also about $100 billion over the original $33 billion budget that was originally proposed to voters and has received considerable pushback from Republican lawmakers and some Democrats. The Trump administration recently moved to pull $4 billion in funding that was slated for construction in the Central Valley; in turn, the state sued.

    Still, advocates of the project believe it’s crucial to the state’s economy and to the nation’s innovation in transit.

    “We applaud Governor Newsom and legislative leaders for their commitment and determination to make High-Speed Rail a success,” former U.S. Secretary of Transportation and Co-Chair of U.S. High Speed Rail Ray LaHood said in a statement. “The agreement represents the most important step forward to date for this transformational project.”

    State Sen. Dave Cortese (D-San Jose), who chairs the Senate’s Transportation Committee, said the Legislature “must act quickly to pass this plan and keep California on track to deliver America’s first true high-speed rail.”

    Construction on the project has been limited to the Central Valley. Choudri has said that the project could take decades to connect the line from Los Angeles to San Francisco and it’s unclear when construction would begin elsewhere in the state. A recent report from the authority proposed next alternatives for the project that would connect the Central Valley to Gilroy and Palmdale. In those scenarios, regional transit would fill in the gaps to San Francisco and Los Angeles.

    L.A.-area lawmakers recently requested an annual $3.3-billion investment in transit from the state’s cap-and-trade fund, acknowledging that although high-speed rail is a state priority, L.A. County should not be overlooked when it comes to increasing more immediate transit investments in the state’s most populous county. Citing equity, health and climate needs, the delegation pushed for greater investment in bus, rail and regional connectors.

    According to a recent report from the Southern California Assn. of Governments, L.A. County accounts for 82% of Southern California’s bus ridership. Although public transit use is high, lawmakers and transit leaders have said that expansion and improvements are necessary.

    “Millions of Los Angeles County residents already depend on Metro bus and rail, Metrolink, and municipal operators. Yet service has not kept pace with need: transit ridership is still 25-30% below pre-pandemic levels, even as freeway traffic has nearly fully rebounded,” the delegation’s letter stated. “Without significant investment, super commuters from the Valley, South LA, and the Inland Empire remain locked into long, expensive car trips.”

    Funding commitments for L.A. County transit were maintained from the last budget, but the delegation’s request for billions in cap-and-trade funds has yet to come through.

    “The state budget deal in June 2025 restored $1.1 billion in flexible transit funding from the GGRF, which benefits transit operations statewide, including L.A. County,” Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas’ (D-Los Angeles) office said.

    Smallwood-Cuevas said the point of the request was to ensure that transit needs of the Los Angeles region aren’t lost.

    “We recognize what it means when folks in L.A. County get out of their cars and onto public transit — that is the greatest reduction that can happen,” she said. “We fully intend to see an opportunity where we can address some of that ridership and look at ways to ensure an equitable opportunity that invests in our regional transit public transit, while we also work to build what I call the spine of our transit, a high speed rail program that will run up and down the state and connect to our regional public transit arteries.”

    State Sen. Henry Stern (D-Los Angeles) said that the state’s investments toward wildfire recovery in Pacific Palisades and Altadena “does not mean that you should leave the largest segment of drivers anywhere in the world languishing in traffic forever.”

    “It’s not that there’d be nothing [for transit funding],” Stern said. “It’s just that we think there should be more.”

    The Los Angeles area isn’t facing the same state funding hurdle of the Bay Area, where lawmakers have scrambled to obtain a $750-million transit loan, warning that key services like BART could be significantly affected without the funds.

    Roughly $14 billion has been spent on the high-speed rail project so far, which has created roughly 15,000 jobs in the Central Valley. Theoretically, the train will eventually boost economies statewide.

    Eli Lipmen of MoveLA believes that the investments will help transit in the Los Angeles region by expanding access, long before there’s a direct high-speed rail connection.

    “Wer’e building an incredible transit system with LA Metro, but we need that regional system to get out to Orange County, San Bernardino, Riverside, Ventura County,” Lipmen said.

    “So we’re making those investments even if high-speed rail doesn’t come here right away to improve those connections for constituents. That’s a good thing.”

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    Colleen Shalby

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  • House committee launches investigation into California’s high-speed rail project

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    A bipartisan congressional committee is investigating whether California’s High-Speed Rail Authority knowingly misrepresented ridership projections and financial outlooks, as alleged by the Trump administration, to secure federal funding.

    In a letter sent to Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Tuesday, House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform chair James Comer (R-KY) requested a staff briefing and all communications and records about federal funding for the high-speed rail project and any analysis over the train’s viability.

    “The Authority’s apparent repeated use of misleading ridership projections, despite longstanding warnings from experts, raises serious questions about whether funds were allocated under false pretenses,” Comer wrote.

    Comer’s letter copied Congressman Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the committee who has also voiced skepticism about the project. Garcia, whose districts represent communities in Southern California, was not immediately available for comment.

    An authority spokesperson called the House committee’s investigation “another baseless attempt to manufacture controversy around America’s largest and most complex infrastructure project,” and added that the project’s chief executive Ian Choudri previously addressed the claims and called them “cherrypicked and out-of-date, and therefore misleading.”

    Last month, the Trump administration pulled $4 billion in federal funding from the project meant for construction in the Central Valley. After a months-long review, prompted by calls from Republican lawmakers, the administration found “no viable path” forward for the fast train, which is billions of dollars over budget and years behind schedule. The administration also questioned whether the authority’s projected ridership counts were intentionally misrepresented.

    California leaders called the move “illegal” and sued the Trump administration for declaratory and injunctive relief. Gov. Gavin Newsom said it was “a political stunt” and a “heartless attack on the Central Valley.”

    The bullet train was proposed decades ago as a way to connect Los Angeles and San Francisco in less than three hours by 2020. While the entire line has cleared environmental reviews, no stretch of the route has been completed. Construction has been limited to the Central Valley, where authority leaders have said a segment between Merced and Bakersfield will open by 2033. The project is also about $100 billion over its original budget of $33 billion.

    Even before the White House pulled federal funding, authority leaders and advisers repeatedly raised concerns over the project’s long-term financial sustainability.

    Roughly $13 billion has been spent so far — the bulk of which was supplied by the state, which has proposed $1 billion per year towards the project. But Choudri, who started at the authority last year, has said the project needs to find new sources of funding and has turned focus toward establishing public-private partnerships to supplement costs.

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    Colleen Shalby

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  • CA school students shaken up after tornado touches down in Central Valley

    CA school students shaken up after tornado touches down in Central Valley

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    MADERA COUNTY, Calif. — Berenda Elementary School is cleaning up after some debris was left behind, after a tornado that touched down on Friday afternoon.

    Broken tree branches, caused by the tornado, bent the fence at the front of the school. Tree branches also littered parts of the campus.

    For sisters Emely and Eilyn Soto, they say what happened that afternoon was scary.

    “I just heard everyone screaming and branches and trees just falling down,” said Emely, a fourth grader at the school. “The teachers tried to close the door and they couldn’t. They finally did and grabbed everyone to go on the floor.”

    The two sisters were coloring in the cafeteria after school when the tornado touched down in Madera County. The sisters were scared by what happened because it’s not something they’ve experience before.

    RELATED: Tornado touches down in Madera County, National Weather Service confirms

    “All the trees just went doom, doom,” said third grader Eileyn.

    Their brother Carlos said he was on his way to Fresno, when his mother called him to turn around and go back, to pick up his sisters.

    “We got there and it was a terrifying site honestly,” said Carlos. “There were trees everywhere. The front fence of Berenda Elementary school was collapsed.”

    Action News saw the damaged fence at the front of the school being held up by a zip tie. Carlos said he’s lived in Madera for years and he’s never seen anything like this. But Emely & Eilyn felt relief when they saw their big brother.

    “I ran to him and hugged him,” said Eilyn. “I was like ‘Where’s mom at?’ I just started crying and saying can we go home.”

    Carlos adds he also picked up his little cousin as well.

    “I tried to tell them focus on your breathing, calm down, I’m here now,” said Carlos. “Nothing’s going to happen to you. “

    After that scary situation for Emely & Eilyn, they’re glad to be home with their family.

    The Madera Unified School District said a portable classroom was damaged, but no students were inside at the time. The district adds the students that were on a site were part of an after-school program. District reps told Action News emergency plans were taken to help students get to their families safely.

    For news updates, follow Ana Torrea on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

    Copyright © 2024 KFSN-TV. All Rights Reserved.

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    KFSN

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  • Weekend storm in Northern California brings downpour of rain, snow, winds for days to come

    Weekend storm in Northern California brings downpour of rain, snow, winds for days to come

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    (FOX40.COM) –A beneficial storm that includes soaking rain, some snow, and gusty winds is making its way to Northern California, according to FOX40’s chief meteorologist, Adam Epstein.
    • First of two storms to hit Sacramento area on Saturday

    “A weak atmospheric river will impact our area on Saturday. It will begin with showers in the morning, then heavier rain in the midday/afternoon,” Epstein said.

    The heaviest rainfall is forecast from 3-8 p.m. on Saturday followed by tapers overnight.

    Epstein said there will be a “solid soaking of rain, but no flooding concerns,” with an estimate of .25 – .75 inches of rain forecast to fall on Saturday, however, things change on Sunday.

    Gusty winds are also in the forecast.

    “It will be breezy, but gusts should remain below a damaging threshold,” Epstein said. “Gusts will be near 30 mph.”

    A more impactful storm is forecast to last from Sunday to Tuesday. Showers are expected to return Sunday afternoon with heavy rain possible on Sunday evening, according to Epstein. A flood watch will be in effect for Sunday’s storm.

    Periods of heavy rain are also forecast for Monday which will likely be accompanied by thunderstorms in the Valley and Foothills. One to three inches of rain is forecast in the Valley and two to five in the Foothills.

    For those in the Sierra, light snow is forecast to fall on Saturday.

    “Snow totals won’t turn many heads. I’m forecasting a modest two-eight inches of snow,” Epstein said. “There’s a ‘Winter Weather Advisory’ in effect above 6000 feet from 10 a.m. on Saturday to 4 a.m. Sunday, indicating difficult travel in that window.”

    A stronger snow storm will arrive late Sunday and last through Tuesday, according to Epstein. One to three feet of snow is forecast to fall from 4 p.m. on Sunday to 10 a.m. on Wednesday.

    “Snow level begins high near 7000 feet Sunday night and Monday morning,” Epstein said. “Drops to 5500 feet by the end of Monday and lingers near there through Tuesday.”

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    Veronica Catlin

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  • Who will replace Bakersfield Republican Kevin McCarthy in Congress? Here are possible candidates

    Who will replace Bakersfield Republican Kevin McCarthy in Congress? Here are possible candidates

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    Assemblymember Vince Fong, 44, Republican

    Assemblymember Vince Fong (R-Bakersfield).

    (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

    First elected to the Assembly in 2016, Fong serves as the vice chair of the budget and transportation committees.

    The Republican began his career in politics as a staff member for longtime Bakersfield Rep. Bill Thomas, who served as a chair to the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, where Fong worked on international trade policy. Fong then served as district director for McCarthy, advising the congressman on issues affecting the Central Valley and helping serve constituents.

    Fong has been a vocal critic of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s push for restricting oil production in California and the administration’s overall energy policies, and has warned that the state’s electricity grid is not capable of supporting the administration’s mandated transition to electric vehicles. Fong also has criticized the spending of state money by Newsom and the California Legislature’s Democratic leadership.

    Sen. Shannon Grove, 58, Republican

    State Sen. Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield).

    State Sen. Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield).

    (Associated Press)

    Grove, who once described herself as a “gun-carrying, tongue-talking, spirit-filled believer,” served as leader of the California Senate Republicans for two years.

    The Bakersfield Republican is a U.S. Army veteran and served six years in the Assembly before her election to the state Senate in 2018. An enthusiastic supporter of Trump before and after he lost the 2020 presidential election, Grove called him “the greatest of all time” and reiterated false claims that President Biden won the election because of voter fraud.

    Grove is a staunch defender of the California oil industry, a critical economic force in her Bakersfield-area Senate district. She has opposed mandatory vaccinations for schoolchildren, including the COVID-19 vaccine, and this year successfully pushed through legislation to increase penalties for child sex traffickers.

    Fresno County Supervisor Nathan Magsig, 47, Republican

    Fresno County Supervisor Nathan Magsig.

    Fresno County Supervisor Nathan Magsig.

    (Craig Kohlruss / Fresno Bee/TNS)

    Republican Nathan Magsig is a member of the Fresno County Board of Supervisors who unsuccessfully ran for Congress last year for the seat occupied by Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Elk Grove).

    He has acted as a conservative firebrand in the Fresno area, voting earlier this year to sue the state of California over a law that requires cities to eliminate the Native American slur “squaw” from geographic features and place names. He has also echoed Trumpisms about unfounded election fraud claims.

    The former youth pastor who also served as mayor of conservative Clovis was a staunch McCarthy supporter, telling The Times earlier this month: “My focus now is to show my support for him.”

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    Phil Willon, Mackenzie Mays

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