Senate Minority Leader Nan Rich Urges Gov. Rick Scott to Rethink High-Speed Rail

Senate Democratic Leader Nan Rich, D-Weston, chided Gov. Rick Scott Wednesday for his decision to turn down $2.4 billion in federal money for a high-speed rail project connecting Tampa to Orlando. Rich chided Scott's "let's get to work" slogan, saying the project would have created thousands of jobs.

"Since taking office, the governor has done a great job at shutting down transportation projects which would have kept employed or put to work thousands of Floridians. The decision to reject Washingtons offer -- to return billions in our tax dollars to pay the bulk of a high-speed rail project betweenOrlando and Tampa -- being the latest. Lets get to work is starting to ring hollow in the face of a resilient 12 percent unemployment rate," Rich said.

Scott called Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood early Wednesday to let him know he would not accept the funds for the project, saying it was "too risky to taxpayers" because ridership and revenue estimates were "over-optimistic" and would mean taxpayers subsidize the annual costs.

Too risky to taxpayers is rejecting out of hand an investment that has the potential to reap substantial benefits both now and in the future. The governor is willing to send our tax dollars to Wall Street in a risky corporate income-tax relief measure but wont take a similar risk to invest our tax dollars in a project designed to put Floridians to work, boost economic development along the high-speed rail line, and lay the groundwork for improved infrastructure long missing from the Republican Legislatures top priorities.

The governor needs to spend less time fighting with Washington and more time fighting for Floridians," Rich said.

Sign up for news alerts from Sunshine State News.