Rep. John Mica says his words at a transportation meeting today in Orlando were misreported: He didn't say he's heard Florida is definitely in line for a slice of the $8 billion worth of high speed rail dollars in the stimulus package -- he said only said early signals look promising.
He said he doesn't expect to hear about the award for high speed rail until late January or early February. He said he's heard that Florida's application for a high speed rail corridor from 2008 -- a process that predated the stimulus proposals -- is being looked favorably by DOT.
"It doesn't guarantee funding but we are doing well from what I've heard," he said. The false alarm excited a number of people: Attorney General Bill McCollum cranked out a press release, saying he applauded Florida's "congressional delegation for their efforts to accelerate the expansion of commuter rail in Florida.
"Most importantly, in light of the unemployment figures released today, this news could not come at a better time for out-of-work Floridians," he said.
Comments