Buy-America snag stalls Vegas high-speed rail plan
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The U.S. Department of Transportation has suspended its review of a $5.5 billion loan request that is critical for building a private bullet train between a Southern California desert community and the Las Vegas Strip, leaving the future of the project in jeopardy.
The Obama administration has been eager to develop new high-speed rail corridors across the U.S., and former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood had publicly blessed the proposed train, known as XpressWest. But the project stalled in part because of a snag over federal rules that call for the line to be constructed and run with American-made materials.
The government expects loan recipients "to purchase steel, iron and other manufactured goods produced in the United States for their projects," LaHood wrote in the two-page letter to the company, which was released by the agency Tuesday.
After long-running negotiations, he said the company's plan "does not meet our expectations" and did not justify departing from domestic-manufacturing rules.
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/buy-america-snag-stalls-vegas-high-speed-rail-plan
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