[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12575]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        PORKER OF THE WEEK AWARD

  (Mr. HEFLEY asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. HEFLEY. Mr. Speaker, since 1971 taxpayers have subsidized Amtrak 
to the tune of $25.3 billion, yet they have not received a reliable or 
efficient mode of transportation in exchange for 31 years. Amtrak has 
not made a profit.
  Almost since its inception Amtrak has hemorrhaged money in all 
directions, particularly on many of its routes. Of the 40-plus routes 
of Amtrak, only two are profitable. Its worst performing route, from 
Los Angeles to Orlando, loses $347 per passenger, meaning it would be 
cheaper for Amtrak to keep the train on the platform and buy its 
passengers airline tickets. Last year, Amtrak ended the year with a 
record operating loss of $1.1 billion and a $5.8 billion backlog in 
maintenance and repair.
  Despite receiving Federal funds totaling $5 billion in the last 5 
years, Amtrak has made no progress toward achieving self-sufficiency 
and is in a weaker financial condition than in 1997.
  It is time to wean Amtrak from the public trough. Amtrak gets my 
Porker of the Week Award this week and it ought to get the Porker of 
the Week Award for several decades, as a matter of fact.

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