Today (February 20, 2014) a coalition of construction trade unions held a rally outside of the “Protect Agriculture and The Valley” fundraiser in Hanford organized by the Citizens for California High-Speed Rail Accountability (CCHSRA) and Kings County Farm Bureau (KCFB). Here are excerpts from a CCHSRA and KCFB joint media fact sheet distributed at the event.

MEDIA FACT SHEET

• The court ruled in our favor.

“The funding plan failed to comply with the statute.” – Proposition 1A (Part 1 and the Validation Case) ruling by Judge Michael P. Kenny, Superior Court of California, County of Sacramento on August 16, 2013. The Court has ruled that the California High-Speed Rail Authority has been attempting to operate illegally. Read our court victories.

• The economy in Kings County is based on agriculture.

Farming has been the fabric of Kings County since the 1800’s. We want to preserve it for future generations of farmers. We help feed and clothe the world.

• There is more at stake than farmers worried about their livelihood.

California’s Cap-and-Trade funds, education funds and general fund are also negatively impacted by the California High-Speed Rail project.

• Existing jobs and livelihoods that are directly in the path of the California High-Speed Rail will be destroyed, while job creation promises are tarnished by diminishing funds.

Small businesses and large businesses cannot absorb not getting paid by the California High Speed Rail Authority. Job creation is to create a job that people are actually getting paid for….and not by an entity already behind in its bills.

• The Authority is also having a hard time meeting the travel time requirement of Proposition 1A.

They want to slice through every community in the Central Valley….every city and every downtown in between at 220 mph nonstop. No train should be doing this near people. They are also flying down the Tehachapi Mountains at a high speed with brakes that haven’t yet been invented. See the February 11, 2013 California High-Speed Rail Authority memo “Phase 1 Blended Travel Time.”

•We are looking forward to having our case heard at the appellate level.

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• The Kings County Farm Bureau is a non-profit advocacy organization, which represents approximately 800 members of the agricultural community. The mission of KCFB is to provide education, promotion and representation of agriculture.

•Citizens for California High Speed Rail Accountability (CCHSRA) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy group based in Kings County whose members reside in the city of Hanford and surrounding rural areas, along with other Californians who are affected by the high-speed rail. The group has been in the forefront since June 2011 attempting to get the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) and its board to be in full compliance with Proposition 1A which the state’s voters passed in November 2008.