SACRAMENTO — California Attorney General Rob Bonta's office formally dropped its lawsuit against the Trump administration in December, ending a legal challenge over the withdrawal of roughly $4 billion in federal funds for the state's high-speed rail project. The decision followed public records showing California had failed to meet deadlines for train procurement.
Gov. Gavin Newsom had characterized the federal action as "petty, political retribution, motivated by President Trump's personal animus toward California and the high-speed rail project, not the facts on the ground." Newsom maintained that position after the funding was pulled.
State records show California did not purchase the trains required to secure the federal allocation — a failure that directly violated the terms of the funding agreement.
The Trump administration had withdrawn the $4 billion after determining California had not met its contractual obligations, escalating a long-running dispute over the project's progress and expenditures.
California initially filed the lawsuit to compel the federal government to release the funds, arguing the withdrawal was politically motivated and lacked factual basis.
Bonta said the decision to walk away was justified. "It was appropriate for us to pull the lawsuit," he said. His comment came two weeks after the notice of withdrawal was filed.
Without the trains, California's legal standing against the funding withdrawal was thin. The state could not demonstrate compliance with the core condition of the agreement.
The loss of $4 billion is a major blow to a project already plagued by cost overruns and delays. The California High-Speed Rail Authority must now find alternative funding or scale back its plans.
Newsom faces scrutiny over his administration's management of the project and his early claims about why the funding was cut. The state records undercut his account.
