(a) Funds appropriated pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 99317 shall, in addition to the purposes specified in that section, be available for short-line railroad rehabilitation projects, through the state transportation improvement program.
(1) Projects eligible for funding pursuant to this subdivision shall be limited to railroad rehabilitation projects.
(2) To be eligible for funding pursuant to this subdivision, a project proposal shall be submitted by a public entity. The public entity shall submit a project proposal only if it has made a finding, following a public hearing, that rail service on the affected railroad would be in imminent danger of being discontinued without the expenditure of public funds, and that continuation of the service serves a public purpose.
(b) As used in this section, “short-line railroad” means any standard gauge railroad which is being, or is planned to be, used for passenger service, other than a class I railroad, as that term is used and applied in federal law.
(Amended by Stats. 2001, Ch. 597, Sec. 9. Effective January 1, 2002.)