For a few years now, at least since 2008, we’ve heard from our politicians that whatever public actions are being taken, they will do it in the “most transparent process ever.” It seems the words aren’t limited to party lines, but they aren’t something we see carried out too often.

We voted on funding the California High Speed Rail, and within that ballot measure it stated transparency was required in the entire process. Sadly, this hasn’t been the case. Recently the state Senate voted to reduce the reporting requirements to us, the folks paying for it, from semi-annually to every two years. For those of you proficient in math, you’re right. That is a 75 percent reduction in reporting requirements. Yep – Senate Bill 76 did that little deed. The corresponding Assembly Bill 93 hasn’t yet passed, but considering the makeup of that body, it should fly right through.

Some other little things we should know:

The CEO of California High-Speed Rail is Jeff Morales, ex-Parsons-Brinkerhoff executive who now has some additional authority to assign work. His job at Parsons was to manage the High-Speed Rail project for that company. He went directly to work for the High-Speed Rail Authority as CEO. Funny that on June 9 just past, a $700 million contract was approved with Parsons-Brinkerhoff. Transparent? It took some real digging to find this little bit of information.

The longer this California High Speed Rail plan keeps going, the more it just plain stinks. I was hoping someone would start a petition, but that will be for me to do. A lot of folks wrote and said they would sign it, but nothing so far. All it has to say is something like, “Stop the California High Speed Rail system planning and construction.” Immediately.

Does all of this stink just a little to all y’all? They don’t listen. The section now being constructed may be illegal. The bridge they’ve started is the same way. They claim they’re using the “cap and trade” carbon tax money.

The way they are buying land for the train just means they are paying far below market value. They’ve driven down the value by showing a number of routes along the way, and folks can’t sell out because they can’t afford to sell. Ask folks along the proposed path in Acton and Agua Dulce. The High-Speed Rail Authority will buy land at values far below what it was worth just a few months ago.

All of this is done with “the most transparent process ever.” Maybe that explains why requests for information from the High-Speed Rail Authority have thus far taken more than a year to get nothing. A group called Californians Advocating Responsible Rail Design (CARRD) waits and hears only excuses.

This is the largest public project in the country right now, and it is riddled with political appointments and one-party controlled funding. Really, why would the state hire the same guy who managed the Bay Bridge project for Caltrans and understated the costs of that project to the Legislature?

So here we have the state planning and building another piece of our transportation puzzle using the same company and the same management that had costs increase from $1.4 billion to $6.3 billion. I’ve always thought if you did something the same way expecting different results, it could be called insanity. I think this fits that definition.

I think many members of our Legislature, both Democrats and Republicans, want to stop the train, but they figure it will just die on its own. I think that it might, too, but we’re going to have to help it a little.

First, we have to stop AB 93 from passing. We have to keep the California High-Speed Rail Authority from being so secret. We have to make them adhere to the original legislation passed to implement our vote. We have to make sure everything they do is transparent.

Call your member of the Assembly and the Senate. Write them, too. Stop the secrets. Stop the train.

Darryl Manzer grew up in the Pico Canyon oil town of Mentryville in the 1960s and attended Hart High School. After a career in the U.S. Navy he returned to live in the Santa Clarita Valley, where he serves as executive director of the SCV Historical Society. He can be reached at dmanzer@scvhistory.com. His older commentaries are archived atDManzer.com; his newer commentaries can be accessed [here]. Watch his walking tour of Mentryville [here].