by Conservative State Representative Angelia Orr
Did you hear the good news? This week, rural Texas scored a major victory. Thanks to the hard work of my friend, Congressman Jake Ellzey—with the support of President Trump and the cooperation of Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy—the Texas High-Speed Rail project has been canceled.
This is a win that’s been years in the making. Congressman Ellzey, myself, and other rural lawmakers have fought tirelessly to stop this project, and now, we’ve succeeded.
From the start, high-speed rail has been a bad deal for rural Texans. It’s yet another example of big-city lawmakers trying to steamroll small-town communities with projects that serve their interests, not ours. I won’t stand for it.
Let’s be clear: this project was never meant to serve rural areas like ours. It was only designed to take from rural Texas: our tax dollars and our property. The only proposed stops were Houston, Dallas, and the College Station area—none of which are in or even near House District 13. At best, residents would’ve had to drive over an hour, some closer to two, just to board the train. Meanwhile, our landowners and taxpayers would have been left to foot the bill and bear the burden without receiving a single benefit in return.
That’s why I’m proud to be a joint author of House Bill 1402, which ensures no public dollars—state or local—can be used for high-speed rail construction, including altering roadways to accommodate it.
You might ask: If the project is canceled, why do we still need this bill?
Here’s the truth—Amtrak isn’t the first to try pushing high-speed rail on Texas, and they won’t be the last. In fact, there are already people trying to revive the Amtrak project. We need to shut the door firmly and permanently. HB 1402 helps put one more nail in the coffin of this misguided idea.
I’ve heard from so many of you—farmers, ranchers, small business owners—who are rightfully concerned about losing land that’s been in your families for generations. Even now, some property owners are looking at maps with a rail line cutting straight through their homes and fields. That fear is real. And it’s not just wrong—it’s unacceptable—for private developers to use eminent domain and public money to carve up our communities for a project that doesn’t serve us.
The bottom line is simple: rural Texans have been asked to sacrifice too much for too little. And we’re saying, “Enough.” I’ll keep fighting to protect our communities from being bulldozed by urban interests. I’ll always stand up for you, no matter how tough the fight.
Thank you for reading my weekly column. To stay informed, call our Capitol office at (512) 463-0600 or follow me on Facebook at facebook.com/AngeliaOrrForTX. I’m here to serve you!
–Your Conservative State Representative, Angelia Orr
