Assembly subcommittee reviews transportation budget; high‑speed rail and motor vehicle account transfers draw scrutiny

California’s transportation leadership on Tuesday defended the governor’s 2025–26 transportation budget as Assembly members pressed officials about the state’s high‑speed rail project and an ongoing shortfall in the Motor Vehicle Account.

Transportation Secretary Toks Omishakin presented the outline of the governor’s transportation spending package and said the administration framed investments around “safety, equity, climate action, and economic prosperity.” She told the committee the proposal “maintains the entirety of the transportation package included in recent budgets.”

The package Secretary Omishakin described includes $15.4 billion in state funding for transportation priorities. She itemized the largest elements as $7.7 billion for transit and rail infrastructure, $4.2 billion for the High‑Speed Rail Authority to continue construction in the Central Valley, $1.2 billion for goods‑movement projects, $1.1 billion for active transportation projects and climate adaptation, $1.1 billion for zero‑emission transit capital, and $150 million for grade separations.

The hearing pivoted quickly from the budget totals to two flashpoints: the future of the California High‑Speed Rail project and a budgetary plan to move fund balances into the Motor Vehicle Account (MVA).

Vice Chair (unnamed in the transcript)…