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a day ago
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Uinta Basin Railway group looks to fund project with $2.4 billion in federal bonds
Anglers fish on the Colorado River near an idle Union Pacific freight train in western Grand County on June 12, 2023. (Chase Woodruff/Colorado Newsline) The group pushing for a rail line in eastern Utah that would allow the state to ramp up oil production is hoping to fund the project through $2.4 billion in U.S. Department of Transportation bonds. The Seven County Infrastructure Coalition for years has been lobbying for the 88-mile Uinta Basin Railway, which would connect the oil-rich region of northeastern Utah to national rail lines, facilitating the export of waxy crude oil to refineries on the Gulf Coast. To pay for the railway, the coalition — which consists of representatives from Dagget, Carbon, Duchesne, Emery, San Juan, Servier and Uintah counties — approved a resolution last month announcing its intent to seek $2.4 billion in private activity bonds from the U.S. Department of Transportation. That's a $500 million increase from 2023, when the coalition passed a similar resolution seeking $1.9 billion in federal bonds. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The railway extension could allow for the transport of an estimated 350,000 barrels of oil each day, massively increasing the state's oil production. The refineries in Salt Lake City, for instance, currently have a market capacity of 85,000 barrels per day. But connecting the Uinta Basin to national rail lines means increased oil exports through Colorado, which has proved to be a major sticking point. In 2022, environmental groups and Colorado's Eagle County sued the coalition, arguing that the federal Surface Transportation Board — the agency tasked with the environmental review — fell short in its analysis, failing to consider the risks of the railroad expansion. The project cleared a major roadblock in May after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a prior court ruling that found the environmental review was incomplete. The ruling returns the case to a lower court for consideration. 'This was not only a win for the Seven County Infrastructure Coalition and counties in the state of Utah, but a win for the United States in being able to move forward with a major infrastructure project,' said Greg Miles, a Duchesne County Commissioner who sits on the board of the coalition, during a public meeting Thursday. 'There's a lot of things that oil does for us in our lives.' And although it still faces regulatory and legal hurdles, the coalition has made several moves over the last month toward financing the railroad. On Thursday, it heard public comments related to the bonds. The Department of Transportation's Private Activity Bonds program is a tax-exempt financing option from the federal government aimed at supporting private-public partnerships. The program has financed bridge replacements, highways, rail lines and other transportation-related ventures. U.S. Supreme Court rules in favor of controversial Utah oil train That $2.4 billion is the total estimated cost for the project, according to the coalition, although it's unclear how much money will come from private investments. But funds for the bond program are running dry. According to the department's data, there's only $500 million left to allocate, the program having dished out $29.4 billion of its $30 billion cap. It's up to Congress to replenish the program. 'How is the coalition going to get this money? And when?' asked Deeda Seed with the Center for Biological Diversity during the meeting Thursday. Seed also raised concerns over the 'ballooning' cost of the railway, which has increased in the last few years. 'How does this project pencil out? We have no clue, the public has no clue, especially when President Trump hopes the price of oil will decline to $40 to $50 per barrel,' she said. Just about all of the roughly two-dozen commenters on Thursday spoke against the railway, and using bonds to fund it — they cited concerns over the project's rising cost, potential harm to wildlife and habitat, the negative impact on air quality, and how a derailment could harm the Colorado River and the people who rely on it for drinking water. 'I deplore subsidizing the increase of oil production in the Uinta Basin, which will increase the ozone and air pollution, at a time when all federal subsidies are being cut for renewable energy,' said Joan Entwistle, a Summit County resident. 'It's just another example of how we're putting the thumb on the scale for fossil fuels.' 'The tariffs are being imposed at a level of 50% for steel. Clearly, that is going to raise the prices. Railroads are notorious for cost overruns,' said David Bennett, also a Summit County resident. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Happy Opening Day! Now get out your wallet.
Today, alongside nearly a million fellow sports fans, I'll make my way to the ballpark to watch the first game of the 2025 Major League Baseball season. As a former college baseball player and diehard Washington Nationals fan, I'll take in a game at Nationals Park, which cost almost $700 million when it was built nearly 20 years ago. That tab was paid almost entirely by D.C. taxpayers, even though the Nats' majority owners, the Lerner family, are real estate magnates worth an estimated $6.4 billion. Before sitting down to watch first pitch, I'll pick up a hot dog, a bag of Cracker Jack and a cold beer. This year, that will set me back a staggering $29. Baseball, like other major professional sports, is big business. MLB brought in $12.1 billion in revenue last year, thanks in no small part to the attendance of more than 70 million fans. The top five professional sports leagues in North America brought in more than $50 billion combined in 2024. While team valuations, player salaries and owners' net worths climb higher, it has become increasingly unaffordable for an average American family to catch a game. A family of four can expect to spend an average of $240 for tickets, concessions and parking at a Major League Baseball game. An NFL game will set them back a whopping $631. Though most teams collect only a small percentage of overall revenue from concessions, prices continue to rise, reaching levels double or triple what you would find just across the street at a grocery store or a restaurant. The good news is: There's a way to rein in this price gouging at the concession stand. While there may not yet be a policy solution for getting my Nationals back to the playoffs, we can stop publicly funded venues from ripping off families, who are often barred from bringing their own food and drink in for an affordable snack. These days, sports stadiums are nearly always backed by taxpayer funding at the local, state and federal levels, meaning fans are footing the bills on both ends. These funding deals are sold with promises of economic development and community benefits that too often fail to materialize. Even the vendors are big businesses of their own. The Nationals exclusively contract with the concessionaire Levy Restaurants, whose parent company made nearly $3 billion in profits last year. State, local and federal policymakers should institute what's called 'street pricing' for venues that are funded by taxpayer dollars, as my team at Groundwork Collaborative outlines in a new policy brief. This means that vendors can only charge prices of comparable items outside the stadium at restaurants or convenience stores. Nearly 80% of airports, which are also heavily funded by taxpayers, are covered by some form of 'street pricing plus.' Stadiums and arenas are often financed by Private Activity Bonds, which are federally tax-deductible. As a condition of tax exemption, venues financed by Private Activity Bonds should institute strict street pricing policies. State and local policymakers should require street pricing policies as part of negotiated economic development deals for new stadiums and other venues. As LaGuardia Airport's infamous $9.99 Chex Mix proves, though, these policies are often stretched to the point of incredulity and rarely enforced. With that in mind, then, lawmakers should be sure street pricing requirements include rigorous enforcement. And while we're at it, the Federal Aviation Administration likewise should condition airport funding on stronger street pricing policies and enforcement. Street pricing requirements would not just be pro-consumer; they would be pro-business. In acknowledgment of fan outrage at high prices, some teams have voluntarily instituted caps on concession prices or special offers. At every Tuesday home game, my Nationals offer $5 concessions, as well as discounted tickets and parking. When Mercedes-Benz Stadium opened in 2017, the Atlanta Falcons instituted a fan-friendly pricing model, slashing concession prices by 50% compared with those in their previous stadium, offering $2 hot dogs and $5 beers. The discount paid off — transactions, revenues and merchandise sales are up, and its fan experience tops the NFL. Portland International Airport has had strict street pricing since the 1980s and enjoys retail sales well above the national average. As families are squeezed by rising costs for everything from groceries to housing to utilities and giant corporations institute even more elaborate strategies and fees to squeeze every last penny from consumers, an affordable game at the ballpark is the least they can ask for. In return for massive public subsidies, the least billionaire sports owners can do is offer their loyal fans affordable concessions. This article was originally published on
