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A House appropriations subcommittee recently approved a fiscal-year 2004 budget that would include $580 million for Amtrak. The national passenger railroad has requested $1.8 billion in FY2004.

The bill is expected to go to the full House committee July 21 and the Senate July 22. Amtrak officials expect the appropriation will be marked up significantly during the two days.

"We know we have a lot of supporters in Congress and [$580 million] will not be acceptable to them," says Amtrak spokesperson Karina Van Veen. "That figure isn’t even enough for us to sustain the Northeast Corridor."

In June, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee reintroduced the Railroad Infrastructure Development and Expansion Act for the 21st Century, which would authorize $2 billion annually for Amtrak during the next three years.