(a) Funds appropriated pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 99317 shall, in addition to the purposes specified in that section, be available for short-line railroad rehabilitation projects, through the state transportation improvement program.

(1) Projects eligible for funding pursuant to this subdivision shall be limited to railroad rehabilitation projects.

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(2) To be eligible for funding pursuant to this subdivision, a project proposal shall be submitted by a public entity. The public entity shall submit a project proposal only if it has made a finding, following a public hearing, that rail service on the affected railroad would be in imminent danger of being discontinued without the expenditure of public funds, and that continuation of the service serves a public purpose.

(b) As used in this section, “short-line railroad” means any standard gauge railroad which is being, or is planned to be, used for passenger service, other than a class I railroad, as that term is used and applied in federal law.

(Amended by Stats. 2001, Ch. 597, Sec. 9. Effective January 1, 2002.)