---
type: "Bill"
title: "High-speed rail."
description: "Existing law creates the High-Speed Rail Authority with specified powers and duties relative to development and implementation of a high-speed train system. Existing law, pursuant to the Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st Century, approved by the voters as Proposition 1A at the November 4, 2008, general election, provides for the issuance of $9.95 billion for high-speed train capital projects and other associated purposes."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ca"
legislature: "California Legislature"
session: "20112012"
identifier: "AB 615"
citation: "California AB 615 (20112012)"
classification: ["bill", "appropriation"]
subjects: ["High-speed rail."]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Bonnie Lowenthal"]
version_count: 9
action_count: 28
vote_count: 8
first_action: "2011-02-16"
last_action: "2011-10-07"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/19ee7600-b9af-47cf-9970-ac782db24f6f"
source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB615"
source_hash: "8b73b348b5e29970bc74fac19c4bf189ab8544443c77df2ee61eea695faa3232"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ca"]
---

# California AB 615 (20112012) — High-speed rail.

Existing law creates the High-Speed Rail Authority with specified powers and duties relative to development and implementation of a high-speed train system. Existing law, pursuant to the Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st Century, approved by the voters as Proposition 1A at the November 4, 2008, general election, provides for the issuance of $9.95 billion for high-speed train capital projects and other associated purposes.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **02/16/11 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB615&version=20110AB61599INT)
2. **04/25/11 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB615&version=20110AB61598AMD)
3. **04/28/11 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB615&version=20110AB61597AMD)
4. **07/13/11 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB615&version=20110AB61596AMD)
5. **08/31/11 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB615&version=20110AB61595AMD)
6. **09/02/11 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB615&version=20110AB61594AMD)
7. **10/07/11 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB615&version=20110AB61592CHP)
8. **AB615** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB615)
9. **09/20/11 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB615&version=20110AB61593ENR)

## Votes

- Do pass and re-refer to Committee on Appropriations with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. — **12–0** (pass) · lower
- AB 615 LOWENTHAL Assembly Third Reading — **59–16** (pass) · lower
- AB 615 LOWENTHAL Concurrence in Senate Amendments — **48–26** (pass) · lower
- Placed on Appropriations Suspense file. — **9–0** (pass) · upper
- Do pass as amended, and re-refer to the Committee on Appropriations. — **6–2** (pass) · upper
- Do pass as amended. — **6–3** (pass) · upper
- Do pass. — **12–5** (pass) · lower
- 3rd Reading AB615 Bonnie Lowenthal By Kehoe — **24–13** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Bonnie Lowenthal — primary (person)
- Perea — coauthor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2011-02-16** Read first time. To print. `reading-1`
- **2011-02-17** From printer. May be heard in committee March 19.
- **2011-03-03** Referred to Com. on TRANS. `referral-committee`
- **2011-04-25** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on TRANS. Read second time and amended. `reading-2, amendment-introduction, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2011-04-25** Re-referred to Com. on TRANS. `referral-committee`
- **2011-04-26** From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: to consent calendar. (Ayes 12. Noes 0.) (April 25). Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `referral-committee, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2011-04-28** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on APPR. Read second time and amended. `reading-2, amendment-introduction, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2011-05-02** Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `referral-committee`
- **2011-05-05** From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 12. Noes 5.) (May 4). `committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2011-05-09** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2011-06-01** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 59. Noes 16. Page 1696.) `reading-3, reading-1, passage`
- **2011-06-01** In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. `reading-1`
- **2011-06-08** Referred to Com. on T. & H. `referral-committee`
- **2011-06-28** In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
- **2011-07-12** From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 6. Noes 2.) (July 5). `amendment-passage, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2011-07-13** Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `reading-2, reading-1, amendment-passage, referral-committee`
- **2011-08-15** In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
- **2011-08-22** In committee: Placed on APPR. suspense file.
- **2011-08-30** From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 6. Noes 3.) (August 25). `amendment-passage, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2011-08-31** Read second time and amended. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2011-09-02** Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading. `reading-3, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2011-09-06** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2011-09-08** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 24. Noes 13. Page 2391.). `reading-3, reading-1, passage`
- **2011-09-08** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
- **2011-09-08** Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 48. Noes 26. Page 3132.). `committee-passage-favorable, amendment-passage`
- **2011-09-22** Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 12:30 p.m.
- **2011-10-07** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature`
- **2011-10-07** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 530, Statutes of 2011.

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/19ee7600-b9af-47cf-9970-ac782db24f6f`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).