Rep. Kim Campaigns for Major, U.S.-Aided Transit Center in County

Orange County would have a major transit center equal to Union Station in Los Angeles if Rep. Jay C. Kim (R-Diamond Bar) could have his way. And much of it would be paid for with federal money.

“Every other city has a transit center, and I think it’s time Orange County has one,” said Kim, adding there is a need for a central place where buses and a future train system could converge.

Kim, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee, said that such things are possible if all 52 California lawmakers band together as a voting bloc when considering how federal transit dollars should be spent in California.

On Wednesday, Kim took a step toward that goal by organizing 33 California House members--Democrat and Republican--to discuss a unified strategy for acquiring federal transit funding.

Kim, whose district straddles Orange, Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, predicted that the remaining California lawmakers will soon join in.

The group’s central focus will be the coming debate over reauthorizing the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act. The program is funded through nationwide gasoline taxes, with about $25 billion a year distributed to the states.

“California is a donor state to the fund because we pay more gas tax than we get back,” Kim said at a press briefing Wednesday. “Historically, we only get 85% returned.”