Photo: AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File
Ian Choudri, the CEO of California’s High-Speed Rail Authority, has resigned after the Los Angeles affiliate of CBS News pressed him with questions about consultant and travel spending, according to Hot Air.
Choudri, who has led the authority since 2024, submitted his resignation late Wednesday, according to board chair Steve Kawa, casting new uncertainty over the troubled $126 billion project. The move followed a report by the authority’s Office of the Inspector General that concluded consultants billed the authority nearly $600,000 for unauthorized expenses, after which the authority limited Choudri’s power to manage contracts.
According to the OIG report, 60 percent of the more than $1 million in consultant travel expenses reviewed between 2024 and 2026, or $680,500, did not comply with state rules requiring advance approval. Of those, $592,000 were deemed “unallowable.” The reimbursements included premium airfares, Uber Black and Lyft Black upgrades, trips to gyms, escape rooms, cigar lounges, tiki bars and private residences with no documented state business purpose.
“Only in California could a project that is years late and billions over budget somehow find money for consultant rides to a cigar lounge,” Assembly Minority Leader Alexandra Macedo (R-Tulare) said in a statement.
Before the OIG findings, CBS had also reported that the authority failed to buy the trains it had promised, missing several deadlines. Hot Air noted that construction and testing are expected to take six years even after the trains are purchased.
CBS LA later reported that when the authority awarded a $24 million contract to KPMG, records indicate it knew the firm intended to charge more than its unusually low bid for high-level positions. According to that report, KPMG billed taxpayers roughly $2 million more than its winning cost proposal in just four months, and has already spent nearly half of the four-year contract in its first year. Choudri’s fiancee also now works for KPMG, Hot Air noted.
After Choudri declined to answer questions, CBS LA reporter Julie Watts and a reporter from KCRA approached him at a public meeting. Hot Air shared the raw video of the encounter and said the press likely deserves credit for his resignation.
CBS News Sacramento also reported on Choudri’s resignation ahead of an authority board meeting.
