CBS: California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO Ian Choudri Caught Billing Taxpayers to Fly from Denver to Sacramento, to Commute for Work

EXCERPT:

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WATTS: "Can you please ask High-Speed Rail to provide the records we have requested immediately?"
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WATTS: “Hours later, CEO Ian Choudri resigned, citing personal and family priorities. And suddenly we started getting public records, which raised even more questions. For instance, here's a list of CEO expenses. He billed taxpayers for nearly $29,000 in CEO PPE goods. What's that? Well, insiders tell us things like hard hats and safety vests. We requested the itemized invoices. The CEO also billed taxpayers for roughly $10,000 in CEO furniture. And there was this invoice for tinting the windows on his 2026 state SUV. But what really stands out is the Denver connection. You see, the CEO billed taxpayers to fly from Denver to Sacramento to commute to work. Auditors eventually clawed that money back, but that's just the beginning. Our investigation recently revealed, thanks to documents provided by whistleblowers, that high-priced consultants also billed taxpayers to commute from Denver, even though the contract required they relocate here. And when two other high-priced consultants would travel to Sacramento, they repeatedly billed taxpayers for late-night and early-morning pickups from the CEO's California house and nearby restaurants 30 minutes from their Sacramento hotels.”