California High-Speed Rail CEO Resigns: Ian Choudri Steps Down, Finance Director Joe Stephenshaw Named Interim Chief Executive
Ian Choudri, chief executive officer of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, submitted his resignation on Wednesday night, October 28, effective immediately. The Authority's Board of Directors confirmed the departure at its meeting in Anaheim, Orange County, on Thursday, October 29, and voted unanimously to appoint California Director of Finance Joe Stephenshaw as interim chief executive officer. In his resignation letter, Choudri said he was stepping down to focus on "important personal and family priorities."
Board Chair Steve Kawa said in a statement read at the meeting: "Last night, the Board received Ian Choudri's resignation as CEO of the High-Speed Rail Authority, effective immediately. We thank Mr. Choudri for his service and his contributions to the high-speed rail program, and we wish him and his family well." Kawa said Governor Gavin Newsom appointed new members to the board this year to bring stronger accountability, oversight and transparency to the project, and that the board made the interim appointment in closed session.
Stephenshaw has served as director of the California Department of Finance since 2022 and is a longtime adviser to Newsom; over the past four years he has led the development of the governor's annual budget proposals. He is expected to begin the interim role on November 3, leaving his post as finance director. "Joe Stephenshaw has spent the last four years guarding the state's budget as Director of Finance. The Governor is grateful for that service and confident Joe is the right person to oversee the Authority in the interim," the governor's office said.
In a letter to employees, Choudri wrote: "This has not been an easy decision, as leading the Authority has been one of the most meaningful and rewarding chapters of my professional life." He defended his two-year record, writing that he took on a project facing significant challenges and serious questions about its prospects for success, and led its turnaround. Choudri did not respond to requests for comment.
The resignation follows a September report by the Authority's Office of Inspector General (OIG), which substantiated allegations that the Authority failed to comply with state regulations and contract requirements when reimbursing consultants' travel expenses. Of the consultant travel spending reviewed for 2024 through 2026, about $680,500 — roughly 60 percent — had not received the advance approval required by state rules, and about $592,000 was deemed unallowable, including first-class flights and charges at gyms, an escape room, a nightclub and cigar lounges. Earlier this month, the board voted to restrict Choudri's contracting authority, requiring the agency's in-house legal counsel to sign off on contracts under $25 million. Consulting firms have so far returned about $1.3 million in questioned charges.
At the time of his resignation, the board was weighing whether to approve a $25,000 annual bonus for Choudri, whose compensation this year exceeds $534,000, and was considering further discipline, including possible termination, according to reports.
The Authority's 2026 business plan pegs the cost of Phase 1 of the system, linking San Francisco with Los Angeles and Anaheim, at about $126 billion. The first operating segment, from Bakersfield to Merced, is projected to cost about $36 billion and is expected to be completed in 2033. In July, the inspector general warned the project could run out of money as early as December 2027 without new funding. The federal government withdrew $4 billion in grant funding in July 2025.
Choudri was selected by the board in August 2024. He had been a senior vice president at the engineering firm HNTB and had worked on high-speed rail projects in France and Spain. He is the Authority's fourth chief executive since 2010.
State Senator Tony Strickland, a Republican member of the Senate Transportation Committee, criticized the project's repeated leadership turnover. Assembly Minority Leader Ali Macedo called the project a "black hole for taxpayers" in a news release, urging the board and the interim chief executive to institute rigorous oversight and demand more transparency, and to ensure Choudri is not allowed to transition into a highly paid private consultant for the project at public expense.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：加州高铁管理局首席执行官 Ian Choudri 官方肖像。加州高铁管理局（California High-Speed Rail Authority）官方照片，政府公有领域。 / Official portrait of Ian Choudri, Chief Executive Officer of the California High-Speed Rail Authority. Official Authority photo, public domain.
