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Next week, the House Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials will hold a congressional field hearing on the status of California's high-speed rail project.

The San Francisco-to-Los Angeles rail project was initially estimated to cost $33 billion when voters approved a bond measure in 2008 to help finance it. However, cost estimates have risen to as high as $118 billion, according to a press release issued by the subcommittee.

In addition, the project's business plan no longer calls for full high-speed service all the way into San Francisco or Los Angeles, the release said.

Scheduled for Aug. 29 in San Francisco, the hearing will examine the project's status and evolving scope, as well as the levels of federal and state support necessary to complete the project.

Scheduled witnesses include California High-Speed Rail Authority Chairman Dan Richard, Federal Railroad Administrator Sarah Feinberg and Caltrain Chief Executive Officer Jim Hartnett.

U.S. Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Calif.), who has proposed legislation to defund the high-speed rail project, chairs the subcommittee.