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The Iowa legislature recently passed a fiscal-year 2012 budget that maintains at least some funding for an intercity passenger-rail route between Chicago and Iowa City, according to a news item posted July 15 by the Midwest High Speed Rail Association (MHSRA).

Iowa House Republicans had sought to eliminate all passenger-rail funding in the upcoming fiscal year, but the state Senate voted to retain $5 million appropriated in the two previous years’ budgets for the state’s portion of the Chicago-Iowa City route.

“The legislative budget for FY2012 for passenger rail ($6.5 million) was deappropriated and the FY2013 appropriations did not include any multi-modal funding, including passenger rail,” said Tamara Nicholson, director of the Iowa Department of Transportation’s Office of Rail Transportation, according to MHSRA. “The previous passenger rail funds from FY2010 and FY2011 were not deappropriated, so that leaves the DOT the use of the previous $5 million for passenger rail.”

Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad now must approve the spending plan.