The CEO of California’s high-speed rail authority resigned late Wednesday, saying he needs to focus on “important personal and family priorities.”
That’s according to a copy of the emailed resignation written by Chief Executive Ian Choudri obtained by CalMatters.
Choudri will be replaced by Joe Stephenshaw, who has led the state Department of Finance since July 2022 after working as a policy analyst in the state Legislature for more than a decade.
The abrupt announcement comes in the midst of a two-day meeting of the board that oversees the project.
It follows Choudri’s tumultuous two-year tenure, which has been troubled by budget woes, project delays, transparency concerns and various scandals including the misuse of nearly $600,000 in taxpayer money for questionable trips by rail authority consultants.
Under Choudri, the authority also lost $4 billion in federal funding under President Donald Trump’s administration, after the agency repeatedly missed deadlines required by the funding agreement to buy trains.
The state initially sued Trump for the funding but abruptly dropped the lawsuit in December 2025, blaming Trump as “not a reliable partner” and turning to private investors instead.
