Jeff Morales

Jeffrey Morales is an American public servant who was the CEO of the California High Speed Rail Authority from May 29, 2012 to June 2, 2017.

After attending Churchill High School in Potomac, Morales enrolled at George Washington University as a biology major. He planned on becoming a marine biologist.

In 1993, Morales was appointed as special assistant to Secretary of Transportation Federico Pena. In 1995, Morales began work with Vice President Al Gore's National Performance Task Review. Gore would praise Morales' work two years later when the latter left Washington: "[Jeff] has been an important part of our work to reinvent the federal government".

Caltrans After two years in Chicago, Morales accepted an offer for the position of Director of Caltrans from California Governor Gray Davis. He has been praised for helping turn around the struggling agency, overseeing $10 billion in projects during his time with the department. In 2009, Morales was appointed to the Transition Team for then President-Elect Barack Obama.

California High Speed Rail Authority On May 29, 2012, Morales was appointed CEO of the California High Speed Rail Authority. Though the Authority had only about a dozen employees in 2012 and many thought the high speed rail project was doomed to failure, the project has made significant advancements under Morales. The Authority started construction on the nation's first high speed rail line in 2014, breaking ground in Fresno.

In June 2017, amid cost overruns and scheduling problems, Morales left California High Speed Rail Authority.

Honors and awards Morales received the 2015 American Public Transportation Association Award for State Distinguished Service.