Ballot‑funded megaprojects hide true costs

Voter approvals and early cost estimates for large public projects often lock in political momentum while understating long‑term risks; later, revised budgets (often many times higher) produce funding gaps, political backlash, and stalled completion. The California high‑speed rail revision from $33 billion to about $231 billion — with service dates pushed into the 2030s and 2040s — exemplifies that dynamic. — If common, this pattern means democratic authorization via ballots can produce persistent fiscal surprises and contested public priorities, demanding new accountability and staging rules for megaprojects.