California’s high-speed rail project is a case study in lost public trust and squandered taxpayer money.

It is also one of Gavin Newsom’s abject failures, one that could doom his presidential aspirations. 

Unbelievable as it may seem, Newsom vetoed a bill to boost oversight of the project. The measure would have allowed the Office of the Inspector General to hire highly trained workers for audits and investigations.

What is Newsom afraid of? The next governor must give us the answer.

Newsom touted the project as a job creator, but the project saw emerging jobs snatched up by well-connected consultants and contractors who had made political contributions to the bond initiative that funded the project and assisted the politicians who support it. 

Newsom has also consistently appointed political hacks and donors to the project — and often, they lack the necessary experience and time to oversee it properly.

In 2008, Californians approved $9.95 billion of state bond funding as seed money to build a $33 billion high-speed rail system promising a 2-hour, 40-minute trip between Los Angeles and San Francisco with speeds of up to 220 miles per hour, and an expected completion date of 2020. 

Today, the official high-end cost estimate exceeds $231 billion; failed oversight and lack of cost accountability have undermined public trust; and full service, if it’s ever delivered at all, remains many years away.

A September report by the project’s inspector general found that consultants were reimbursed for numerous questionable entertainment and travel expenses, and it uncovered deep weaknesses in oversight and approval procedures. In all, about $600,000 was reimbursed in violation of state contracting rules and travel regulations. The report seems to have led to the recent departure of CEO Ian Choudri.

Enough. This cycle of waste, abuse, delay, conflicts of interest and failed control has dragged on for too long. Accountability can no longer be postponed.

The next California governor must bring in qualified independent auditors to conduct a forensic audit — a thorough review of financial records for evidence of waste, fraud, potential embezzlement, regulatory violations or other misconduct.

Anyone who violated the public trust should be held fully accountable under the law.

A central question remains: Where was the oversight board?

The California High-Speed Rail Authority is governed by a nine-member voting board of directors responsible for overseeing the project’s planning, construction, finances, contracts and major policy decisions. The board also includes two non-voting members.

Five of the voting members are appointed by the governor, two by the California Senate Rules Committee, and two by the speaker of the Assembly.

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Spending on the project — which has yet to lay an inch of track — has chugged along for the full eight years of Newsom’s administration. Why did the governor’s five appointees fail to catch these damaging problems sooner?

In October, it was reported that when the California High-Speed Rail Authority awarded a $24 million contract to KPMG, the board knew the consulting giant intended to charge more than its unusually low bid for high-level positions.

In response, the board chair asked the inspector general to review the project, but apparently did not ask for an independent forensic audit.

The inspector general, while valuable, does not have the manpower, scope and expertise to perform a detailed examination and evaluation to uncover fraud and other financial misconduct with the goal of gathering evidence that can stand up in a court of law.

Unlike a standard audit, a forensic audit acts like a zoom lens on specific accounts, contracts, expenses, vendors or suspicious behavior.

Enough reports. No more explanations will do. We do not want to hear promises that California’s bullet train is finally getting back on track.

Taxpayers need a forensic audit — not to demonstrate guilt, but to reveal the truth. Given concerns about poor management controls, delays, cost overruns and the billions of taxpayer dollars committed to the project, pledges to do better are simply not enough.

Open the books. Follow the money. Examine every major contract. Let an independent, deep audit answer the question hanging over the high-speed rail project: What happened to taxpayers’ money, who abused it and who was responsible for protecting it?

Only if the next governor of California orders a forensic audit can we move forward to make high-speed rail workable, and to regain the public trust.

Nick Patsaouras is an electrical engineer, civic leader and the author of the book “The Making of Modern Los Angeles.”