For years, mayors and council members in several Orange County cities have talked about building a light-rail system that would ease traffic congestion, while simultaneously spurring more real estate and economic development. But those talks have produced little, in part, because the various cities that would be involved haven't devised a regional plan that declares which communities the rail line would serve.

On Saturday, US Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta, who was in Los Angeles to promote President George W. Bush's $57.2 billion transportation budget, said that federal funding for Orange County's rail project could be in jeopardy if city and county leaders cannot agree on a specific route.

"You better have a unified position before you come talk to me" for the limited amount of federal funds, Mineta said. "I've got other areas across the country where they've got their act together."

Mineta's comments come as Orange County Transportation Authority officials head for Washington this week to lobby Congress. The OCTA wants $15 million in federal cash to underwrite the light-rail system's planning, but say they will ultimately need about $1 billion in federal help to build the $2.3-billion system.

President Bush brought Mineta, a Democrat, into the Administration's Cabinet as part of Bush's efforts to build a bipartisan team.