I 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2095 

To amend title 49, United States Code, to prevent railroad fatalities, injuries, 

and hazardous materials releases, to authorize the Federal Railroad 

Safety Administration, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 1, 2007 

Mr. OBERSTAR (for himself and Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation 

and Infrastructure 

A BILL 

To amend title 49, United States Code, to prevent railroad 

fatalities, injuries, and hazardous materials releases, to 

authorize the Federal Railroad Safety Administration, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2007’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 


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Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—FEDERAL RAILROAD SAFETY ADMINISTRATION 

Sec. 101. Establishment of Federal Railroad Safety Administration. 

Sec. 102. Railroad safety strategy. 

Sec. 103. Reports. 

Sec. 104. Rulemaking process. 

Sec. 105. Authorization of appropriations. 

TITLE II—EMPLOYEE FATIGUE 

Sec. 201. Hours of service reform. 

Sec. 202. Employee sleeping quarters. 

Sec. 203. Fatigue management plans. 

Sec. 204. Regulatory authority. 

Sec. 205. Conforming amendment. 

TITLE III—PROTECTION OF EMPLOYEES AND WITNESSES 

Sec. 301. Employee protections. 

TITLE IV—GRADE CROSSINGS 

Sec. 401. Toll-free number to report grade crossing problems. 

Sec. 402. Roadway user sight distance at highway-rail grade crossings. 

Sec. 403. Grade crossing signal violations. 

Sec. 404. National crossing inventory. 

Sec. 405. Accident and incident reporting. 

Sec. 406. Authority to buy promotional items to improve railroad crossing safety and prevent railroad trespass. 

TITLE V—ENFORCEMENT 

Sec. 501. Enforcement. 

Sec. 502. Civil penalties. 

Sec. 503. Criminal penalties. 

Sec. 504. Expansion of emergency order authority. 

Sec. 505. Enforcement transparency. 

Sec. 506. Interfering with or hampering safety investigations. 

Sec. 507. Railroad radio monitoring authority. 

Sec. 508. Inspector staffing. 

TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 

Sec. 601. Positive train control systems. 

Sec. 602. Warning in nonsignaled territory. 

Sec. 603. Track safety. 

Sec. 604. Certification of conductors. 

Sec. 605. Minimum training standards. 

Sec. 606. Prompt medical attention. 

Sec. 607. Emergency escape breathing apparatus. 

Sec. 608. Locomotive cab environment. 

TITLE VII—RAIL PASSENGER DISASTER FAMILY ASSISTANCE 

Sec. 701. Short title. 


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Sec. 702. Assistance by National Transportation Safety Board to families of 

passengers involved in rail passenger accidents. 

Sec. 703. Rail passenger carrier plans to address needs of families of passengers involved in rail passenger accidents. 

Sec. 704. Establishment of task force. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 For purposes of this Act, the terms ‘‘railroad’’ and 

3 ‘‘railroad carrier’’ have the meaning given those terms in 

4 section 20102 of title 49, United States Code. 

5 TITLE I—FEDERAL RAILROAD 

6 SAFETY ADMINISTRATION 

7 SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF FEDERAL RAILROAD SAFETY 

8 ADMINISTRATION. 

9 (a) AMENDMENT.—Section 103 of title 49, United 

10 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘§ 103. Federal Railroad Safety Administration 

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Railroad Safety Ad13 ministration (in this section referred to as the ‘Adminis14 tration’) shall be an administration in the Department of 

15 Transportation. To carry out all railroad safety laws of 

16 the United States, the Administration shall be divided on 

17 a geographical basis into at least 8 safety offices. The Sec18 retary of Transportation shall be responsible for enforcing 

19 those laws and for ensuring that those laws are uniformly 

20 administered and enforced among the safety offices. 

21 ‘‘(b) SAFETY AS HIGHEST PRIORITY.—In carrying 

22 out its duties, the Administration shall consider the as23 signment and maintenance of safety as the highest priVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:05 May 03, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2095.IH H2095

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1 ority, recognizing the clear intent, encouragement, and 

2 dedication of Congress to the furtherance of the highest 

3 degree of safety in railroad transportation. 

4 ‘‘(c) ADMINISTRATOR.—The head of the Administra5 tion shall be the Administrator who shall be appointed by 

6 the President, by and with the advice and consent of the 

7 Senate, and shall be an individual with professional experi8 ence in railroad safety, hazardous materials safety, or 

9 other transportation safety. The Administrator shall re10 port directly to the Secretary of Transportation. 

11 ‘‘(d) DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR.—The Administration 

12 shall have a Deputy Administrator who shall be appointed 

13 by the Secretary. The Deputy Administrator shall carry 

14 out duties and powers prescribed by the Administrator. 

15 ‘‘(e) CHIEF SAFETY OFFICER.—The Administration 

16 shall have an Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety 

17 appointed in the competitive service by the Secretary. The 

18 Associate Administrator shall be the Chief Safety Officer 

19 of the Administration. The Associate Administrator shall 

20 carry out the duties and powers prescribed by the Admin21 istrator. 

22 ‘‘(f) DUTIES AND POWERS OF THE ADMINIS23 TRATOR.—The Administrator shall carry out— 

24 ‘‘(1) duties and powers related to railroad safe25 ty vested in the Secretary by section 20134(c) and 


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1 chapters 203 through 211 of this title, and by chap2 ter 213 of this title for carrying out chapters 203 

3 through 211; and 

4 ‘‘(2) other duties and powers prescribed by the 

5 Secretary. 

6 ‘‘(g) LIMITATION.—A duty or power specified in sub7 section (f)(1) may be transferred to another part of the 

8 Department of Transportation or another Federal Govern9 ment entity only when specifically provided by law. A deci10 sion of the Administrator in carrying out the duties or 

11 powers of the Administration and involving notice and 

12 hearing required by law is administratively final. 

13 ‘‘(h) AUTHORITIES.—Subject to the provisions of 

14 subtitle I of title 40 and title III of the Federal Property 

15 and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 251 

16 et seq.), the Secretary of Transportation may make, enter 

17 into, and perform such contracts, grants, leases, coopera18 tive agreements, and other similar transactions with Fed19 eral or other public agencies (including State and local 

20 governments) and private organizations and persons, and 

21 make such payments, by way of advance or reimburse22 ment, as the Secretary may determine to be necessary or 

23 appropriate to carry out functions at the Administration. 

24 The authority of the Secretary granted by this subsection 

25 shall be carried out by the Administrator. NotwithVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:05 May 03, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2095.IH H2095

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1 standing any other provision of this chapter, no authority 

2 to enter into contracts or to make payments under this 

3 subsection shall be effective, except as provided for in ap4 propriations Acts.’’. 

5 (b) REFERENCES AND CONFORMING AMEND6 MENTS.—(1) All references in Federal law to the Federal 

7 Railroad Administration shall be deemed to be references 

8 to the Federal Railroad Safety Administration. 

9 (2) The item relating to section 103 in the table of 

10 sections of chapter 1 of title 49, United States Code, is 

11 amended to read as follows: 

‘‘103. Federal Railroad Safety Administration.’’. 

12 SEC. 102. RAILROAD SAFETY STRATEGY. 

13 (a) SAFETY GOALS.—In conjunction with existing 

14 federally required strategic planning efforts, the Secretary 

15 of Transportation shall develop a long-term strategy for 

16 improving railroad safety. The strategy shall include an 

17 annual plan and schedule for achieving, at a minimum, 

18 the following goals: 

19 (1) Reducing the number and rates of acci20 dents, injuries, and fatalities involving railroads. 

21 (2) Improving the consistency and effectiveness 

22 of enforcement and compliance programs. 

23 (3) Identifying and targeting enforcement at, 

24 and safety improvements to, high-risk highway-rail 

25 grade crossings. 


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1 (4) Improving research efforts to enhance and 

2 promote railroad safety and performance. 

3 (b) RESOURCE NEEDS.—The strategy and annual 

4 plans shall include estimates of the funds and staff re5 sources needed to accomplish each activity. Such estimates 

6 shall also include the staff skills and training needed for 

7 timely and effective accomplishment of each goal. 

8 (c) SUBMISSION WITH THE PRESIDENT’S BUDG9 ET.—The Secretary of Transportation shall submit to the 

10 Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 

11 House of Representatives and the Committee on Com12 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate the 

13 strategy and annual plan at the same time as the Presi14 dent’s budget submission. 

15 (d) ACHIEVEMENT OF GOALS.— 

16 (1) PROGRESS ASSESSMENT.—No less fre17 quently than semiannually, the Secretary of Trans18 portation and the Administrator of the Federal Rail19 road Safety Administration shall assess the progress 

20 of the Administration toward achieving the strategic 

21 goals described in subsection (a). The Secretary and 

22 the Administrator shall convey their assessment to 

23 the employees of the Federal Railroad Safety Ad24 ministration and shall identify any deficiencies that 


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1 should be remediated before the next progress as2 sessment. 

3 (2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary 

4 shall transmit a report annually to the Committee 

5 on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 

6 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

7 Science, and Transportation of the Senate on the 

8 performance of the Federal Railroad Safety Admin9 istration relative to the goals of the railroad safety 

10 strategy and annual plans under subsection (a). 

11 SEC. 103. REPORTS. 

12 (a) REPORTS BY THE INSPECTOR GENERAL.—Not 

13 later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 

14 the Inspector General of the Department of Transpor15 tation shall submit to the Secretary of Transportation and 

16 the Administrator of the Federal Railroad Safety Admin17 istration a report containing the following: 

18 (1) A list of each statutory mandate regarding 

19 railroad safety that has not been implemented. 

20 (2) A list of each open safety recommendation 

21 made by the National Transportation Safety Board 

22 or the Inspector General regarding railroad safety. 

23 (b) REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY.— 

24 (1) STATUTORY MANDATES.—Not later than 90 

25 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and 


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1 every 180 days thereafter until each of the mandates 

2 referred to in subsection (a)(1) has been imple3 mented, the Secretary of Transportation shall trans4 mit to the Committee on Transportation and Infra5 structure of the House of Representatives and the 

6 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor7 tation of the Senate a report on the specific actions 

8 taken to implement such mandates. 

9 (2) NTSB AND INSPECTOR GENERAL REC10 OMMENDATIONS.—Not later than January 1st of 

11 each year, the Secretary of Transportation shall 

12 transmit to the Committee on Transportation and 

13 Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 

14 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans15 portation of the Senate a report containing each rec16 ommendation referred to in subsection (a)(2), a copy 

17 of the Department of Transportation response to 

18 each such recommendation, and a progress report on 

19 implementing each such recommendation. 

20 SEC. 104. RULEMAKING PROCESS. 

21 (a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter I of chapter 201 of 

22 title 49, United States Code, is amended by inserting after 

23 section 20115 the following new section: 


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1 ‘‘§ 20116. Rulemaking process 

2 ‘‘No rule or order issued by the Secretary under this 

3 part shall be effective if it incorporates by reference a 

4 code, rule, standard, requirement, or practice issued by an 

5 association or other entity that is not an agency of the 

6 Federal Government, unless that reference is to a par7 ticular code, rule, standard, requirement, or practice 

8 adopted before the date on which the rule is issued by 

9 the Secretary, and unless the date on which the code, rule, 

10 standard, requirement, or practice was adopted is specifi11 cally cited in the rule.’’. 

12 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

13 sections of subchapter I of chapter 201 of title 49, United 

14 States Code, is amended by adding after the item relating 

15 to section 20115 the following new item: 

‘‘20116. Rulemaking process.’’. 

16 SEC. 105. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

17 Section 20117(a) of title 49, United States Code, is 

18 amended to read as follows: 

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) There are authorized to be 

20 appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation to carry 

21 out this part and to carry out responsibilities under chap22 ter 51 as delegated or authorized by the Secretary— 

23 ‘‘(A) $230,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; 

24 ‘‘(B) $260,000,000 for fiscal year 2009; 

25 ‘‘(C) $295,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; and 


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1 ‘‘(D) $335,000,000 for fiscal year 2011. 

2 ‘‘(2) With amounts appropriated pursuant to para3 graph (1), the Secretary shall purchase 6 Gage Restraint 

4 Measurement System vehicles and 5 track geometry vehi5 cles to enable the deployment of 1 Gage Restraint Meas6 urement System vehicle and 1 track geometry vehicle in 

7 each region. 

8 ‘‘(3) There are authorized to be appropriated to the 

9 Secretary $18,000,000 for the period encompassing fiscal 

10 years 2008 through 2011 to design, develop, and construct 

11 the Facility for Underground Rail Station and Tunnel at 

12 the Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo, Colo13 rado. The facility shall be used to test and evaluate the 

14 vulnerabilities of above-ground and underground rail tun15 nels to prevent accidents and incidents in such tunnels, 

16 to mitigate and remediate the consequences of any such 

17 accidents or incidents, and to provide a realistic scenario 

18 for training emergency responders.’’. 

19 TITLE II—EMPLOYEE FATIGUE 

20 SEC. 201. HOURS OF SERVICE REFORM. 

21 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 21101(4) of title 49, 

22 United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘employed by 

23 a railroad carrier’’. 


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1 (b) LIMITATION ON DUTY HOURS OF SIGNAL EM2 PLOYEES.—Section 21104 of title 49, United States Code, 

3 is amended— 

4 (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol5 lows: 

6 ‘‘(a) GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection (c) 

7 of this section, a railroad carrier and its officers and 

8 agents may not require or allow a signal employee to re9 main or go on duty— 

10 ‘‘(1) unless that employee has had at least 10 

11 consecutive hours off duty during the prior 24 

12 hours; 

13 ‘‘(2) for a period in excess of 12 consecutive 

14 hours; or 

15 ‘‘(3) unless that employee has had at least one 

16 period of at least 24 consecutive hours off duty in 

17 the past 7 consecutive days.’’; 

18 (2) in subsection (b)(3) by striking ‘‘, except 

19 that up to one hour of that time spent returning 

20 from the final trouble call of a period of continuous 

21 or broken service is time off duty’’; 

22 (3) in subsection (c)— 

23 (A) by inserting ‘‘for not more than 3 days 

24 during a period of 7 consecutive days’’ after 

25 ‘‘24 consecutive hours’’; and 


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1 (B) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘A 

2 signal employee may not be allowed to remain 

3 or go on duty under the emergency authority 

4 provided under this subsection to conduct rou5 tine repairs, maintenance, or inspection of sig6 nal systems.’’; 

7 (4) by adding at the end the following new sub8 section: 

9 ‘‘(d) COMMUNICATION DURING TIME OFF DUTY.— 

10 During a signal employee’s minimum off-duty period of 

11 10 consecutive hours, as provided under subsection (a), 

12 a railroad carrier, and its managers, supervisors, officers, 

13 and agents, shall not communicate with the signal em14 ployee by telephone, by pager, or in any other manner that 

15 could disrupt the employee’s rest. Nothing in this sub16 section shall prohibit communication necessary to notify 

17 an employee of an emergency situation posing potential 

18 risks to the employee’s safety or health.’’. 

19 (c) LIMITATION ON DUTY HOURS OF TRAIN EM20 PLOYEES.—Section 21103 of title 49, United States Code, 

21 is amended— 

22 (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol23 lows: 

24 ‘‘(a) GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection (c) 

25 of this section, a railroad carrier and its officers and 


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1 agents may not require or allow a train employee to re2 main or go on duty— 

3 ‘‘(1) unless that employee has had at least 10 

4 consecutive hours off duty during the prior 24 

5 hours; 

6 ‘‘(2) for a period in excess of 12 consecutive 

7 hours; or 

8 ‘‘(3) unless that employee has had at least one 

9 period of at least 24 consecutive hours off duty in 

10 the past 7 consecutive days.’’; 

11 (2) by amending subsection (b)(4) to read as 

12 follows: 

13 ‘‘(4) Time spent in deadhead transportation to 

14 a duty assignment, time spent waiting for deadhead 

15 transportation, and time spent in deadhead trans16 portation from a duty assignment to the place of 

17 final release is time on duty.’’; and 

18 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub19 section: 

20 ‘‘(d) COMMUNICATION DURING TIME OFF DUTY.— 

21 During a train employee’s minimum off-duty period of 10 

22 consecutive hours, as provided under subsection (a), or 

23 during an interim period of at least 4 consecutive hours 

24 available for rest under subsection (b)(7), a railroad car25 rier, and its managers, supervisors, officers, and agents, 


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1 shall not communicate with the train employee by tele2 phone, by pager, or in any other manner that could dis3 rupt the employee’s rest. Nothing in this subsection shall 

4 prohibit communication necessary to notify an employee 

5 of an emergency situation posing potential risks to the em6 ployee’s safety or health.’’. 

7 SEC. 202. EMPLOYEE SLEEPING QUARTERS. 

8 Section 21106(2) of title 49, United States Code, is 

9 amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘(2) may not provide sleeping quarters referred 

11 to in paragraph (1) in an area or in the immediate 

12 vicinity of an area in which railroad switching or 

13 humping operations are performed.’’. 

14 SEC. 203. FATIGUE MANAGEMENT PLANS. 

15 (a) AMENDMENT.—Chapter 211 of title 49, United 

16 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing new section: 

18 ‘‘§ 21109. Fatigue management plans 

19 ‘‘(a) PLAN SUBMISSION.— 

20 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT.—Each railroad carrier 

21 shall submit to the Secretary of Transportation, and 

22 update at least once every 2 years, a fatigue man23 agement plan that is designed to reduce the fatigue 

24 experienced by railroad employees and to reduce the 

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1 tigue. The plan shall address the safety effects of fa2 tigue on all employees, including employees not cov3 ered by this chapter. The plan shall be submitted 

4 not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

5 of this section, or not later than 45 days prior to 

6 commencing operations, whichever is later. 

7 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF PLAN.—The fatigue man8 agement plan shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) identify and prioritize all situations 

10 that pose a risk for safety that may be affected 

11 by fatigue; 

12 ‘‘(B) include the railroad carrier’s— 

13 ‘‘(i) rationale for including and not in14 cluding each element described in sub15 section (b)(2) in the plan; 

16 ‘‘(ii) analysis supporting each element 

17 included in the plan; and 

18 ‘‘(iii) explanations for how each ele19 ment in the plan will reduce the risk asso20 ciated with fatigue; 

21 ‘‘(C) describe how every condition on the 

22 railroad carrier’s property, and every type of 

23 employee, that is likely to be affected by fatigue 

24 is addressed in the plan; and 


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1 ‘‘(D) include the name, title, address, and 

2 telephone number of the primary person to be 

3 contacted with regard to review of the plan. 

4 ‘‘(3) APPROVAL.—(A) The Secretary shall re5 view each proposed plan and approve or disapprove 

6 such plan based on whether the requirements of this 

7 section are sufficiently and appropriately addressed 

8 and the proposals are adequately justified in the 

9 plan. 

10 ‘‘(B) If the proposed plan is not approved, the 

11 Secretary shall notify the affected railroad carrier as 

12 to the specific points in which the proposed plan is 

13 deficient, and the railroad carrier shall correct all 

14 deficiencies within 30 days following receipt of writ15 ten notice from the Secretary. If a railroad carrier 

16 does not submit a plan (or, when directed by the 

17 Secretary, an amended plan), or if a railroad car18 rier’s amended plan is not approved by the Sec19 retary, the Secretary shall prescribe a fatigue man20 agement plan for the railroad carrier. 

21 ‘‘(4) EMPLOYEE PARTICIPATION.—(A) Each af22 fected railroad carrier shall consult with, and employ 

23 good faith and use its best efforts to reach agree24 ment by consensus with, all of its directly affected 

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1 agement plan, and, except as provided in subpara2 graph (C), shall jointly with such groups submit the 

3 plan to the Secretary. 

4 ‘‘(B) In the event that labor organizations rep5 resent classes or crafts of directly affected employees 

6 of the railroad carrier, the railroad carrier shall con7 sult with these organizations in drafting the plan. 

8 The Secretary may provide technical assistance and 

9 guidance to such parties in the drafting of the plan. 

10 ‘‘(C) If the railroad carrier and its directly af11 fected employees (including any labor organization 

12 representing a class or craft of directly affected em13 ployees of the railroad carrier) cannot reach con14 sensus on the proposed contents of the plan, then— 

15 ‘‘(i) the railroad carrier shall file the plan 

16 with the Secretary; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) directly affected employees and labor 

18 organizations representing a class or craft of di19 rectly affected employees may, at their option, 

20 file a statement with the Secretary explaining 

21 their views on the plan on which consensus was 

22 not reached. 

23 ‘‘(b) ELEMENTS OF THE FATIGUE MANAGEMENT

24 PLAN.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) CONSIDERATION OF VARYING CIR2 CUMSTANCES.—Each plan filed with the Secretary 

3 under the procedures of subsection (a) shall take 

4 into account the varying circumstances of operations 

5 by the railroad carrier on different parts of its sys6 tem, and shall prescribe appropriate fatigue counter7 measures to address those varying circumstances. 

8 ‘‘(2) ISSUES AFFECTING ALL EMPLOYEES.— 

9 The railroad carrier shall consider the need to in10 clude in its fatigue management plan elements ad11 dressing each of the following issues: 

12 ‘‘(A) Education and training on the phys13 iological and human factors that affect fatigue, 

14 as well as strategies to counter fatigue, based 

15 on current and evolving scientific and medical 

16 research and literature. 

17 ‘‘(B) Opportunities for identification, diag18 nosis, and treatment of any medical condition 

19 that may affect alertness or fatigue, including 

20 sleep disorders. 

21 ‘‘(C) Effects on employee fatigue of emer22 gency response involving both short-term emer23 gency situations, including derailments, and 

24 long-term emergency situations, including nat25 ural disasters. 


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1 ‘‘(D) Scheduling practices involving train 

2 lineups and calling times, including work/rest 

3 cycles for shift workers and on-call employees 

4 that permit employees to compensate for cumu5 lative sleep loss by guaranteeing a minimum 

6 number of consecutive days off (exclusive of 

7 time off due to illness or injury). 

8 ‘‘(E) Minimizing the incidence of fatigue 

9 that occurs as a result of working at times 

10 when the natural circadian rhythm increases fa11 tigue. 

12 ‘‘(F) Alertness strategies, such as policies 

13 on napping, to address acute sleepiness and fa14 tigue while an employee is on duty. 

15 ‘‘(G) Opportunities to obtain restful sleep 

16 at lodging facilities, including sleeping quarters 

17 provided by the railroad carrier. 

18 ‘‘(H) In connection with the scheduling of 

19 a duty call, increasing the number of consecu20 tive hours of rest off duty, during which an em21 ployee receives no communication from the em22 ploying railroad carrier or its managers, super23 visors, officers, or agents. 

24 ‘‘(I) Avoiding abrupt changes in rest cycles 

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1 tended absence due to circumstances such as ill2 ness or injury. 

3 ‘‘(J) Additional elements as the Secretary 

4 considers appropriate. 

5 ‘‘(c) COMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT.— 

6 ‘‘(1) COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT.—Effective 

7 upon approval or prescription of a fatigue manage8 ment plan, compliance with that fatigue manage9 ment plan becomes mandatory and enforceable by 

10 the Secretary. 

11 ‘‘(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—A fatigue manage12 ment plan may include effective dates later than the 

13 date of approval of the plan, and may include dif14 ferent effective dates for different parts of the plan. 

15 ‘‘(3) AUDITS.—To enforce this section, the Sec16 retary may conduct inspections and periodic audits 

17 of a railroad carrier’s compliance with its fatigue 

18 management plan. 

19 ‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section the 

20 term ‘directly affected employees’ means employees, in21 cluding employees of an independent contractor or subcon22 tractor, to whose hours of service the terms of a fatigue 

23 management plan specifically apply.’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

2 sections for chapter 211 of title 49, United States Code, 

3 is amended by adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘21109. Fatigue management plans.’’. 

4 SEC. 204. REGULATORY AUTHORITY. 

5 (a) AMENDMENT.—Chapter 211 of title 49, United 

6 States Code, as amended by this Act, is further amended 

7 by adding at the end the following new section: 

8 ‘‘§ 21110. Regulatory authority 

9 ‘‘The Secretary of Transportation may by regula10 tion— 

11 ‘‘(1) reduce the maximum hours an employee 

12 may be required or allowed to go or remain on duty 

13 to a level less than the level established under this 

14 chapter; or 

15 ‘‘(2) increase the minimum hours an employee 

16 may be required or allowed to rest to a level greater 

17 than the level established under this chapter.’’. 

18 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

19 sections for chapter 211 of title 49, United States Code, 

20 is amended by adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘21110. Regulatory authority.’’. 

21 SEC. 205. CONFORMING AMENDMENT. 

22 Section 21303(c) of title 49, United States Code, is 

23 amended by striking ‘‘officers and agents’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘managers, supervisors, officers, and agents’’. 


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1 TITLE III—PROTECTION OF 

2 EMPLOYEES AND WITNESSES 

3 SEC. 301. EMPLOYEE PROTECTIONS. 

4 Section 20109 of title 49, United States Code, is 

5 amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘§ 20109. Employee protections 

7 ‘‘(a) PROTECTED ACTIONS.—A railroad carrier en8 gaged in interstate or foreign commerce, and an officer 

9 or employee of such a railroad carrier, shall not by threat, 

10 intimidation, or otherwise attempt to prevent an employee 

11 from, or discharge, discipline, or in any way discriminate 

12 against an employee for— 

13 ‘‘(1) filing a complaint or bringing or causing 

14 to be brought a proceeding related to the enforce15 ment of this part or, as applicable to railroad safety, 

16 chapter 51 or 57 of this title; 

17 ‘‘(2) testifying in a proceeding described in 

18 paragraph (1); 

19 ‘‘(3) notifying, or attempting to notify, the rail20 road carrier or the Secretary of Transportation of a 

21 work-related personal injury or work-related illness 

22 of an employee; 

23 ‘‘(4) cooperating with a safety investigation by 

24 the Secretary of Transportation or the National 

25 Transportation Safety Board; 


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1 ‘‘(5) furnishing information to the Secretary of 

2 Transportation, the National Transportation Safety 

3 Board, or any other public official as to the facts re4 lating to any accident or incident resulting in injury 

5 or death to an individual or damage to property oc6 curring in connection with railroad transportation; 

7 or 

8 ‘‘(6) accurately reporting hours of duty pursu9 ant to chapter 211. 

10 ‘‘(b) HAZARDOUS CONDITIONS.—(1) A railroad car11 rier engaged in interstate or foreign commerce, and an of12 ficer or employee of such a railroad carrier, shall not by 

13 threat, intimidation, or otherwise attempt to prevent an 

14 employee from, or discharge, discipline, or in any way dis15 criminate against an employee for— 

16 ‘‘(A) reporting a hazardous condition; 

17 ‘‘(B) refusing to work when confronted by a 

18 hazardous condition related to the performance of 

19 the employee’s duties, if the conditions described in 

20 paragraph (2) exist; or 

21 ‘‘(C) refusing to authorize the use of any safe22 ty-related equipment, track, or structures, if the em23 ployee is responsible for the inspection or repair of 

24 the equipment, track, or structures, when the em25 ployee believes that the equipment, track, or strucVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:05 May 03, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2095.IH H2095

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1 tures are in a hazardous condition, if the conditions 

2 described in paragraph (2) exist. 

3 ‘‘(2) A refusal is protected under paragraph (1)(B) 

4 and (C) if— 

5 ‘‘(A) the refusal is made in good faith and no 

6 reasonable alternative to the refusal is available to 

7 the employee; 

8 ‘‘(B) the employee reasonably concludes that— 

9 ‘‘(i) the hazardous condition presents an 

10 imminent danger of death or serious injury; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) the urgency of the situation does not 

12 allow sufficient time to eliminate the danger 

13 without such refusal; and 

14 ‘‘(C) the employee, where possible, has notified 

15 the carrier of the existence of the hazardous condi16 tion and the intention not to perform further work, 

17 or not to authorize the use of the hazardous equip18 ment, track, or structures, unless the condition is 

19 corrected immediately or the equipment, track, or 

20 structures are repaired properly or replaced. 

21 ‘‘(3) This subsection does not apply to security per22 sonnel employed by a railroad carrier to protect individ23 uals and property transported by railroad. 

24 ‘‘(c) ENFORCEMENT ACTION.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An employee who alleges 

2 discharge or other discrimination by any person in 

3 violation of subsection (a) may seek relief in accord4 ance with the provisions of this section, with any pe5 tition or other request for relief under this section 

6 to be initiated by filing a complaint with the Sec7 retary of Labor. 

8 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURE.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An action under this 

10 section shall be governed under the rules and 

11 procedures set forth in section 42121(b). 

12 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Notification made 

13 under section 42121(b)(1) shall be made to the 

14 person named in the complaint and to the per15 son’s employer. 

16 ‘‘(C) BURDENS OF PROOF.—An action 

17 brought under this section shall be governed by 

18 the legal burdens of proof set forth in section 

19 42121(b). 

20 ‘‘(D) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.—An ac21 tion under this section shall be commenced not 

22 later than 1 year after the date on which the 

23 violation occurs. 

24 ‘‘(3) DE NOVO REVIEW.—If the Secretary of 

25 Labor has not issued a final decision within 180 


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1 days after the filing of the complaint (or, in the 

2 event that a final order or decision is issued by the 

3 Secretary of Labor, whether within the 180-day pe4 riod or thereafter, then, not later than 90 days after 

5 such an order or decision is issued), the employee 

6 may bring an original action at law or equity for de 

7 novo review in the appropriate district court of the 

8 United States, which shall have jurisdiction over 

9 such an action without regard to the amount in con10 troversy, and which action shall, at the request of ei11 ther party to such action, be tried by the court with 

12 a jury. 

13 ‘‘(d) REMEDIES.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An employee prevailing in 

15 any action under this section shall be entitled to all 

16 relief necessary to make the covered individual 

17 whole. 

18 ‘‘(2) DAMAGES.—Relief in an action under this 

19 section shall include— 

20 ‘‘(A) reinstatement with the same seniority 

21 status that the covered individual would have 

22 had, but for the discrimination; 

23 ‘‘(B) the amount of any back pay, with in24 terest; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) compensation for any special damages 

2 sustained as a result of the discrimination, in3 cluding litigation costs, expert witness fees, and 

4 reasonable attorney fees. 

5 ‘‘(3) POSSIBLE RELIEF.—Relief may also in6 clude punitive damages in an amount not to exceed 

7 10 times the amount of any compensatory damages 

8 awarded under this section. 

9 ‘‘(e) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for any 

11 railroad carrier to commit an act prohibited by sub12 section (a). Any person who willfully violates this 

13 section by terminating or retaliating against any 

14 such covered individual who makes a claim under 

15 this section shall be fined under title 18, United 

16 States Code, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or 

17 both. 

18 ‘‘(2) REPORTING REQUIREMENT.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General 

20 shall submit to the Committee on Transpor21 tation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep22 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

23 Science, and Transportation of the Senate an 

24 annual report on the enforcement of paragraph 

25 (1). 


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1 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each such report 

2 shall— 

3 ‘‘(i) identify each case in which formal 

4 charges under paragraph (1) were brought; 

5 ‘‘(ii) describe the status or disposition 

6 of each such case; and 

7 ‘‘(iii) in any actions under subsection 

8 (c)(1) in which the employee was the pre9 vailing party or the substantially prevailing 

10 party, indicate whether or not any formal 

11 charges under paragraph (1) of this sub12 section have been brought and, if not, the 

13 reasons therefor. 

14 ‘‘(f) NO PREEMPTION.—Nothing in this section pre15 empts or diminishes any other safeguards against dis16 crimination, demotion, discharge, suspension, threats, har17 assment, reprimand, retaliation, or any other manner of 

18 discrimination provided by Federal or State law. 

19 ‘‘(g) RIGHTS RETAINED BY COVERED INDIVIDUAL.— 

20 Nothing in this section shall be deemed to diminish the 

21 rights, privileges, or remedies of any covered individual 

22 under any Federal or State law or under any collective 

23 bargaining agreement. The rights and remedies in this 

24 section may not be waived by any agreement, policy, form, 

25 or condition of employment.’’. 


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1 TITLE IV—GRADE CROSSINGS 

2 SEC. 401. TOLL-FREE NUMBER TO REPORT GRADE CROSS3 ING PROBLEMS. 

4 Section 20152 of title 49, United States Code, is 

5 amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘§ 20152. Emergency notification of grade crossing 

7 problems 

8 ‘‘Not later than 18 months after the date of enact9 ment of the Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 

10 2007, the Secretary of Transportation shall require each 

11 railroad carrier to— 

12 ‘‘(1) establish and maintain a toll-free telephone 

13 service, for rights-of-way over which it dispatches 

14 trains, to directly receive calls reporting— 

15 ‘‘(A) malfunctions of signals, crossing 

16 gates, and other devices to promote safety at 

17 the grade crossing of railroad tracks on those 

18 rights-of-way and public or private roads; and 

19 ‘‘(B) disabled vehicles blocking railroad 

20 tracks at such grade crossings; 

21 ‘‘(2) upon receiving a report of a malfunction or 

22 disabled vehicle pursuant to paragraph (1), imme23 diately contact trains operating near the grade 

24 crossing to warn them of the malfunction or disabled 

25 vehicle; 


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1 ‘‘(3) upon receiving a report of a malfunction or 

2 disabled vehicle pursuant to paragraph (1), and 

3 after contacting trains pursuant to paragraph (2), 

4 contact, as necessary, appropriate public safety offi5 cials having jurisdiction over the grade crossing to 

6 provide them with the information necessary for 

7 them to direct traffic, assist in the removal of the 

8 disabled vehicle, or carry out other activities appro9 priate to responding to the hazardous circumstance; 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(4) ensure the placement at each grade cross12 ing on rights-of-way that it owns of appropriately lo13 cated signs, on which shall appear, at a minimum— 

14 ‘‘(A) a toll-free telephone number to be 

15 used for placing calls described in paragraph 

16 (1) to the railroad carrier dispatching trains on 

17 that right-of-way; 

18 ‘‘(B) an explanation of the purpose of that 

19 toll-free number as described in paragraph (1); 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(C) the grade crossing number assigned 

22 for that crossing by the National Highway-Rail 

23 Crossing Inventory established by the Depart24 ment of Transportation. 


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1 The Secretary of Transportation shall implement this sec2 tion through appropriate regulations.’’. 

3 SEC. 402. ROADWAY USER SIGHT DISTANCE AT HIGHWAY4 RAIL GRADE CROSSINGS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 201 of 

6 title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

7 end the following new section: 

8 ‘‘§ 20156. Roadway user sight distance at highway9 rail grade crossings 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months after 

11 the date of enactment of the Federal Railroad Safety Im12 provement Act of 2007, the Secretary of Transportation 

13 shall prescribe regulations that require each railroad car14 rier to remove from its rights-of-way at all public highway15 rail grade crossings, and at all private highway-rail grade 

16 crossings open to unrestricted public access (as declared 

17 in writing by the holder of the crossing right), grass, 

18 brush, shrubbery, trees, and other vegetation which may 

19 obstruct the view of a pedestrian or a vehicle operator for 

20 a reasonable distance in either direction of the train’s ap21 proach, and to maintain its rights-of-way at all such cross22 ings free of such vegetation. In prescribing the regula23 tions, the Secretary shall take into consideration to the 

24 extent practicable— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the type of warning device or warning de2 vices installed at the crossing; 

3 ‘‘(2) factors affecting the timeliness and effec4 tiveness of roadway user decisionmaking, including 

5 the maximum allowable roadway speed, maximum 

6 authorized train speed, angle of intersection, and to7 pography; 

8 ‘‘(3) the presence or absence of other sight dis9 tance obstructions off the railroad right-of-way; and 

10 ‘‘(4) any other factors affecting safety at such 

11 crossings. 

12 ‘‘(b) PROTECTED VEGETATION.—In promulgating 

13 regulations pursuant to this section, the Secretary may 

14 make allowance for preservation of trees and other orna15 mental or protective growth where State or local law or 

16 policy would otherwise protect the vegetation from removal 

17 and where the roadway authority or private crossing hold18 er is notified of the sight distance obstruction and, within 

19 a reasonable period specified by the regulation, takes ap20 propriate temporary and permanent action to abate the 

21 hazard to roadway users (such as by closing the crossing, 

22 posting supplementary signage, installing active warning 

23 devices, lowering roadway speed, or installing traffic 

24 calming devices). 


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1 ‘‘(c) NO PREEMPTION.—Notwithstanding section 

2 20106, subsections (a) and (b) of this section do not pro3 hibit a State from continuing in force, or from enacting, 

4 a law, regulation, or order requiring the removal of ob5 structive vegetation from a railroad right-of-way for safety 

6 reasons that is more stringent than the requirements of 

7 the regulations prescribed pursuant to this section.’’. 

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec9 tions for such subchapter II of chapter 201 is amended 

10 by inserting after the item relating to section 20155 the 

11 following new item: 

‘‘20156. Roadway user sight distance at highway-rail grade crossings.’’. 

12 SEC. 403. GRADE CROSSING SIGNAL VIOLATIONS. 

13 (a) AMENDMENTS.—Section 20151 of title 49, 

14 United States Code, is amended— 

15 (1) by amending the section heading to read as 

16 follows: 

17 ‘‘§ 20151. Railroad trespassing, vandalism, and signal 

18 violation prevention strategy’’; 

19 (2) in subsection (a)— 

20 (A) by striking ‘‘and vandalism affecting 

21 railroad safety’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘, 

22 vandalism affecting railroad safety, and viola23 tions of grade crossing signals’’; 


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1 (B) by inserting ‘‘, concerning trespassing 

2 and vandalism,’’ after ‘‘such evaluation and re3 view’’; and 

4 (C) by inserting ‘‘The second such evalua5 tion and review, concerning violations of grade 

6 crossing signals, shall be completed before April 

7 1, 2008.’’ after ‘‘November 2, 1994.’’; 

8 (3) in the subsection heading of subsection (b), 

9 by inserting ‘‘FOR TRESPASSING AND VANDALISM

10 PREVENTION’’ after ‘‘OUTREACH PROGRAM’’; 

11 (4) in subsection (c)— 

12 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and 

13 (2) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively; 

14 (B) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘MODEL LEG15 ISLATION.—’’; and 

16 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

17 paragraph: 

18 ‘‘(2) Within 18 months after the date of enactment 

19 of the Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2007, 

20 the Secretary, after consultation with State and local gov21 ernments, railroad carriers, and rail labor organizations, 

22 shall develop and make available to State and local govern23 ments model State legislation providing for civil or crimi24 nal penalties, or both, for violations of grade crossing sig25 nals.’’; and 


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1 (5) by adding at the end the following new sub2 section: 

3 ‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 

4 term ‘violation of grade crossing signals’ includes any ac5 tion by a motorist, unless directed by an authorized safety 

6 officer— 

7 ‘‘(1) to drive around a grade crossing gate in 

8 a position intended to block passage over railroad 

9 tracks; 

10 ‘‘(2) to drive through a flashing grade crossing 

11 signal; 

12 ‘‘(3) to drive through a grade crossing with pas13 sive warning signs without ensuring that the grade 

14 crossing could be safely crossed before any train ar15 rived; and 

16 ‘‘(4) in the vicinity of a grade crossing, that 

17 creates a hazard of an accident involving injury or 

18 property damage at the grade crossing.’’. 

19 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The item relating 

20 to section 20151 in the table of sections for subchapter 

21 II of chapter 201 of title 49, United States Code, is 

22 amended to read as follows: 

‘‘20151. Railroad trespassing, vandalism, and signal violation prevention strategy.’’. 


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1 SEC. 404. NATIONAL CROSSING INVENTORY. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 201 of 

3 title 49, United States Code, as amended by this Act, is 

4 further amended by adding at the end the following new 

5 section: 

6 ‘‘§ 20157. National crossing inventory 

7 ‘‘(a) INITIAL REPORTING OF INFORMATION ABOUT

8 PREVIOUSLY UNREPORTED CROSSINGS.—Not later than 

9 1 year after the date of enactment of the Federal Railroad 

10 Safety Improvement Act of 2007 or 6 months after a new 

11 crossing becomes operational, whichever occurs later, each 

12 railroad carrier shall— 

13 ‘‘(1) report to the Secretary of Transportation 

14 current information, including information about 

15 warning devices and signage, as specified by the Sec16 retary, concerning each previously unreported cross17 ing through which it operates; or 

18 ‘‘(2) ensure that the information has been re19 ported to the Secretary by another railroad carrier 

20 that operates through the crossing. 

21 ‘‘(b) UPDATING OF CROSSING INFORMATION.—(1) 

22 On a periodic basis beginning not later than 3 years after 

23 the date of enactment of the Federal Railroad Safety Im24 provement Act of 2007 and on or before September 30 

25 of every third year thereafter, or as otherwise specified 

26 by the Secretary, each railroad carrier shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) report to the Secretary current informa2 tion, including information about warning devices 

3 and signage, as specified by the Secretary, con4 cerning each crossing through which it operates; or 

5 ‘‘(B) ensure that the information has been re6 ported to the Secretary by another railroad carrier 

7 that operates through the crossing. 

8 ‘‘(2) A railroad carrier that sells a crossing or any 

9 part of a crossing on or after the date of enactment of 

10 the Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2007 

11 shall, not later than the date that is 18 months after the 

12 date of enactment of that Act or 3 months after the sale, 

13 whichever occurs later, or as otherwise specified by the 

14 Secretary, report to the Secretary current information, as 

15 specified by the Secretary, concerning the change in own16 ership of the crossing or part of the crossing. 

17 ‘‘(c) RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.—The Secretary shall 

18 prescribe the regulations necessary to implement this sec19 tion. The Secretary may enforce each provision of the De20 partment of Transportation’s statement of the national 

21 highway-rail crossing inventory policy, procedures, and in22 struction for States and railroads that is in effect on the 

23 date of enactment of the Federal Railroad Safety Improve24 ment Act of 2007, until such provision is superseded by 

25 a regulation issued under this section. 


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1 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

2 ‘‘(1) CROSSING.—The term ‘crossing’ means a 

3 location within a State, other than a location where 

4 one or more railroad tracks cross one or more rail5 road tracks either at grade or grade-separated, 

6 where— 

7 ‘‘(A) a public highway, road, or street, or 

8 a private roadway, including associated side9 walks and pathways, crosses one or more rail10 road tracks either at grade or grade-separated; 

11 or 

12 ‘‘(B) a pathway dedicated for the use of 

13 nonvehicular traffic, including pedestrians, 

14 bicyclists, and others, that is not associated 

15 with a public highway, road, or street, or a pri16 vate roadway, crosses one or more railroad 

17 tracks either at grade or grade-separated. 

18 ‘‘(2) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means a State 

19 of the United States, the District of Columbia, or 

20 the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.’’. 

21 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec22 tions for such subchapter II of chapter 201 is amended 

23 by adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘20157. National crossing inventory.’’. 


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1 (c) REPORTING AND UPDATING.—Section 130 of title 

2 23, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 

3 the following: 

4 ‘‘(l) NATIONAL CROSSING INVENTORY.— 

5 ‘‘(1) INITIAL REPORTING OF CROSSING INFOR6 MATION.—Not later than 1 year after the date of 

7 enactment of the Federal Railroad Safety Improve8 ment Act of 2007 or within 6 months of a new 

9 crossing becoming operational, whichever occurs 

10 later, each State shall report to the Secretary of 

11 Transportation current information, including infor12 mation about warning devices and signage, as speci13 fied by the Secretary, concerning each previously un14 reported crossing located within its borders. 

15 ‘‘(2) PERIODIC UPDATING OF CROSSING INFOR16 MATION.—On a periodic basis beginning not later 

17 than 3 years after the date of enactment of the Fed18 eral Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2007 and 

19 on or before September 30 of every third year there20 after, or as otherwise specified by the Secretary, 

21 each State shall report to the Secretary current in22 formation, including information about warning de23 vices and signage, as specified by the Secretary, con24 cerning each crossing located within its borders. 


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1 ‘‘(3) RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.—The Secretary 

2 shall prescribe the regulations necessary to imple3 ment this section. The Secretary may enforce each 

4 provision of the Department of Transportation’s 

5 statement of the national highway-rail crossing in6 ventory policy, procedures, and instructions for 

7 States and railroads that is in effect on the date of 

8 enactment of the Federal Railroad Safety Improve9 ment Act of 2007, until such provision is superseded 

10 by a regulation issued under this subsection. 

11 ‘‘(4) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the 

12 terms ‘crossing’ and ‘State’ have the meaning given 

13 those terms by section 20157(d)(1) and (2), respec14 tively, of title 49.’’. 

15 (d) CIVIL PENALTIES.—(1) Section 21301(a)(1) of 

16 title 49, United States Code, is amended— 

17 (A) by inserting ‘‘with section 20157 or’’ after 

18 ‘‘comply’’ in the first sentence; and 

19 (B) by inserting ‘‘section 20157 of this title or’’ 

20 after ‘‘violating’’ in the second sentence. 

21 (2) Section 21301(a)(2) of title 49, United States 

22 Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘The Secretary shall im23 pose a civil penalty for a violation of section 20157 of this 

24 title.’’ after the first sentence. 


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1 SEC. 405. ACCIDENT AND INCIDENT REPORTING. 

2 The Federal Railroad Safety Administration shall 

3 conduct an audit of each Class I railroad at least once 

4 every 2 years and conduct an audit of each non-Class I 

5 railroad at least once every 5 years to ensure that all grade 

6 crossing collisions and fatalities are reported to the na7 tional accident database. 

8 SEC. 406. AUTHORITY TO BUY PROMOTIONAL ITEMS TO IM9 PROVE RAILROAD CROSSING SAFETY AND 

10 PREVENT RAILROAD TRESPASS. 

11 Section 20134(a) of title 49, United States Code, is 

12 amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘The Sec13 retary may purchase promotional items of nominal value 

14 and distribute them to the public without charge as part 

15 of an educational or awareness program to accomplish the 

16 purposes of this section and of any other sections of this 

17 title related to improving the safety of highway-rail cross18 ings and to prevent trespass on railroad rights of way, 

19 and the Secretary shall prescribe guidelines for the admin20 istration of this authority.’’. 

21 TITLE V—ENFORCEMENT 

22 SEC. 501. ENFORCEMENT. 

23 Section 20112(a) of title 49, United States Code, is 

24 amended— 

25 (1) by inserting ‘‘this part or’’ in paragraph (1) 

26 after ‘‘enforce,’’; 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘21301’’ in paragraph (2) and 

2 inserting ‘‘21301, 21302, or 21303’’; 

3 (3) by striking ‘‘subpena’’ in paragraph (3) and 

4 inserting ‘‘subpoena, request for admissions, request 

5 for production of documents or other tangible 

6 things, or request for testimony by deposition’’; and 

7 (4) by striking ‘‘chapter.’’ in paragraph (3) and 

8 inserting ‘‘part.’’. 

9 SEC. 502. CIVIL PENALTIES. 

10 (a) GENERAL VIOLATIONS OF CHAPTER 201.—Sec11 tion 21301(a)(2) of title 49, United States Code, is 

12 amended— 

13 (1) by striking ‘‘$10,000’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘$100,000, or the amount in which the stated min15 imum or maximum penalty, respectively, is adjusted 

16 if required by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

17 Adjustment Act of 1990 (28 U.S.C. 2461 note)’’; 

18 and 

19 (2) by striking the last sentence. 

20 (b) ACCIDENT AND INCIDENT VIOLATIONS OF CHAP21 TER 201; VIOLATIONS OF CHAPTERS 203 THROUGH

22 209.—Section 21302(a)(2) of title 49, United States 

23 Code, is amended— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘$10,000’’ and inserting 

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1 imum or maximum penalty, respectively, is adjusted 

2 if required by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

3 Adjustment Act of 1990 (28 U.S.C. 2461 note)’’; 

4 and 

5 (2) by striking the last sentence. 

6 (c) VIOLATIONS OF CHAPTER 211.—Section 

7 21303(a)(2) of title 49, United States Code, is amended— 

8 (1) by striking ‘‘$10,000’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘$100,000, or the amount to which the stated min10 imum or maximum penalty, respectively, is adjusted 

11 if required by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

12 Adjustment Act of 1990 (28 U.S.C. 2461 note)’’; 

13 and 

14 (2) by striking the last sentence. 

15 SEC. 503. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. 

16 Section 21311(b) of title 49, United States Code, is 

17 amended by striking ‘‘$500’’ both places it appears and 

18 inserting ‘‘$2,500’’. 

19 SEC. 504. EXPANSION OF EMERGENCY ORDER AUTHORITY. 

20 Section 20104(a)(1) of title 49, United States Code, 

21 is amended by striking ‘‘death or personal injury’’ and in22 serting ‘‘death, personal injury, or significant harm to the 

23 environment’’. 


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1 SEC. 505. ENFORCEMENT TRANSPARENCY. 

2 (a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter I of chapter 201 of 

3 title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

4 end the following: 

5 ‘‘§ 20118. Enforcement transparency 

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than December 31, 

7 2007, the Secretary of Transportation shall— 

8 ‘‘(1) provide a monthly updated summary to 

9 the public of all railroad enforcement actions taken 

10 by the Secretary or the Federal Railroad Safety Ad11 ministration, from the time a notice commencing an 

12 enforcement action is issued until the enforcement 

13 action is final; 

14 ‘‘(2) include in each such summary identifica15 tion of the railroad carrier or person involved in the 

16 enforcement activity, the type of alleged violation, 

17 the penalty or penalties proposed, any changes in 

18 case status since the previous summary, the final as19 sessment amount of each penalty, and the reasons 

20 for a reduction in the proposed penalty, if appro21 priate; and 

22 ‘‘(3) provide a mechanism by which a railroad 

23 carrier or person named in an enforcement action 

24 may make information, explanations, or documents 

25 it believes are responsive to the enforcement action 

26 available to the public. 


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1 ‘‘(b) ELECTRONIC AVAILABILITY.—Each summary 

2 under this section shall be made available to the public 

3 by electronic means. 

4 ‘‘(c) RELATIONSHIP TO FOIA.—Nothing in this sec5 tion shall be construed to require disclosure of information 

6 or records that are exempt from disclosure under section 

7 552 of title 5.’’. 

8 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

9 sections of subchapter I of chapter 201 of title 49, United 

10 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol11 lowing new item: 

‘‘20118. Enforcement transparency.’’. 

12 SEC. 506. INTERFERING WITH OR HAMPERING SAFETY IN13 VESTIGATIONS. 

14 (a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter II of chapter 213 of 

15 title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

16 end the following new section: 

17 ‘‘§ 21312. Interfering with or hampering safety inves18 tigations 

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for any per20 son knowingly to interfere with, obstruct, or hamper an 

21 investigation by the Secretary of Transportation con22 ducted under section 20703 or 20902 of this title, or a 

23 railroad investigation by the National Transportation 

24 Safety Board under chapter 11 of this title. 


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1 ‘‘(b) INTIMIDATION AND HARASSMENT.—It shall be 

2 unlawful for any person, with regard to an investigation 

3 conducted by the Secretary under section 20703 or 20902 

4 of this title, or a railroad investigation by the National 

5 Transportation Safety Board under chapter 11 of this 

6 title, knowingly or intentionally to use intimidation, har7 assment, threats, or physical force toward another person, 

8 or corruptly persuade another person, or attempt to do 

9 so, or engage in misleading conduct toward another per10 son, with the intent or effect of— 

11 ‘‘(1) influencing the testimony or statement of 

12 any person; 

13 ‘‘(2) hindering, delaying, preventing, or dis14 suading any person from— 

15 ‘‘(A) attending a proceeding or interview 

16 with, testifying before, or providing a written 

17 statement to, a National Transportation Safety 

18 Board railroad investigator, a Federal railroad 

19 safety inspector or State railroad safety inspec20 tor, or their superiors; 

21 ‘‘(B) communicating or reporting to a Na22 tional Transportation Safety Board railroad in23 vestigator, a Federal railroad safety inspector, 

24 or a State railroad safety inspector, or their su25 periors, information relating to the commission 


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1 or possible commission of one or more violations 

2 of this part or of chapter 51 of this title; or 

3 ‘‘(C) recommending or using any legal 

4 remedy available to the Secretary under this 

5 title; or 

6 ‘‘(3) causing or inducing any person to— 

7 ‘‘(A) withhold testimony, or a statement, 

8 record, document, or other object, from the in9 vestigation; 

10 ‘‘(B) alter, destroy, mutilate, or conceal a 

11 statement, record, document, or other object 

12 with intent to impair the integrity or avail13 ability of the statement, record, document, or 

14 other object for use in the investigation; 

15 ‘‘(C) evade legal process summoning that 

16 person to appear as a witness, or to produce a 

17 statement, record, document, or other object, in 

18 the investigation; or 

19 ‘‘(D) be absent from an investigation to 

20 which such person has been summoned by legal 

21 process. 

22 ‘‘(c) ELEMENTS OF VIOLATION.—(1) For the pur23 poses of this section, the testimony or statement, or the 

24 record, document, or other object, need not be admissible 

25 in evidence or free from a claim of privilege. 


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1 ‘‘(2) In a prosecution for an offense under this sec2 tion, no state of mind need be proved with respect to the 

3 circumstance that the investigation is being conducted by 

4 the Secretary under section 20703 or 20902 of this title 

5 or by the National Transportation Safety Board under 

6 chapter 11 of this title. 

7 ‘‘(d) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—A person violating this 

8 section shall be fined under title 18, imprisoned for not 

9 more than 1 year, or both.’’. 

10 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

11 sections of subchapter II of chapter 213 of title 49, United 

12 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol13 lowing new item: 

‘‘21312. Interfering with or hampering safety investigations.’’. 

14 SEC. 507. RAILROAD RADIO MONITORING AUTHORITY. 

15 Section 20107 of title 49, United States Code, is 

16 amended by inserting at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(c) RAILROAD RADIO COMMUNICATIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To carry out the Sec19 retary’s responsibilities under this part and under 

20 chapter 51, the Secretary may authorize officers, 

21 employees, or agents of the Secretary to conduct the 

22 following activities in circumstances the Secretary 

23 finds to be reasonable: 

24 ‘‘(A) Intercepting a radio communication 

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1 quency authorized for the use of one or more 

2 railroad carriers by the Federal Communica3 tions Commission, with or without the consent 

4 of the sender or other receivers of the commu5 nication. 

6 ‘‘(B) Communicating the existence, con7 tents, substance, purport, effect, or meaning of 

8 the communication, subject to the restrictions 

9 in paragraph (3). 

10 ‘‘(C) Receiving or assisting in receiving the 

11 communication (or any information therein con12 tained). 

13 ‘‘(D) Disclosing the contents, substance, 

14 purport, effect, or meaning of the communica15 tion (or any part thereof of such communica16 tion) or using the communication (or any infor17 mation contained therein), subject to the re18 strictions in paragraph (3), after having re19 ceived the communication or acquired knowl20 edge of the contents, substance, purport, effect, 

21 or meaning of the communication (or any part 

22 thereof). 

23 ‘‘(E) Recording the communication by any 

24 means, including writing and tape recording. 


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1 ‘‘(2) ACCIDENT PREVENTION AND ACCIDENT

2 INVESTIGATION.—The Secretary, and officers, em3 ployees, and agents of the Department of Transpor4 tation authorized by the Secretary, may engage in 

5 the activities authorized by paragraph (1) for the 

6 purpose of accident prevention and accident inves7 tigation. 

8 ‘‘(3) USE OF INFORMATION.—(A) Information 

9 obtained through activities authorized by paragraphs 

10 (1) and (2) shall not be admitted into evidence in 

11 any administrative or judicial proceeding except— 

12 ‘‘(i) in a prosecution of a felony under 

13 Federal or State criminal law; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) to impeach evidence offered by a 

15 party other than the Federal Government re16 garding the existence, electronic characteristics, 

17 content, substance, purport, effect, meaning, or 

18 timing of, or identity of parties to, a commu19 nication intercepted pursuant to paragraphs (1) 

20 and (2) in proceedings pursuant to section 

21 5122, 5123, 20702(b), 20111, 20112, 20113, 

22 or 20114 of this title. 

23 ‘‘(B) If information obtained through activities 

24 set forth in paragraphs (1) and (2) is admitted into 

25 evidence for impeachment purposes in accordance 


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1 with subparagraph (A), the court, administrative law 

2 judge, or other officer before whom the proceeding 

3 is conducted may make such protective orders re4 garding the confidentiality or use of the information 

5 as may be appropriate in the circumstances to pro6 tect privacy and administer justice. 

7 ‘‘(C) No evidence shall be excluded in an ad8 ministrative or judicial proceeding solely because the 

9 government would not have learned of the existence 

10 of or obtained such evidence but for the interception 

11 of information that is not admissible in such pro12 ceeding under subparagraph (A). 

13 ‘‘(D) Information obtained through activities 

14 set forth in paragraphs (1) and (2) shall not be sub15 ject to publication or disclosure, or search or review 

16 in connection therewith, under section 552 of title 5. 

17 ‘‘(E) Nothing in this subsection shall be con18 strued to impair or otherwise affect the authority of 

19 the United States to intercept a communication, and 

20 collect, retain, analyze, use, and disseminate the in21 formation obtained thereby, under a provision of law 

22 other than this subsection. 

23 ‘‘(4) APPLICATION WITH OTHER LAW.—Section 

24 705 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

25 605) and chapter 119 of title 18 shall not apply to 


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1 conduct authorized by and pursuant to this sub2 section.’’. 

3 SEC. 508. INSPECTOR STAFFING. 

4 The Secretary shall increase the total number of posi5 tions for railroad safety inspection and enforcement per6 sonnel at the Federal Railroad Safety Administration so 

7 that by December 31, 2008, the total number of such posi8 tion is at least 500, by December 31, 2009, the total num9 ber of such positions is at least 600, by December 31, 

10 2010, the total number of such positions is at least 700, 

11 and by December 31, 2011, the total number of positions 

12 is at least 800. 

13 TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS 

14 PROVISIONS 

15 SEC. 601. POSITIVE TRAIN CONTROL SYSTEMS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 12 months after 

17 the date of enactment of this Act, each Class I railroad 

18 carrier shall develop and submit to the Secretary a plan 

19 for implementing a positive train control system by De20 cember 31, 2014, that will prevent train collisions and 

21 over-speed derailments, provide protection to mainte22 nance-of-way workers within established work zone limits, 

23 and prevent the movement of a train through a switch left 

24 in the wrong position. 


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1 (b) SAFETY REDUNDANCY.—The positive train con2 trol system required under subsection (a) shall provide a 

3 safety redundancy to prevent accidents by overriding 

4 human performance failures involving train movements on 

5 main line tracks. 

6 (c) CONTENTS OF PLAN.—The Secretary may pro7 vide technical assistance and guidance to railroad carriers 

8 in developing the plans required under subsection (a), and 

9 shall require that each railroad carrier include in the plan, 

10 at a minimum— 

11 (1) measurable goals, including a strategy and 

12 timeline for implementation of such systems; 

13 (2) a prioritization of how the systems will be 

14 implemented, with particular emphasis on high-risk 

15 corridors such as those that have significant move16 ments of hazardous materials or where commuter 

17 and intercity passenger railroads operate; 

18 (3) identification of detailed steps the carriers 

19 will take to implement the systems; and 

20 (4) any other element the Secretary considers 

21 appropriate. 

22 (d) REVIEW AND APPROVAL.—Not later than 90 days 

23 after the Secretary receives a plan, the Secretary shall re24 view and approve it. If the proposed plan is not approved, 

25 the Secretary shall notify the affected railroad carrier as 


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1 to the specific points in which the proposed plan is defi2 cient, and the railroad carrier shall correct all deficiencies 

3 within 30 days following receipt of written notice from the 

4 Secretary. The Secretary shall annually conduct a review 

5 to ensure that the railroads are complying with their 

6 plans. 

7 (e) REPORT.—Not later than December 31, 2011, the 

8 Secretary shall transmit a report to the Committee on 

9 Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep10 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

11 and Transportation of the Senate on the progress of the 

12 railroad carriers in implementing such positive train con13 trol systems. 

14 SEC. 602. WARNING IN NONSIGNALED TERRITORY. 

15 (a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter II of chapter 201 of 

16 title 49, United States Code, as amended by this Act, is 

17 further amended by adding at the end the following new 

18 section: 

19 ‘‘§ 20158. Warning in nonsignaled territory 

20 ‘‘Not later than 12 months after the date of enact21 ment of the Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 

22 2007, the Secretary of Transportation shall prescribe reg23 ulations that— 

24 ‘‘(1) require that, along main lines in nonsig25 naled territory without a train speed enforcement 


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1 system that would stop a train in advance of a mis2 aligned switch, railroads install an automatically ac3 tivated device, independent of the switch banner, 

4 that will, visually or electronically, compellingly cap5 ture the attention of employees involved with switch 

6 operations and clearly convey the status of the 

7 switch both in daylight and darkness; and 

8 ‘‘(2) require railroads, in nonsignaled territory 

9 without a train speed enforcement system that would 

10 stop a train in advance of a misaligned switch, and 

11 in the absence of switch position indicator lights or 

12 other automated systems that provide train crews 

13 with advance notice of switch positions, to operate 

14 those trains at speeds that will allow them to be 

15 safely stopped in advance of misaligned switches.’’. 

16 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

17 sections of subchapter II of chapter 201 of title 49, United 

18 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol19 lowing new item: 

‘‘20158. Warning in nonsignaled territory.’’. 

20 SEC. 603. TRACK SAFETY. 

21 (a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter II of chapter 201 of 

22 title 49, United States Code, as amended by this Act, is 

23 further amended by adding at the end the following new 

24 section: 


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1 ‘‘§ 20159. Track safety 

2 ‘‘(a) RAIL INTEGRITY.—(1) Not later than 12 

3 months after the date of enactment of the Federal Rail4 road Safety Improvement Act of 2007, the Secretary of 

5 Transportation shall prescribe regulations to require rail6 road carriers to manage the rail in their tracks so as to 

7 minimize accidents due to internal rail flaws. The regula8 tions shall, at a minimum— 

9 ‘‘(A) require railroad carriers to conduct ultra10 sonic or other appropriate inspections to ensure that 

11 rail used to replace defective segments of existing 

12 rail is free from internal defects; 

13 ‘‘(B) require railroad carriers to perform rail 

14 integrity inspections to manage a service failure rate 

15 of less than .1 per track mile; and 

16 ‘‘(C) encourage railroad carrier use of advanced 

17 rail defect inspection equipment and similar tech18 nologies as part of a comprehensive rail inspection 

19 program. 

20 ‘‘(2) In carrying out paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary 

21 shall set priorities for performing rail integrity inspec22 tions, with particular emphasis on high-risk corridors such 

23 as those that have significant movements of hazardous 

24 materials or where commuter and intercity passenger rail25 roads operate. 


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1 ‘‘(b) CONCRETE CROSSTIES.—Not later than 12 

2 months after the date of enactment of the Federal Rail3 road Safety Improvement Act of 2007, the Secretary shall 

4 develop and implement regulations for all classes of track 

5 for concrete crossties that address, at a minimum— 

6 ‘‘(1) limits for rail seat abrasion; 

7 ‘‘(2) concrete crosstie pad wear limits; 

8 ‘‘(3) missing or broken rail fasteners; 

9 ‘‘(4) loss of appropriate toeload pressure; 

10 ‘‘(5) improper fastener configurations; and 

11 ‘‘(6) excessive lateral rail movement.’’. 

12 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

13 sections of subchapter II of chapter 201 of title 49, United 

14 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol15 lowing new item: 

‘‘20159. Track safety.’’. 

16 SEC. 604. CERTIFICATION OF CONDUCTORS. 

17 (a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter II of chapter 201 of 

18 title 49, United States Code, as amended by this Act, is 

19 further amended by adding at the end the following new 

20 section: 

21 ‘‘§ 20160. Certification of conductors 

22 ‘‘(a) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 6 months after 

23 the date of enactment of the Federal Railroad Safety Im24 provement Act of 2007, the Secretary of Transportation 

25 shall prescribe regulations and issue orders to establish 


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1 a program requiring the certification of train conductors. 

2 In prescribing such regulations, the Secretary shall require 

3 that conductors on passenger trains be trained in security, 

4 first aid, and emergency preparedness. 

5 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM DESIGN.—The program established 

6 under this section shall be designed based on the require7 ments of section 20135(b) through (e).’’. 

8 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

9 sections of subchapter II of chapter 201 of title 49, United 

10 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol11 lowing new item: 

‘‘20160. Certification of conductors.’’. 

12 SEC. 605. MINIMUM TRAINING STANDARDS. 

13 (a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter II of chapter 201 of 

14 title 49, United States Code, as amended by this Act, is 

15 further amended by adding at the end the following new 

16 section: 

17 ‘‘§ 20161. Minimum training standards 

18 ‘‘The Secretary of Transportation shall, not later 

19 than 180 days after the date of enactment of the Federal 

20 Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2007, establish— 

21 ‘‘(1) minimum training standards for each craft 

22 of railroad employees, which shall require railroad 

23 carriers to qualify or otherwise document the pro24 ficiency of their employees in each craft regarding 

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1 eral railroad safety laws and regulations and rail2 road carrier rules and procedures promulgated to 

3 implement those Federal railroad safety laws and 

4 regulations; and 

5 ‘‘(2) a requirement for railroad carriers to sub6 mit their training and qualification programs to the 

7 Federal Railroad Safety Administration for ap8 proval.’’. 

9 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

10 sections of subchapter II of chapter 201 of title 49, United 

11 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing new item: 

‘‘20161. Minimum training standards.’’. 

13 SEC. 606. PROMPT MEDICAL ATTENTION. 

14 (a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter II of chapter 201 of 

15 title 49, United States Code, as amended by this Act, is 

16 further amended by adding at the end the following new 

17 section: 

18 ‘‘§ 20162. Prompt medical attention 

19 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—A railroad or person covered 

20 under this title shall not deny, delay, or interfere with the 

21 medical or first aid treatment of an employee who is in22 jured during the course of employment. If transportation 

23 to a hospital is requested by an employee who is injured 

24 during the course of employment, the railroad shall 


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1 promptly arrange to have the injured employee trans2 ported to the requested hospital. 

3 ‘‘(b) DISCIPLINE.—A railroad or person covered 

4 under this title shall not discipline, or threaten discipline 

5 to, an employee for requesting medical or first aid treat6 ment, or for following orders or a treatment plan of a 

7 treating physician. For purposes of this subsection, dis8 cipline means to bring charges against a person in a dis9 ciplinary proceeding, suspend, terminate, place on proba10 tion, or make note of reprimand on an employee’s 

11 record.’’. 

12 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

13 sections of subchapter II of chapter 201 of title 49, United 

14 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol15 lowing new item: 

‘‘20162. Prompt medical attention.’’. 

16 SEC. 607. EMERGENCY ESCAPE BREATHING APPARATUS. 

17 (a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter II of chapter 201 of 

18 title 49, United States Code, as amended by this Act, is 

19 further amended by adding at the end the following new 

20 section: 

21 ‘‘§ 20163. Emergency escape breathing apparatus 

22 ‘‘Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment 

23 of the Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2007, 

24 the Secretary of Transportation shall prescribe regulations 

25 that require railroads to— 


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1 ‘‘(1) provide emergency escape breathing appa2 ratus for all crewmembers on freight trains carrying 

3 hazardous materials that would pose an inhalation 

4 hazard in the event of release; and 

5 ‘‘(2) provide their crewmembers with appro6 priate training for using the breathing apparatus.’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

8 sections of subchapter II of chapter 201 of title 49, United 

9 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol10 lowing new item: 

‘‘20163. Emergency escape breathing apparatus.’’. 

11 SEC. 608. LOCOMOTIVE CAB ENVIRONMENT. 

12 Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment 

13 of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall transmit 

14 to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

15 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

16 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 

17 report on the effects of the locomotive cab environment 

18 on the safety, health, and performance of train crews. 

19 TITLE VII—RAIL PASSENGER 

20 DISASTER FAMILY ASSISTANCE 

21 SEC. 701. SHORT TITLE. 

22 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Rail Passenger Dis23 aster Family Assistance Act of 2007’’. 


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1 SEC. 702. ASSISTANCE BY NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION 

2 SAFETY BOARD TO FAMILIES OF PAS3 SENGERS INVOLVED IN RAIL PASSENGER AC4 CIDENTS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 11 of 

6 title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

7 end the following: 

8 ‘‘§ 1138. Assistance to families of passengers involved 

9 in rail passenger accidents 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after 

11 being notified of a rail passenger accident within the 

12 United States involving a rail passenger carrier and result13 ing in a major loss of life, the Chairman of the National 

14 Transportation Safety Board shall— 

15 ‘‘(1) designate and publicize the name and 

16 phone number of a director of family support serv17 ices who shall be an employee of the Board and shall 

18 be responsible for acting as a point of contact within 

19 the Federal Government for the families of pas20 sengers involved in the accident and a liaison be21 tween the rail passenger carrier and the families; 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(2) designate an independent nonprofit organi24 zation, with experience in disasters and posttrauma 

25 communication with families, which shall have pri26 mary responsibility for coordinating the emotional 


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1 care and support of the families of passengers in2 volved in the accident. 

3 ‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE BOARD.—The Board 

4 shall have primary Federal responsibility for— 

5 ‘‘(1) facilitating the recovery and identification 

6 of fatally injured passengers involved in an accident 

7 described in subsection (a); and 

8 ‘‘(2) communicating with the families of pas9 sengers involved in the accident as to the roles of— 

10 ‘‘(A) the organization designated for an ac11 cident under subsection (a)(2); 

12 ‘‘(B) Government agencies; and 

13 ‘‘(C) the rail passenger carrier involved, 

14 with respect to the accident and the post-accident 

15 activities. 

16 ‘‘(c) RESPONSIBILITIES OF DESIGNATED ORGANIZA17 TION.—The organization designated for an accident under 

18 subsection (a)(2) shall have the following responsibilities 

19 with respect to the families of passengers involved in the 

20 accident: 

21 ‘‘(1) To provide mental health and counseling 

22 services, in coordination with the disaster response 

23 team of the rail passenger carrier involved. 


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1 ‘‘(2) To take such actions as may be necessary 

2 to provide an environment in which the families may 

3 grieve in private. 

4 ‘‘(3) To meet with the families who have trav5 eled to the location of the accident, to contact the 

6 families unable to travel to such location, and to 

7 contact all affected families periodically thereafter 

8 until such time as the organization, in consultation 

9 with the director of family support services des10 ignated for the accident under subsection (a)(1), de11 termines that further assistance is no longer needed. 

12 ‘‘(4) To arrange a suitable memorial service, in 

13 consultation with the families. 

14 ‘‘(d) PASSENGER LISTS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) REQUESTS FOR PASSENGER LISTS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) REQUESTS BY DIRECTOR OF FAMILY

17 SUPPORT SERVICES.—It shall be the responsi18 bility of the director of family support services 

19 designated for an accident under subsection 

20 (a)(1) to request, as soon as practicable, from 

21 the rail passenger carrier involved in the acci22 dent a list, which is based on the best available 

23 information at the time of the request, of the 

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1 cident. A rail passenger carrier shall use rea2 sonable efforts, with respect to its unreserved 

3 trains, and passengers not holding reservations 

4 on its other trains, to ascertain the names of 

5 passengers aboard a train involved in an acci6 dent. 

7 ‘‘(B) REQUESTS BY DESIGNATED ORGANI8 ZATION.—The organization designated for an 

9 accident under subsection (a)(2) may request 

10 from the rail passenger carrier involved in the 

11 accident a list described in subparagraph (A). 

12 ‘‘(2) USE OF INFORMATION.—The director of 

13 family support services and the organization may 

14 not release to any person information on a list ob15 tained under paragraph (1) but may provide infor16 mation on the list about a passenger to the family 

17 of the passenger to the extent that the director of 

18 family support services or the organization considers 

19 appropriate. 

20 ‘‘(e) CONTINUING RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE

21 BOARD.—In the course of its investigation of an accident 

22 described in subsection (a), the Board shall, to the max23 imum extent practicable, ensure that the families of pas24 sengers involved in the accident— 


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1 ‘‘(1) are briefed, prior to any public briefing, 

2 about the accident and any other findings from the 

3 investigation; and 

4 ‘‘(2) are individually informed of and allowed to 

5 attend any public hearings and meetings of the 

6 Board about the accident. 

7 ‘‘(f) USE OF RAIL PASSENGER CARRIER RE8 SOURCES.—To the extent practicable, the organization 

9 designated for an accident under subsection (a)(2) shall 

10 coordinate its activities with the rail passenger carrier in11 volved in the accident to facilitate the reasonable use of 

12 the resources of the carrier. 

13 ‘‘(g) PROHIBITED ACTIONS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) ACTIONS TO IMPEDE THE BOARD.—No 

15 person (including a State or political subdivision) 

16 may impede the ability of the Board (including the 

17 director of family support services designated for an 

18 accident under subsection (a)(1)), or an organization 

19 designated for an accident under subsection (a)(2), 

20 to carry out its responsibilities under this section or 

21 the ability of the families of passengers involved in 

22 the accident to have contact with one another. 

23 ‘‘(2) UNSOLICITED COMMUNICATIONS.—No un24 solicited communication concerning a potential ac25 tion for personal injury or wrongful death may be 


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1 made by an attorney (including any associate, agent, 

2 employee, or other representative of an attorney) or 

3 any potential party to the litigation to an individual 

4 (other than an employee of the rail passenger car5 rier) injured in the accident, or to a relative of an 

6 individual involved in the accident, before the 45th 

7 day following the date of the accident. 

8 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITION ON ACTIONS TO PREVENT

9 MENTAL HEALTH AND COUNSELING SERVICES.—No 

10 State or political subdivision may prevent the em11 ployees, agents, or volunteers of an organization des12 ignated for an accident under subsection (a)(2) from 

13 providing mental health and counseling services 

14 under subsection (c)(1) in the 30-day period begin15 ning on the date of the accident. The director of 

16 family support services designated for the accident 

17 under subsection (a)(1) may extend such period for 

18 not to exceed an additional 30 days if the director 

19 determines that the extension is necessary to meet 

20 the needs of the families and if State and local au21 thorities are notified of the determination. 

22 ‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following 

23 definitions apply: 


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1 ‘‘(1) RAIL PASSENGER ACCIDENT.—The term 

2 ‘rail passenger accident’ means any rail passenger 

3 disaster occurring in the provision of— 

4 ‘‘(A) interstate intercity rail passenger 

5 transportation (as such term is defined in sec6 tion 24102); or 

7 ‘‘(B) interstate or intrastate high-speed 

8 rail (as such term is defined in section 26105) 

9 transportation, 

10 regardless of its cause or suspected cause. 

11 ‘‘(2) RAIL PASSENGER CARRIER.—The term 

12 ‘rail passenger carrier’ means a rail carrier pro13 viding— 

14 ‘‘(A) interstate intercity rail passenger 

15 transportation (as such term is defined in sec16 tion 24102); or 

17 ‘‘(B) interstate or intrastate high-speed 

18 rail (as such term is defined in section 26105) 

19 transportation, 

20 except that such term shall not include a tourist, 

21 historic, scenic, or excursion rail carrier. 

22 ‘‘(3) PASSENGER.—The term ‘passenger’ in23 cludes— 

24 ‘‘(A) an employee of a rail passenger car25 rier aboard a train; 


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1 ‘‘(B) any other person aboard the train 

2 without regard to whether the person paid for 

3 the transportation, occupied a seat, or held a 

4 reservation for the rail transportation; and 

5 ‘‘(C) any other person injured or killed in 

6 the accident. 

7 ‘‘(i) LIMITATION ON STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.— 

8 Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting the 

9 actions that a rail passenger carrier may take, or the obli10 gations that a rail passenger carrier may have, in pro11 viding assistance to the families of passengers involved in 

12 a rail passenger accident. 

13 ‘‘(j) RELINQUISHMENT OF INVESTIGATIVE PRI14 ORITY.— 

15 ‘‘(1) GENERAL RULE.—This section (other than 

16 subsection (g)) shall not apply to a railroad accident 

17 if the Board has relinquished investigative priority 

18 under section 1131(a)(2)(B) and the Federal agency 

19 to which the Board relinquished investigative pri20 ority is willing and able to provide assistance to the 

21 victims and families of the passengers involved in 

22 the accident. 

23 ‘‘(2) BOARD ASSISTANCE.—If this section does 

24 not apply to a railroad accident because the Board 

25 has relinquished investigative priority with respect to 


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1 the accident, the Board shall assist, to the maximum 

2 extent possible, the agency to which the Board has 

3 relinquished investigative priority in assisting fami4 lies with respect to the accident.’’. 

5 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec6 tions for such chapter is amended by inserting after the 

7 item relating to section 1137 the following: 

‘‘1138. Assistance to families of passengers involved in rail passenger accidents’’. 

8 SEC. 703. RAIL PASSENGER CARRIER PLANS TO ADDRESS 

9 NEEDS OF FAMILIES OF PASSENGERS IN10 VOLVED IN RAIL PASSENGER ACCIDENTS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part C of subtitle V of title 49, 

12 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

13 following new chapter: 

14 ‘‘CHAPTER 251—FAMILY ASSISTANCE 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘25101. Plans to address needs of families of passengers involved in rail passenger accidents. 

15 ‘‘§ 25101. Plans to address needs of families of pas16 sengers involved in rail passenger acci17 dents 

18 ‘‘(a) SUBMISSION OF PLANS.—Not later than 6 

19 months after the date of the enactment of this section, 

20 each rail passenger carrier shall submit to the Secretary 

21 of Transportation and the Chairman of the National 

22 Transportation Safety Board a plan for addressing the 


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1 needs of the families of passengers involved in any rail 

2 passenger accident involving a train of the rail passenger 

3 carrier and resulting in a major loss of life. 

4 ‘‘(b) CONTENTS OF PLANS.—A plan to be submitted 

5 by a rail passenger carrier under subsection (a) shall in6 clude, at a minimum, the following: 

7 ‘‘(1) A plan for publicizing a reliable, toll-free 

8 telephone number, and for providing staff, to handle 

9 calls from the families of the passengers. 

10 ‘‘(2) A process for notifying the families of the 

11 passengers, before providing any public notice of the 

12 names of the passengers, either by utilizing the serv13 ices of the organization designated for the accident 

14 under section 1138(a)(2) of this title or the services 

15 of other suitably trained individuals. 

16 ‘‘(3) An assurance that the notice described in 

17 paragraph (2) will be provided to the family of a 

18 passenger as soon as the rail passenger carrier has 

19 verified that the passenger was aboard the train 

20 (whether or not the names of all of the passengers 

21 have been verified) and, to the extent practicable, in 

22 person. 

23 ‘‘(4) An assurance that the rail passenger car24 rier will provide to the director of family support 

25 services designated for the accident under section 


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1 1138(a)(1) of this title, and to the organization des2 ignated for the accident under section 1138(a)(2) of 

3 this title, immediately upon request, a list (which is 

4 based on the best available information at the time 

5 of the request) of the names of the passengers 

6 aboard the train (whether or not such names have 

7 been verified), and will periodically update the list. 

8 The plan shall include a procedure, with respect to 

9 unreserved trains and passengers not holding res10 ervations on other trains, for the rail passenger car11 rier to use reasonable efforts to ascertain the names 

12 of passengers aboard a train involved in an accident. 

13 ‘‘(5) An assurance that the family of each pas14 senger will be consulted about the disposition of all 

15 remains and personal effects of the passenger within 

16 the control of the rail passenger carrier. 

17 ‘‘(6) An assurance that if requested by the fam18 ily of a passenger, any possession of the passenger 

19 within the control of the rail passenger carrier (re20 gardless of its condition) will be returned to the fam21 ily unless the possession is needed for the accident 

22 investigation or any criminal investigation. 

23 ‘‘(7) An assurance that any unclaimed posses24 sion of a passenger within the control of the rail 


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1 passenger carrier will be retained by the rail pas2 senger carrier for at least 18 months. 

3 ‘‘(8) An assurance that the family of each pas4 senger or other person killed in the accident will be 

5 consulted about construction by the rail passenger 

6 carrier of any monument to the passengers, includ7 ing any inscription on the monument. 

8 ‘‘(9) An assurance that the treatment of the 

9 families of nonrevenue passengers will be the same 

10 as the treatment of the families of revenue pas11 sengers. 

12 ‘‘(10) An assurance that the rail passenger car13 rier will work with any organization designated 

14 under section 1138(a)(2) of this title on an ongoing 

15 basis to ensure that families of passengers receive an 

16 appropriate level of services and assistance following 

17 each accident. 

18 ‘‘(11) An assurance that the rail passenger car19 rier will provide reasonable compensation to any or20 ganization designated under section 1138(a)(2) of 

21 this title for services provided by the organization. 

22 ‘‘(12) An assurance that the rail passenger car23 rier will assist the family of a passenger in traveling 

24 to the location of the accident and provide for the 


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1 physical care of the family while the family is stay2 ing at such location. 

3 ‘‘(13) An assurance that the rail passenger car4 rier will commit sufficient resources to carry out the 

5 plan. 

6 ‘‘(14) An assurance that the rail passenger car7 rier will provide adequate training to the employees 

8 and agents of the carrier to meet the needs of sur9 vivors and family members following an accident. 

10 ‘‘(15) An assurance that, upon request of the 

11 family of a passenger, the rail passenger carrier will 

12 inform the family of whether the passenger’s name 

13 appeared on any preliminary passenger manifest for 

14 the train involved in the accident. 

15 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.—A rail passenger 

16 carrier shall not be liable for damages in any action 

17 brought in a Federal or State court arising out of the per18 formance of the rail passenger carrier in preparing or pro19 viding a passenger list, or in providing information con20 cerning a train reservation, pursuant to a plan submitted 

21 by the rail passenger carrier under subsection (b), unless 

22 such liability was caused by conduct of the rail passenger 

23 carrier which was grossly negligent or which constituted 

24 intentional misconduct. 

25 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the terms ‘rail passenger accident’ and 

2 ‘rail passenger carrier’ have the meanings such 

3 terms have in section 1138 of this title; and 

4 ‘‘(2) the term ‘passenger’ means a person 

5 aboard a rail passenger carrier’s train that is in6 volved in a rail passenger accident. 

7 ‘‘(e) LIMITATION ON STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.— 

8 Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting the 

9 actions that a rail passenger carrier may take, or the obli10 gations that a rail passenger carrier may have, in pro11 viding assistance to the families of passengers involved in 

12 a rail passenger accident.’’. 

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of chap14 ters for subtitle V of title 49, United States Code, is 

15 amended by adding after the item relating to chapter 249 

16 the following new item: 

‘‘251. FAMILY ASSISTANCE ................................................................ 25101’’. 

17 SEC. 704. ESTABLISHMENT OF TASK FORCE. 

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Transpor19 tation, in cooperation with the National Transportation 

20 Safety Board, organizations potentially designated under 

21 section 1138(a)(2) of title 49, United States Code, rail 

22 passenger carriers, and families which have been involved 

23 in rail accidents, shall establish a task force consisting of 

24 representatives of such entities and families, representa25 tives of passenger rail carrier employees, and representaVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:05 May 03, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00076 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2095.IH H2095

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1 tives of such other entities as the Secretary considers ap2 propriate. 

3 (b) MODEL PLAN AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—The 

4 task force established pursuant to subsection (a) shall de5 velop— 

6 (1) a model plan to assist passenger rail car7 riers in responding to passenger rail accidents; 

8 (2) recommendations on methods to improve 

9 the timeliness of the notification provided by pas10 senger rail carriers to the families of passengers in11 volved in a passenger rail accident; 

12 (3) recommendations on methods to ensure that 

13 the families of passengers involved in a passenger 

14 rail accident who are not citizens of the United 

15 States receive appropriate assistance; and 

16 (4) recommendations on methods to ensure that 

17 emergency services personnel have as immediate and 

18 accurate a count of the number of passengers on19 board the train as possible. 

20 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

21 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit 

22 to Congress a report containing the model plan and rec23 ommendations developed by the task force under sub24 section (b). 

Æ 


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