I 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2351 

To provide for the safety and security of United States railroads, passengers, 

workers, and communities, and to establish an assistance program for 

families of passengers involved in rail accidents. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 12, 2005 

Mr. OBERSTAR (for himself, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Mr. CUMMINGS, 

Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. NADLER, Ms. NORTON, Mr. 

BISHOP of New York, Ms. MILLENDER-MCDONALD, Mr. WEINER, Mr. 

HOLDEN, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. RAHALL, and Ms. CARSON) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation 

and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Homeland Security, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 

case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 

the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide for the safety and security of United States 

railroads, passengers, workers, and communities, and to 

establish an assistance program for families of passengers involved in rail accidents. 

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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Rail Security Act of 

5 2005’’. 
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1 TITLE I—RAILROAD SECURITY 

2 SEC. 101. RAILROAD TRANSPORTATION SECURITY. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

4 (1) REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary shall de5 velop, prepare, implement, and update— 

6 (A) a railroad security assessment under 

7 subsection (b)(1); 

8 (B) a railroad security plan under sub9 section (b)(2); 

10 (C) prioritized recommendations for im11 proving railroad security under subsection (d); 

12 (D) guidance for the rail worker security 

13 training program as authorized by section 104; 

14 and 

15 (E) a national plan for public outreach and 

16 awareness for improving railroad security as 

17 authorized by section 107. 

18 (2) ROLE OF SECRETARY OF TRANSPOR19 TATION.—The Secretary shall work jointly with the 

20 Secretary of Transportation, in developing, pre21 paring, revising, implementing, and updating the 

22 documents required by paragraph (1). 

23 (3) MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT.—Within 60 

24 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

25 Secretary and the Secretary of Transportation shall 
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1 execute a memorandum of agreement governing the 

2 roles and responsibilities of the Department of 

3 Homeland Security and the Department of Trans4 portation, respectively, in addressing railroad trans5 portation security matters, including the processes 

6 the departments will follow to carry out this title 

7 and promote communications, efficiency, and non8 duplication of effort. 

9 (b) SECURITY ASSESSMENT.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

11 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec12 retary shall complete the security assessment of rail13 road transportation required under subsection 

14 (a)(1). The security assessment shall include— 

15 (A) identification and evaluation of critical 

16 railroad assets and infrastructures; 

17 (B) identification of threats to those assets 

18 and infrastructures; 

19 (C) identification of vulnerabilities that are 

20 specific to the transportation of hazardous ma21 terials by railroad; 

22 (D) identification of redundant and backup 

23 systems required to ensure the continued oper24 ation of critical elements of the railroad system 

25 in the event of an attack or other incident, in-
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1 cluding disruption of commercial electric power 

2 or communications networks; and 

3 (E) identification of security weaknesses in 

4 passenger and cargo security, transportation in5 frastructure, protection systems (including pas6 senger and cargo screening), procedural poli7 cies, communications systems, employee train8 ing, emergency response planning, and any 

9 other area identified by the assessment. 

10 (2) SECURITY PLAN.—The Secretary shall use 

11 the security assessment completed under paragraph 

12 (1) to develop a transportation modal security plan 

13 under section 114(t)(1)(B) of title 49, United States 

14 Code, for the security of the Nation’s railroads. The 

15 plan shall— 

16 (A) establish a strategy for minimizing ter17 rorist threats to railroad transportation sys18 tems; 

19 (B) establish a strategy for maximizing the 

20 efforts of railroads to mitigate damage from 

21 terrorist attacks; 

22 (C) require the Federal Government to 

23 provide increased security support at high or 

24 severe threat levels of alert; 
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1 (D) set forth procedures for establishing 

2 and maintaining permanent and comprehensive 

3 consultative relations among the parties de4 scribed in subsection (c); 

5 (E) include a contingency plan to ensure 

6 the continued movement of freight and pas7 sengers in the event of an attack affecting the 

8 railroad system, which shall contemplate— 

9 (i) the possibility of rerouting traffic 

10 due to the loss of critical infrastructure, 

11 such as a bridge, tunnel, yard, or station; 

12 and 

13 (ii) methods of continuing railroad 

14 service in the Northeast Corridor in the 

15 event of a commercial power loss, or catas16 trophe affecting a critical bridge, tunnel, 

17 yard, or station; and 

18 (F) account for actions taken or planned 

19 by both public and private entities to address 

20 security issues identified under paragraph (1) 

21 and assess the effective integration of such ac22 tions. 

23 (c) CONSULTATION.—In developing the plan under 

24 subsection (b)(2) and the recommendations under sub25 section (d), the Secretary and the Secretary of Transpor-
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1 tation shall consult with the freight and passenger railroad 

2 carriers, nonprofit employee organizations representing 

3 rail workers, nonprofit employee organizations rep4 resenting emergency responders, owners or lessors of rail 

5 cars used to transport hazardous materials, shippers of 

6 hazardous materials, manufacturers of rail tank cars, 

7 State Departments of Transportation, public safety offi8 cials, and other relevant parties. 

9 (d) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Secretary shall de10 velop prioritized recommendations for improving railroad 

11 security, including recommendations for— 

12 (1) improving the security of rail tunnels, rail 

13 bridges, rail switching and car storage areas, other 

14 rail infrastructure and facilities, information sys15 tems, and other areas identified as posing significant 

16 railroad-related risks to public safety and the move17 ment of interstate commerce, taking into account 

18 the impact that any proposed security measure 

19 might have on the provision of railroad service; 

20 (2) deploying surveillance equipment; 

21 (3) deploying equipment to detect explosives 

22 and hazardous chemical, biological, and radioactive 

23 substances, and any appropriate countermeasures; 

24 (4) installing redundant and backup systems to 

25 ensure the continued operation of critical elements 
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1 of the railroad system in the event of an attack or 

2 other incident, including disruption of commercial 

3 electric power or communications networks; 

4 (5) conducting public outreach campaigns on 

5 passenger railroads; and 

6 (6) identifying the immediate and long-term 

7 costs of measures that may be required to address 

8 those risks. 

9 (e) REPORT.— 

10 (1) CONTENTS.—Not later than 180 days after 

11 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

12 shall transmit to the Committee on Transportation 

13 and Infrastructure and the Committee on Homeland 

14 Security of the House of Representatives and to the 

15 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor16 tation of the Senate a report containing the security 

17 assessment, plan, and prioritized recommendations 

18 required by this section, along with an estimate of 

19 the cost to implement such recommendations. 

20 (2) FORMAT.—The report may be submitted in 

21 a classified format if the Secretary determines that 

22 such action is necessary. 

23 (f) PERIODIC UPDATES.—The Secretary shall update 

24 the railroad security assessment, security plan, and 

25 prioritized recommendations for improving railroad secu-
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1 rity under subsection (a), and the guidance for a railroad 

2 worker security training program under section 105, every 

3 2 years and submit a report, which may be submitted in 

4 both classified and redacted formats, to the Committee on 

5 Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee on 

6 Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and 

7 to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor8 tation of the Senate not less frequently than April 1 of 

9 each even-numbered year. 

10 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

11 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 

12 $10,000,000 for the purpose of carrying out this section. 

13 SEC. 102. FREIGHT AND PASSENGER RAIL SECURITY UP14 GRADES. 

15 (a) SECURITY IMPROVEMENT GRANTS.—The Sec16 retary, in coordination with the Secretary of Transpor17 tation, is authorized to make grants to freight and pas18 senger railroad carriers, nonprofit employee organizations 

19 that represent rail workers, shippers of hazardous mate20 rials by rail, owners of rail cars used in the transportation 

21 of hazardous materials, manufacturers of rail tank cars, 

22 and State and local governments, for costs incurred in the 

23 conduct of activities to prevent or respond to acts of ter24 rorism or sabotage against railroads, or other railroad se25 curity threats, including— 
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1 (1) perimeter protection systems, including ac2 cess control, installation of better lighting, fencing, 

3 and barricades at railroad facilities; 

4 (2) structural modification or replacement of 

5 rail cars transporting hazardous materials to im6 prove their resistance to acts of terrorism; 

7 (3) technologies for reduction of tank car vul8 nerability; 

9 (4) security improvements to passenger railroad 

10 stations, trains, and infrastructure; 

11 (5) tunnel protection systems; 

12 (6) evacuation improvements; 

13 (7) inspection technologies, including verified 

14 visual inspection technologies using hand-held read15 ers and discs; 

16 (8) security and redundancy for critical commu17 nications, computer, and train control systems essen18 tial for secure railroad operations or to continue rail19 road operations after an attack impacting railroad 

20 operations; 

21 (9) train tracking and interoperable commu22 nications systems; 

23 (10) chemical, biological, radiological, or explo24 sive detection systems and devices; 

25 (11) surveillance equipment; 
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1 (12) additional police and security officers, in2 cluding canine units; 

3 (13) accommodation of cargo or passenger 

4 screening equipment; 

5 (14) employee security awareness, prepared6 ness, and response training (including compliance 

7 with section 105); 

8 (15) public security awareness campaigns; 

9 (16) emergency response equipment, including 

10 fire suppression and decontamination equipment; 

11 and 

12 (17) other improvements recommended by the 

13 report required by section 101, including infrastruc14 ture, facilities, and equipment upgrades. 

15 (b) CONDITIONS.—The Secretary shall require recipi16 ents of funds for construction under this section and sec17 tion 103 of this Act to apply the standards of section 

18 24312 of title 49, United States Code, as in effect on Sep19 tember 1, 2004, with respect to the construction in the 

20 same manner as Amtrak is required to comply with such 

21 standards for construction work financed under an agree22 ment made under section 24308(a) of such title 49. 

23 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

24 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 

25 $600,000,000 to carry out the purposes of this section, 
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1 of which $100,000,000 shall be used by the Secretary for 

2 making grants to Amtrak, in accordance with this section. 

3 Amounts appropriated pursuant to this subsection shall 

4 remain available until expended. 

5 SEC. 103. FIRE AND LIFE-SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS. 

6 (a) LIFE-SAFETY NEEDS.—There are authorized to 

7 be appropriated to Amtrak for the purposes of carrying 

8 out this section the following amounts: 

9 (1) For the 6 New York tunnels to provide ven10 tilation, electrical, and fire safety technology up11 grades, emergency communication and lighting sys12 tems, and emergency access and egress for pas13 sengers— 

14 (A) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; 

15 (B) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; 

16 (C) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; 

17 (D) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2009; 

18 and 

19 (E) $170,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

20 (2) For the Baltimore & Potomac Tunnel and 

21 the Union tunnel, together, to provide adequate 

22 drainage, ventilation, communication, lighting, and 

23 passenger egress upgrades— 

24 (A) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; 

25 (B) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; 
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1 (C) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; 

2 (D) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2009; and 

3 (E) $17,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

4 (3) For the Washington, District of Columbia, 

5 Union Station tunnels to improve ventilation, com6 munication, lighting, and passenger egress up7 grades— 

8 (A) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; 

9 (B) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; 

10 (C) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; 

11 (D) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2009; and 

12 (E) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

13 (b) AVAILABILITY OF APPROPRIATED FUNDS.— 

14 Amounts appropriated pursuant to this section shall re15 main available until expended. 

16 SEC. 104. RAIL SECURITY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 

17 PROGRAM. 

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOP19 MENT PROGRAM.—The Secretary shall carry out a re20 search and development program for the purpose of im21 proving railroad security that may include research and 

22 development projects to— 

23 (1) reduce the vulnerability of passenger trains, 

24 stations, and equipment to explosives and hazardous 

25 chemical, biological, and radioactive substances; 
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1 (2) test new emergency response techniques and 

2 technologies; 

3 (3) develop improved freight technologies, in4 cluding— 

5 (A) technologies for sealing rail cars; 

6 (B) automatic inspection of rail cars; and 

7 (C) communication-based train controls; 

8 (4) test wayside detectors that can detect tam9 pering with railroad equipment; 

10 (5) support enhanced security for the transpor11 tation of hazardous materials by rail, including— 

12 (A) technologies to detect a breach in a 

13 tank car and transmit information about the in14 tegrity of tank cars to the train crew; 

15 (B) research to improve tank car integrity; 

16 and 

17 (C) techniques to transfer hazardous mate18 rials from rail cars that are damaged or other19 wise represent an unreasonable risk to human 

20 life or public safety; and 

21 (6) other projects recommended in the report 

22 required by section 101. 

23 (b) COORDINATION WITH OTHER RESEARCH INITIA24 TIVES.—The Secretary shall ensure that the research and 

25 development program authorized by this section is coordi-
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1 nated with other research and development initiatives at 

2 the Department of Homeland Security, the Department 

3 of Transportation, and other Federal agencies. 

4 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

5 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 

6 $50,000,000 in each of fiscal years 2006 and 2007 to 

7 carry out the purposes of this section. Amounts appro8 priated pursuant to this subsection shall remain available 

9 until expended. 

10 SEC. 105. RAIL WORKER SECURITY TRAINING PROGRAM. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

12 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in consulta13 tion with appropriate law enforcement, security, and ter14 rorism experts, representatives of railroad carriers, and 

15 nonprofit employee organizations that represent rail work16 ers, shall develop and issue detailed guidance for a rail 

17 worker security training program to prepare rail workers 

18 for potential threat conditions. 

19 (b) PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—The guidance developed 

20 under subsection (a) shall require such a program to in21 clude, at a minimum, elements that address the following: 

22 (1) Determination of the seriousness of any oc23 currence. 

24 (2) Crew and passenger communication and co25 ordination. 
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1 (3) Appropriate responses to defend oneself. 

2 (4) Use of protective devices. 

3 (5) Evacuation procedures. 

4 (6) Live situational training exercises regarding 

5 various threat conditions, including tunnel evacu6 ation procedures. 

7 (7) Any other subject the Secretary considers 

8 appropriate. 

9 (c) RAILROAD CARRIER PROGRAMS.—Not later than 

10 60 days after the Secretary issues guidance under sub11 section (a) in final form, each railroad carrier shall develop 

12 a rail worker security training program in accordance with 

13 that guidance and submit it to the Secretary for approval. 

14 Not later than 60 days after receiving a railroad carrier’s 

15 program under this subsection, the Secretary shall review 

16 the program and approve it or require the railroad carrier 

17 to make any revisions the Secretary considers necessary 

18 for the program to meet the guidance requirements. 

19 (d) TRAINING.—Not later than 1 year after the Sec20 retary approves the training program developed by a rail21 road carrier under this section, the railroad carrier shall 

22 complete the training of all rail workers in accordance with 

23 that program. 

24 (e) UPDATES.—The Secretary shall update the train25 ing guidance issued under subsection (a) from time to 
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1 time to reflect new or different security threats, and re2 quire railroad carriers to revise their programs accordingly 

3 and provide additional training to their rail workers. 

4 SEC. 106. WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION. 

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

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

7 section 20115 the following: 

8 ‘‘§ 20116. Whistleblower protection for railroad secu9 rity matters 

10 ‘‘(a) DISCRIMINATION AGAINST EMPLOYEE.—No 

11 railroad carrier engaged in interstate or foreign commerce 

12 may discharge a railroad employee or otherwise discrimi13 nate against a railroad employee because the employee (or 

14 any person acting pursuant to a request of the em15 ployee)— 

16 ‘‘(1) provided, caused to be provided, or is 

17 about to provide or cause to be provided, to the em18 ployer or the Federal Government information relat19 ing to a perceived threat to security; 

20 ‘‘(2) provided, caused to be provided, or is 

21 about to provide or cause to be provided, testimony 

22 before Congress or at any Federal or State pro23 ceeding regarding a perceived threat to security; 
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1 ‘‘(3) has assisted or participated, or is about to 

2 assist or participate, in any manner in a proceeding 

3 or any other action to enhance railroad security; or 

4 ‘‘(4) refused to violate or assist in the violation 

5 of any law, rule, or regulation related to railroad se6 curity. 

7 ‘‘(b) ENFORCEMENT ACTION.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A person who alleges dis9 charge or other discrimination by any person in vio10 lation of subsection (a) may seek relief under sub11 section (c) by— 

12 ‘‘(A) filing a complaint with the Secretary 

13 of Labor; or 

14 ‘‘(B) if the Secretary of Labor has not 

15 issued a final decision within 180 days of the 

16 filing of the complaint and there is no showing 

17 that such delay is due to the bad faith of the 

18 claimant, bringing an action at law or equity 

19 for de novo review in the appropriate district 

20 court of the United States, which shall have ju21 risdiction over such an action without regard to 

22 the amount in controversy. 

23 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURE.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An action under para25 graph (1)(A) shall be governed under the rules 
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1 and procedures set forth in section 42121(b) of 

2 this title. 

3 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Notification made 

4 under section 42121(b)(1) of this title, shall be 

5 made to the person named in the complaint and 

6 to the employer. 

7 ‘‘(C) BURDENS OF PROOF.—An action 

8 brought under paragraph (1)(B) shall be gov9 erned by the legal burdens of proof set forth in 

10 section 42121(b) this title. 

11 ‘‘(D) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.—An ac12 tion under paragraph (1)(A) shall be com13 menced not later than 90 days after the date on 

14 which the violation occurs. 

15 ‘‘(c) REMEDIES.— 

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

17 any action under subsection (b)(1) shall be entitled 

18 to all relief necessary to make the employee whole. 

19 ‘‘(2) COMPENSATORY DAMAGES.—Relief for any 

20 action under paragraph (1) shall include— 

21 ‘‘(A) reinstatement with the same seniority 

22 status that the employee would have had, but 

23 for the discrimination; 

24 ‘‘(B) the amount of back pay, with inter25 est; 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 ‘‘(d) RIGHTS RETAINED BY EMPLOYEE.—Except as 

6 provided in subsection (e), nothing in this section shall be 

7 deemed to diminish the rights, privileges, or remedies of 

8 any employee under any Federal or State law, or under 

9 any collective bargaining agreement. 

10 ‘‘(e) ELECTION OF REMEDIES.—An employee of a 

11 railroad carrier may not seek protection under both this 

12 section and another provision of law for the same allegedly 

13 unlawful act of the railroad carrier. 

14 ‘‘(f) DISCLOSURE OF IDENTITY.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para16 graph (2), without the written consent of the em17 ployee, the Secretary of Labor may not disclose the 

18 name of an employee of a railroad carrier who has 

19 provided information about an alleged violation of 

20 this section. 

21 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary of Labor 

22 shall disclose to the Attorney General the name of 

23 an employee described in paragraph (1) of this sub24 section if the matter is referred to the Attorney Gen25 eral for enforcement.’’. 
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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec2 tions for chapter 201 of title 49, United States Code, is 

3 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

4 20115 the following: 

‘‘20116. Whistleblower protection for railroad security matters.’’. 

5 SEC. 107. PUBLIC OUTREACH. 

6 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

7 of this Act, the Secretary shall develop a national plan 

8 for public outreach and awareness. Such plan shall be de9 signed to increase awareness of measures that the general 

10 public, railroad passengers, and railroad employees can 

11 take to increase railroad system security. Such plan shall 

12 also provide outreach to railroad carriers and their em13 ployees to improve their awareness of available tech14 nologies, ongoing research and development efforts, and 

15 available Federal funding sources to improve railroad se16 curity. Not later than 9 months after the date of enact17 ment of this Act, the Secretary shall implement the plan 

18 developed under this section. 

19 SEC. 108. PASSENGER, BAGGAGE, AND CARGO SCREENING. 

20 The Secretary shall— 

21 (1) analyze the cost and feasibility of requiring 

22 security screening for passengers, baggage, and 

23 cargo on passenger trains; and 

24 (2) report the results of the study, together 

25 with any recommendations that the Secretary may 
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1 have for implementing a rail security screening pro2 gram to the Committee on Transportation and In3 frastructure and the Committee on Homeland Secu4 rity of the House of Representatives and to the 

5 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor6 tation of the Senate not later than 1 year after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act. 

8 SEC. 109. EMERGENCY RESPONDER TRAINING STANDARDS. 

9 Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 

10 of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall issue 

11 training standards for persons responsible for responding 

12 to emergency situations occurring during transportation 

13 of hazardous materials by rail, in accordance with existing 

14 regulations, to ensure their ability to protect nearby per15 sons, property, or the environment from the effects of acci16 dents involving hazardous materials. 

17 SEC. 110. INFORMATION FOR FIRST RESPONDERS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation 

19 shall provide grants to Operation Respond Institute for 

20 the purpose of— 

21 (1) deploying and expanding the Operation Re22 spond Emergency Information System software; 

23 (2) developing, implementing, and maintaining 

24 a railroad infrastructure mapping program that cor25 relates railroad right-of-way information with high-
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1 way grid maps and overhead imagery of traffic 

2 routes, hazardous materials routes, and commuter 

3 rail lines; and 

4 (3) establishing an alert and messaging capa5 bility for use during emergencies involving freight 

6 and passenger railroads. 

7 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

8 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 

9 Transportation to carry out this section $2,500,000 for 

10 each of fiscal years 2005, 2006, and 2007. Amounts ap11 propriated pursuant to this subsection shall remain avail12 able until expended. 

13 SEC. 111. TSA PERSONNEL LIMITATIONS. 

14 Any statutory limitation on the number of employees 

15 in the Transportation Security Administration, before or 

16 after its transfer to the Department of Homeland Secu17 rity, does not apply to the extent that any such employees 

18 are responsible for implementing the provisions of this 

19 title. 

20 SEC. 112. RAIL SAFETY REGULATIONS. 

21 Section 20103(a) of title 49, United States Code, is 

22 amended by striking ‘‘safety’’ the first place it appears, 

23 and inserting ‘‘safety, including security’’. 
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1 SEC. 113. RAIL POLICE OFFICERS. 

2 Section 28101 of title 49, United States Code, is 

3 amended by striking ‘‘the rail carrier’’ each place it ap4 pears and inserting ‘‘any rail carrier’’. 

5 SEC. 114. DEFINITIONS. 

6 For purposes of this title— 

7 (1) the terms ‘‘railroad’’ and ‘‘railroad carrier’’ 

8 have the meaning given those terms in section 

9 20102 of title 49, United States Code; and 

10 (2) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

11 of Homeland Security, acting through the Under 

12 Secretary of Homeland Security for Border and 

13 Transportation Security. 

14 TITLE II—ASSISTANCE TO 

15 FAMILIES OF PASSENGERS 

16 SEC. 201. ASSISTANCE BY NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION 

17 SAFETY BOARD TO FAMILIES OF PAS18 SENGERS INVOLVED IN RAIL PASSENGER AC19 CIDENTS. 

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

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

22 end the following: 

23 ‘‘§ 1138. Assistance to families of passengers involved 

24 in rail passenger accidents 

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

26 being notified of a rail passenger accident within the 
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1 United States involving a rail passenger carrier and result2 ing in a major loss of life, the Chairman of the National 

3 Transportation Safety Board shall— 

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

5 phone number of a director of family support serv6 ices who shall be an employee of the Board and shall 

7 be responsible for acting as a point of contact within 

8 the Federal Government for the families of pas9 sengers involved in the accident and a liaison be10 tween the rail passenger carrier and the families; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(2) designate an independent nonprofit organi13 zation, with experience in disasters and posttrauma 

14 communication with families, which shall have pri15 mary responsibility for coordinating the emotional 

16 care and support of the families of passengers in17 volved in the accident. 

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

19 shall have primary Federal responsibility for— 

20 ‘‘(1) facilitating the recovery and identification 

21 of fatally injured passengers involved in an accident 

22 described in subsection (a); and 

23 ‘‘(2) communicating with the families of pas24 sengers involved in the accident as to the roles of— 
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1 ‘‘(A) the organization designated for an ac2 cident under subsection (a)(2); 

3 ‘‘(B) Government agencies; and 

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

5 with respect to the accident and the post-accident 

6 activities. 

7 ‘‘(c) RESPONSIBILITIES OF DESIGNATED ORGANIZA8 TION.—The organization designated for an accident under 

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

10 with respect to the families of passengers involved in the 

11 accident: 

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

13 services, in coordination with the disaster response 

14 team of the rail passenger carrier involved. 

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

16 to provide an environment in which the families may 

17 grieve in private. 

18 ‘‘(3) To meet with the families who have trav19 eled to the location of the accident, to contact the 

20 families unable to travel to such location, and to 

21 contact all affected families periodically thereafter 

22 until such time as the organization, in consultation 

23 with the director of family support services des24 ignated for the accident under subsection (a)(1), de25 termines that further assistance is no longer needed. 
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1 ‘‘(4) To arrange a suitable memorial service, in 

2 consultation with the families. 

3 ‘‘(d) PASSENGER LISTS.— 

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

5 ‘‘(A) REQUESTS BY DIRECTOR OF FAMILY

6 SUPPORT SERVICES.—It shall be the responsi7 bility of the director of family support services 

8 designated for an accident under subsection 

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

10 the rail passenger carrier involved in the acci11 dent a list, which is based on the best available 

12 information at the time of the request, of the 

13 names of the passengers that were aboard the 

14 rail passenger carrier’s train involved in the ac15 cident. A rail passenger carrier shall use rea16 sonable efforts, with respect to its unreserved 

17 trains, and passengers not holding reservations 

18 on its other trains, to ascertain the names of 

19 passengers aboard a train involved in an acci20 dent. 

21 ‘‘(B) REQUESTS BY DESIGNATED ORGANI22 ZATION.—The organization designated for an 

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

24 from the rail passenger carrier involved in the 

25 accident a list described in subparagraph (A). 
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1 ‘‘(2) USE OF INFORMATION.—The director of 

2 family support services and the organization may 

3 not release to any person information on a list ob4 tained under paragraph (1) but may provide infor5 mation on the list about a passenger to the family 

6 of the passenger to the extent that the director of 

7 family support services or the organization considers 

8 appropriate. 

9 ‘‘(e) CONTINUING RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE

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

11 described in subsection (a), the Board shall, to the max12 imum extent practicable, ensure that the families of pas13 sengers involved in the accident— 

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

15 about the accident and any other findings from the 

16 investigation; and 

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

18 attend any public hearings and meetings of the 

19 Board about the accident. 

20 ‘‘(f) USE OF RAIL PASSENGER CARRIER RE21 SOURCES.—To the extent practicable, the organization 

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

23 coordinate its activities with the rail passenger carrier in24 volved in the accident to facilitate the reasonable use of 

25 the resources of the carrier. 
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1 ‘‘(g) PROHIBITED ACTIONS.— 

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

3 person (including a State or political subdivision) 

4 may impede the ability of the Board (including the 

5 director of family support services designated for an 

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

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

8 to carry out its responsibilities under this section or 

9 the ability of the families of passengers involved in 

10 the accident to have contact with one another. 

11 ‘‘(2) UNSOLICITED COMMUNICATIONS.—No un12 solicited communication concerning a potential ac13 tion for personal injury or wrongful death may be 

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

15 employee, or other representative of an attorney) or 

16 any potential party to the litigation to an individual 

17 (other than an employee of the rail passenger car18 rier) injured in the accident, or to a relative of an 

19 individual involved in the accident, before the 45th 

20 day following the date of the accident. 

21 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITION ON ACTIONS TO PREVENT

22 MENTAL HEALTH AND COUNSELING SERVICES.—No 

23 State or political subdivision may prevent the em24 ployees, agents, or volunteers of an organization des25 ignated for an accident under subsection (a)(2) from 
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1 providing mental health and counseling services 

2 under subsection (c)(1) in the 30-day period begin3 ning on the date of the accident. The director of 

4 family support services designated for the accident 

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

6 not to exceed an additional 30 days if the director 

7 determines that the extension is necessary to meet 

8 the needs of the families and if State and local au9 thorities are notified of the determination. 

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

11 definitions apply: 

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

13 ‘rail passenger accident’ means any rail passenger 

14 disaster occurring in the provision of— 

15 ‘‘(A) interstate intercity rail passenger 

16 transportation (as such term is defined in sec17 tion 24102); or 

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

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

20 transportation, 

21 regardless of its cause or suspected cause. 

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

23 ‘rail passenger carrier’ means a rail carrier pro24 viding— 
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1 ‘‘(A) interstate intercity rail passenger 

2 transportation (as such term is defined in sec3 tion 24102); or 

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

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

6 transportation, 

7 except that such term shall not include a tourist, 

8 historic, scenic, or excursion rail carrier. 

9 ‘‘(3) PASSENGER.—The term ‘passenger’ in10 cludes— 

11 ‘‘(A) an employee of a rail passenger car12 rier aboard a train; 

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

14 without regard to whether the person paid for 

15 the transportation, occupied a seat, or held a 

16 reservation for the rail transportation; and 

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

18 the accident. 

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

20 Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting the 

21 actions that a rail passenger carrier may take, or the obli22 gations that a rail passenger carrier may have, in pro23 viding assistance to the families of passengers involved in 

24 a rail passenger accident. 
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1 ‘‘(j) RELINQUISHMENT OF INVESTIGATIVE PRI2 ORITY.— 

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

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

5 if the Board has relinquished investigative priority 

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

7 to which the Board relinquished investigative pri8 ority is willing and able to provide assistance to the 

9 victims and families of the passengers involved in 

10 the accident. 

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

12 not apply to a railroad accident because the Board 

13 has relinquished investigative priority with respect to 

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

15 extent possible, the agency to which the Board has 

16 relinquished investigative priority in assisting fami17 lies with respect to the accident.’’. 

18 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec19 tions for such chapter is amended by inserting after the 

20 item relating to section 1137 the following: 

‘‘1138. Assistance to families of passengers involved in rail passenger accidents.’’. 
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1 SEC. 202. RAIL PASSENGER CARRIER PLANS TO ADDRESS 

2 NEEDS OF FAMILIES OF PASSENGERS IN3 VOLVED IN RAIL PASSENGER ACCIDENTS. 

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

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

6 following new chapter: 

7 ‘‘CHAPTER 251—FAMILY ASSISTANCE 

‘‘Sec. 

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

8 ‘‘§ 25101. Plans to address needs of families of pas9 sengers involved in rail passenger acci10 dents 

11 ‘‘(a) SUBMISSION OF PLANS.—Not later than 180 

12 days after the date of the enactment of this section, each 

13 rail passenger carrier shall submit to the Secretary of 

14 Transportation and the Chairman of the National Trans15 portation Safety Board a plan for addressing the needs 

16 of the families of passengers involved in any rail passenger 

17 accident involving a train of the rail passenger carrier and 

18 resulting in a major loss of life. 

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

20 by a rail passenger carrier under subsection (a) shall in21 clude, at a minimum, the following: 
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1 ‘‘(1) A plan for publicizing a reliable, toll-free 

2 telephone number, and for providing staff, to handle 

3 calls from the families of the passengers. 

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

5 passengers, before providing any public notice of the 

6 names of the passengers, either by utilizing the serv7 ices of the organization designated for the accident 

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

9 of other suitably trained individuals. 

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

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

12 passenger as soon as the rail passenger carrier has 

13 verified that the passenger was aboard the train 

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

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

16 person. 

17 ‘‘(4) An assurance that the rail passenger car18 rier will provide to the director of family support 

19 services designated for the accident under section 

20 1138(a)(1) of this title, and to the organization des21 ignated for the accident under section 1138(a)(2) of 

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

23 based on the best available information at the time 

24 of the request) of the names of the passengers 

25 aboard the train (whether or not such names have 
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1 been verified), and will periodically update the list. 

2 The plan shall include a procedure, with respect to 

3 unreserved trains and passengers not holding res4 ervations on other trains, for the rail passenger car5 rier to use reasonable efforts to ascertain the names 

6 of passengers aboard a train involved in an accident. 

7 ‘‘(5) An assurance that the family of each pas8 senger will be consulted about the disposition of all 

9 remains and personal effects of the passenger within 

10 the control of the rail passenger carrier. 

11 ‘‘(6) An assurance that if requested by the fam12 ily of a passenger, any possession of the passenger 

13 within the control of the rail passenger carrier (re14 gardless of its condition) will be returned to the fam15 ily unless the possession is needed for the accident 

16 investigation or any criminal investigation. 

17 ‘‘(7) An assurance that any unclaimed posses18 sion of a passenger within the control of the rail 

19 passenger carrier will be retained by the rail pas20 senger carrier for at least 18 months. 

21 ‘‘(8) An assurance that the family of each pas22 senger or other person killed in the accident will be 

23 consulted about construction by the rail passenger 

24 carrier of any monument to the passengers, includ25 ing any inscription on the monument. 
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1 ‘‘(9) An assurance that the treatment of the 

2 families of nonrevenue passengers will be the same 

3 as the treatment of the families of revenue pas4 sengers. 

5 ‘‘(10) An assurance that the rail passenger car6 rier will work with any organization designated 

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

8 basis to ensure that families of passengers receive an 

9 appropriate level of services and assistance following 

10 each accident. 

11 ‘‘(11) An assurance that the rail passenger car12 rier will provide reasonable compensation to any or13 ganization designated under section 1138(a)(2) of 

14 this title for services provided by the organization. 

15 ‘‘(12) An assurance that the rail passenger car16 rier will assist the family of a passenger in traveling 

17 to the location of the accident and provide for the 

18 physical care of the family while the family is stay19 ing at such location. 

20 ‘‘(13) An assurance that the rail passenger car21 rier will commit sufficient resources to carry out the 

22 plan. 

23 ‘‘(14) An assurance that the rail passenger car24 rier will provide adequate training to the employees 
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1 and agents of the carrier to meet the needs of sur2 vivors and family members following an accident. 

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

4 family of a passenger, the rail passenger carrier will 

5 inform the family of whether the passenger’s name 

6 appeared on any preliminary passenger manifest for 

7 the train involved in the accident. 

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

9 carrier shall not be liable for damages in any action 

10 brought in a Federal or State court arising out of the per11 formance of the rail passenger carrier in preparing or pro12 viding a passenger list, or in providing information con13 cerning a train reservation, pursuant to a plan submitted 

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

15 such liability was caused by conduct of the rail passenger 

16 carrier which was grossly negligent or which constituted 

17 intentional misconduct. 

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

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

20 ‘rail passenger carrier’ have the meanings such 

21 terms have in section 1138 of this title; and 

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

23 aboard a rail passenger carrier’s train that is in24 volved in a rail passenger accident. 
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1 ‘‘(e) LIMITATION ON STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.— 

2 Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting the 

3 actions that a rail passenger carrier may take, or the obli4 gations that a rail passenger carrier may have, in pro5 viding assistance to the families of passengers involved in 

6 a rail passenger accident.’’. 

7 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of chap8 ters for subtitle V of title 49, United States Code, is 

9 amended by adding after the item relating to chapter 249 

10 the following new item: 

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

11 SEC. 203. ESTABLISHMENT OF TASK FORCE. 

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

13 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Trans14 portation, in coordination with the National Transpor15 tation Safety Board, organizations potentially designated 

16 under section 1138(a)(2) of title 49, United States Code, 

17 rail passenger carriers, and families which have been in18 volved in rail accidents, shall establish a task force con19 sisting of representatives of such entities and families, rep20 resentatives of passenger rail carrier employees, and rep21 resentatives of such other entities as the Secretary con22 siders appropriate. 

23 (b) MODEL PLAN AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—The 

24 task force established pursuant to subsection (a) shall de25 velop— 
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1 (1) a model plan to assist passenger rail car2 riers in responding to passenger rail accidents; 

3 (2) recommendations on methods to improve 

4 the timeliness of the notification provided by pas5 senger rail carriers to the families of passengers in6 volved in a passenger rail accident; 

7 (3) recommendations on methods to ensure that 

8 the families of passengers involved in a passenger 

9 rail accident who are not citizens of the United 

10 States receive appropriate assistance; and 

11 (4) recommendations on methods to ensure that 

12 emergency services personnel have as immediate and 

13 accurate a count of the number of passengers on14 board the train as possible. 

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

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

17 to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

18 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

19 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 

20 report containing the model plan and recommendations 

21 developed by the task force under subsection (b). 

Æ