II 

Calendar No. 536

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2273

[Report No. 108–278] 

To provide increased rail transportation security. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 1, 2004

Mr. MCCAIN (for himself, Mr. HOLLINGS, Ms. SNOWE, Mr. KENNEDY, Mrs. 

CLINTON, Mr. ROCKEFELLER, Mr. BIDEN, Mr. CARPER, Mr. LAUTENBERG, Mrs. HUTCHISON, Mr. FITZGERALD, Mr. INOUYE, Mr. BREAUX, 

Mr. DORGAN, Mr. SCHUMER, Mrs. BOXER, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. 

CORZINE, and Mr. LIEBERMAN) introduced the following bill; which was 

read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

Transportation 

MAY 21, 2004

Reported by Mr. MCCAIN, with amendments 

[Omit the part struck through and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL

To provide increased rail transportation security.

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 ‘‘Rail Security Act of 2004’’. 
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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Rail transportation security risk assessment. 

Sec. 3. Rail security. 

Sec. 4. Study of foreign rail transport security programs. 

Sec. 5. Passenger, baggage, and cargo screening. 

Sec. 6. Certain personnel limitations not to apply.

Sec. 7. Fire and life safety improvements. 

Sec. 8. Transportation security.

Sec. 7. Fire and life-safety improvements. 

Sec. 8. Memorandum of agreement.

Sec. 9. Amtrak plan to assist families of passengers involved in rail passenger 

accidents.

Sec. 10. System-wide Amtrak security upgrades.

Sec. 10. Systemwide Amtrak security upgrades.

Sec. 11. Freight and passenger rail security upgrades.

Sec. 12. Department of Transportation oversight.

Sec. 12. Oversight and grant procedures.

Sec. 13. Rail security research and development. 

Sec. 14. Welded rail and tank car safety improvements. 

Sec. 15. Northern Border rail passenger report.

Sec. 16. Report regarding impact on security of train travel in communities 

without grade separation. 

Sec. 17. Whistleblower protection program.

3 SEC. 2. RAIL TRANSPORTATION SECURITY RISK ASSESS4 MENT. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—

6 (1) VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT.—The Under 

7 Secretary of Homeland Security for Border and 

8 Transportation Security, in consultation with the 

9 Secretary of Transportation, shall complete a vulner10 ability assessment of freight and passenger rail 

11 transportation (encompassing rail carriers, railroads,

12 as that term is defined in section 20102(1) of title 

13 49, United States Code). The assessment shall in14 clude—
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1 (A) identification and evaluation of critical 

2 assets and infrastructures; 

3 (B) identification of threats to those assets 

4 and infrastructures; 

5 (C) identification of vulnerabilities that are 

6 specific to the transportation of hazardous ma7 terials via railroad; and 

8 (D) identification of security weaknesses in 

9 passenger and cargo security, transportation in10 frastructure, protection systems, procedural 

11 policies, communications systems, employee 

12 training, emergency response planning, and any 

13 other area identified by the assessment. 

14 (2) EXISTING PRIVATE AND PUBLIC SECTOR

15 EFFORTS.—The assessment shall take into account 

16 actions taken or planned by both public and private 

17 entities to address identified security issues and as18 sess the effective integration of such actions. 

19 (3) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Based on the assess20 ment conducted under paragraph (1), the Under 

21 Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of 

22 Transportation, shall develop prioritized rec23 ommendations for improving rail security, including 

24 any recommendations the Under Secretary has for—
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1 (A) improving the security of rail tunnels, 

2 rail bridges, rail switching and car storage

3 areas, other rail infrastructure and facilities, in4 formation systems, and other areas identified 

5 by the Under Secretary as posing significant 

6 rail-related risks to public safety and the move7 ment of interstate commerce, taking into ac8 count the impact that any proposed security 

9 measure might have on the provision of rail 

10 service; 

11 (B) deploying weapon detection equipment; 

12 equipment to detect explosives and hazardous 

13 chemical, biological, and radioactive substances, 

14 and any appropriate countermeasures; 

15 (C) training employees in terrorism pre16 vention, passenger evacuation, and response ac17 tivities; 

18 (D) conducting public outreach campaigns 

19 on passenger railroads; 

20 (E) deploying surveillance equipment; and 

21 (F) identifying the immediate and long22 term economic impact costs of measures that 

23 may be required to address those risks. 

24 (4) PLANS.—The report required by subsection 

25 (c) shall include—
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1 (A) a plan, developed in consultation with 

2 the freight and intercity passenger railroads, 

3 and State and local governments, for the gov4 ernment to provide increased security support 

5 at high or severe threat levels of alert; and 

6 (B) a plan for coordinating rail security 

7 initiatives undertaken by the public and private 

8 sectors. 

9 (b) CONSULTATION; USE OF EXISTING RE10 SOURCES.—In carrying out the assessment required by 

11 subsection (a), the Under Secretary of Homeland Security 

12 for Border and Transportation Security shall consult with 

13 rail management, rail labor, owners or lessors of rail cars 

14 used to transport hazardous materials, first responders,

15 shippers of hazardous materials, public safety officials (in16 cluding those within other agencies and offices within the 

17 Department of Homeland Security) Security), and other 

18 relevant parties. 

19 (c) REPORT.—

20 (1) CONTENTS.—Within 180 days after the 

21 date of enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary 

22 shall transmit to the Senate Committee on Com23 merce, Science, and Transportation and the House 

24 of Representatives Committee on Transportation 

25 and Infrastructure a report containing the assess-
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1 ment and prioritized recommendations required by 

2 subsection (a) and an estimate of the cost to imple3 ment such recommendations.

4 (2) FORMAT.—The Under Secretary may sub5 mit the report in both classified and redacted for6 mats if the Under Secretary determines that such 

7 action is appropriate or necessary. 

8 (d) 2-YEAR UPDATES.—The Under Secretary, in con9 sultation with the Secretary of Transportation, shall up10 date the assessment and recommendations every 2 years 

11 and transmit a report, which may be submitted in both 

12 classified and redacted formats, to the Committees named 

13 in subsection (c)(1), containing the updated assessment 

14 and recommendations. 

15 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

16 are authorized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary 

17 of Homeland Security for Border and Transportation Se18 curity $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2005 for the purpose of 

19 carrying out this section. 

20 SEC. 3. RAIL SECURITY. 

21 (a) RAIL POLICE OFFICERS.—Section 28101 of title 

22 49, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘the rail 

23 carrier’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘any rail car24 rier’’. 
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1 (b) REVIEW OF RAIL REGULATIONS.—Within 1 year 

2 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

3 Transportation, in consultation with the Under Secretary 

4 of Homeland Security for Border and Transportation Se5 curity, shall review existing rail regulations of the Depart6 ment of Transportation for the purpose of identifying 

7 areas in which those regulations need to be revised to im8 prove rail security. 

9 SEC. 4. STUDY OF FOREIGN RAIL TRANSPORT SECURITY 

10 PROGRAMS. 

11 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR STUDY.—Within one year 

12 after the date of enactment of the Rail Security Act of 

13 2004, the Comptroller General shall complete a study of 

14 the rail passenger transportation security programs that 

15 are carried out for rail transportation systems in Japan, 

16 member nations of the European Union, and other foreign 

17 countries. 

18 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the study shall be to 

19 identify effective rail transportation security measures 

20 that are in use in foreign rail transportation systems, in21 cluding innovative measures and screening procedures de22 termined effective. 

23 (c) REPORT.—The Comptroller General shall submit 

24 a report on the results of the study to the Senate Com25 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the 
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1 House of Representatives Committee on Transportation 

2 and Infrastructure. The report shall include the Comp3 troller General’s assessment regarding whether it is fea4 sible to implement within the United States any of the 

5 same or similar security measures that are determined ef6 fective under the study. 

7 SEC. 5. PASSENGER, BAGGAGE, AND CARGO SCREENING. 

8 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR STUDY AND REPORT.—The 

9 Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Border and 

10 Transportation Security, in cooperation with the Secretary 

11 of Transportation, shall— 

12 (1) analyze the cost and feasibility of requiring 

13 security screening for passengers, baggage, and mail 

14 cargo on passenger trains; and 

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

16 with any recommendations that the Under Secretary 

17 may have for implementing a rail security screening 

18 program to the Senate Committee on Commerce, 

19 Science, and Transportation and the House of Rep20 resentatives Committee on Transportation and In21 frastructure within 1 year after the date of enact22 ment of this Act. 

23 (b) PILOT PROGRAM.—As part of the study under 

24 subsection (a), the Under Secretary shall complete a pilot 

25 program of random security screening of passengers and 
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1 baggage at 5 passenger rail stations served by Amtrak se2 lected by the Under Secretary. In conducting the pilot pro3 gram, the Under Secretary shall—

4 (1) test a wide range of explosives detection 

5 technologies, devices and methods; 

6 (2) require that intercity rail passengers 

7 produce government-issued photographic identifica8 tion which matches the name on the passenger’s 

9 tickets prior to boarding trains; and 

10 (3) attempt to give preference to locations at the 

11 highest risk of terrorist attack and achieve a distribu12 tion of participating train stations in terms of geo13 graphic location, size, passenger volume, and wheth14 er the station is used by commuter rail passengers 

15 as well as Amtrak passengers. 

16 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

17 are authorized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary 

18 of Homeland Security for Border and Transportation Se19 curity to carry out this section $5,000,000 for fiscal year 

20 2005. 

21 SEC. 6. CERTAIN PERSONNEL LIMITATIONS NOT TO APPLY. 

22 Any statutory limitation on the number of employees 

23 in the Transportation Security Administration of the De24 partment of Transportation, before or after its transfer 

25 to the Department of Homeland Security, does not apply 
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1 to the extent that any such employees are responsible for 

2 implementing the provisions of this Act.

3 SEC. 7. FIRE AND LIFE SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS.

4 SEC. 7. FIRE AND LIFE-SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS.

5 (a) LIFE SAFETY LIFE-SAFETY NEEDS.—The Sec6 retary of Transportation is authorized to make grants to 

7 Amtrak for the purpose of making fire and life-safety im8 provements to Amtrak tunnels on the Northeast Corridor 

9 in New York, NY, Baltimore, MD, and Washington, DC. 

10 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

11 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 

12 Transportation for the purposes of carrying out subsection 

13 (a) the following amounts: 

14 (1) For the 6 New York tunnels to provide ven15 tilation, electrical, and fire safety technology up16 grades, emergency communication and lighting sys17 tems, and emergency access and egress for pas18 sengers—

19 (A) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2005; 

20 (B) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; 

21 (C) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; 

22 (D) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; 

23 and 

24 (E) $170,000,000 for fiscal year 2009. 
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1 (2) For the Baltimore & Potomac tunnel and 

2 the Union tunnel, together, to provide adequate 

3 drainage, ventilation, communication, lighting, and 

4 passenger egress upgrades—

5 (A) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2005; 

6 (B) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; 

7 (C) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; 

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

9 (E) $17,000,000 for fiscal year 2009. 

10 (3) For the Washington, DC Union Station 

11 tunnels to improve ventilation, communication, light12 ing, and passenger egress upgrades—

13 (A) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2005; 

14 (B) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; 

15 (C) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; 

16 (D) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; and 

17 (E) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2009.

18 (c) INFRASTRUCTURE UPGRADES.—There are au19 thorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transpor20 tation for fiscal year 2005 $3,000,000 for the preliminary 

21 design of options for a new tunnel on a different alignment 

22 to augment the capacity of the existing Baltimore tunnels. 

23 (d) AVAILABILITY OF APPROPRIATED FUNDS.—

24 Amounts appropriated pursuant to this section shall re25 main available until expended. 
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1 (e) PLAN PLANS REQUIRED.—The Secretary may not 

2 make amounts available to Amtrak for obligation or ex3 penditure under subsection (a)—

4 (1) until Amtrak has submitted to the Sec5 retary, and the Secretary has approved, an engineer6 ing and financial plan for such projects; and 

7 (2) unless, for each project funded pursuant to 

8 this section, the Secretary has approved a project 

9 management plan prepared by Amtrak addressing 

10 appropriate project budget, construction schedule, 

11 recipient staff organization, document control and 

12 record keeping, change order procedure, quality con13 trol and assurance, periodic plan updates, periodic 

14 status reports, and such other matter matters the 

15 Secretary deems appropriate; appropriate.

16 (f) REVIEW OF PLANS.—The Secretary of Transpor17 tation shall complete the review of the plans required by 

18 paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (e) and approve or 

19 disapprove the plans within 45 days after the date on which 

20 each such plan is submitted by Amtrak. If the Secretary 

21 determines that a plan is incomplete or deficient, the Sec22 retary shall notify Amtrak of the incomplete items or defi23 ciencies and Amtrak shall, within 30 days after receiving 

24 the Secretary’s notification, submit a modified plan for the 

25 Secretary’s review. Within 15 days after receiving addi-
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1 tional information on items previously included in the 

2 plan, and within 45 days after receiving items newly in3 cluded in a modified plan, the Secretary shall either ap4 prove the modified plan, or, if the Secretary finds the plan 

5 is still incomplete or deficient, the Secretary shall identify 

6 in writing to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, 

7 and Transportation and the House of Representatives Com8 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure the portions 

9 of the plan the Secretary finds incomplete or deficient, ap10 prove all other portions of the plan, obligate the funds asso11 ciated with those other portions, and execute an agreement 

12 with Amtrak within 15 days thereafter on a process for re13 solving the remaining portions of the plan.

14 (f) (g) FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION FROM OTHER

15 TUNNEL USERS.—The Secretary shall, taking into ac16 count the need for the timely completion of all life safety 

17 portions of the tunnel projects described in subsection 

18 (a)—

19 (1) consider the extent to which rail carriers 

20 other than Amtrak use the tunnels; 

21 (2) consider the feasibility of seeking a financial 

22 contribution from those other rail carriers toward 

23 the costs of the projects; and 

24 (3) seek obtain financial contributions or com25 mitments from such other rail carriers at levels re-
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1 flecting the extent of their use of the tunnels. tun2 nels, if feasible.

3 SEC. 8. TRANSPORTATION SECURITY.

4 SEC. 8. MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT.

5 (a) MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT.—Within 60 days 

6 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

7 Transportation and the Under Secretary of Homeland Se8 curity for Border and Transportation Security Secretary 

9 of Homeland Security shall execute a memorandum of 

10 agreement governing the roles and responsibilities of the 

11 Department of Transportation and the Department of 

12 Homeland Security, respectively, in addressing railroad 

13 transportation security matters, including the processes 

14 the departments will follow to promote communications, 

15 efficiency, and nonduplication of effort. 

16 (b) RAIL SAFETY REGULATIONS.—Section 20103(a) 

17 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking 

18 ‘‘safety’’ the first place it appears, and inserting ‘‘safety, 

19 including security,’’. 

20 SEC. 9. AMTRAK PLAN TO ASSIST FAMILIES OF PAS21 SENGERS INVOLVED IN RAIL PASSENGER AC22 CIDENTS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 243 of title 49, United 

24 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol25 lowing: 
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1 ‘‘§ 24316. Plans to address needs of families of pas2 sengers involved in rail passenger acci3 dents 

4 ‘‘(a) SUBMISSION OF PLAN.—Not later than 6 

5 months after the date of the enactment of the Rail Secu6 rity Act of 2004, Amtrak shall submit to the Chairman 

7 of the National Transportation Safety Board and the Sec8 retary of Transportation a plan for addressing the needs 

9 of the families of passengers involved in any rail passenger 

10 accident involving an Amtrak intercity train and resulting 

11 in a loss of life. 

12 ‘‘(b) CONTENTS OF PLANS.—The plan to be sub13 mitted by Amtrak under subsection (a) shall include, at 

14 a minimum, the following:

15 ‘‘(1) A process by which Amtrak will maintain 

16 and provide to the National Transportation Safety 

17 Board, Board and the Secretary of Transportation,

18 immediately upon request, a list (which is based on 

19 the best available information at the time of the re20 quest) of the names of the passengers aboard the 

21 train (whether or not such names have been 

22 verified), and will periodically update the list. The 

23 plan shall include a procedure, with respect to unre24 served trains and passengers not holding reserva25 tions on other trains, for Amtrak to use reasonable
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1 efforts to ascertain the number and names of pas2 sengers aboard a train involved in an accident. 

3 ‘‘(2) A plan for creating and publicizing a reli4 able, toll-free telephone number within 4 hours after 

5 such an accident occurs, and for providing staff, to 

6 handle calls from the families of the passengers. 

7 ‘‘(3) A process for notifying the families of the 

8 passengers, before providing any public notice of the 

9 names of the passengers, by suitably trained individ10 uals. 

11 ‘‘(4) A process for providing the notice de12 scribed in paragraph (2) to the family of a pas13 senger as soon as Amtrak has verified that the pas14 senger was aboard the train (whether or not the 

15 names of all of the passengers have been verified). 

16 ‘‘(5) A process by which the family of each pas17 senger will be consulted about the disposition of all 

18 remains and personal effects of the passenger within 

19 Amtrak’s control; that any possession of the pas20 senger within Amtrak’s control will be returned to 

21 the family unless the possession is needed for the ac22 cident investigation or any criminal investigation; 

23 and that any unclaimed possession of a passenger 

24 within Amtrak’s control will be retained by the rail 

25 passenger carrier for at least 18 months. 
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1 ‘‘(6) A process by which 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 ‘‘(7) An assurance that Amtrak will provide 

6 adequate training to its employees and agents to 

7 meet the needs of survivors and family members fol8 lowing an accident. 

9 ‘‘(c) USE OF INFORMATION.—The National Trans10 portation Safety Board and Amtrak Board, the Secretary 

11 of Transportation, and Amtrak may not release to any per12 son information on a list obtained under subsection (b)(1) 

13 but may provide information on the list about a passenger 

14 to the family of the passenger to the extent that the Board 

15 or Amtrak considers appropriate. 

16 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.—Amtrak shall not 

17 be liable for damages in any action brought in a Federal 

18 or State court arising out of the performance of Amtrak 

19 in preparing or providing a passenger list, or in providing 

20 information concerning a train reservation, pursuant to a 

21 plan submitted by Amtrak under subsection (b), unless 

22 such liability was caused by Amtrak’s conduct.

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

24 Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting the 

25 actions that Amtrak may take, or the obligations that Am-
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1 trak may have, in providing assistance to the families of 

2 passengers involved in a rail passenger accident. 

3 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

4 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 

5 Transportation for the use of Amtrak $500,000 for fiscal 

6 year 2005 to carry out this section. Amounts appropriated 

7 pursuant to this subsection shall remain available until ex8 pended.’’. 

9 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter anal10 ysis for chapter 243 of title 49, United States Code, is 

11 amended by adding at the end the following:

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘24316. Plan to assist families of passengers involved in rail passenger accidents.’’.

12 SEC. 10. SYSTEM-WIDE AMTRAK SECURITY UPGRADES.

13 SEC. 10. SYSTEMWIDE AMTRAK SECURITY UPGRADES.

14 (a) IN GENERAL—Subject to subsection (c), the 

15 Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Border and 

16 Transportation Security is authorized to make grants, 

17 through the Secretary of Transportation, to Amtrak—

18 (1) to secure major tunnel access points and en19 sure tunnel integrity in New York, Baltimore, and 

20 Washington, DC; 

21 (2) to secure Amtrak trains; 

22 (3) to secure Amtrak stations; 

23 (4) to obtain a watch list identification system 

24 approved by the Under Secretary; 
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1 (5) to obtain train tracking and interoperable

2 communications systems that are coordinated to the 

3 maximum extent possible; 

4 (6) to hire additional police and security offi5 cers, including canine units; and 

6 (7) to expand emergency preparedness efforts. 

7 (b) CONDITIONS.—The Secretary of Transportation 

8 may not disburse funds to Amtrak under subsection (a) 

9 unless the projects are contained in a systemwide security 

10 plan approved by the Under Secretary, in consultation 

11 with the Secretary of Transportation, and and, for capital 

12 projects, meet the requirements of section 7(e)(2). The 

13 plan shall include appropriate measures to address security 

14 awareness, emergency response, and passenger evacuation 

15 training. 

16 (c) EQUITABLE GEOGRAPHIC ALLOCATION.—The 

17 Secretary Under Secretary shall ensure that, subject to 

18 meeting the highest security needs on Amtrak’s entire sys19 tem, stations and facilities located outside of the North20 east Corridor receive an equitable share of the security 

21 funds authorized by this section. 

22 (d) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—There are authorized 

23 to be appropriated to the Under Secretary of Homeland 

24 Security for Border and Transportation Security 

25 $62,500,000 $63,500,000 for fiscal year 2005 for the pur-
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1 poses of carrying out this section. Amounts appropriated 

2 pursuant to this subsection shall remain available until ex3 pended. 

4 SEC. 11. FREIGHT AND PASSENGER RAIL SECURITY UP5 GRADES. 

6 (a) SECURITY IMPROVEMENT GRANTS.—The Under 

7 Secretary of Homeland Security for Border and Transpor8 tation Security is authorized to make grants to freight 

9 railroads, the Alaska Railroad, hazardous materials ship10 pers, owners of rail cars used in the transportation of haz11 ardous materials, universities, colleges and research centers, 

12 State and local governments (for passenger facilities and 

13 infrastructure not owned by Amtrak), and, through the 

14 Secretary of Transportation, to Amtrak, for full or partial 

15 reimbursement of costs incurred in the conduct of activi16 ties to prevent or respond to acts of terrorism, sabotage, 

17 or other intercity passenger rail and freight rail security 

18 threats, including—

19 (1) security and redundancy for critical commu20 nications, computer, and train control systems essen21 tial for secure rail operations; 

22 (2) accommodation of cargo or passenger 

23 screening equipment at the United States-Mexico 

24 border or the United States-Canada border;
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1 (3) the security of hazardous material transpor2 tation by rail; 

3 (4) secure intercity passenger rail stations, 

4 trains, and infrastructure; 

5 (5) structural modification or replacement of 

6 pressurized tank cars rail cars transporting high 

7 hazard materials to improve their resistance to acts 

8 of terrorism; 

9 (6) employee security awareness, preparedness, 

10 passenger evacuation, and emergency response train11 ing; 

12 (7) public security awareness campaigns for 

13 passenger train operations; and

14 (8) the sharing of intelligence and information 

15 about security threats; 

16 (9) to obtain train tracking and interoperable 

17 communications systems that are coordinated to the 

18 maximum extent possible; 

19 (10) to hire additional police and security offi20 cers, including canine units; and

21 (8) (11) other improvements recommended by 

22 the report required by section 2, including infra23 structure, facilities, and equipment upgrades. 

24 (b) ACCOUNTABILITY.—The Under Secretary shall 

25 adopt necessary procedures, including audits, to ensure 
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1 that grants made under this section are expended in ac2 cordance with the purposes of this Act and the priorities 

3 and other criteria developed by the Under Secretary.

4 (c) EQUITABLE ALLOCATION.—The Under Secretary 

5 shall equitably distribute the funds authorized by this sec6 tion, taking into account geographic location, and shall en7 courage non-Federal financial participation in awarding 

8 grants. With respect to grants for passenger rail security, 

9 the Under Secretary shall also take into account passenger 

10 volume and whether a station is used by commuter rail pas11 sengers as well as intercity rail passengers.

12 (c) (d) CONDITIONS.—The Secretary of Transpor13 tation may not disburse funds to Amtrak under subsection 

14 (a) unless Amtrak meets the conditions set forth in section 

15 10(b) of this Act.

16 (d) TANK CAR REPLACEMENT INCENTIVE.—A grant 

17 under subsection (a)(5) may be for up to 15 percent of 

18 the cost of the modification or replacement of a pressur19 ized tank car.

20 (e) ALLOCATION BETWEEN RAILROADS AND OTH21 ERS.—Unless as a result of the assessment required by 

22 section 2 the Under Secretary of Homeland Security for 

23 Border and Transportation Security determines that crit24 ical rail transportation security needs require reimburse-
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1 ment in greater amounts to any eligible entity, no grants 

2 under this section may be made—

3 (1) in excess of $65,000,000 to Amtrak; or 

4 (2) in excess of $100,000,000 for the purposes 

5 described in paragraphs (3) and (4) (5) of sub6 section (a).

7 (f) PROCEDURES FOR GRANT AWARD.—The Under 

8 Secretary shall prescribe procedures and schedules for the 

9 awarding of grants under this title, including application 

10 and qualification procedures (including a requirement that 

11 the applicant have a security plan), and a record of deci12 sion on applicant eligibility. The procedures shall include 

13 the execution of a grant agreement between the grant re14 cipient and the Under Secretary. The Under Secretary 

15 shall issue a final rule establishing the procedures not 

16 later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act.

17 (g) (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

18 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Under Sec19 retary of Homeland Security for Border and Transpor20 tation Security $250,000,000 $350,000,000 for fiscal year 

21 2005 to carry out the purposes of this section. Amounts 

22 appropriated pursuant to this subsection shall remain 

23 available until expended.

24 (g) HIGH HAZARD MATERIALS DEFINED.—In this sec25 tion, the term ‘‘high hazard materials’’ means poison inha-
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1 lation hazard materials, Class 2.3 gases, Class 6.1 mate2 rials, and anhydrous ammonia.

3 SEC. 12. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION OVERSIGHT.

4 SEC. 12. OVERSIGHT AND GRANT PROCEDURES.

5 (a) SECRETARIAL OVERSIGHT.—The Secretary of 

6 Transportation may use up to 0.5 percent of amounts 

7 made available to Amtrak for capital projects under the 

8 Rail Security Act of 2004 to enter into contracts for the 

9 review of proposed capital projects and related program 

10 management plans and to oversee construction of such 

11 projects. 

12 (b) USE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary may use 

13 amounts available under subsection (a) of this subsection 

14 to make contracts for safety, procurement, management, 

15 and financial compliance reviews and audits of a recipient 

16 of amounts under subsection (a).

17 (c) PROCEDURES FOR GRANT AWARD.—The Under 

18 Secretary shall prescribe procedures and schedules for the 

19 awarding of grants under this Act, including application 

20 and qualification procedures (including a requirement that 

21 the applicant have a security plan), and a record of deci22 sion on applicant eligibility. The procedures shall include 

23 the execution of a grant agreement between the grant recipi24 ent and the Under Secretary. The Under Secretary shall 
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1 issue a final rule establishing the procedures not later than 

2 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act.

3 SEC. 13. RAIL SECURITY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. 

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOP5 MENT PROGRAM.—The Under Secretary of Homeland Se6 curity for Border and Transportation Security, in conjunc7 tion with the Secretary of Transportation, shall carry out 

8 a research and development program for the purpose of 

9 improving freight and intercity passenger rail security, in10 cluding security that may include research and develop11 ment projects to—

12 (1) reduce the vulnerability of passenger trains, 

13 stations, and equipment to explosives; explosives and 

14 hazardous chemical, biological, and radioactive sub15 stances; 

16 (2) test new emergency response techniques and 

17 technologies; 

18 (3) develop improved freight technologies, in19 cluding—

20 (A) technologies for sealing rail cars; 

21 (B) automatic inspection of rail cars; 

22 (C) communication-based train controls; 

23 and 

24 (D) emergency response training;
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1 (4) test wayside detectors that can detect tam2 pering with railroad equipment; and 

3 (5) support enhanced security for the transpor4 tation of hazardous materials by rail, including—

5 (A) technologies to detect a breach in a 

6 tank car and transmit information about the in7 tegrity of tank cars to the train crew; 

8 (B) research to improve tank car integrity, 

9 with a focus on tank cars that carry toxic-inha10 lation chemicals; and high hazard materials (as 

11 defined in section 11(g) of this Act; 

12 (C) techniques to transfer hazardous mate13 rials from rail cars that are damaged or other14 wise represent an unreasonable risk to human 

15 life or public safety. safety;

16 (6) other projects recommended in the report re17 quired by section 2.

18 (b) COORDINATION WITH OTHER RESEARCH INITIA19 TIVES.—The Under Secretary of Homeland Security for 

20 Border and Transportation Security shall ensure that the 

21 research and development program authorized by this sec22 tion is coordinated with other research and development 

23 initiatives at the Department and the Department of 

24 Transportation. The Under Secretary of Homeland Secu25 rity for Border and Transportation Security shall carry out 
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1 any research and development project authorized by this 

2 section through a reimbursable agreement with the Sec3 retary of Transportation if the Secretary of Transpor4 tation—

5 (1) is already sponsoring a research and devel6 opment project in a similar area; or 

7 (2) has a unique facility or capability that 

8 would be useful in carrying out the project.

9 (c) ACCOUNTABILITY.—The Under Secretary of 

10 Homeland Security for Border and Transportation Secu11 rity shall carry out any research and development project 

12 authorized by this section through a reimbursable agree13 ment with the Secretary of Transportation if the Secretary 

14 of Transportation—

15 (1) is already sponsoring a research and devel16 opment project in a similar area; or 

17 (2) has a unique facility or capability that 

18 would be useful in carrying out the project.

19 (c) ACCOUNTABILITY.—The Under Secretary shall 

20 adopt necessary procedures, including audits, to ensure that 

21 grants made under this section are expended in accordance 

22 with the purposes of this Act and the priorities and other 

23 criteria developed by the Under Secretary.

24 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

25 are authorized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary 
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1 of Homeland Security for Border and Transportation Se2 curity $50,000,000 in each of fiscal years 2005 and 2006 

3 to carry out the purposes of this section. Amounts appro4 priated pursuant to this subsection shall remain available 

5 until expended.

6 SEC. 14. WELDED RAIL AND TANK CAR SAFETY IMPROVE7 MENTS. 

8 (a) TRACK STANDARDS.—Within 90 days after the 

9 date of enactment of this Act, the Federal Railroad Ad10 ministration shall—

11 (1) require each railroad track owner using con12 tinuous welded rail track to include procedures (in 

13 its program procedures filed with the Administra14 tion) that Administration pursuant to section 

15 213.119 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations) to

16 improve the identification of cracks in rail joint bars; 

17 (2) instruct Administration track inspectors to 

18 obtain copies of the most recent continuous welded 

19 rail programs of each railroad within the inspectors’ 

20 areas of responsibility and require that inspectors 

21 use those programs when conducting track inspec22 tions; and 

23 (3) establish a program to periodically review 

24 continuous welded rail joint bar inspection data from 

25 railroads and Administration track inspectors and, 
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1 whenever the Administration determines that it is 

2 necessary or appropriate, require railroads to in3 crease the frequency or improve the methods of in4 spection of joint bars in continuous welded rail. 

5 (b) TANK CAR STANDARDS.—The Federal Railroad 

6 Administration shall—

7 (1) within 1 year after the date of enactment 

8 of this Act, validate the predictive model it is devel9 oping to quantify the maximum relevant dynamic 

10 forces acting on railroad tank cars under accident 

11 conditions; and 

12 (2) within 18 months after the date of enact13 ment of this Act, initiate a rulemaking to develop 

14 and implement appropriate design standards for 

15 pressurized tank cars. 

16 (c) OLDER TANK CAR IMPACT RESISTANCE ANAL17 YSIS AND REPORT.—Within 2 years after the date of en18 actment of this Act, the Federal Railroad Administration, 

19 in coordination with the National Transportation Safety 

20 Board, shall— Administration shall—

21 (1) conduct a comprehensive analysis to deter22 mine the impact resistance of the steels in the shells 

23 of pressure tank cars constructed before 1989; and 

24 (2) transmit a report to the Senate Committee 

25 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the 
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1 House of Representatives Committee on Transpor2 tation and Infrastructure with recommendations for 

3 measures to eliminate or mitigate the risk of cata4 strophic failure.

5 SEC. 15. NORTHERN BORDER RAIL PASSENGER REPORT. 

6 Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

7 Act, the Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Bor8 der and Transportation Security, in consultation with the 

9 heads of other appropriate Federal departments and agen10 cies and the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, 

11 shall transmit a report to the Senate Committee on Com12 merce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Rep13 resentatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc14 ture that contains—

15 (1) a description of the current system for 

16 screening passengers and baggage on passenger rail 

17 service between the United States and Canada; 

18 (2) an assessment of the current program to 

19 provide preclearance of airline passengers between 

20 the United States and Canada as outlined in ‘‘The 

21 Agreement on Air Transport Preclearance between 

22 the Government of Canada and the Government of 

23 the United States of America’’, dated January 18, 

24 2001;
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1 (3) an assessment of the current program to 

2 provide preclearance of freight railroad traffic be3 tween the United States and Canada as outlined in 

4 the ‘‘Declaration of Principle for the Improved Secu5 rity of Rail Shipments by Canadian National Rail6 way and Canadian Pacific Railway from Canada to 

7 the United States’’, dated April 2, 2003; 

8 (4) information on progress by the Department 

9 of Homeland Security and other Federal agencies to10 wards finalizing a bilateral protocol with Canada 

11 that would provide for preclearance of passengers on 

12 trains operating between the United States and Can13 ada; 

14 (5) a description of legislative, regulatory, 

15 budgetary, or policy barriers within the United 

16 States Government to providing pre-screened pas17 senger lists for rail passengers travelling between the 

18 United States and Canada to the Department of 

19 Homeland Security; 

20 (6) a description of the position of the Govern21 ment of Canada and relevant Canadian agencies 

22 with respect to preclearance of such passengers; and 

23 (7) a draft of any changes in existing Federal 

24 law necessary to provide for pre-screening of such 
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1 passengers and providing pre-screened passenger 

2 lists to the Department of Homeland Security.

3 SEC. 16. REPORT REGARDING IMPACT ON SECURITY OF 

4 TRAIN TRAVEL IN COMMUNITIES WITHOUT 

5 GRADE SEPARATION. 

6 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Homeland Security 

7 shall, in consultation with State and local government offi8 cials, conduct a study on the impact of blocked highway9 railroad grade crossings on the ability of emergency re10 sponders, including ambulances and police, fire, and other 

11 emergency vehicles, to perform public safety and security 

12 duties in the event of a terrorist attack. 

13 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date of 

14 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security 

15 shall submit a report to the Committee on Transportation 

16 and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the 

17 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

18 the Senate on the findings of the study conducted under 

19 subsection (a) and recommendations for reducing the im20 pact of blocked crossings on emergency response. 

21 SEC. 17. WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION PROGRAM. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter A of chapter 201 of title 

23 49, United States Code, is amended by inserting after sec24 tion 20115 the following: 
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1 ‘‘§ 20116. Whistleblower protection for rail security 

2 matters 

3 ‘‘(a) DISCRIMINATION AGAINST EMPLOYEE.—No rail 

4 carrier engaged in interstate or foreign commerce may dis5 charge a railroad employee or otherwise discriminate 

6 against a railroad employee because the employee (or any 

7 person acting pursuant to a request of the employee)—

8 (1) provided, caused to be provided, or is about 

9 to provide or cause to be provided, to the employer or 

10 the Federal Government information relating to a 

11 perceived threat to security; or 

12 ‘‘(2) provided, caused to be provided, or is about 

13 to provide or cause to be provided, testimony before 

14 Congress or at any Federal or State proceeding re15 garding a perceived threat to security; or 

16 ‘‘(3) refused to violate or assist in the violation 

17 of any law, rule or regulation related to rail security. 

18 ‘‘(b) DISPUTE RESOLUTION.—A dispute, grievance, or 

19 claim arising under this section is subject to resolution 

20 under section 3 of the Railway Labor Act (45 U.S.C. 153). 

21 In a proceeding by the National Railroad Adjustment 

22 Board, a division or delegate of the Board, or another board 

23 of adjustment established under section 3 to resolve the dis24 pute, grievance, or claim the proceeding shall be expedited 

25 and the dispute, grievance, or claim shall be resolved not 

26 later than 180 days after it is filed. If the violation is a 
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1 form of discrimination that does not involve discharge, sus2 pension, or another action affecting pay, and no other rem3 edy is available under this subsection, the Board, division, 

4 delegate, or other board of adjustment may award the em5 ployee reasonable damages, including punitive damages, of 

6 not more than $20,000. 

7 ‘‘(c) PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS.—Except as pro8 vided in subsection (b), the procedure set forth in section 

9 42121(b)(2)(B) of this title, including the burdens of proof, 

10 applies to any complaint brought under this section. 

11 ‘‘(d) ELECTION OF REMEDIES.—An employee of a 

12 railroad carrier may not seek protection under both this 

13 section and another provision of law for the same allegedly 

14 unlawful act of the carrier. 

15 ‘‘(e) DISCLOSURE OF IDENTITY.—

16 ‘‘(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this 

17 subsection, or with the written consent of the em18 ployee, the Secretary of Transportation may not dis19 close the name of an employee of a railroad carrier 

20 who has provided information about an alleged viola21 tion of this section. 

22 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall disclose to the Attorney 

23 General the name of an employee described in para24 graph (1) of this subsection if the matter is referred 

25 to the Attorney General for enforcement.’’. 
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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analysis 

2 for chapter 201 of title 49, United States Code, is amended 

3 by inserting after the item relating to section 20115 the fol4 lowing:

‘‘20116. Whistleblower protection for rail security matters.’’.
Calendar No. 536 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2273

[Report No. 108–278] 

A BILL

To provide increased rail transportation security. 

MAY 21, 2004

Reported with amendments