II 

Calendar No. 613 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3679 

[Report No. 109–335] 

To authorize appropriations for the National Transportation Safety Board, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 18, 2006 

Mr. BURNS (for himself and Mr. ROCKEFELLER) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committtee on Commerce, 

Science, and Transportation 

SEPTEMBER 15, 2006 

Reported by Mr. STEVENS, with an amendment 

[Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To authorize appropriations for the National Transportation 

Safety Board, and for other purposes. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

3 ‘‘National Transportation Safety Board Reauthorization 

4 Act of 2006’’. 

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

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Reports. 

Sec. 3. Repeal of reimbursement for DOT inspector general services. 

Sec. 4. Contracting requirements for investigation services. 

Sec. 5. Technical corrections. 

Sec. 6. AMTRAK plan to assist families of passengers involved in rail passenger accidents. 

Sec. 7. Inspector General of the National Transportation Safety Board. 

Sec. 8. Audit procedures. 

Sec. 9. Authorization of appropriations. 

7 SEC. 2. REPORTS. 

8 (a) ANNUAL REPORTS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1117 of title 49, 

10 United States Code, is amended— 

11 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon 

12 in paragraph (2); 

13 (B) by striking ‘‘State.’’ in paragraph (3) 

14 and inserting ‘‘State;’’; and 

15 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(4) a description of the activities and oper17 ations of the National Transportation Safety Board 

18 Academy during the prior calendar year; 

19 ‘‘(5) a list of accidents during the prior cal20 endar year that the Board was required to inves21 tigate under section 1131 of this title but did not inVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:07 Sep 15, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3679.RS S3679

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1 vestigate, and an explanation of why they were not 

2 investigated; and 

3 ‘‘(6) a list of ongoing investigations that have 

4 exceeded the expected time allotted for completion 

5 by Board order and an explanation for the addi6 tional time required to complete each such investiga7 tion.’’. 

8 (2) UTILIZATION PLAN.— 

9 (A) PLAN.—Within 90 days after the date 

10 of enactment of this Act, the National Trans11 portation Safety Board shall— 

12 (i) develop a plan to achieve the self13 sufficient operation of the National Trans14 portation Safety Board Academy and uti15 lize fully the Academy’s facilities and re16 sources; 

17 (ii) submit a draft of the plan to the 

18 Comptroller General for review and com19 ment; and 

20 (iii) submit a draft of the plan to the 

21 Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, 

22 and Transportation and the House of Rep23 resentatives Committee on Transportation 

24 and Infrastructure. 


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1 (B) PLAN DEVELOPMENT CONSIDER2 ATIONS.—The Board shall— 

3 (i) give consideration in developing 

4 the plan to subleasing the facility to an5 other entity or other revenue-generating 

6 measures; and 

7 (ii) include in the plan a detailed fi8 nancial statement that covers current 

9 Academy expenses and revenues and an 

10 analysis of the projected impact of the plan 

11 on the Academy’s expenses and revenues. 

12 (C) REPORT.—Within 180 days after the 

13 date of enactment of this Act, the National 

14 Transportation Safety Board shall submit a re15 port to the Senate Committee on Commerce, 

16 Science, and Transportation and the House of 

17 Representatives Committee on Transportation 

18 and Infrastructure that includes— 

19 (i) an updated copy of the plan; 

20 (ii) any comments and recommenda21 tions made by the Comptroller General 

22 pursuant to the Government Accountability 

23 Office’s review of the draft plan; and 

24 (iii) a response to the Comptroller 

25 General’s comments and recommendations, 


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1 including a description of any modifica2 tions made to the plan in response to those 

3 comments and recommendations. 

4 (D) IMPLEMENTATION.—The plan shall be 

5 fully implemented within 2 years after the date 

6 of enactment of this Act. 

7 (b) DOT REPORT ON COMPLIANCE WITH REC8 OMMENDATIONS.—Within 90 days after the Secretary of 

9 Transportation submits a report under section 1135(d) of 

10 title 49, United States Code, the National Transportation 

11 Safety Board shall review the Secretary’s report and 

12 transmit comments on the report to the Secretary, the 

13 Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor14 tation and the House of Representatives Committee on 

15 Transportation and Infrastructure. 

16 (c) TRANSPORTATION SAFETY REAUTHORIZATION

17 RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Board shall, as appropriate, 

18 provide recommendations and comments to the Congress 

19 pertaining to pending transportation safety legislation. 

20 SEC. 3. REPEAL OF REIMBURSEMENT FOR DOT INSPECTOR 

21 GENERAL SERVICES. 

22 Section 1137 of title 49, United States Code, is 

23 amended by striking subsection (d). 


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1 SEC. 4. CONTRACTING REQUIREMENTS FOR INVESTIGA2 TION SERVICES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1113(b) of title 49, 

4 United States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in 

6 paragraph (1)(H); 

7 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (I) as sub8 paragraph (J) in paragraph (1); 

9 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (H) of 

10 paragraph (1) the following: 

11 ‘‘‘(I) for an investigation under section 1131, 

12 enter into agreements or contracts without regard to 

13 any other provision of law requiring competition, if 

14 necessary to expedite the investigation; and’’; and 

15 (4) by striking ‘‘(1)(I)’’ each place it appears in 

16 paragraph (2) and inserting ‘‘(1)(J)’’. 

17 (b) REPORT ON USAGE.—Section 1117 of title 49, 

18 United States Code, as amended by section 2, is further 

19 amended— 

20 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in 

21 paragraph (5); 

22 (2) by striking ‘‘investigation.’’ in paragraph 

23 (6) and inserting ‘‘investigation; and’’; and 

24 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

25 ‘‘(7) a description of each contract executed 

26 during the preceding calendar year under the auVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:07 Sep 15, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3679.RS S3679

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1 thority of section 1113(b)(1)(I), and the rationale 

2 for dispensing with competition requirements with 

3 respect to each such contract.’’. 

4 SEC. 5. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS. 

5 (a) FUNCTIONAL UNIT FOR MARINE INVESTIGA6 TIONS.—Section 1111(g) of title 49, United States Code, 

7 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(5) marine.’’. 

9 (b) MARINE CASUALTY INVESTIGATIONS.—Section 

10 1131(a)(1)(E) of title 49, United States Code, is amend11 ed— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘on the navigable waters or ter13 ritorial sea of the United States,’’ and inserting ‘‘on 

14 the navigable waters, all internal waters, and the 

15 territorial sea of the United States,’’; and 

16 (2) by inserting ‘‘(as defined in section 

17 2101(46))’’ after ‘‘vessel of the United States’’. 

18 (c) REFERENCE TO DEPARTMENTAL AUTHORITY.— 

19 Section 1131(c)(1) of title 49, United States Code, is 

20 amended by inserting ‘‘or the Secretary of the department 

21 in which the Coast Guard is operating’’ after ‘‘Transpor22 tation’’. 

23 (d) APPOINTMENT OF MANAGING DIRECTOR.—Sec24 tion 1111 of title 49, United States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking paragraph (1) of subsection (e) 

2 and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(1) appoint and supervise officers and employ4 ees, other than regular and fulltime employees in the 

5 immediate offices of another member, necessary to 

6 carry out this chapter;’’; 

7 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) of 

8 subsection (e) as paragraphs (3) and (4), respec9 tively, and inserting after paragraph (1) the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(2) fix the pay of officers and employees nec12 essary to carry out this chapter;’’; 

13 (3) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 

14 (k); and 

15 (4) by inserting after subsection (h) the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(i) MANAGING DIRECTOR.—The Board shall have a 

18 Managing Director who shall be— 

19 ‘‘(1) appointed by the Chairman, in consulta20 tion with the Board; and 

21 ‘‘(2) approved by the Board, pursuant to a pro22 cedure developed and adopted by the Board. 

23 ‘‘(j) BOARD MEMBER STAFF.—Each member of the 

24 Board shall appoint and supervise regular and fulltime 

25 employees in his or her immediate office as long as any 


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1 such employee has been approved for employment by the 

2 designated agency ethics official under the same guidelines 

3 that apply to all employees of the Board. The appointment 

4 authority provided by this subsection is limited to the 

5 number of fulltime equivalent positions, in addition to 1 

6 senior professional staff at the GS–15 level and 1 adminis7 trative staff, allocated each member through the Board’s 

8 annual budget and allocation process.’’. 

9 (e) BOARD APPROVAL.—Section 1113(c) of title 49, 

10 United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘The Board 

11 shall develop and approve a process for the Board’s review 

12 and comment or approval of documents submitted to the 

13 President, Director of the Office of Management and 

14 Budget, or the Congress under this subsection.’’ after 

15 ‘‘Congress.’’. 

16 (f) INVESTIGATION TRACKING SYSTEM.—Within 6 

17 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Na18 tional Transportation Safety Board shall develop and im19 plement a process or system available to all Board mem20 bers that tracks the status and activities associated with 

21 all ongoing and pending investigations undertaken by the 

22 Board, including the expected completion date, staff as23 signments, and such other information as the Board may 

24 require for the investigations. 


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1 (g) INVESTIGATIVE OFFICERS.—Section 1113 of title 

2 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 

3 thereof the following: 

4 ‘‘(h) INVESTIGATIVE OFFICERS.—The Board shall 

5 maintain at least 1 fulltime employee in each State located 

6 more than 1,000 miles from the nearest Board regional 

7 office to provide initial investigative response to accidents 

8 the Board is empowered to investigate under this chapter 

9 that occur in those States.’’. 

10 SEC. 6. AMTRAK PLAN TO ASSIST FAMILIES OF PAS11 SENGERS INVOLVED IN RAIL PASSENGER AC12 CIDENTS. 

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

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

16 ‘‘§ 24316. Plans to address needs of families of pas17 sengers involved in rail passenger acci18 dents 

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

20 months after the date of the enactment of the Rail Secu21 rity Act of 2005, Amtrak shall submit to the Chairman 

22 of the National Transportation Safety Board, the Sec23 retary of Transportation, and the Secretary of Homeland 

24 Security a plan for addressing the needs of the families 

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1 volving an Amtrak intercity train and resulting in a loss 

2 of life. 

3 ‘‘(b) CONTENTS OF PLANS.—The plan to be sub4 mitted by Amtrak under subsection (a) shall include, at 

5 a minimum, the following: 

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

7 and provide to the National Transportation Safety 

8 Board and the Secretary of Transportation, imme9 diately upon request, a list (which is based on the 

10 best available information at the time of the request) 

11 of the names of the passengers aboard the train 

12 (whether or not such names have been verified), and 

13 will periodically update the list. The plan shall in14 clude a procedure, with respect to unreserved trains 

15 and passengers not holding reservations on other 

16 trains, for Amtrak to use reasonable efforts to ascer17 tain the number and names of passengers aboard a 

18 train involved in an accident. 

19 ‘‘(2) A plan for creating and publicizing a reli20 able, toll-free telephone number within 4 hours after 

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

22 handle calls from the families of the passengers. 

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

24 passengers, before providing any public notice of the 


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1 names of the passengers, by suitably trained individ2 uals. 

3 ‘‘(4) A process for providing the notice de4 scribed in paragraph (2) to the family of a pas5 senger as soon as Amtrak has verified that the pas6 senger was aboard the train (whether or not the 

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

8 ‘‘(5) A process by which the family of each pas9 senger will be consulted about the disposition of all 

10 remains and personal effects of the passenger within 

11 Amtrak’s control; that any possession of the pas12 senger within Amtrak’s control will be returned to 

13 the family unless the possession is needed for the ac14 cident investigation or any criminal investigation; 

15 and that any unclaimed possession of a passenger 

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

17 passenger carrier for at least 18 months. 

18 ‘‘(6) A process by which the treatment of the 

19 families of nonrevenue passengers will be the same 

20 as the treatment of the families of revenue pas21 sengers. 

22 ‘‘(7) An assurance that Amtrak will provide 

23 adequate training to its employees and agents to 

24 meet the needs of survivors and family members fol25 lowing an accident. 


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1 ‘‘(c) USE OF INFORMATION.—The National Trans2 portation Safety Board, the Secretary of Transportation, 

3 and Amtrak may not release any personal information on 

4 a list obtained under subsection (b)(1) but may provide 

5 information on the list about a passenger to the family 

6 of the passenger to the extent that the Board or Amtrak 

7 considers appropriate. 

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

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

10 or State court arising out of the performance of Amtrak 

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

12 information concerning a train reservation, pursuant to a 

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

14 such liability was caused by Amtrak’s conduct. 

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

16 Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting the 

17 actions that Amtrak may take, or the obligations that Am18 trak may have, in providing assistance to the families of 

19 passengers involved in a rail passenger accident. 

20 ‘‘(f) FUNDING.—There shall be made available to the 

21 Secretary of Transportation for the use of Amtrak 

22 $500,000 for fiscal year 2007 to carry out this section. 

23 Amounts made available pursuant to this subsection shall 

24 remain available until expended.’’. 


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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter anal2 ysis for chapter 243 of title 49, United States Code, is 

3 amended by adding at the end the following: 

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

4 SEC. 7. INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE NATIONAL TRANS5 PORTATION SAFETY BOARD. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1137 of title 49, United 

7 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘§ 1137. Designation of the Department of Transpor9 tation Inspector General as Inspector 

10 General of the National Transportation 

11 Safety Board 

12 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF INSPECTOR GENERAL OF

13 THE NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD.—In 

14 order to promote economy, efficiency, and effectiveness in 

15 the administration of, and to prevent and detect fraud and 

16 abuse in the programs, operations, and activities of the 

17 National Transportation Safety Board, the Inspector Gen18 eral of the Department of Transportation shall serve as 

19 the Inspector General of the National Transportation 

20 Safety Board. 

21 ‘‘(b) AUTHORITY OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL.— 

22 ‘‘(1) The Inspector General shall exercise such 

23 authority as provided by the Inspector General Act 

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1 grams, operations and activities not directly associ2 ated with specific accident investigations or adju3 dications, including— 

4 ‘‘(A) financial management, property man5 agement, and business operations, including in6 ternal accounting and administrative control 

7 systems; 

8 ‘‘(B) information management and secu9 rity, including privacy protection of personally 

10 identifiable information; 

11 ‘‘(C) resource management; 

12 ‘‘(D) workforce development; 

13 ‘‘(E) procurement and contracting plan14 ning, practices and policies; 

15 ‘‘(F) malfeasance in office by Board em16 ployees and contractors; and 

17 ‘‘(G) allegations of false statements, fraud, 

18 and other criminal activity within the jurisdic19 tion of the Board. 

20 ‘‘(2) In consultation with the Senate Committee 

21 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation or the 

22 House Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc23 ture Committee, the Inspector General may conduct 

24 an audit, investigation, or other review on matters 


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1 not described in subparagraphs (A) through (G) of 

2 paragraph (1). 

3 ‘‘(c) DUTIES.—In carrying out this section, the In4 spector General shall— 

5 ‘‘(1) report directly to the Chairman of the 

6 Committee and ensure that the Chairman is kept 

7 fully and currently informed concerning fraud and 

8 other serious problems, abuses, and deficiencies re9 lating to the administration of programs, operations, 

10 and activities of the Board; 

11 ‘‘(2) recommend to the Chairman corrective ac12 tion concerning such problems, abuses, and defi13 ciencies; 

14 ‘‘(3) report to the Chairman on the progress 

15 made in implementing such corrective action; and 

16 ‘‘(4) promptly notify the Chairman on any 

17 problems related to access for information or car18 rying out an audit or investigation. 

19 ‘‘(d) INFORMATION PROVIDED TO BOARD MEM20 BERS.—The Inspector General and Chairman shall ensure 

21 that all members of the Board are informed of major work 

22 in progress through regular and periodic briefings and, as 

23 appropriate, on a timelier basis for matters of a significant 

24 nature. 


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1 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION FOR APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 

3 Transportation for use by the Inspector General of the De4 partment of Transportation such sums as may be nec5 essary to cover expenses associated with activities pursu6 ant to the authority exercised as the Inspector General 

7 of the Board. In the absence of an appropriation, the In8 spector General and the Board shall have a reimbursable 

9 agreement to cover such expenses.’’. 

10 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter anal11 ysis for chapter 11 of title 49, United States Code, is 

12 amended by striking the item relating to section 1137 and 

13 inserting the following: 

‘‘1137. Designation of the Department of Transportation Inspector General as 

Inspector General of the National Transportation Safety 

Board.’’. 

14 SEC. 8. AUDIT PROCEDURES. 

15 The National Transportation Safety Board, in con16 sultation with the Inspector General, shall continue to de17 velop and implement comprehensive internal audit controls 

18 for its operations. The audit controls shall, at a minimum, 

19 address Board asset management systems, including sys20 tems for accounting management, debt collection, travel, 

21 and property and inventory management and control. 

22 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1118(a) of title 49, 

24 United States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after ‘‘2005,’’; and 

2 (2) by striking ‘‘2006.’’ and inserting ‘‘2006, 

3 $79,594,000 for fiscal year 2007, and $84,382,432 

4 for fiscal year 2008.’’. 

5 (b) EMERGENCY FUND.—Section 1118(b) of title 49, 

6 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(b) EMERGENCY FUND.—There are authorized to 

8 be appropriated for necessary expenses of the Board, not 

9 otherwise provided for, for accident investigations 

10 amounts sufficient to maintain the emergency fund at a 

11 level not to exceed $4,000,000, such sums to remain avail12 able until expended.’’. 

13 (c) FEES, REFUNDS, AND REIMBURSEMENTS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1118(c) of title 49, 

15 United States Code, is amended— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘ACADEMY.—’’ and insert17 ing ‘‘FEES, REFUNDS, AND REIMBURSE18 MENTS.—’’; 

19 (B) by striking paragraph (1) and redesig20 nating paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) as para21 graphs (1), (2), and (3), respectively, and reset22 ting each such paragraph 2 ems from the left 

23 margin; 

24 (C) by striking paragraph (1), as redesig25 nated, and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Board may impose 

2 and collect such fees, refunds, and reimbursements 

3 as it determines to be appropriate for services pro4 vided by or through the Board.’’; 

5 (D) by striking ‘‘fee’’ the first place it ap6 pears in paragraph (2), as redesignated, and in7 serting ‘‘fee, refund, or reimbursement’’; and 

8 (E) by striking ‘‘imposed;’’ in subpara9 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2), as redes10 ignated, and inserting ‘‘imposed or with which 

11 the refund or reimbursement is associated;’’. 

12 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

13 by paragraph (1) shall take effect on October 1, 

14 2005. 

15 (d) REPORT.—Section 1118(d) of title 49, United 

16 States Code, is repealed. 

17 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

18 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Na19 tional Transportation Safety Board Reauthorization Act of 

20 2006’’. 

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

22 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Reports. 

Sec. 3. Contracting requirements for investigation services. 

Sec. 4. Technical corrections. 

Sec. 5. AMTRAK plan to assist families of passengers involved in rail passenger 

accidents. 

Sec. 6. Inspector General of the National Transportation Safety Board. 


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Sec. 7. Audit procedures. 

Sec. 8. DOT Inspector General to investigate Central Artery project contractors 

and oversight agencies. 

Sec. 9. Implementation of NTSB’s ‘‘Most Wanted Transportation Safety Improvements, 2006’’. 

Sec. 10. Authorization of appropriations. 

1 SEC. 2. REPORTS. 

2 (a) ANNUAL REPORTS.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1117 of title 49, 

4 United States Code, is amended— 

5 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in 

6 paragraph (2); 

7 (B) by striking ‘‘State.’’ in paragraph (3) 

8 and inserting ‘‘State;’’; and 

9 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(4) a description of the activities and oper11 ations of the National Transportation Safety Board 

12 Academy during the prior calendar year; 

13 ‘‘(5) a list of accidents during the prior calendar 

14 year that the Board was required to investigate under 

15 section 1131 of this title but did not investigate, and 

16 an explanation of why they were not investigated; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(6) a list of ongoing investigations that have ex19 ceeded the expected time allotted for completion by 

20 Board order and an explanation for the additional 

21 time required to complete each such investigation.’’. 

22 (2) UTILIZATION PLAN.— 


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1 (A) PLAN.—Within 90 days after the date 

2 of enactment of this Act, the National Transpor3 tation Safety Board shall— 

4 (i) develop a plan to achieve the self5 sufficient operation of the National Trans6 portation Safety Board Academy and uti7 lize fully the Academy’s facilities and re8 sources; 

9 (ii) submit a draft of the plan to the 

10 Comptroller General for review and com11 ment; and 

12 (iii) submit a draft of the plan to the 

13 Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, 

14 and Transportation and the House of Rep15 resentatives Committee on Transportation 

16 and Infrastructure. 

17 (B) PLAN DEVELOPMENT CONSIDER18 ATIONS.—The Board shall— 

19 (i) give consideration in developing the 

20 plan to subleasing the facility to another 

21 entity or other revenue-generating measures; 

22 and 

23 (ii) include in the plan a detailed fi24 nancial statement that covers current Acad25 emy expenses and revenues and an analysis 


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1 of the projected impact of the plan on the 

2 Academy’s expenses and revenues. 

3 (C) REPORT.—Within 180 days after the 

4 date of enactment of this Act, the National 

5 Transportation Safety Board shall submit a re6 port to the Senate Committee on Commerce, 

7 Science, and Transportation and the House of 

8 Representatives Committee on Transportation 

9 and Infrastructure that includes— 

10 (i) an updated copy of the plan; 

11 (ii) any comments and recommenda12 tions made by the Comptroller General pur13 suant to the Government Accountability Of14 fice’s review of the draft plan; and 

15 (iii) a response to the Comptroller 

16 General’s comments and recommendations, 

17 including a description of any modifica18 tions made to the plan in response to those 

19 comments and recommendations. 

20 (D) IMPLEMENTATION.—The plan shall be 

21 fully implemented within 2 years after the date 

22 of enactment of this Act. 

23 (b) DOT REPORT ON COMPLIANCE WITH REC24 OMMENDATIONS.—Within 90 days after the Secretary of 

25 Transportation submits a report under section 1135(d) of 


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1 title 49, United States Code, the National Transportation 

2 Safety Board shall review the Secretary’s report and trans3 mit comments on the report to the Secretary, the Senate 

4 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and 

5 the House of Representatives Committee on Transportation 

6 and Infrastructure. 

7 (c) TRANSPORTATION SAFETY REAUTHORIZATION

8 RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Board shall, as appropriate, 

9 provide recommendations and comments to the Congress 

10 pertaining to pending transportation safety legislation. 

11 SEC. 3. CONTRACTING REQUIREMENTS FOR INVESTIGA12 TION SERVICES. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1113(b) of title 49, United 

14 States Code, is amended— 

15 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in 

16 paragraph (1)(H); 

17 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (I) as sub18 paragraph (J) in paragraph (1); 

19 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (H) of para20 graph (1) the following: 

21 ‘‘(I) for an investigation under section 1131, enter into 

22 agreements or contracts without regard to any other provi23 sion of law requiring competition, if necessary to expedite 

24 the investigation; and’’; and 


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1 (4) by striking ‘‘(1)(I)’’ each place it appears in 

2 paragraph (2) and inserting ‘‘(1)(J)’’. 

3 (b) REPORT ON USAGE.—Section 1117 of title 49, 

4 United States Code, as amended by section 2, is further 

5 amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in 

7 paragraph (5); 

8 (2) by striking ‘‘investigation.’’ in paragraph (6) 

9 and inserting ‘‘investigation; and’’; and 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(7) a description of each contract executed dur12 ing the preceding calendar year under the authority 

13 of section 1113(b)(1)(I), and the rationale for dis14 pensing with competition requirements with respect to 

15 each such contract.’’. 

16 SEC. 4. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS. 

17 (a) FUNCTIONAL UNIT FOR MARINE INVESTIGA18 TIONS.—Section 1111(g) of title 49, United States Code, is 

19 amended by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(5) marine.’’. 

21 (b) MARINE CASUALTY INVESTIGATIONS.—Section 

22 1131(a)(1)(E) of title 49, United States Code, is amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘on the navigable waters or terri24 torial sea of the United States,’’ and inserting ‘‘on the 


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1 navigable waters, all internal waters, and the terri2 torial sea of the United States,’’; and 

3 (2) by inserting ‘‘(as defined in section 

4 2101(46))’’ after ‘‘vessel of the United States’’. 

5 (c) REFERENCE TO DEPARTMENTAL AUTHORITY.— 

6 Section 1131(c)(1) of title 49, United States Code, is 

7 amended by inserting ‘‘or the Secretary of the department 

8 in which the Coast Guard is operating’’ after ‘‘Transpor9 tation’’. 

10 (d) APPOINTMENT OF MANAGING DIRECTOR.—Section 

11 1111 of title 49, United States Code, is amended— 

12 (1) by striking paragraph (1) of subsection (e) 

13 and inserting the following: 

14 ‘‘(1) appoint and supervise officers and employ15 ees, other than regular and fulltime employees in the 

16 immediate offices of another member, necessary to 

17 carry out this chapter;’’; 

18 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) of 

19 subsection (e) as paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively, 

20 and inserting after paragraph (1) the following: 

21 ‘‘(2) fix the pay of officers and employees nec22 essary to carry out this chapter;’’; 

23 (3) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 

24 (k); and 


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1 (4) by inserting after subsection (h) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(i) MANAGING DIRECTOR.—The Board shall have a 

4 Managing Director who shall be— 

5 ‘‘(1) appointed by the Chairman, in consultation 

6 with the Board; and 

7 ‘‘(2) approved by the Board, pursuant to a pro8 cedure developed and adopted by the Board. 

9 ‘‘(j) BOARD MEMBER STAFF.—Each member of the 

10 Board shall appoint and supervise regular and fulltime em11 ployees in his or her immediate office as long as any such 

12 employee has been approved for employment by the des13 ignated agency ethics official under the same guidelines that 

14 apply to all employees of the Board. The appointment au15 thority provided by this subsection is limited to the number 

16 of fulltime equivalent positions, in addition to 1 senior pro17 fessional staff at the GS-15 level and 1 administrative staff, 

18 allocated each member through the Board’s annual budget 

19 and allocation process.’’. 

20 (e) BOARD APPROVAL.—Section 1113(c) of title 49, 

21 United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘The Board 

22 shall develop and approve a process for the Board’s review 

23 and comment or approval of documents submitted to the 

24 President, Director of the Office of Management and Budg25 et, or the Congress under this subsection.’’ after ‘‘Congress.’’. 


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1 (f) INVESTIGATION TRACKING SYSTEM.—Within 6 

2 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the National 

3 Transportation Safety Board shall develop and implement 

4 a process or system available to all Board members that 

5 tracks the status and activities associated with all ongoing 

6 and pending investigations undertaken by the Board, in7 cluding the expected completion date, staff assignments, and 

8 such other information as the Board may require for the 

9 investigations. 

10 (g) INVESTIGATIVE OFFICERS.—Section 1113 of title 

11 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 

12 thereof the following: 

13 ‘‘(h) INVESTIGATIVE OFFICERS.—The Board shall 

14 maintain at least 1 fulltime employee in each State located 

15 more than 1,000 miles from the nearest Board regional of16 fice to provide initial investigative response to accidents the 

17 Board is empowered to investigate under this chapter that 

18 occur in those States.’’. 

19 SEC. 5. AMTRAK PLAN TO ASSIST FAMILIES OF PAS20 SENGERS INVOLVED IN RAIL PASSENGER AC21 CIDENTS. 

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

23 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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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 months 

5 after the date of the enactment of the National Transpor6 tation Safety Board Reauthorization Act of 2006, Amtrak 

7 shall submit to the Chairman of the National Transpor8 tation Safety Board, the Secretary of Transportation, and 

9 the Secretary of Homeland Security a plan for addressing 

10 the needs of the families of passengers involved in any rail 

11 passenger accident involving an Amtrak intercity train and 

12 resulting in a loss of life. 

13 ‘‘(b) CONTENTS OF PLANS.—The plan to be submitted 

14 by Amtrak under subsection (a) shall include, at a min15 imum, the following: 

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

17 and provide to the National Transportation Safety 

18 Board and the Secretary of Transportation, imme19 diately upon request, a list (which is based on the best 

20 available information at the time of the request) of 

21 the names of the passengers aboard the train (whether 

22 or not such names have been verified), and will peri23 odically update the list. The plan shall include a pro24 cedure, with respect to unreserved trains and pas25 sengers not holding reservations on other trains, for 

26 Amtrak to use reasonable efforts to ascertain the numVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:07 Sep 15, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3679.RS S3679

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1 ber and names of passengers aboard a train involved 

2 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 described 

12 in paragraph (2) to the family of a passenger as soon 

13 as Amtrak has verified that the passenger was aboard 

14 the train (whether or not the names of all of the pas15 sengers 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 passenger 

20 within Amtrak’s control will be returned to the family 

21 unless the possession is needed for the accident inves22 tigation or any criminal investigation; and that any 

23 unclaimed possession of a passenger within Amtrak’s 

24 control will be retained by the rail passenger carrier 

25 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 as 

3 the treatment of the families of revenue passengers. 

4 ‘‘(7) An assurance that Amtrak will provide ade5 quate training to its employees and agents to meet the 

6 needs of survivors and family members following an 

7 accident. 

8 ‘‘(c) USE OF INFORMATION.—The National Transpor9 tation Safety Board, the Secretary of Transportation, and 

10 Amtrak may not release any personal information on a list 

11 obtained under subsection (b)(1) but may provide informa12 tion on the list about a passenger to the family of the pas13 senger to the extent that the Board or Amtrak considers ap14 propriate. 

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

16 liable for damages in any action brought in a Federal or 

17 State court arising out of the performance of Amtrak in 

18 preparing or providing a passenger list, or in providing 

19 information concerning a train reservation, pursuant to a 

20 plan submitted by Amtrak under subsection (b), unless such 

21 liability was caused by Amtrak’s conduct. 

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

23 Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting the 

24 actions that Amtrak may take, or the obligations that AmVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:07 Sep 15, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3679.RS S3679

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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) FUNDING.—There shall be made available to the 

4 Secretary of Transportation for the use of Amtrak $500,000 

5 for fiscal year 2007 to carry out this section. Amounts made 

6 available pursuant to this subsection shall remain available 

7 until expended.’’. 

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analysis 

9 for chapter 243 of title 49, United States Code, is amended 

10 by adding at the end the following: 

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

11 SEC. 6. INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE NATIONAL TRANS12 PORTATION SAFETY BOARD. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1137 of title 49, United 

14 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘§ 1137. Designation of the Department of Transpor16 tation Inspector General as Inspector 

17 General of the National Transportation 

18 Safety Board 

19 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF INSPECTOR GENERAL OF

20 THE NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD.—In 

21 order to promote economy, efficiency, and effectiveness in 

22 the administration of, and to prevent and detect fraud and 

23 abuse in the programs, operations, and activities of the Na24 tional Transportation Safety Board, the Inspector General 


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1 of the Department of Transportation shall serve as the In2 spector General of the National Transportation Safety 

3 Board. 

4 ‘‘(b) AUTHORITY OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL.— 

5 ‘‘(1) The Inspector General shall exercise such 

6 authority as provided by the Inspector General Act of 

7 1978, and other applicable laws, over Board pro8 grams, operations and activities not directly associ9 ated with specific accident investigations or adjudica10 tions, including— 

11 ‘‘(A) financial management, property man12 agement, and business operations, including in13 ternal accounting and administrative control 

14 systems; 

15 ‘‘(B) information management and secu16 rity, including privacy protection of personally 

17 identifiable information; 

18 ‘‘(C) resource management; 

19 ‘‘(D) workforce development; 

20 ‘‘(E) procurement and contracting plan21 ning, practices and policies; 

22 ‘‘(F) malfeasance in office by Board em23 ployees and contractors; and 


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1 ‘‘(G) allegations of false statements, fraud, 

2 and other criminal activity within the jurisdic3 tion of the Board. 

4 ‘‘(2) In consultation with the Senate Committee 

5 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation or the 

6 House Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc7 ture Committee, the Inspector General may conduct 

8 an audit, investigation, or other review on matters 

9 not described in subparagraphs (A) through (G) of 

10 paragraph (1). 

11 ‘‘(c) DUTIES.—In carrying out this section, the Inspec12 tor General shall— 

13 ‘‘(1) report directly to the Chairman of the Com14 mittee and ensure that the Chairman is kept fully 

15 and currently informed concerning fraud and other 

16 serious problems, abuses, and deficiencies relating to 

17 the administration of programs, operations, and ac18 tivities of the Board; 

19 ‘‘(2) recommend to the Chairman corrective ac20 tion concerning such problems, abuses, and defi21 ciencies; 

22 ‘‘(3) report to the Chairman on the progress 

23 made in implementing such corrective action; and 


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1 ‘‘(4) promptly notify the Chairman on any prob2 lems related to access for information or carrying out 

3 an audit or investigation. 

4 ‘‘(d) INFORMATION PROVIDED TO BOARD MEMBERS.— 

5 The Inspector General and Chairman shall ensure that all 

6 members of the Board are informed of major work in 

7 progress through regular and periodic briefings and, as ap8 propriate, on a timelier basis for matters of a significant 

9 nature. 

10 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION FOR APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

11 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Trans12 portation for use by the Inspector General of the Depart13 ment of Transportation such sums as may be necessary to 

14 cover expenses associated with activities pursuant to the au15 thority exercised as the Inspector General of the Board. In 

16 the absence of an appropriation, the Inspector General and 

17 the Board shall have a reimbursable agreement to cover such 

18 expenses.’’. 

19 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analysis 

20 for chapter 11 of title 49, United States Code, is amended 

21 by striking the item relating to section 1137 and inserting 

22 the following: 

‘‘1137. Designation of the Department of Transportation Inspector General as Inspector General of the National Transportation Safety Board’’. 


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1 SEC. 7. AUDIT PROCEDURES. 

2 The National Transportation Safety Board, in con3 sultation with the Inspector General, shall continue to de4 velop and implement comprehensive internal audit controls 

5 for its operations. The audit controls shall, at a minimum, 

6 address Board asset management systems, including sys7 tems for accounting management, debt collection, travel, 

8 and property and inventory management and control. 

9 SEC. 8. DOT INSPECTOR GENERAL TO INVESTIGATE CEN10 TRAL ARTERY PROJECT CONTRACTORS AND 

11 OVERSIGHT AGENCIES. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General of the De13 partment of Transportation shall investigate the contractors 

14 involved in the development and construction of the Central 

15 Artery tunnel project in Boston, Massachusetts, and the 

16 public agencies that oversaw their work, including the Mas17 sachusetts Turnpike Authority and the Federal Highway 

18 Administration. 

19 (b) PRIORITIES AND PROCEDURE.—In carrying out 

20 the mandate provided by subsection (a), the Inspector Gen21 eral shall— 

22 (1) oversee any investigations related to the col23 lapse of ceiling plates in the tunnel on July 10, 2006; 

24 (2) oversee a comprehensive review of the safety 

25 of the Central Artery project; and 


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1 (3) audit and investigate parties involved in the 

2 construction, maintenance, and oversight of the Cen3 tral Artery project, including the Massachusetts Turn4 pike Authority and the Federal Highway Administra5 tion, in order to determine whether the collapse of 

6 ceiling plates in the tunnel on July 10, 2006, resulted 

7 from whether poor planning, development, construc8 tion, or other factors. 

9 SEC. 9. IMPLEMENTATION OF NTSB’S ‘‘MOST WANTED 

10 TRANSPORTATION SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS, 

11 2006’’. 

12 Within 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 

13 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration 

14 shall submit a report to the Senate Committee on Com15 merce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Rep16 resentatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc17 ture explaining why the Federal Aviation Administration 

18 has not implemented the aviation recommendations in the 

19 NTSB’s ‘‘Most Wanted Transportation Safety Improve20 ments, 2006’’. 

21 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1118(a) of title 49, United 

23 States Code, is amended— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after ‘‘2005,’’; and 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘2006.’’ and inserting ‘‘2006, 

2 $79,594,000 for fiscal year 2007, and $84,382,432 for 

3 fiscal year 2008.’’. 

4 (b) EMERGENCY FUND.—Section 1118(b) of title 49, 

5 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(b) EMERGENCY FUND.—There are authorized to be 

7 appropriated for necessary expenses of the Board, not other8 wise provided for, for accident investigations amounts suffi9 cient to maintain the emergency fund at a level not to ex10 ceed $4,000,000, such sums to remain available until ex11 pended.’’. 

12 (c) FEES, REFUNDS, AND REIMBURSEMENTS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1118(c) of title 49, 

14 United States Code, is amended— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘ACADEMY.—’’ and insert16 ing ‘‘FEES, REFUNDS, AND REIMBURSE17 MENTS.—’’; 

18 (B) by striking paragraph (1) and redesig19 nating paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) as para20 graphs (1), (2), and (3), respectively, and reset21 ting each such paragraph 2 ems from the left 

22 margin; 

23 (C) by striking paragraph (1), as redesig24 nated, and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Board may impose and 

2 collect such fees, refunds, and reimbursements as it 

3 determines to be appropriate for services provided by 

4 or through the Board.’’; 

5 (D) by striking ‘‘fee’’ the first place it ap6 pears in paragraph (2), as redesignated, and in7 serting ‘‘fee, refund, or reimbursement’’; and 

8 (E) by striking ‘‘imposed;’’ in subpara9 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2), as redesig10 nated, and inserting ‘‘imposed or with which the 

11 refund or reimbursement is associated;’’. 

12 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

13 by paragraph (1) shall take effect on October 1, 2005. 

14 (d) REPORT.—Section 1118(d) of title 49, United 

15 States Code, is repealed. 


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Calendar No. 613 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3679 

[Report No. 109

–335] 

A BILL 

To authorize appropriations for the National 

poses. Transportation Safety Board, and for other purSEPTEMBER 15, 2006 

Reported with an amendment 


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