IB 
Union Calendar No. 208 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2095 
[Report No. 110–336] 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to prevent railroad fatalities, injuries, 
and hazardous materials releases, to authorize the Federal Railroad 
Safety Administration, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 1, 2007 
Mr. OBERSTAR (for himself and Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida) introduced 
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation 
and Infrastructure 
SEPTEMBER 19, 2007 
Additional sponsors: Mr. YOUNG of Alaska, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. NADLER, 
Mr. CARNEY, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. DOYLE, Mr. 
FILNER, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. ANDREWS, Mr. HIGGINS, Mr. 
CAPUANO, Mr. RAHALL, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. 
DELAHUNT, Mr. BISHOP of New York, Mr. LIPINSKI, Ms. LINDA T. 
SA´NCHEZ of California, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. 
SIRES, Mr. GONZALEZ, Mr. PATRICK MURPHY of Pennsylvania, Mr. 
REYES, Mr. SPACE, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. BOSWELL, Mr. HOLDEN, Mr. 
MORAN of Virginia, Mr. ARCURI, Mr. LOBIONDO, Mr. LOEBSACK, Mr. 
LATOURETTE, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. ROTHMAN, Mr. MILLER of North Caro-
lina, Ms. HERSETH
SANDLIN, Mr. BAIRD, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. 
PASCRELL, Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Mr. 
HINOJOSA, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. HOLT, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. 
MOLLOHAN, Mr. BRALEY of Iowa, Ms. HOOLEY, Mr. WU, Mr. OBEY, Mr. 
KUCINICH, Mr. WEXLER, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Mr. GEORGE MIL-
LER of California, Mr. YARMUTH, Mr. CARDOZA, Mr. MICA, Mr. SHU-
STER, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. 
STARK, Mr. COSTELLO, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. COSTA, Mr. LEWIS of 
Georgia, Mrs. JONES of Ohio, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. PETRI, Mr. HARE, Mr. 
PLATTS, Mr. FARR, Mr. ELLISON, Ms. WOOLSEY, Mr. COHEN, Ms. KIL-
PATRICK, Mr. SERRANO, Ms. MCCOLLUM of Minnesota, Mr. BRADY of 
Pennsylvania, Mr. AL GREEN of Texas, Mr. WALZ of Minnesota, Ms. 
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CARSON, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. WATT, Ms. LO-
RETTA SANCHEZ of California, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. BOREN, and Mr. 
SCOTT of Virginia 
SEPTEMBER 19, 2007 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on May 1, 2007] 
A BILL 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to prevent railroad 
fatalities, injuries, and hazardous materials releases, to 
authorize the Federal Railroad Safety Administration, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2007’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Definitions. 
TITLE I—FEDERAL RAILROAD SAFETY ADMINISTRATION 
Sec. 101. Establishment of Federal Railroad Safety Administration. 
Sec. 102. Railroad safety strategy. 
Sec. 103. Reports. 
Sec. 104. Rulemaking process. 
Sec. 105. Authorization of appropriations. 
TITLE II—EMPLOYEE FATIGUE 
Sec. 201. Hours of service reform. 
Sec. 202. Employee sleeping quarters. 
Sec. 203. Fatigue management plans. 
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Sec. 204. Regulatory authority. 
Sec. 205. Conforming amendment. 
TITLE III—PROTECTION OF EMPLOYEES AND WITNESSES 
Sec. 301. Employee protections. 
TITLE IV—GRADE CROSSINGS 
Sec. 401. Toll-free number to report grade crossing problems. 
Sec. 402. Roadway user sight distance at highway-rail grade crossings. 
Sec. 403. Grade crossing signal violations. 
Sec. 404. National crossing inventory. 
Sec. 405. Accident and incident reporting. 
Sec. 406. Authority to buy promotional items to improve railroad crossing safety 
and prevent railroad trespass. 
Sec. 407. Operation Lifesaver. 
Sec. 408. State action plan. 
Sec. 409. Fostering introduction of new technology to improve safety at highway- 
rail grade crossings. 
TITLE V—ENFORCEMENT 
Sec. 501. Enforcement. 
Sec. 502. Civil penalties. 
Sec. 503. Criminal penalties. 
Sec. 504. Expansion of emergency order authority. 
Sec. 505. Enforcement transparency. 
Sec. 506. Interfering with or hampering safety investigations. 
Sec. 507. Railroad radio monitoring authority. 
Sec. 508. Inspector staffing. 
TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 
Sec. 601. Positive train control systems. 
Sec. 602. Warning in nonsignaled territory. 
Sec. 603. Track safety. 
Sec. 604. Certification of conductors. 
Sec. 605. Minimum training standards. 
Sec. 606. Prompt medical attention. 
Sec. 607. Emergency escape breathing apparatus. 
Sec. 608. Locomotive cab environment. 
Sec. 609. Tunnel information. 
Sec. 610. Railroad police. 
Sec. 611. Museum locomotive study. 
Sec. 612. Certification of carmen. 
Sec. 613. Train control systems deployment grants. 
Sec. 614. Infrastructure safety investment reports. 
Sec. 615. Emergency grade crossing safety improvements. 
Sec. 616. Clarifications regarding State law causes of action. 
TITLE VII—RAIL PASSENGER DISASTER FAMILY ASSISTANCE 
Sec. 701. Short title. 
Sec. 702. Assistance by National Transportation Safety Board to families of pas-
sengers involved in rail passenger accidents. 
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Sec. 703. Rail passenger carrier plans to address needs of families of passengers 
involved in rail passenger accidents. 
Sec. 704. Establishment of task force. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
For purposes of this Act, the terms ‘‘railroad’’ and 
‘‘railroad carrier’’ have the meaning given those terms in 
section 20102 of title 49, United States Code. 
TITLE I—FEDERAL RAILROAD 
SAFETY ADMINISTRATION 
SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF FEDERAL RAILROAD SAFETY 
ADMINISTRATION. 
(a) AMENDMENT.—Section 103 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘§ 103. Federal Railroad Safety Administration 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Railroad Safety Ad-
ministration (in this section referred to as the ‘Administra-
tion’) shall be an administration in the Department of 
Transportation. To carry out all railroad safety laws of the 
United States, the Administration shall be divided on a geo-
graphical basis into at least 8 safety offices. The Secretary 
of Transportation shall be responsible for enforcing those 
laws and for ensuring that those laws are uniformly admin-
istered and enforced among the safety offices. 
‘‘(b) SAFETY AS HIGHEST PRIORITY.—In carrying out 
its duties, the Administration shall consider the assignment 
and maintenance of safety as the highest priority, recog-
nizing the clear intent, encouragement, and dedication of 
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Congress to the furtherance of the highest degree of safety 
in railroad transportation. 
‘‘(c) ADMINISTRATOR.—The head of the Administra-
tion shall be the Administrator who shall be appointed by 
the President, by and with the advice and consent of the 
Senate, and shall be an individual with professional experi-
ence in railroad safety, hazardous materials safety, or other 
transportation safety. The Administrator shall report di-
rectly to the Secretary of Transportation. 
‘‘(d) DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR.—The Administration 
shall have a Deputy Administrator who shall be appointed 
by the Secretary. The Deputy Administrator shall carry out 
duties and powers prescribed by the Administrator. 
‘‘(e) CHIEF SAFETY OFFICER.—The Administration 
shall have an Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety 
appointed in the competitive service by the Secretary. The 
Associate Administrator shall be the Chief Safety Officer 
of the Administration. The Associate Administrator shall 
carry out the duties and powers prescribed by the Adminis-
trator. 
‘‘(f) DUTIES AND POWERS OF THE ADMINISTRATOR.— 
The Administrator shall carry out— 
‘‘(1) duties and powers related to railroad safety 
vested in the Secretary by section 20134(c) and chap-
ters 203 through 211 of this title, and by chapter 213 
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of this title for carrying out chapters 203 through 
211; and 
‘‘(2) other duties and powers prescribed by the 
Secretary. 
‘‘(g) LIMITATION.—A duty or power specified in sub-
section (f)(1) may be transferred to another part of the De-
partment of Transportation or another Federal Government 
entity only when specifically provided by law. A decision 
of the Administrator in carrying out the duties or powers 
of the Administration and involving notice and hearing re-
quired by law is administratively final. 
‘‘(h) AUTHORITIES.—Subject to the provisions of sub-
title I of title 40 and title III of the Federal Property and 
Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 251 et seq.), 
the Secretary of Transportation may make, enter into, and 
perform such contracts, grants, leases, cooperative agree-
ments, and other similar transactions with Federal or other 
public agencies (including State and local governments) 
and private organizations and persons, and make such pay-
ments, by way of advance or reimbursement, as the Sec-
retary may determine to be necessary or appropriate to 
carry out functions at the Administration. The authority 
of the Secretary granted by this subsection shall be carried 
out by the Administrator. Notwithstanding any other provi-
sion of this chapter, no authority to enter into contracts 
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or to make payments under this subsection shall be effective, 
except as provided for in appropriations Acts.’’. 
(b) REFERENCES AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 
(1) All references in Federal law to the Federal Railroad 
Administration shall be deemed to be references to the Fed-
eral Railroad Safety Administration. 
(2) The item relating to section 103 in the table of 
sections of chapter 1 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘103. Federal Railroad Safety Administration.’’. 
SEC. 102. RAILROAD SAFETY STRATEGY. 
(a) SAFETY GOALS.—In conjunction with existing fed-
erally required strategic planning efforts, the Secretary of 
Transportation shall develop a long-term strategy for im-
proving railroad safety. The strategy shall include an an-
nual plan and schedule for achieving, at a minimum, the 
following goals: 
(1) Reducing the number and rates of accidents, 
injuries, and fatalities involving railroads. 
(2) Improving the consistency and effectiveness of 
enforcement and compliance programs. 
(3) Identifying and targeting enforcement at, 
and safety improvements to, high-risk highway-rail 
grade crossings. 
(4) Improving research efforts to enhance and 
promote railroad safety and performance. 
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(b) RESOURCE NEEDS.—The strategy and annual 
plans shall include estimates of the funds and staff resources 
needed to accomplish each activity. Such estimates shall 
also include the staff skills and training needed for timely 
and effective accomplishment of each goal. 
(c) SUBMISSION WITH THE PRESIDENT’S BUDGET.— 
The Secretary of Transportation shall submit to the Com-
mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 
of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate the strategy and 
annual plan at the same time as the President’s budget sub-
mission. 
(d) ACHIEVEMENT OF GOALS.— 
(1) PROGRESS ASSESSMENT.—No less frequently 
than semiannually, the Secretary of Transportation 
and the Administrator of the Federal Railroad Safety 
Administration shall assess the progress of the Ad-
ministration toward achieving the strategic goals de-
scribed in subsection (a). The Secretary and the Ad-
ministrator shall convey their assessment to the em-
ployees of the Federal Railroad Safety Administra-
tion and shall identify any deficiencies that should be 
remediated before the next progress assessment. 
(2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary shall 
transmit a report annually to the Committee on 
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Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate on the per-
formance of the Federal Railroad Safety Administra-
tion relative to the goals of the railroad safety strat-
egy and annual plans under subsection (a). 
SEC. 103. REPORTS. 
(a) REPORTS
BY
THE INSPECTOR GENERAL.—Not 
later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the Inspector General of the Department of Transportation 
shall submit to the Secretary of Transportation and the Ad-
ministrator of the Federal Railroad Safety Administration 
a report containing the following: 
(1) A list of each statutory mandate regarding 
railroad safety that has not been implemented. 
(2) A list of each open safety recommendation 
made by the National Transportation Safety Board 
or the Inspector General regarding railroad safety. 
(b) REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY.— 
(1) STATUTORY MANDATES.—Not later than 90 
days after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 
180 days thereafter until each of the mandates re-
ferred to in subsection (a)(1) has been implemented, 
the Secretary of Transportation shall transmit to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of 
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the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 
a report on the specific actions taken to implement 
such mandates. 
(2) NTSB 
AND
INSPECTOR
GENERAL
REC-
OMMENDATIONS.—Not later than January 1st of each 
year, the Secretary of Transportation shall transmit 
to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc-
ture of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 
the Senate a report containing each recommendation 
referred to in subsection (a)(2), a copy of the Depart-
ment of Transportation response to each such rec-
ommendation, and a progress report on implementing 
each such recommendation. 
SEC. 104. RULEMAKING PROCESS. 
(a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter I of chapter 201 of title 
49, United States Code, is amended by inserting after sec-
tion 20115 the following new section: 
‘‘§ 20116. Rulemaking process 
‘‘No rule or order issued by the Secretary under this 
part shall be effective if it incorporates by reference a code, 
rule, standard, requirement, or practice issued by an asso-
ciation or other entity that is not an agency of the Federal 
Government, unless that reference is to a particular code, 
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