(b) RAIL
SECURITY
RESEARCH
AND
DEVELOP-
MENT.— 
(1) ESTABLISHMENT OF RESEARCH AND DE-
VELOPMENT
PROGRAM.—The Under Secretary of 
Homeland Security for Border and Transportation 
Security, in conjunction with the Secretary of Trans-
portation, shall carry out a research and develop-
ment program for the purpose of improving freight 
and intercity passenger rail security, including re-
search and development projects to— 
(A) reduce the vulnerability of passenger 
trains, stations, and equipment to explosives; 
(B) test new emergency response tech-
niques and technologies; 
(C) develop improved freight technologies, 
including— 
(i) technologies for sealing rail cars; 
(ii) automatic inspection of rail cars; 
(iii) communication-based train con-
trols; and 
(iv) emergency response training; 
(D) test wayside detectors that can detect 
tampering with railroad equipment; and
(E) support enhanced security for the 
transportation of hazardous materials by rail, 
including— 
(i) technologies to detect a breach in 
a tank car and transmit information about 
the integrity of tank cars to the train crew; 
(ii) research to improve tank car in-
tegrity, with a focus on tank cars that 
carry toxic-inhalation chemicals; and 
(iii) techniques to transfer hazardous 
materials from rail cars that are damaged 
or otherwise represent an unreasonable 
risk to human life or public safety. 
(2) COORDINATION
WITH
OTHER
RESEARCH 
INITIATIVES.—The Under Secretary of Homeland 
Security for Border and Transportation Security 
shall ensure that the research and development pro-
gram authorized by this subsection is coordinated 
with other research and development initiatives at 
the Department of Homeland Security and the De-
partment of Transportation. 
(3) ACCOUNTABILITY.—The Under Secretary of 
Homeland Security for Border and Transportation 
Security shall carry out any research and develop-
ment project authorized by this subsection through
a reimbursable agreement with the Secretary of 
Transportation if the Secretary of Transportation— 
(A) is already sponsoring a research and 
development project in a similar area; or 
(B) has a unique facility or capability that 
would be useful in carrying out the project. 
(4) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
There are authorized to be appropriated to the 
Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Border 
and Transportation Security $50,000,000 for each 
of fiscal years 2006 and 2007 to carry out the pur-
poses of this subsection. Amounts appropriated pur-
suant to this paragraph shall remain available until 
expended. 
SEC. 12. AMTRAK PLAN TO ASSIST FAMILIES OF PAS-
SENGERS INVOLVED IN RAIL PASSENGER AC-
CIDENTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 243 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘§ 24316. Plans to address needs of families of pas-
sengers involved in rail passenger acci-
dents 
‘‘(a) SUBMISSION
OF PLAN.—Not later than 6 
months after the date of the enactment of the Rail and
Public Transit Security Act of 2004, Amtrak shall submit 
to the Chairman of the National Transportation Safety 
Board a plan for addressing the needs of the families of 
passengers involved in any rail passenger accident involv-
ing an Amtrak intercity train and resulting in a loss of 
life. 
‘‘(b) CONTENTS OF PLANS.—The plan to be sub-
mitted by Amtrak under subsection (a) shall include, at 
a minimum, the following: 
‘‘(1) A process by which Amtrak will maintain 
and provide to the National Transportation Safety 
Board, immediately upon request, a list (which is 
based on the best available information at the time 
of the request) of the names of the passengers 
aboard the train (whether or not such names have 
been verified), and will periodically update the list. 
The plan shall include a procedure, with respect to 
unreserved trains and passengers not holding res-
ervations on other trains, for Amtrak to use reason-
able efforts to ascertain the number and names of 
passengers aboard a train involved in an accident. 
‘‘(2) A plan for creating and publicizing a reli-
able, toll-free telephone number within 4 hours after 
such an accident occurs, and for providing staff, to 
handle calls from the families of the passengers.
‘‘(3) A process for notifying the families of the 
passengers, before providing any public notice of the 
names of the passengers, by suitably trained individ-
uals. 
‘‘(4) A process for providing the notice de-
scribed in paragraph (3) to the family of a pas-
senger as soon as Amtrak has verified that the pas-
senger was aboard the train (whether or not the 
names of all of the passengers have been verified). 
‘‘(5) A process by which the family of each pas-
senger will be consulted about the disposition of all 
remains and personal effects of the passenger within 
Amtrak’s control; that any possession of the pas-
senger within Amtrak’s control will be returned to 
the family unless the possession is needed for the ac-
cident investigation or any criminal investigation; 
and that any unclaimed possession of a passenger 
within Amtrak’s control will be retained by the rail 
passenger carrier for at least 18 months. 
‘‘(6) A process by which the treatment of the 
families of nonrevenue passengers will be the same 
as the treatment of the families of revenue pas-
sengers. 
‘‘(7) An assurance that Amtrak will provide 
adequate training to its employees and agents to
meet the needs of survivors and family members fol-
lowing an accident. 
‘‘(c) USE OF INFORMATION.—The National Trans-
portation Safety Board and Amtrak may not release to 
any person information on a list obtained under subsection 
(b)(1) but may provide information on the list about a 
passenger to the family of the passenger to the extent that 
the Board or Amtrak considers appropriate. 
‘‘(d) LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.—Amtrak shall not 
be liable for damages in any action brought in a Federal 
or State court arising out of the performance of Amtrak 
in preparing or providing a passenger list, or in providing 
information concerning a train reservation, pursuant to a 
plan submitted by Amtrak under subsection (b), unless 
such liability was caused by Amtrak’s conduct. 
‘‘(e) LIMITATION ON STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.— 
Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting the 
actions that Amtrak may take, or the obligations that Am-
trak may have, in providing assistance to the families of 
passengers involved in a rail passenger accident. 
‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 
Transportation for the use of Amtrak $500,000 for fiscal 
year 2006 to carry out this section. Amounts appropriated
pursuant to this subsection shall remain available until ex-
pended.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter anal-
ysis for chapter 243 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘24316. Plans to address needs of families of passengers involved in rail pas-
senger accidents.’’. 
SEC. 13. SYSTEMWIDE AMTRAK SECURITY UPGRADES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (c), the 
Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Border and 
Transportation Security is authorized to make grants, 
through the Secretary of Transportation, to Amtrak— 
(1) to secure major tunnel access points and en-
sure tunnel integrity in New York, Baltimore, and 
Washington, District of Columbia; 
(2) to secure Amtrak trains; 
(3) to secure Amtrak stations; 
(4) to obtain a watch list identification system 
approved by the Under Secretary; 
(5) to obtain train tracking and communica-
tions systems that are coordinated to the maximum 
extent possible; 
(6) to hire additional police and security offi-
cers, including canine units; and 
(7) to expand emergency preparedness efforts.
(b) CONDITIONS.—The Secretary of Transportation 
may not disburse funds to Amtrak under subsection (a) 
unless the projects are contained in a systemwide security 
plan approved by the Under Secretary, in consultation 
with the Secretary of Transportation, and meet the re-
quirements of section 8(e)(2). 
(c) EQUITABLE
GEOGRAPHIC
ALLOCATION.—The 
Secretary shall ensure that, subject to meeting the highest 
security needs on Amtrak’s entire system, stations and fa-
cilities located outside of the Northeast Corridor receive 
an equitable share of the security funds authorized by this 
section. 
(d) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—There are authorized 
to be appropriated to the Under Secretary of Homeland 
Security 
for 
Border 
and 
Transportation 
Security 
$62,500,000 for fiscal year 2006 for the purposes of car-
rying out this section. Amounts appropriated pursuant to 
this subsection shall remain available until expended. 
SEC. 14. FREIGHT AND PASSENGER RAIL SECURITY UP-
GRADES. 
(a) SECURITY IMPROVEMENT GRANTS.—The Under 
Secretary of Homeland Security for Border and Transpor-
tation Security is authorized to make grants to freight 
railroads, the Alaska Railroad, hazardous materials ship-
pers, owners of rail cars used in the transportation of haz-
ardous materials, and, through the Secretary of Transpor-
tation, to Amtrak, for full or partial reimbursement of 
costs incurred in the conduct of activities to prevent or 
respond to acts of terrorism, sabotage, or other intercity 
passenger rail and freight rail security threats, includ-
ing— 
(1) security and redundancy for critical commu-
nications, computer, and train control systems essen-
tial for secure rail operations; 
(2) accommodation of cargo or passenger 
screening equipment at the United States-Mexico 
border or the United States-Canada border; 
(3) the security of hazardous material transpor-
tation by rail; 
(4) secure intercity passenger rail stations, 
trains, and infrastructure; 
(5) structural modification or replacement of 
pressurized tank cars to improve their resistance to 
acts of terrorism; 
(6) employee security awareness, preparedness, 
passenger evacuation, and emergency response train-
ing; 
(7) public security awareness campaigns for 
passenger train operations; and
(8) other improvements recommended by the re-
port required by section 3, including infrastructure, 
facilities, and equipment upgrades. 
(b) ACCOUNTABILITY.—The Under Secretary shall 
adopt necessary procedures, including audits, to ensure 
that grants made under this section are expended in ac-
cordance with the purposes of this Act and the priorities 
and other criteria developed by the Under Secretary. 
(c) CONDITIONS.—The Secretary of Transportation 
may not disburse funds to Amtrak under subsection (a) 
unless Amtrak meets the conditions set forth in section 
11(a)(2) of this Act. 
(d) TANK CAR REPLACEMENT INCENTIVE.—A grant 
under subsection (a)(5) may be for up to 15 percent of 
the cost of the modification or replacement of a pressur-
ized tank car. 
(e) ALLOCATION BETWEEN RAILROADS AND OTH-
ERS.—Unless as a result of the assessment required by 
section 3 the Under Secretary of Homeland Security for 
Border and Transportation Security determines that crit-
ical rail transportation security needs require reimburse-
ment in greater amounts to any eligible entity, no grants 
under this section may be made— 
(1) in excess of $65,000,000 to Amtrak; or
(2) in excess of $100,000,000 for the purposes 
described in paragraphs (3) and (4) of subsection 
(a). 
(f) PROCEDURES FOR GRANT AWARD.—The Under 
Secretary shall prescribe procedures and schedules for the 
awarding of grants under this section, including applica-
tion and qualification procedures (including a requirement 
that the applicant have a security plan), and a record of 
decision on applicant eligibility. The procedures shall in-
clude the execution of a grant agreement between the 
grant recipient and the Under Secretary. The Under Sec-
retary shall issue a final rule establishing the procedures 
not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act. 
(g) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary 
of Homeland Security for Border and Transportation Se-
curity $250,000,000 for fiscal year 2006 to carry out the 
purposes of this section. Amounts appropriated pursuant 
to this subsection shall remain available until expended. 
SEC. 15. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION OVERSIGHT. 
(a) SECRETARIAL OVERSIGHT.—The Secretary of 
Transportation may use up to 0.5 percent of amounts ap-
propriated for Amtrak for capital projects under this Act 
to enter into contracts for the review of proposed capital
projects and related program management plans and to 
oversee construction of such projects. 
(b) USE
OF
FUNDS.—The Secretary may use 
amounts available under subsection (a) of this subsection 
to make contracts for safety, procurement, management, 
and financial compliance reviews and audits of a recipient 
of amounts under subsection (a). 
SEC. 16. WELDED RAIL AND TANK CAR SAFETY IMPROVE-
MENTS. 
(a) TRACK STANDARDS.—Within 90 days after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Federal Railroad Ad-
ministration shall— 
(1) require each railroad using continuous weld-
ed rail track to include procedures (in its program 
filed with the Administration) that improve the iden-
tification of cracks in rail joint bars; 
(2) instruct Administration track inspectors to 
obtain copies of the most recent continuous welded 
rail programs of each railroad within the inspectors’ 
areas of responsibility and require that inspectors 
use those programs when conducting track inspec-
tions; and 
(3) establish a program to periodically review 
continuous welded rail joint bar inspection data from 
railroads and Administration track inspectors and,
whenever the Administration determines that it is 
necessary or appropriate, require railroads to in-
crease the frequency or improve the methods of in-
spection of joint bars in continuous welded rail. 
(b) TANK CAR STANDARDS.—The Federal Railroad 
Administration shall— 
(1) within 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, validate the predictive model it is devel-
oping to quantify the maximum dynamic forces act-
ing on railroad tank cars under accident conditions; 
and 
(2) within 18 months after the date of enact-
ment of this Act, initiate a rulemaking to develop 
and implement appropriate design standards for 
pressurized tank cars. 
(c) OLDER TANK CAR IMPACT RESISTANCE ANAL-
YSIS AND REPORT.—Within 2 years after the date of en-
actment of this Act, the Federal Railroad Administration, 
in coordination with the National Transportation Safety 
Board, shall— 
(1) conduct a comprehensive analysis to deter-
mine the impact resistance of the steels in the shells 
of pressure tank cars constructed before 1989; and 
(2) transmit a report to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate with rec-
ommendations for measures to eliminate or mitigate 
the risk of catastrophic failure. 
SEC. 17. NORTHERN BORDER RAIL PASSENGER REPORT. 
Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Bor-
der and Transportation Security, in consultation with the 
heads of other appropriate Federal departments and agen-
cies and Amtrak, shall transmit a report to the Committee 
on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate that contains— 
(1) a description of the current system for 
screening passengers and baggage on passenger rail 
service between the United States and Canada; 
(2) an assessment of the current program to 
provide preclearance of airline passengers between 
the United States and Canada as outlined in ‘‘The 
Agreement on Air Transport Preclearance between 
the Government of Canada and the Government of 
the United States of America’’, dated January 18, 
2001; 
(3) an assessment of the current program to 
provide preclearance of freight railroad traffic be-
tween the United States and Canada as outlined in 
the ‘‘Declaration of Principle for the Improved Secu-
rity of Rail Shipments by Canadian National Rail-
way and Canadian Pacific Railway from Canada to 
the United States’’, dated April 2, 2003; 
(4) information on progress by the Department 
of Homeland Security and other Federal agencies to-
wards finalizing a bilateral protocol with Canada 
that would provide for preclearance of passengers on 
trains operating between the United States and Can-
ada; 
(5) a description of legislative, regulatory, 
budgetary, or policy barriers within the United 
States Government to providing prescreened pas-
senger lists for rail passengers travelling between the 
United States and Canada to the Department of 
Homeland Security; 
(6) a description of the position of the Govern-
ment of Canada and relevant Canadian agencies 
with respect to preclearance of such passengers; and 
(7) a draft of any changes in existing Federal 
law necessary to provide for prescreening of such 
passengers and providing prescreened passenger lists 
to the Department of Homeland Security.
SEC. 18. MASS TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM SECURITY IM-
PROVEMENTS. 
(a) GRANT PROGRAMS.—The Under Secretary of 
Homeland Security for Border and Transportation Secu-
rity may make operating grants under subsection (e) and 
capital grants under subsection (f). 
(b) CONSISTENCY WITH ASSESSMENT.—The Under 
Secretary shall require that all operating grants made 
under subsection (e) and capital grants made under sub-
section (f) shall be consistent with the most recent find-
ings and recommendations of the Federal Transit Admin-
istration criticality and vulnerability assessments. 
(c) PROCEDURES FOR GRANT AWARDS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary shall 
establish procedures, schedules, and requirements 
for making grants under this section, including ap-
plication and qualification procedures. 
(2) AGREEMENTS.—Except as provided in sub-
section (f)(3)(D), the procedures shall include the 
execution of a grant agreement between the grant 
recipient and the Under Secretary. 
(3) FINAL RULE.—The Under Secretary shall 
issue a final rule establishing the procedures not 
later than 90 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act.
(d) ACCOUNTABILITY.—The Under Secretary shall 
adopt necessary procedures, including audits, to ensure 
that grants made under this section are expended in ac-
cordance with the purposes of this section and the prior-
ities and other criteria developed by the Under Secretary. 
(e) SECURITY IMPROVEMENT OPERATING GRANTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary may 
make operating grants to eligible transit agencies to 
prevent or respond to threats or acts of terrorism, 
including— 
(A) sabotage, hijackings, and hostage situ-
ations; 
(B) seizure and control of communications, 
signal, power and systems control infrastruc-
ture; 
(C) chemical, biological, radiological, nu-
clear, or explosive device attacks; or 
(D) other security threats. 
(2) PREVENTION AND RESPONSE.—Prevention 
and response measures referred to in paragraph (1) 
may include— 
(A) increased transit police and security 
personnel, deployment expenses including over-
time, training, K–9 units, and helicopter pa-
trols;
(B) inter-operable communications systems 
between and within transit agencies, local gov-
ernmental agencies, state governmental agen-
cies, and other transit systems and railroads; 
(C) operational redundancy and increased 
protection for critical communications, com-
puter, and train control systems, assets and in-
frastructure essential for public transit oper-
ations; 
(D) increased security for light rail, heavy 
rail and bus stations, rights of way, mainte-
nance and storage facilities, trains, grade cross-
ings, critical locations, and other assets and in-
frastructure; 
(E) increased employee security prepared-
ness through training on observing and report-
ing suspicious activities and objects, passenger 
evacuation, and emergency response procedures; 
(F) public security awareness campaigns 
for public transit passengers; and 
(G) other improvements indicated by cur-
rent best practices and technological innova-
tions, risk response, needs, capabilities and sys-
tem security assessments.