Bills To Watch

110th Congress

Convenes January 4, 2007

House

Federal Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2007, H.R. 2095

For the first time in a very long time, it looks like some of the safety issues we've been fighting to correct for years may actually see the light of day. On May 1^st, Congressman James Oberstar (D-MN) and Rep Corinne Brown (D-FL) introduced H.R. 2095. On May 8^th, BLET National Legislative Rep. John Tolman testified before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, praising "the most comprehensive bill introduced in Congress since the 1976 safety authorization legislation.

Highlights of the bill include:

Permitting limbo time only in situations involving a casualty, an accident, a track obstruction, an act of God, a weather event causing a delay, a snowstorm, a landslide, a track or bridge washout, a derailment, a major equipment failure which prevents a train from advance, or any other delay from a cause unknown and unforeseeable to a railroad carrier when the employee left a designated terminal. Limbo time would be capped at 40 hours per month for the first year after the change takes effect, 30 hours per month during the second year, and 10 hours per month after the second year. If limbo time exceeds the cap, the railroad would be in violation of the law and liable for a civil penalty, and railroads would be required to report all instances of limbo time (this provision replaces the original total elimination of limbo time in an effort to garner more bi-partisan support of the bill);
Creation of fatigue management programs, a guarantee of 10 hours undisturbed rest, and a guarantee of one 24-hour off-duty period every 7 days;
Increased whistleblower protections - under these enhanced protections, a worker may refuse to authorize the use of equipment the employee reasonable believes to be unsafe or hazardous to operate or work with;
Implementation of positive train control;
Improved safety for dark territory operations (those without signal systems that still operate on track warrants);
Training standards for all railroad workers;
Certification of train conductors;
A study of locomotive cab ergonomics;
Requirement for emergency breathing apparatus in all locomotive cabs; and
Regulations addressing the harassment and intimidation of rail workers who report personal injuries.

The bill also re-designates the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) as the Federal Railroad Safety Administration (FRSA), clarifying that safety is the highest priority of the FRSA. The bill also calls for the number of safety inspectors to double, from 400 to 800 by the end of 2011.

While this bill goes farther than any rail safety bill in recent history, there is still room for improvement in areas such as the qualifications of FRA Administrators, and the FRAs lack of due diligence in meeting statutory deadlines for issuing regulations. Also not addressed was credible training and certification of crews handling hazardous materials, and the issue of venue in lawsuits filed against the carriers, among others. There have been concerns raised by rail labor and hopefully, when the final bill passes, it will be a bill which truly addresses the issues without giving railroads special treatment.

To read Congressman Oberstar's Introductory Remarks on this Bill, click here.

H.R. 800, The Employee Free Choice Act

The Employee Free Choice Act, would enable working people to bargain for better wages, benefits and working conditions by restoring workers' freedom to choose for themselves whether to join a union. It would even up the playing field, and provide for sanctions against employers who retaliated against workers seeking to form a union. The bill passed the House of Representatives on March 1, and was introduced in the Senate on March 29.

On June 26, a handful of obstructionist senators blocked the vote on this legislation, which had garnered majority support of 51-48 in the Senate, but 60 votes were required to block Republican opposition and gain passage. Although the vote fell short, it is still encouraging to realize that, for the first time in a generation, a majority of the U.S. Senate, including seven presidential candidates, voted for workers’ rights.

H.R. 2116, the Freight Rail Infrastructure Act of 2007

The Railroad tax credit bill was introduced on May 2nd, with its companion bill in the Senate, S. 1125, introduced last month in the Senate. The bills would amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide incentives to encourage investment in the expansion of freight rail infrastructure capacity giving the railroads a tax credit to improve their infrastructure. Why railroads are unable to use their recent record profits to do so, is unknown.

Senate

S. 184. The Surface Transportation and Rail Security Act of 2007

Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI) introduced S. 184 on January 4, 2007. The bill is an updated version of Rail Security Act of 2005, and includes provisions contained in the SAFE Port Act, passed by the Senate during the 109th Congress. Major provisions pertaining to railroads include: requiring the TSA to conduct a railroad sector risk assessment and submit prioritized recommendations for improving rail security; provide grants through TSA to Amtrak, freight railroads and others to upgrade security across the entire freight and intercity passenger railroad system; providing funding through the DOT to upgrade Amtrak tunnels in D.C. and the northeast corridor; create a DHS rail security research and development program and encourage the deployment of rail car tracking equipment for hazmat shipments; authorize studies to improve passenger rail security screening and immigration processing along the northern border; require railroads to create a railroad worker security-training program; provide whistle blower protections for reporting security concerns; require railroads to create mitigation plans for high hazard materials; require TSA and DOT to clarify respective roles for rail security (this has been ongoing since 9/11); and require DHS to develop a program to encourage equipping of rail cars transporting high hazard materials. A total of 13 Senators have signed on as original co-sponsors. More will be reported on this bill in the Spring issue of the newsletter.

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