Legislative Alert -
H.R. 2095, the Federal Rail Safety Act of 2007
June 7, 2007
Dear All:
I am forwarding
this email to you at the request of Sereena Hogan, our 1st VP/NLR who has had
numerous computer and technical difficulties today. If you received this
email twice, we apologize.
BLET VP and
NLR John Tolman forwarded the email below regarding H.R. 2095, the Rail Safety
bill, which is scheduled for a full Transportation and Infrastructure (T &
I) Committee mark up on June 13th. If you live in a state that has one
or more representatives on this Committee, please make calls to them as
soon as possible. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO CONTACT THEM BEFORE NEXT
WEDNESDAY. A complete list of Committee Members is set forth
below. If any of these representatives are from your Congressional
District please make that extra effort to talk to the Transportation
Aide. Our goal is to have the bill passed with the minor revisions that
were made by Congressman Oberstar, the author of the bill, but without any
further amendments.
OUR MESSAGE: Ask
them to support H.R. 2095, in its current form, which has the support of rail
workers, spouses, and families in their State. Express how important this bill is to the
safety and well being of railroad workers, their families, and in the interest
of public safety. It addresses safety issues that have needed
addressing for years.
Even
if no Congressional Representative from your State is on the T &
I Committee, please make sure your Congressman supports the bill in its current
form, and encourage their co-sponsorship before Wednesday.
Note: If you need to refresh your memory regarding
the major provisions of the bill, please refer to the May 2007 Monthly
Legislative Update on our website at www.bletauxiliary.net.
Thanks for doing
what we can to support the ones we love.
Becky
for Sereena Hogan
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
CONTACT T&I COMMITTEE
AND URGE THEM TO SUPPORT H.R. 2095
The
full House of Representatives Transportation & Infrastructure Committee
will hold a mark-up on H.R. 2095 next week on Wednesday, June 13.
During an earlier Subcommittee markup, Committee Chairman James Oberstar
offered an update to his original bill.
The major differences between this update and the original bill are as follows:
(1) Time spent in deadhead transportation from duty assignment to final release
is limbo time if there is an emergency such as casualty, accident, act of God,
derailment, major equipment failure, or other delay from a cause unknown and
unforeseeable at the time an employee leaves his/her initial terminal;
(2) In section 204, the Secretary of Transportation can reduce the maximum
hours on duty or increase the minimum hours of rest only if the change is
"based on scientific and medical research;"
(3) In section 601, the substitute extends the deadline for putting into place
PTC;
(4) In section 606 relating to prompt medical attention, the railroad is
required to promptly arrange to have the injured employee transported to the
"nearest" hospital.
Other technical amendments to the bill were also approved.
All BLET members and their families are asked to call the members of the Committee and convey to them that
this bill has the support of the railroad workers in their state and urge them
to support the provisions of the bill.
The members of the committee are listed below.
DEMOCRATS
Harry E. Mitchell, Arizona
Bob Filner, California
Grace F.
Napolitano, California
Doris O. Matsui, California
Jerry McNerney, California
Ellen O. Tauscher,
California
John T. Salazar,
Colorado
Eleanor Holmes
Norton, District of Columbia
Corrine Brown, Florida
Mazie K. Hirono,
Hawaii
Jerry F. Costello,
Illinois
Daniel Lipinski,
Illinois
Julia Carson,
Indiana
Leonard L.
Boswell, Iowa
Bruce L. Braley, Iowa
Michael H.
Michaud, Maine
Elijah E. Cummings,
Maryland
Michael E. Capuano, Massachusetts
Timothy J. Walz,
Minnesota
Gene Taylor,
Mississippi
Russ Carnahan,
Missouri
Michael A. Arcuri,
New York
Timothy H. Bishop,
New York
John J. Hall, New
York
Brian Higgins, New
York
Jerrold Nadler, New York
Heath Shuler,
North Carolina
Zachary T. Space, Ohio
Peter A. DeFazio,
Oregon
Jason Altmire,
Pennsylvania
Christopher P.
Carney, Pennsylvania
Tim Holden,
Pennsylvania
Steve Cohen,
Tennessee
Eddie Bernice Johnson, Texas
Nick Lampson, Texas
Brian Baird, Washington
Rick Larsen, Washington
Nick J. Rahall, II, West Virginia
Steve Kagen,
Wisconsin
REPUBLICANS
John L. Mica, Florida, Ranking Republican Member
Don Young, Alaska
John Boozman, Arkansas
Gary G. Miller,
California
Mario Diaz-Balart,
Florida
Vern Buchanan,
Florida
Connie Mack,
Florida
Lynn A.
Westmoreland, Georgia
Timothy V.
Johnson, Illinois
Richard H. Baker,
Louisiana
Charles W.
Boustany Jr., Louisiana
Jerry Moran, Kansas
Wayne T. Gilchrest, Maryland
Vernon J. Ehlers, Michigan
Candice S. Miller,
Michigan
Sam Graves,
Missouri
Frank A. LoBiondo,
New Jersey
John R.
"Randy" Kuhl Jr., New York
Howard Coble,
North Carolina
Robin Hayes, North
Carolina
Jean Schmidt, Ohio
Steven C.
LaTourette, Ohio
Mary Fallin,
Oklahoma
Charles W. Dent,
Pennsylvania
Jim Gerlach,
Pennsylvania
Todd Russell
Platts, Pennsylvania
Bill Shuster, Pennsylvania
Henry E. Brown
Jr., South Carolina
John J. Duncan,
Jr., Tennessee
Ted Poe, Texas
Thelma D. Drake,
Virginia
David G. Reichert,
Washington
Shelley Moore Capito, West Virginia
Thomas E. Petri, Wisconsin
posted
by National Legislative Office at 3:31 PM
John P. Tolman
Vice President & National Legislative Representative
25 Louisiana Avenue, N. W. ,
Washington, D. C. 2001
office 202-624-8776
fax 202-624-3086
cell 216-272-1246
tolman@ble.org
bletdc.org