[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 70 (Wednesday, June 8, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 8, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
           FEDERAL RAILROAD SAFETY AUTHORIZATION ACT OF 1994

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Washington [Mr. Swift] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. SWIFT. Mr. Speaker, at approximately 3:40 this morning there was 
an accident involving three freight trains just outside of Seneca, NE. 
Tragically, two crew members were killed and two others were injured. 
This accident in Nebraska, the accident in Smithfield, NC a few weeks 
ago and the accident in Mobile, AL last fall provide compelling 
arguments for why we need a strong and effective rail safety program.
  It is fitting that today in the wake of this awful accident I am 
introducing at the request of the administration the Federal Railroad 
Safety Authorization Act of 1994. Briefly, this legislation authorizes 
appropriations for fiscal years 1995 through 1998 for the Federal 
Railroad Administration's railroad safety program.
  Clearly, one of the most important functions of the Federal Railroad 
Administration [FRA] is ensuring that our Nation's freight and 
passenger trains travel safely throughout our rail system. This is no 
small task when you consider that there are over 297,000 miles of track 
and more than 1.23 million cars and locomotives. The responsibility is 
immense.
  FRA is currently working on over 40 safety rulemaking projects and 
reports to Congress. Many of these projects were required by the 
Congress in previous rail safety authorization legislation and others 
are safety efforts that FRA has undertaken on its own. As such, this 
reauthorizing legislation does not seek extensive new enforcement 
powers or duties. However, the legislation does include a provision 
which will allow rail labor and management to jointly establish pilot 
projects to modify the requirements of the Hours of Service Act for up 
to a 2-year period.
  Next week, the Subcommittee on Transportation and Hazardous Materials 
which I chair will hold a legislative hearing on the Federal Railroad 
Safety Authorization Act of 1994. At that time, the subcommittee will 
closely examine how well FRA is meeting its safety mission and what 
improvements can be made in the areas of track and bridge safety so 
that we can reduce if not eliminate the number of tragedies on the 
railroad.
  For the benefit of my colleagues, I am inserting a section-by-section 
analysis of the Federal Railroad Safety Authorization Act of 1994 
below:

      Section-by-Section Analysis of the Federal Railroad Safety 
                       Authorization Act of 1994


                              short title

       Section 1 provides that the Act may be cited as the 
     ``Federal Railroad Safety Authorization Act of 1994.''


                    authorization of appropriations

       Section 2 would authorize appropriations for fiscal years 
     1995, 1996, 1997, and 1998, for the Federal Railroad 
     Administration' (FRA) railroad safety program, including 
     railroad safety research and development. The authorization 
     levels would be $68,289,000 for fiscal year 1995 and ``such 
     sums as may be necessary'' for fiscal year 1996, 1997, and 
     1998.


                     hours of service pilot project

       Section 3 would permit the Secretary, under stated 
     conditions, to approve waivers of the Hours of Service Act 
     for the purpose of conducting consensual pilot projects to 
     determine the potential effects on railroad safety of 
     employing different standards than those imposed by the Act. 
     The rigid standards of the Act, which have not been 
     significantly changed since 1969, do not properly address 
     safety issues related to work/sleep cycles. For example, the 
     Act permits a safety-sensitive railroad worker to work eight 
     hours, then rest eight hours, then work eight hours, 
     continuously. The safety of railroad workers and the general 
     public requires that the Secretary be granted this limited 
     waiver authority in order to explore alternatives to the 
     present structure. Upon receiving a joint petition from a 
     railroad or railroads and all labor organizations 
     representing covered service employees directly within the 
     scope of the waiver, the Secretary would be authorized to 
     waive, in whole or in part, compliance with the Act for up to 
     two years after providing notice and an opportunity for 
     comment and determining that the waiver is in the public 
     interest and is consistent with railroad safety. Such a 
     waiver would be capable of being extended for no more than 
     two years. The Secretary would be required to publish in the 
     Federal Register an explanation of each such waiver. The 
     Secretary would also be required to submit a report to 
     Congress explaining and analyzing the effectiveness of each 
     pilot program approved under this section.


            conforming amendment to the hours of service act

       Section 4 would authorize the Secretary to assess a civil 
     penalty of a person's violation of a condition of a waiver 
     directly applicable to that person that has been granted 
     under Section 3 of this Act.


    technical amendments to the federal railroad safety Act of 1970

       Section 5 would permit the Secretary, after notice and an 
     opportunity for a hearing, to issue an order prohibiting an 
     individual from performing safety-sensitive service if the 
     individual is shown to be unfit for such service based on the 
     individual's violation of one of the ``Federal railroad 
     safety laws,'' as that term is defined in 45 U.S.C. 441(e), 
     other than the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act (HMTA) 
     (49 U.S.C. app. 1801 et seq.). At present, the Secretary is 
     authorized to disqualify an individual only for violation of 
     a rule, regulation, order, or standard,'' not for violation 
     of a stature 45 U.S.C. 438(f). Section 5 would eliminate this 
     anomaly. The HMTA is excluded because the Department believes 
     its enforcement sanctions should remain consistent across the 
     various modes of transportation to which that statute 
     applies.


biennial reporting on implementation of the federal railroad safety act 
                                of 1970

       Section 6 would change the interval for the Secretary's 
     report to Congress on the administration of the Federal 
     Railroad Safety Act of 1970. The report would be required 
     biennially, instead of annually, and would cover the 
     preceding two calendar years, instead of the preceding one 
     calendar year. In the biennial report, information on the 
     two-year period involved would normally be aggregated; 
     however, statistics on accidents and casualties, including 
     rates, would continue to be compiled on a calendar-year 
     basis.

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