On July 31, members of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee considered the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS) appropriations legislation, which provides funding for the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB), the National Mediation Board (NMB), and the Department of Labor (DOL).
This bill sets the RRB’s Limit on Administration (LOA) for the upcoming federal fiscal year at only $126 million—far below the agency’s stated need of $170.615 million. This underfunding jeopardizes the RRB’s ability to serve railroad workers, retirees, and their families.
All of rail labor, including the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS), as well as the Association of American Railroads (AAR), which represents the Class I railroads, support the RRB’s request of $170.615 million.
The House Appropriations Committee has not yet released its version of the LHHS bill. Last year, however, the House proposed a $25 million cut—one that would have been devastating to the RRB’s ability to meet the needs of railroaders. Unfortunately, similar cuts are expected again this year.
The next step is for the House and Senate to reconcile their appropriations bills before the federal fiscal year ends on September 30. Without Congressional action to raise the LOA, the RRB will continue to struggle with backlogs, reduced staffing, and longer wait times for vital services.
BRS members must act now—your voice matters! When members of Congress hear directly from Railroad Signalmen and their families, they are far more likely to ensure the RRB receives the full $170.615 million it needs to function properly.
Take Action Instructions:
- Find your members of Congress here: https://www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member.
- Copy the attached template letter below.
- Fill in your member of Congress’ name and your contact information.
- Email it to your Senators and Representatives today.
TEMPLATE LETTER
Dear [[Recipient's Title and Name]]:
- As an American rail worker and a proud member of the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS), and as a resident of your district, I am writing today to respectfully request the following:That you vote against any proposed budget cuts to the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB); and
- That you support setting the RRB’s Limit on Administration (LOA) in the Labor, Health, and Human Services (LHHS) appropriations bill at the RRB’s requested level of $170.615 million for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026.
Background
Signalmen and other railroad workers are covered by a separate system of retirement, disability, and unemployment benefits that is not administered by Social Security. Unlike most American workers, we do not receive state unemployment benefits. Instead, our benefits are administered at the federal level under a system that predates Social Security and state unemployment insurance.
Authorized by Congress through the Railroad Retirement and Railroad Unemployment Insurance Acts, the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) is an independent federal agency that serves more than 690,000 active and retired rail workers and their families in every state and congressional district. The RRB administers retirement, survivor, disability, unemployment, and sickness insurance programs, which are funded exclusively by payroll taxes paid by railroad workers and railroad employers. Employees contribute an additional 4.9 percent, and employers contribute an additional 13.1 percent to maintain a system separate from the U.S. Treasury and Social Security.
In short, the Railroad Retirement Board is to rail workers what the Social Security Administration and Workers’ Compensation is to other American workers.
The RRB’s administrative budget is financed by payroll taxes from rail workers and carriers—not from the U.S. Treasury’s general fund. Yet Congress limits how much of its own funds the RRB can use for administration each year through the LOA provision in the LHHS appropriations bill.
The LOA has not received a meaningful increase since 2011, effectively cutting the agency’s budget through inflation. As a result, the RRB is now in crisis: staffing is at its lowest point in the agency’s 90-year history, disability applications face backlogs of more than 14 months, call wait times are skyrocketing, and hiring freezes and travel restrictions are undermining even basic service.
Railroaders and rail carriers fund the RRB. We should be able to use those funds—our funds—to strengthen our retirement system, not see it weakened by unrelated federal budget cuts.
Last year, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies proposed a 21 percent cut to the RRB’s administrative budget. While the Senate rejected those cuts, the threat remains this year.
Any further decrease in the LOA would cripple an already strained agency. Insufficient funding will force office closures, reduce service hours, lengthen application and correction timelines, and prevent the RRB from maintaining necessary cybersecurity protections—putting the pensions of railroaders and their families at direct risk.
The RRB itself has stated it needs an LOA of $170.615 million in FY2026 simply to meet its obligations. Both rail labor and the Association of American Railroads agree that failure to set the LOA at this level will leave the RRB in a permanent state of crisis.
For these reasons, I respectfully urge you to reject any proposed cuts to the RRB and to support setting the LOA at the requested $170.615 million. Doing so will ensure the agency can continue serving the hardworking railroaders and annuitants who have faithfully paid into this system throughout their careers.
Sincerely,
[Your Name and Contact information]
