On May 31, 2023, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on certification of signal employees. The proposed rule, or Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), is the official document that announces and explains the agency’s plan to address a problem or accomplish a goal. All proposed rules must be published in the Federal Register to notify the public. The proposed rule and the comments received on it form the basis of the final rule.

Currently, the NPRM on certification of signal employees is in the comment period. Following the comment period and review, it is expected that the FRA will issue a final rule and put that final rule into effect. 

The BRS will be submitting comments as an organization to ensure signal professionals in the field have their voices heard and issues raised. If you have any questions or issues, please contact BRS Director of Research, Chris Hand, at c.hand@brs.org. 

Below is a link to the NPRM

Six months after life was upended in East Palestine, little has changed.

Read the Full Article HERE

AAR, ASLRRA and TTD urged the Congress members to “remove this draconian limit on RRB’s administrative funding and support the limitation in the Senate bill.

Read Full Article Here

Amtrak announced Monday that it is applying for $7.3 billion in federal grants to execute 14 projects on the Northeast Corridor and more than $700 million for 16 projects outside the Northeast Corridor.

House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Ranking Member Rick Larsen (D-WA), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials Donald M. Payne, Jr. (D-NJ), Vice Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials Valerie Foushee (D-NC), Rep. Emilia Sykes (D-OH) and 26 additional T&I Members sent a letter urging the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chair Graves to promptly schedule a hearing on rail safety.
 
“We write today to again request a Transportation & Infrastructure Committee hearing on rail safety,” the Members wrote, noting that waiting on the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation to complete its work on the Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, Ohio is unacceptable given the dozens of existing NTSB rail recommendations that remain unanswered: “…We disagree that the Committee should wait to advance rail safety legislation until after the [NTSB] concludes its investigation into the derailment in East Palestine. Accidents continue to occur, placing additional communities and rail workers at risk.”
 
“Earlier this month, the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee approved the Railway Safety Act of 2023 by bipartisan vote,” the Members continued. “The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure must meet its responsibility to conduct critical oversight of the rail industry by holding a hearing on rail safety. Our constituents and communities deserve this basic consideration.”

Background:
Today’s letter comes more than two months after Ranking Member Larsen first called for a rail safety hearing to be scheduled and shortly after the Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee advanced their rail safety legislation out of Committee on a bipartisan vote. The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure has not held a hearing examining rail safety following the Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, OH.

The full letter can be found here. 

On May 5, 2023, BRS members working at Amtrak ratified a new collective bargaining agreement. The seven (7) year Agreement was reached after nearly 18 months of negotiations and provided for general wage increases of 28.5% with full retroactivity to 2022 (compounded 32.3% over the term of the Agreement), frozen monthly health and welfare cost sharing portions for employees under the Amplan II plan and monthly cost sharing decreases for employees under the Amplan III throughout the term of the Agreement with improvements in dental coverage, vasectomy coverage, fertility treatment, and hearing aid coverage.

A Paid Time Off (PTO) plan was negotiated to replace the National Vacation Agreement which provides for significantly more time off with less years of service and an accrual method that permits an employee to accrue PTO even if they do not meet the one hundred (100) day threshold of the National Vacation Agreement. Additionally, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was added as a holiday, there were improvements to Bereavement Leave, the incentive allowance for certain Gang positions was increased from $0.65 per hour to $1.20 per hour, and a Paid Parental Leave Rule was negotiated.

The Paid Parental Leave Rule is the third Paid Parental Leave Agreement negotiated for BRS members and provides the most benefits with up to ten (10) weeks of paid time off, which can be taken in two (2) week increments, for up to one year from the date of birth or adoption.

The BRS congratulates BRS members on Amtrak on the new Agreement.