Transit Worker and Pedestrian Protection Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1139 To amend title 49, United States Code, to require the development of public transportation operations safety risk reduction programs, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 11, 2019 Mrs. NAPOLITANO (for herself, Mr. KATKO, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. KING of New York, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. POCAN, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. GARAMENDI, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Mr. RYAN, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. SUOZZI, Ms. BROWNLEY of California, Mr. AGUILAR, Mr. NADLER, Mr. SHERMAN, Ms. SCHA- KOWSKY, Ms. TITUS, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. MCEACHIN, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Mr. TONKO, Ms. JOHNSON of Texas, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. KILMER, Mr. SIRES, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. ROSE of New York, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Ms. MOORE, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Ms. OMAR, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Ms. NORTON, Ms. JAYAPAL, Ms. FUDGE, Mr. COHEN, Mr. TAKANO, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. NORCROSS, Mr. PASCRELL, and Mr. CART- WRIGHT) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com- mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure A BILL To amend title 49, United States Code, to require the devel- opment of public transportation operations safety risk reduction programs, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Feb 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1139.IH H1139 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 1139 IH SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Transit Worker and 2 Pedestrian Protection Act’’. 3 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 4 Congress finds the following: 5 (1) Public transportation workers are vital to 6 the safe, efficient, and affordable movement of peo- 7 ple and to the economic prosperity of the country. 8 (2) Assaults on public transportation workers 9 are a growing problem, with daily reports of bus op- 10 erators and rail transit employees being beaten, hav- 11 ing items thrown at them, being spat upon, and 12 being verbally abused. 13 (3) This is not only a tragic situation for public 14 transportation workers, but also a major safety risk 15 for passengers, other motorists, and pedestrians. 16 (4) An additional risk to safe bus operation is 17 the existence of blind spots in the view from a bus 18 operator workstation that— 19 (A) prevent a driver from fully seeing the 20 driver’s surroundings; and 21 (B) have caused serious accidents with pe- 22 destrians. 23 (5) Blind spots are avoidable, and buses can be 24 designed to provide the bus operator a clear view 25 outside the vehicle. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Feb 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1139.IH H1139 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 1139 IH (6) Section 3022 of the FAST Act (49 U.S.C. 1 5329 note; Public Law 114–94) required the Sec- 2 retary of Transportation to issue a notice of pro- 3 posed rulemaking to address protection of public 4 transportation operators from the risk of assault. 5 (7) The Secretary of Transportation has failed 6 to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking as required 7 under section 3022 of the FAST Act. 8 SEC. 3. BUS OPERATIONS SAFETY RISK REDUCTION PRO- 9 GRAM. 10 Section 5329 of title 49, United States Code, is 11 amended by adding at the end the following: 12 ‘‘(l) BUS OPERATIONS SAFETY RISK REDUCTION 13 PROGRAM.— 14 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENTS.—Not later than 2 years 15 after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 16 Secretary shall require each recipient that operates 17 fixed route bus service to— 18 ‘‘(A) develop a risk reduction program for 19 bus operations under paragraph (2) to improve 20 safety by reducing the number and rates of ac- 21 cidents, injuries, assaults on bus operators, and 22 fatalities; 23 ‘‘(B) submit the program required under 24 subparagraph (A), including the implementation 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Feb 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1139.IH H1139 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 1139 IH plan required under paragraph (3), to the Sec- 1 retary for review and approval; and 2 ‘‘(C) implement the program and plan ap- 3 proved by the Secretary. 4 ‘‘(2) DEVELOPMENT OF PROGRAM.—A recipient 5 required to develop and submit a risk reduction pro- 6 gram for bus operations under paragraph (1)— 7 ‘‘(A) shall develop the program by con- 8 ducting risk analysis on the bus operations of 9 the recipient; 10 ‘‘(B) may incorporate the program into an 11 applicable comprehensive safety plan that the 12 recipient prepares under subsection (d), if the 13 plan addresses each requirement under this 14 subsection; and 15 ‘‘(C) shall develop the program in coopera- 16 tion with bus operators and collective bar- 17 gaining representatives of bus operators, includ- 18 ing the development of— 19 ‘‘(i) the risk analysis required under 20 subparagraph (A); and 21 ‘‘(ii) the implementation plan required 22 under paragraph (3). 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Feb 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1139.IH H1139 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 1139 IH ‘‘(3) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.—Each risk re- 1 duction program for bus operations under paragraph 2 (1) shall include an implementation plan for— 3 ‘‘(A) reduction of vehicular and pedestrian 4 accidents involving buses that includes— 5 ‘‘(i) deployment of driver assistance 6 technologies for bus operators that reduce 7 or prevent accidents; and 8 ‘‘(ii) measures to reduce visibility im- 9 pairments for bus operators that con- 10 tribute to accidents, including retrofits to 11 buses in revenue service and specifications 12 for future procurements that reduce visi- 13 bility impairments; 14 ‘‘(B) bus operator assault mitigation, in- 15 cluding— 16 ‘‘(i) the deployment of assault mitiga- 17 tion infrastructure and technology on 18 buses, including barriers to restrict the un- 19 wanted entry of individuals and objects 20 into bus operators’ workstations when a re- 21 cipient’s risk analysis determines that such 22 barriers would reduce assaults on and inju- 23 ries to bus operators; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Feb 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1139.IH H1139 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 1139 IH ‘‘(ii) conflict de-escalation training for 1 bus operators; 2 ‘‘(C) installation of seating and modifica- 3 tion to design specifications of bus operator 4 workstations that reduce or prevent injuries 5 from ergonomic risks; and 6 ‘‘(D) other measures that the Secretary de- 7 termines would significantly reduce the number 8 and rate of accidents, injuries, assaults on bus 9 operators, and fatalities related to bus oper- 10 ations. 11 ‘‘(4) UPDATING REQUIREMENTS.—The Sec- 12 retary shall require each recipient required to de- 13 velop a program under paragraph (1) to— 14 ‘‘(A) update the program annually; and 15 ‘‘(B) resubmit the program for approval by 16 the Secretary not less than once every 3 17 years.’’. 18 SEC. 4. RAIL OPERATIONS WORKER ASSAULT RISK REDUC- 19 TION PROGRAM. 20 (a) PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SAFETY PROGRAM 21 SECTION.—Section 5329 of title 49, United States Code, 22 as amended by section 3, is further amended by adding 23 at the end the following: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Feb 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1139.IH H1139 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 1139 IH ‘‘(m) RAIL OPERATIONS WORKER ASSAULT RISK 1 REDUCTION PROGRAM.— 2 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENTS.—Not later than 2 years 3 after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 4 Secretary shall require each recipient that operates 5 a rail fixed guideway public transportation system 6 that is not subject to regulation by the Federal Rail- 7 road Administration to— 8 ‘‘(A) develop a risk reduction program for 9 assaults on rail workers under paragraph (2) to 10 improve safety by reducing the number and se- 11 verity of assaults on rail workers, including op- 12 erators and station personnel; 13 ‘‘(B) submit the program required under 14 subparagraph (A), including the implementation 15 plan required under paragraph (3), to the Sec- 16 retary for review and approval; and 17 ‘‘(C) implement the program and plan ap- 18 proved by the Secretary. 19 ‘‘(2) DEVELOPMENT OF PROGRAM.—A recipient 20 required to develop and submit a risk reduction pro- 21 gram for assaults on rail workers under paragraph 22 (1)— 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Feb 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1139.IH H1139 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 1139 IH ‘‘(A) shall develop the program by con- 1 ducting risk analysis on assaults on workers 2 serving the rail operations of the recipient; 3 ‘‘(B) may incorporate the program into an 4 applicable comprehensive safety plan that the 5 recipient prepares under subsection (d), if the 6 plan addresses each requirement under this 7 subsection; and 8 ‘‘(C) shall develop the program in coopera- 9 tion with rail workers and collective bargaining 10 representatives of rail workers, including the 11 development of— 12 ‘‘(i) the risk analysis required under 13 subparagraph (A); and 14 ‘‘(ii) the implementation plan required 15 under paragraph (3). 16 ‘‘(3) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.—Each risk re- 17 duction program for assaults on rail workers under 18 paragraph (1) shall include an implementation plan 19 for rail worker assault mitigation. 20 ‘‘(4) UPDATING REQUIREMENTS.—The Sec- 21 retary shall require each recipient required to de- 22 velop a program under paragraph (1) to— 23 ‘‘(A) update the program annually; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Feb 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1139.IH H1139 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 1139 IH ‘‘(B) resubmit the program for approval by 1 the Secretary not less than once every 3 2 years.’’. 3 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 4 (a) AMOUNT AND DURATION.—There are authorized 5 to be appropriated to carry out implementation plans 6 under the bus operations safety risk reduction program 7 described in subsection (l) of section 5329 of title 49, 8 United States Code (as added by section 3 of this Act), 9 $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 through 2023. 10 (b) FORMULA.—Of the amounts made available to 11 carry out subsection (l) of section 5329 of title 49, United 12 States Code, for a fiscal year— 13 (1) 80 percent shall be distributed under the 14 formula set forth in section 5336 of title 49, United 15 States Code, other than subsection (b) of that sec- 16 tion; and 17 (2) 20 percent shall be distributed under the 18 formula set forth in section 5311(c)(3) of that title. 19 SEC. 6. TRANSIT WORKER ASSAULT DATA. 20 Section 5335 of title 49, United States Code, is 21 amended by adding at the end the following: 22 ‘‘(d) TRANSIT WORKER ASSAULT DATA.— 23 ‘‘(1) REPORT.—A recipient shall report to the 24 Secretary, for inclusion in the National Transit 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Feb 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1139.IH H1139 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 1139 IH Database, any information on each assault on a 1 transit worker. 2 ‘‘(2) OTHER REPORTS.—A report required 3 under paragraph (1) shall be separate from the re- 4 porting on other safety incidents in the National 5 Transit Database. 6 ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 7 ‘‘(A) ASSAULT ON A TRANSIT WORKER.— 8 The term ‘assault on a transit worker’ means 9 any circumstance in which an individual know- 10 ingly, without lawful authority or permission, 11 and with intent to endanger the safety or health 12 of any individual, or with a reckless disregard 13 for the safety or health of human life, interferes 14 with, disables, or incapacitates any transit 15 worker while the transit worker is performing 16 his or her duties, including circumstances that 17 do not require immediate medical attention or 18 that do not result in a fatality. 19 ‘‘(B) RECIPIENT.—The term ‘recipient’ 20 has the meaning given the term in section 21 5329(a).’’. 22 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Feb 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H1139.IH H1139 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS