Federal

Assistance for Local Heroes During Train Crises Act

Source: Congress.gov · 1,320 words in original text

What This Bill Does

This bill allows the federal government to declare a "hazardous train event" when a train carrying dangerous materials derails, crashes or has another serious incident. Once declared, the bill creates a fund to reimburse local emergency responders like fire departments and police for their costs responding to the incident. The bill also requires railroads to warn local emergency groups about hazardous material shipments passing through their communities.

Who It Affects

State and local emergency response groups (fire departments, law enforcement agencies, emergency response agencies), railroads that transport hazardous materials, shippers and carriers of hazardous materials by rail, and communities where trains carrying hazardous materials operate.

Key Provisions

• The Federal Railroad Administration Administrator can declare a hazardous train event within 3 days of a train derailment, crash, or incident involving hazardous materials that pose a threat to public health, safety or the environment (Sec. 2(b)(1)) • Upon declaration, the Administrator must immediately award at least $250,000 to eligible emergency response groups, with additional funding up to $3,000,000 per event possible within 5 days (Sec. 2(b)(2) and (b)(3)) • Emergency response groups can be reimbursed for damaged or contaminated equipment, overtime pay for emergency responders, operational response costs, and other event-related expenses incurred within 30 days of receiving funds (Sec. 2(d)(1)) • Railroads must provide county and local emergency response groups with advance warning of hazardous material train loads and timing, plus real-time location information when trains enter and exit their service areas (Sec. 3) • Shippers and carriers of hazardous materials by rail with annual collections of at least $10,000,000 must pay annual fees that go into the emergency reimbursement fund (Sec. 4(a))

What Changes

A new emergency fund called the "Hazardous Train Event Emergency Reimbursement Fund" is created to pay emergency responders. Railroads must now notify local emergency groups before hazardous material trains pass through communities. Companies that ship or carry hazardous materials by rail must pay new annual fees to fund the emergency reimbursement program.

Important Definitions

Hazardous train event: A train incident involving derailment, crash, or other incident with hazardous materials, hazardous waste, or materials posing a threat to public health, safety and environment that the Federal Railroad Administration Administrator declares as such (Sec. 2(a)(4)) Eligible entity: A state or local emergency response group, including law enforcement agencies, fire departments and emergency response agencies in an area affected by a hazardous train event (Sec. 2(a)(2))

Effective Date

Not specified in bill text

II 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 844 To authorize the declaration of a hazardous train event, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 16, 2023 Mr. CASEY (for himself, Mr. FETTERMAN, and Mr. BROWN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation A BILL To authorize the declaration of a hazardous train event, 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 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Assistance for Local 4 Heroes During Train Crises Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. HAZARDOUS TRAIN EVENTS. 6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 209 of title 49, United 7 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol- 8 lowing: 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:20 Mar 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S844.IS S844 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 844 IS ‘‘§ 20904. Hazardous train events 1 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 2 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘Adminis- 3 trator’ means the Administrator of the Federal Rail- 4 road Administration. 5 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en- 6 tity’ means a State or local emergency response 7 group, including a law enforcement agency, a fire 8 department, and an emergency response agency, lo- 9 cated in an area affected by a hazardous train event. 10 ‘‘(3) FUND.—The term ‘Fund’ means the Haz- 11 ardous Train Event Emergency Reimbursement 12 Fund established under subsection (c). 13 ‘‘(4) HAZARDOUS TRAIN EVENT.—The term 14 ‘hazardous train event’ means an train incident that 15 the Administrator has declared to be a hazardous 16 train event pursuant to subsection (b). 17 ‘‘(b) DECLARATION.— 18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in con- 19 sultation with the Administrator of the Federal 20 Emergency Management Agency and the Adminis- 21 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency, may 22 declare that a hazardous train event has occurred 23 not later than 3 days after the occurrence of a train 24 derailment, train crash, or other incident involving a 25 train carrying hazardous materials, hazardous waste, 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:20 Mar 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S844.IS S844 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 844 IS or other materials that pose a threat to public 1 health, safety, and the environment, as determined 2 by the Administrator. 3 ‘‘(2) EFFECT OF DECLARATION.—Upon a dec- 4 laration pursuant to subsection (a), the Adminis- 5 trator shall immediately award at least $250,000 6 from the Fund to 1 or more eligible entities pursu- 7 ant to subsection (d). 8 ‘‘(3) ADDITIONAL FUNDING AWARD.—Not later 9 than 5 days after a declaration pursuant to sub- 10 section (a), the Administrator may award additional 11 amounts to the initially awarded entities for further 12 costs or other eligible entities from the Fund, not to 13 exceed $3,000,000 per hazardous train event. 14 Amounts awarded pursuant to this paragraph shall 15 be allocated based on additional needs, as deter- 16 mined by the Administrator. 17 ‘‘(c) HAZARDOUS TRAIN EVENT EMERGENCY REIM- 18 BURSEMENT FUND.—There is established within the 19 Treasury of the United States a fund, which— 20 ‘‘(1) shall be known as the ‘Hazardous Train 21 Event Emergency Reimbursement Fund’; and 22 ‘‘(2) shall be administered by the Adminis- 23 trator. 24 ‘‘(d) ASSISTANCE FOR ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:20 Mar 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S844.IS S844 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 844 IS ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may use 1 amounts from the Fund to reimburse eligible enti- 2 ties, in accordance with subsection (b)— 3 ‘‘(A) for the cost of replacing equipment 4 that is damaged, contaminated, or otherwise 5 rendered unusable as a result of the response of 6 the eligible entity to a hazardous train event; 7 ‘‘(B) for overtime pay for firefighters, law 8 enforcement officers, or other emergency re- 9 sponders who work at the scene of a hazardous 10 train event; 11 ‘‘(C) for operational costs for actions taken 12 to respond to a hazardous train event; 13 ‘‘(D) for any other purpose related to a 14 hazardous train event, as determined by the 15 Administrator; and 16 ‘‘(E) to retroactively cover a cost described 17 in any of subparagraphs (A) through (D) that 18 is incurred after the date of a hazardous train 19 event or within 30 days of the receipt of 20 amounts under this subsection. 21 ‘‘(2) DOCUMENTATION OF COSTS.— 22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 23 days after the date on which the Administrator 24 declares a hazardous train event for which an 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:20 Mar 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S844.IS S844 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 844 IS eligible entity receives assistance under this 1 subsection, the eligible entity shall submit docu- 2 mentation to the Administrator for each item 3 for which such assistance is used through pro- 4 curement or reimbursement. 5 ‘‘(B) REIMBURSEMENT.—If the Adminis- 6 trator determines that an eligible entity has 7 used assistance received under this subsection 8 in violation of this subsection, the eligible entity 9 shall reimburse the Fund for the amount of 10 such assistance. Reimbursements to the Fund 11 shall be made eligible for future hazardous 12 train events.’’. 13 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap- 14 ter 209 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 15 adding at the end the following: 16 ‘‘20904. Hazardous train events.’’. SEC. 3. ADVANCE WARNING REQUIREMENT. 17 The Secretary of Transportation, in consultation with 18 the Administrator of the Transportation Security Admin- 19 istration, shall issue regulations requiring any railroad 20 that transports hazardous materials by train through any 21 community in the United States to provide county and 22 local emergency response groups in such community, in- 23 cluding police departments, fire departments, and emer- 24 gency response agencies, with— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:20 Mar 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S844.IS S844 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 844 IS (1) advance warning of such train’s load and 1 timing; and 2 (2) real-time location information on such a 3 train when it enters and exits its service area the ap- 4 plicable service area. 5 SEC. 4. HAZARDOUS MATERIALS EMERGENCY REIMBURSE- 6 MENT FEE. 7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5108(g) of title 49, 8 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 9 following: 10 ‘‘(4) HAZARDOUS MATERIALS EMERGENCY RE- 11 IMBURSEMENT FEE FOR SHIPPERS AND CARRIERS 12 OF HAZARDOUS MATERIAL.— 13 ‘‘(A) SCHEDULE OF FEES.—The Secretary 14 shall prescribe a schedule of annual fees for 15 shippers and carriers of hazardous materials by 16 rail that have total annual collections of not less 17 than $10,000,000. 18 ‘‘(B) DEPOSITS INTO TRUST FUND.—Fees 19 collected pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall be 20 deposited into the Hazardous Train Event 21 Emergency Reimbursement Fund established 22 under section 20904.’’. 23 (b) DEPOSITS INTO TRUST FUND.—Amounts col- 24 lected from shippers and carriers pursuant to section 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:20 Mar 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S844.IS S844 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •S 844 IS 5108(g)(4), United States Code, as added by subsection 1 (a), shall be regularly deposited into the Hazardous Train 2 Event Emergency Reimbursement Fund established under 3 section 20904 of title 49, United States Code, as added 4 by section 2. 5 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:20 Mar 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S844.IS S844 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS

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