CHAPTER 281-LAW ENFORCEMENT
Rail police officers
(a) In General .—Under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Transportation, a rail police officer who is directly employed by or contracted by a rail carrier and certified or commissioned as a police officer under the laws of a State may enforce the laws of any jurisdiction in which the rail carrier owns property, to the extent of the authority of a police officer certified or commissioned under the laws of that jurisdiction, to protect—
(1) employees, passengers, or patrons of the rail carrier;
(2) property, equipment, and facilities owned, leased, operated, or maintained by the rail carrier;
(3) property moving in interstate or foreign commerce in the possession of the rail carrier; and
(4) personnel, equipment, and material moving by rail that are vital to the national defense.
(b) Assignment .—A railroad police officer directly employed by or contracted by a railroad carrier and certified or commissioned as a police officer under the laws of a State may be temporarily assigned to assist a second railroad carrier in carrying out law enforcement duties upon the request of the second railroad carrier, at which time the police officer shall be considered to be an employee or agent, as applicable, of the second railroad carrier and shall have authority to enforce the laws of any jurisdiction in which the second railroad carrier owns property to the same extent as provided in subsection (a).
(c) Transfers.—
(1) In general .—If a railroad police officer directly employed by or contracted by a rail carrier and certified or commissioned as a police officer under the laws of a State transfers primary employment or residence from the certifying or commissioning State to another State or jurisdiction, the railroad police officer, not later than 1 year after the date of transfer, shall apply to be certified or commissioned as a police office 1 under the laws of the State of new primary employment or residence.
(2) Interim period .—During the period beginning on the date of transfer and ending 1 year after the date of transfer, a railroad police officer directly employed by or contracted by a rail carrier and certified or commissioned as a police officer under the laws of a State may enforce the laws of the new jurisdiction in which the railroad police officer resides, to the same extent as provided in subsection (a).
(d) Training.—
(1) In general .—A State may recognize as meeting that State's basic police officer certification or commissioning requirements for qualification as a rail police officer under this section any individual who successfully completes a program at a State-recognized police training academy in another State or at a Federal law enforcement training center and who is certified or commissioned as a police officer by that other State.
(2) Rule of construction .—Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as superseding or affecting any State training requirements related to criminal law, criminal procedure, motor vehicle code, any other State law, or State-mandated comparative or annual in-service training academy or Federal law enforcement training center.
Limit on certain accident or incident liability
(a) General .—When a publicly financed commuter transportation authority established under Virginia law makes a contract to indemnify Amtrak for liability for operations conducted by or for the authority or to indemnify a rail carrier over whose tracks those operations are conducted, liability against Amtrak, the authority, or the carrier for all claims (including punitive damages) arising from an accident or incident in the District of Columbia related to those operations may not be more than the limits of the liability coverage the authority maintains to indemnify Amtrak or the carrier.
(b) Minimum Required Liability Coverage .—A publicly financed commuter transportation authority referred to in subsection (a) of this section must maintain a total minimum liability coverage of at least $200,000,000.
(c) Effectiveness .—This section is effective only after Amtrak or a rail carrier seeking an indemnification contract under this section makes an operating agreement with a publicly financed commuter transportation authority established under Virginia law to provide access to its property for revenue transportation related to the operations of the authority.
Limitations on rail passenger transportation liability
(a) Limitations .—(1) Notwithstanding any other statutory or common law or public policy, or the nature of the conduct giving rise to damages or liability, in a claim for personal injury to a passenger, death of a passenger, or damage to property of a passenger arising from or in connection with the provision of rail passenger transportation, or from or in connection with any rail passenger transportation operations over or rail passenger transportation use of right-of-way or facilities owned, leased, or maintained by any high-speed railroad authority or operator, any commuter authority or operator, any rail carrier, or any State, punitive damages, to the extent permitted by applicable State law, may be awarded in connection with any such claim only if the plaintiff establishes by clear and convincing evidence that the harm that is the subject of the action was the result of conduct carried out by the defendant with a conscious, flagrant indifference to the rights or safety of others. If, in any case wherein death was caused, the law of the place where the act or omission complained of occurred provides, or has been construed to provide, for damages only punitive in nature, this paragraph shall not apply.
(2) The aggregate allowable awards to all rail passengers, against all defendants, for all claims, including claims for punitive damages, arising from a single accident or incident, shall not exceed $200,000,000.
(b) Contractual Obligations .—A provider of rail passenger transportation may enter into contracts that allocate financial responsibility for claims.
(c) Mandatory Coverage .—Amtrak shall maintain a total minimum liability coverage for claims through insurance and self-insurance of at least $200,000,000 per accident or incident.
(d) Effect on Other Laws .—This section shall not affect the damages that may be recovered under the Act of April 27, 1908 (45 U.S.C. 51 et seq.; popularly known as the "Federal Employers' Liability Act") or under any workers compensation Act.
(e) Definition .—For purposes of this section—
(1) the term "claim" means a claim made—
(A) against Amtrak, any high-speed railroad authority or operator, any commuter authority or operator, any rail carrier, or any State; or
(B) against an officer, employee, affiliate engaged in railroad operations, or agent, of Amtrak, any high-speed railroad authority or operator, any commuter authority or operator, any rail carrier, or any State;
(2) the term "punitive damages" means damages awarded against any person or entity to punish or deter such person or entity, or others, from engaging in similar behavior in the future; and
(3) the term "rail carrier" includes a person providing excursion, scenic, or museum train service, and an owner or operator of a privately owned rail passenger car.
CHAPTER 283-STANDARD WORK DAY
General
(a) Eight Hour Day .—In contracts for labor and service, 8 hours shall be a day's work and the standard day's work for determining the compensation for services of an employee employed by a common carrier by railroad subject to subtitle IV of this title and actually engaged in any capacity in operating trains used for transporting passengers or property on railroads from—
(1) a State of the United States or the District of Columbia to any other State or the District of Columbia;
(2) one place in a territory or possession of the United States to another place in the same territory or possession;
(3) a place in the United States to an adjacent foreign country; or
(4) a place in the United States through a foreign country to any other place in the United States.
(b) Application .—Subsection (a) of this section—
(1) does not apply to—
(A) an independently owned and operated railroad not exceeding one hundred miles in length;
(B) an electric street railroad; and
(C) an electric interurban railroad; but
(2) does apply to an independently owned and operated railroad less than one hundred miles in length—
(A) whose principal business is leasing or providing terminal or transfer facilities to other railroads; or
(B) engaged in transfers of freight between railroads or between railroads and industrial plants.
Penalties
A person violating section 28301 of this title shall be fined under title 18, imprisoned not more than one year, or both.
CHAPTER 285-COMMUTER RAIL MEDIATION
Definitions
In this chapter—
(1) the term "Board" means the Surface Transportation Board;
(2) the term "capital work" means maintenance, restoration, reconstruction, capacity enhancement, or rehabilitation work on trackage that would be treated, in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, as a capital item rather than an expense;
(3) the term "commuter rail passenger transportation" has the meaning given that term in section 24102;
(4) the term "public transportation authority" means a local governmental authority (as defined in section 5302) established to provide, or make a contract providing for, commuter rail passenger transportation;
(5) the term "rail carrier" means a person, other than a governmental authority, providing common carrier railroad transportation for compensation subject to the jurisdiction of the Board under chapter 105;
(6) the term "segregated fixed guideway facility" means a fixed guideway facility constructed within the railroad right-of-way of a rail carrier but physically separate from trackage, including relocated trackage, within the right-of-way used by a rail carrier for freight transportation purposes; and
(7) the term "trackage" means a railroad line of a rail carrier, including a spur, industrial, team, switching, side, yard, or station track, and a facility of a rail carrier.
Surface Transportation Board mediation of trackage use requests
If, after a reasonable period of negotiation, a public transportation authority cannot reach agreement with a rail carrier to use trackage of, and have related services provided by, the rail carrier for purposes of commuter rail passenger transportation, the public transportation authority or the rail carrier may apply to the Board for nonbinding mediation. The Board shall conduct the nonbinding mediation in accordance with the mediation process of section 1109.4 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of enactment of this section.
Surface Transportation Board mediation of rights-of-way use requests
If, after a reasonable period of negotiation, a public transportation authority cannot reach agreement with a rail carrier to acquire an interest in a railroad right-of-way for the construction and operation of a segregated fixed guideway facility to provide commuter rail passenger transportation, the public transportation authority or the rail carrier may apply to the Board for nonbinding mediation. The Board shall conduct the nonbinding mediation in accordance with the mediation process of section 1109.4 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of enactment of this section.
Applicability of other laws
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to limit a rail transportation provider's right under section 28103(b) to enter into contracts that allocate financial responsibility for claims.
Rules and regulations
Within 1 year after the date of enactment of this section, the Board shall issue such rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry out this chapter.
Source: United States Code / CFR (uscode.house.gov, govinfo.gov) — U.S. federal law, public domain (17 U.S.C. § 105).
