» H.R. 6003, The Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act

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Thanks to NARP board member Steve Musen of Warwick, RI for compiling most of this excellent summary of this bill!

Also see the T&I Committee’s summary of H.R. 6003.

Title I & Sec. 501 of Title IV (Authorizations)

• Time frame: FY2009-2013
• Total Authorizations: $14,322,500,000
  

  Operations: $3,031,000,000 includes $121,814,000 Amtrak IG
  ADA Compliance: $1,028,500,000
  Capital Grants: $6,698,000,000 includes $500,000,000 Annual State Grants
  Debt Service: $1,725,000,000
  Rail Cooperative Research: $25,000,000
  Next Generation Equipment Pool: $5,000,000
  Baltimore Tunnel EIS: $60,000,000
  HS Rail Grants to States and/or Amtrak: $1,750,000,000

• Project Management to FRA is .5% of Capital Grants.
• Annual Authorization: $2,560,500,000 to $3,021,000,000
• Operating and Total Authorization increases from year to year

Title II: Amtrak Reform and Operational Improvements

• National System defined as Northeast Corridor, other high speed corridors operating, long distance trains over 750 miles and short distance corridors under 750 miles.
• Amtrak may enter into contract to operate additional services on mutual agreed terms.
• Amtrak board of directors increased to 10. Amtrak president is a voting member. DOT Secretary or delegate also a member. Remaining 8 directors (of which no more than 5 can be of the same party) confirmed by Senate. Directors served 5 years and until replacement confirmed.
• Amtrak to establish modern financial accounting system. May hire outside accounting consultant.
• Annual Report to use system to report routes, lines of business and major activities by income and expense. Fixed overhead expenses not allocated by route are to be reported separately by line item and expense category.
• Amtrak to make annual 5 year plan at the start of each fiscal year.
• Grants are to be made from separate accounts of Operating, Capital, ADA & Debt. 
• DOT Secretary has 30 days to approve or disapprove grant. If disapproved, Amtrak has 15 days to modify and DOT has 15 more days to accept. If modifications not approved, Secretary to submit discrepancies to relevant committees along with a process to resolve.
• Amtrak and States(including DC) to formulate within 2 years a single nationwide standard methodology for allocating revenue and costs (operating and capital) along with shared costs. Same methodology to apply to State Supported Corridors and High Speed Routes. If no agreement, then Surface Transportation Board to resolve.
• Amtrak with other bodies including unions and rail passenger advocacy groups to develop new metrics and minimum standards to measure train performance.
• FRA to issue quarterly report with new metrics applied.
• New Contracts with host railroads to incorporate metrics and minimum standards where practical.
• Within 9 months of enactment, Amtrak, DOT and States to prepare spending plan to have NE Corridor in a state of good repair by 2024. NE Corridor Infrastructure & Operations Advisory Commission established to, among other things, set an access fee formula for users of the corridor.
• Acela Study for Washington-New York City to determine needs, costs and potential stops for 2hr, 2 1/4 & 2 1/2 hrs service.
• Acela Study for Boston-New York City to determine needs, costs and potential stops for 3 1/4, 3 & 2 3/4 hrs service.
• DOT Secretary is allowed to renegotiate or assume Amtrak Debt.  Amtrak authorizations for debt to be reduced by savings. Authority lasts 18 months.
• An evaluation of ADA compliance requirements per station on costs, barriers to compliance and earliest practical date for compliance. Report due by July 1, 2009. If ADA rules change, supplementary report due in 120 days from change.
• FRA Administrator to monitor compliance with ADA Requirements.
  If State contracts with 3rd party to provide services in lieu of Amtrak, State and Amtrak may enter into an agreement whereby facilities, equipment and services of Amtrak can be used. If agreement can not be reached, and Surface Transportation Board deems use necessary and not detrimental to Amtrak’s other services, then the Surface Transportation Board is arbitrate agreement.
• Amtrak self-sufficiency requirement repealed.
• Amtrak may avail itself of services from General Service Administration.
• DOT Secretary to seek agreement with Canada to establish preclearance in Vancouver and other locations deemed appropriate.
• 3 years and 5 years after enactment, DOT-IG to do overall assessment of progress made by Amtrak management and DOT towards improving:1) financial planning, 2) financial accounting, 3) train performance, 4) revenues and reliance on federal subsidies, and any other aspect the IG deems applicable.
• Comptroller of Goverment Accounting Office to study potential cost and benefits of expanding rail service options in underserved communities. Report is due in one year from enactment.
• DOT Secretary may make grants up to 80% of projects that reduce congestion or facilitate ridership growth including:
  

  -Third Track into Main Street Station (Richmond) and around Acca Yards
  -Second Track from Main Street Station to Selma, North Carolina
  -Third Track from Seattle, Washington to Portland, Oregon
  -Separate passenger line from Chicago, Illinois to Porter, Indiana
  -or any similar project designated by DOT Secretary as being sufficiently advanced in development to warrant an expedited schedule.

• Amtrak within 9 months of enactment, is to issue plan for the restoration of service between New Orleans and Sanford, Florida including projected timeline, costs
  of restoring and proposals for legislation needed. $1Million authorized for preparation of plan.
• FRA to study extent to which Freight and Passenger trains could use biofuels in locomotives. Study to look at: Energy Intensity, Emission Benefits, Cost of purchase of
  fuel, public benefits and effect of use on locomotive performance. $1 Million authorized for study due 1 year from enactment.
• FRA to study within 180 days of enactment, readily biodegradable lubricants including soy-based grease and hydraulic fluids as well as other potential biodegrable lubricants as well as a comparison of health and safety effects of petroleum based lubricants versus biobased lubricants.
• Amtrak subject to Buy American Act for purchases over $100,000.00.
• DOT-IG to evaluate performance of intercity rail services 6 months after establishment of metric and minimum standards. Using those standards, IG to identify in a report to Congress, the five worst performing Amtrak routes. At the same time IG to establish criteria for evaluating routes not currently being served by Amtrak and to compare proposals by Amtrak and other proposed service providers on how to serve the underperforming and unserved routes. The IG would then recommend 1 route currently not being served and 2 of the 5 worst performing routes to Congress for action. DOT Secretary prohibited from implementing recommendation until authorized by Congress.

TITLE III: Intercity Passenger Rail Policy

• Defines “Capital Project” used as a basis of providing federal matching funds up to an 80% federal match.
• Defines “Intercity Passenger Rail Service” as transportation services with the primary purpose of passenger transportation between towns, cities and metropolitan areas by rail, including high speed rail.”
• Gives preference to projects that have high levels of ridership, increased OTP, reduced trip times, additional frequency, provide intermodal connectivity, improve freight and/or commuter operations, reduce highway or airport congestion, have significant environmental benefits, have positive economic development or employment benefits, and meet other specified criteria.
• Required USDOT to provide an “appropriate portion” of grant money to states in which the rail system is not physically connected to the continental US.
• Grants credits to states for 50% of the average capital expenditures for intercity rail made by them in the years FY2002 to FY2008 towards the state copayment to be made in the years
  FY2009 to FY2011.
• Grants additional credit (50%) of the average capital and operating support of intercity operations for years FY2007 and FY2008 that exceed the average amount for the years 2004-
  2008.
• Requires the development of a long-range federal rail policy that is consistent with the approved state rail plans and rail needs of the nation “in order to promote an integrated, cohesive, efficient and optimized national rail system for the movement of goods and people”.
• Requires states to develop State Rail Plans subject to US-DOT approval. Specifies criteria to be included in the plans.
• Establishes a committee to design, develop specifications for and to procure standardized next generation corridor equipment. May establish a pool of equipment for corridor use.
• Establishes a program to study rail passenger and freight technologies, incremental enhanced rail systems and infrastructure, and new high speed wheel on rail systems. Program also to study enhancing international traffic by rail, interchanges at ports and other intermodal nodes, interconnections of commuter rail, passenger rail, freight rail and other networks.
• Comptroller General of the United States to study and compare passenger rail systems in United States with Canada, Germany, France, Great Brittain, China, Spain & Japan.

TITLE V: High Speed Rail

• High Speed defined as “reasonably expected to reach speeds of at least 110 mph.
• Allows making of grants up to 80% of projects net capital costs.
• Competitive process in grant selection.
• Financing plan required for grant
• Domestic Buying Preference
• Operator of service subject to Railroad Retirement Act, Railway Labor Act and Railroad Unemployment.
• Operator of service must have written agreement with host railroad.
• Construction must be to at least the same standards that Amtrak would have to comply with.
• Any displaced workers are to be protected.
• Requires that 60 days after enactment that a request for proposals be solicited for project financing, design, construction and operation of an initial high speed rail system operating between Washington, DC and New York City to include a 2 hour express service.
• Allows for open bids in any other high speed corridor that the DOT Secretary deems viable.
• When competing bids received in the same corridor, DOT Secretary to establish a commission in each case to evaluate and recommend bidders.
• Commission to compose the following representatives or their delegates:
  

  -Governors of the effected states.
  -Rail Labor Representatives.
  -Affected Commuter Rail Authorities,
  -Rail Passenger advocates
  -Secretary DOT and President of Amtrak
  -Mayors of the three largest cities on route.

• 9 months after enactment, a Northeast Corridor Economic Development Study to issue report on:
  

  -Maximizing Utilization of Northeast Corridor
  -Potential Economic Development
  -Potential for Real Estate Development
  -Potential for improving intercity, commuter & freight rail.
  -Potential for separating high speed rail services.

• Secretary of DOT is to do an alternative analysis of Southeast High Speed Corridor based on the increased population along the route compared to previous study. Study
  due in one year from date of enactment.