BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1618|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1618
Author: Firebaugh (D), et al
Amended: 9/4/03 in Senate
Vote: 27 - Urgency
SENATE ENERGY, U.&C. COMMITTEE : 6-0, 8/28/03
AYES: Bowen, Alarcon, Battin, Dunn, Murray, Vasconcellos
NO VOTE RECORDED: Morrow, McClintock, Sher
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SENATE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE : Not relevant
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : Not relevant
SUBJECT : Railroad corporations: derailments
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires railroad corporations to
develop a protocol to quickly inform the State Office of
Emergency Services and local public safety agencies when
there is a runaway train or other uncontrolled train
movement.
NOTE: Senate amendments delete the prior version which
related to motor vehicle dealers.
ANALYSIS : Current federal law provides the Federal
Railroad Administration (FRA) with the authority to
establish safety and operating standards for interstate
CONTINUED
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railroads. Enforcement of those standards has been
delegated by the FRA to the State Public Utilities
Commission (PUC).
Current state law requires the PUC to investigate any
railroad accidents.
Current PUC regulations require railroads to immediately
notify local public safety agencies of any release or
threatened release of any hazardous materials where there
is a reasonable belief that the release poses a significant
harm to people, property, or the environment.
This bill requires the PUC to require every railroad
corporation to, by March 1, 2004, in consultation with, and
with approval by, the State Office of Emergency Services
(OES), develop a protocol to quickly inform OES and local
public safety agencies when there is a runaway train or any
other uncontrolled train movement that threatens public
health and safety.
This bill provides that a railroad corporation must
promptly notify the Office of Emergency Services and
designated local public safety agencies if there is a
runaway train or any other uncontrolled train movement that
threatens public health and safety, pursuant to the
railroad corporation's communications protocol developed
pursuant to this bill.
Background
On June 20, 2003, 31 cars of a Union Pacific (UP) freight
train escaped from a rail yard in Montclair, rolling
uncontrolled through Pomona and reaching speeds of up to 86
miles per hour. Twenty five minutes after breaking free,
and 28 miles down the tracks, the cars were intentionally
derailed in the City of Commerce, destroying two homes and
damaging several others, but causing no loss of life or
injuries.
Local public safety authorities were not notified by UP at
any time before the derailment, though there is no legal
obligation for the railroad operator to do so.
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The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the PUC
are independently investigating the accident. The PUC
expects to issue its report in September or October, while
the NTSB report is expected sometime before the end of the
year.
Comments
While a major disaster was avoided when the UP railcars
were derailed in Commerce, that was more a matter of luck
than planning. The absence of any requirement to notify
down-track public safety officials of a runaway train is a
glaring hole in railroad safety regulation. This bill
simply requires railroads to establish communications
procedures with those public safety agencies and OES. This
bill provides the railroads with flexibility in
establishing those procedures and it does not require the
PUC to develop the procedures itself.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 9/4/03)
Union Pacific Railroad Company
City of Commerce
The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company
Union Pacific Railroad Company
NC:mel 9/4/03 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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