12 2 STA T .48 8 3PUBLIC LA W 11 0– 432 —O CT. 1 6, 2008 TI T LE I V—RA ILR O A DS A F ET Y E NH AN C E M ENTS SEC.401 . MIN IM U M TRA ININ G STAN D ARDS AND PL ANS. (a)AMEND MEN T.—Subch a pterI I of chapter 201, a s a m e nd ed b y sect i on 210 of this di v ision, is further amended by addin g at the end the fo l lo w ing new section
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‘ §2016 2 .Min i mu m tra inin gs tan d ards and pl ans ‘ ‘(a) IN G ENE RAL .— T he Secretary of Transportation shall, not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the R ail Safety Improvement Act of 200 8 , establish— ‘‘(1) minimum training standards for each class and craft of safety - related railroad employee (as defined in section 20102) and e q uivalent railroad carrier contractor and subcontractor employees, which shall require railroad carriers, contractors, and subcontractors to qualify or otherwise document the pro- ficiency of such employees in each such class and craft regarding their k nowledge of, and ability to comply with, F ed- eral railroad safety laws and regulations and railroad carrier rules and procedures promulgated to implement those Federal railroad safety laws and regulations
‘‘(2) a requirement that railroad carriers, contractors, and subcontractors develop and submit training and qualification plans to the Secretary for approval, including training programs and information deemed necessary by the Secretary to ensure that all safety-related railroad employees receive appropriate training in a timely manner; and ‘‘( 3 ) a minimum training curriculum, and ongoing training criteria, testing, and skills evaluation measures to ensure that safety-related railroad employees, and contractor and subcon- tractor employees, charged with the inspection of track or rail- road equipment are qualified to assess railroad compliance with Federal standards to identify defective conditions and initiate immediate remedial action to correct critical safety defects that are known to contribute to derailments, accidents, incidents, or in j uries, and, in implementing the requirements of this paragraph, take into consideration e x isting training programs of railroad carriers. ‘‘(b) A P PR OV AL.—The Secretary shall review and approve the plans required under subsection (a)(2) utili z ing an approval process required for programs to certify the qualification of locomotive engi- neers pursuant to part 2 4 0oftitle4 9 , C ode of Federal Regulations. ‘‘(c) EX EMPT I ON.—The Secretary may exempt railroad carriers and railroad carrier contractors and subcontractors from submitting training plans for which the Secretary has issued training regula- tions before the date of enactment of the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008. ’ ’. (b) CON F ORMIN G AMENDMENT.—The chapter analysis for chapter 201, as amended by section 210 of this division, is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 201 6 1 the following: ‘ ‘ 2016 2 .Min i mu m tra inin gs tan d ards and pl ans. ’ ’. Requir e m e nts.D e adl ine.
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