Keeping China Off the Rails Act

Summary#

This bill, called the Keeping China Off the Rails Act, changes which railroad freight cars must meet certain manufacturing and content requirements under title 49 of the U.S. Code. It replaces an earlier wording so that the rule applies to "railroad freight car described in paragraph (3)." Paragraph (3) sets a phased schedule based on the car's production date: for the first year after enactment, covered cars are those produced in the 2 years before enactment; in the second year, covered cars are those produced in the 5 years before enactment; in the third year, covered cars are those produced in the 10 years before enactment; in the fourth year, covered cars are those produced in the 15 years before enactment; and starting 4 years after enactment, the rule applies to all railroad freight cars. The bill also corrects a reference to the Association of American Railroads' Umler system.

What it means for you#

• The bill defines which freight cars are subject to the manufacturing and content requirements by listing the production-year ranges that count during each year of the phase-in.
• Owners, operators, and manufacturers of freight cars would need to check a car's production date to know whether it falls under the rule during each phase.
• The bill updates the name of the railroad data system referenced in the law (Umler).

Expenses#

No publicly available information on costs, funding, penalties, or specific enforcement mechanisms is included in the bill text or metadata provided.

Proponents' View#

No publicly available information on proponents' arguments or statements is included in the bill text or metadata provided.

Opponents' View#

No publicly available information on opponents' arguments or statements is included in the bill text or metadata provided.