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<ns0:Id>20250SB__066794AMD</ns0:Id>
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<ns0:ActionText>INTRODUCED</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2025-02-20</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:ActionText>AMENDED_SENATE</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2025-03-24</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:ActionDate>2025-04-08</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:ActionText>AMENDED_SENATE</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2025-04-29</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:ActionText>AMENDED_SENATE</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2026-01-05</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:ActionText>AMENDED_SENATE</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2026-01-22</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:AuthorText authorType="LEAD_AUTHOR">Introduced by Senator Archuleta</ns0:AuthorText>
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<ns0:House>SENATE</ns0:House>
<ns0:Name>Archuleta</ns0:Name>
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<ns0:Title>An act to add Section 7615 to the Public Utilities Code, relating to transportation.</ns0:Title>
<ns0:RelatingClause>transportation</ns0:RelatingClause>
<ns0:GeneralSubject>
<ns0:Subject>Railroads: safety: wayside detectors.</ns0:Subject>
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<html:p>The existing Federal Railroad Safety Act (FRSA) authorizes the United States Secretary of Transportation to prescribe regulations and issue orders for railroad safety and requires the United States Secretary of Homeland Security, when prescribing a security regulation or issuing a security order that affects the safety of railroad operations, to consult with the United States Secretary of Transportation. The FRSA provides for state participation in the enforcement of the safety regulations and orders issued by the United States Secretary of Transportation or the United States Secretary of Homeland Security, pursuant to an annual certification, and authorizes the respective secretaries to make an agreement with a state to provide investigative and surveillance activities. The FRSA provides that, to the extent practicable, laws, regulations, and orders related to railroad safety and
security are required to be nationally uniform, but authorizes a state to adopt or continue in force a law, regulation, or order related to railroad safety or security until the United States Secretary of Transportation, with respect to railroad safety matters, or the United States Secretary of Homeland Security, with respect to railroad security matters, prescribes a regulation or issues an order covering the subject matter of the state requirement. A state is additionally authorized to adopt or continue in force an additional or more stringent law, regulation, or order related to railroad safety or security, when necessary to eliminate or reduce an essentially local safety or security hazard, that is not incompatible with a federal law, regulation, or order, and that does not unreasonably burden interstate commerce.</html:p>
<html:p>This bill would require a railroad corporation to install and operate a network of wayside detector systems on or adjacent to any track used by a
freight train, require that each wayside detector system include a hot wheel bearing detector, and prescribe the maximum spacing for individual detection devices along a continuous track. The bill would define “wayside detector system” to mean an electronic device or series of connected devices that scans passing freight trains and their component equipment and parts for defects. The bill would require the
Public Utilities Commission to adopt rules and processes to implement these provisions, including a penalty of not less than $25,000 for violating these provisions, as provided. The bill would
not apply to a class II or class III carrier that has a speed limit of 10 miles per hour or less.</html:p>
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<ns0:Preamble>The people of the State of California do enact as follows:</ns0:Preamble>
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<ns0:Num>SECTION 1.</ns0:Num>
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Section 7615 is added to the
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, to read:
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<ns0:Num>7615.</ns0:Num>
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(a)
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For purposes of this section, “wayside detector system” means an electronic device or a series of connected devices that scan passing freight trains and their component equipment and parts for defects, which may include, but are not limited to, hot wheel bearings, hot wheels, defective bearings that are detected through acoustics, dragging equipment, excessive height or weight, shifted loads, low hoses, excessive rail temperature, and poor wheel
condition.
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<html:p>
(b)
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A railroad corporation shall install and operate a network of wayside detector systems on or adjacent to any track that is used by a freight train. Each wayside detector system shall include a hot wheel bearing detector and be located no farther from the following distances from another wayside detector system on a continuous track:
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(1)
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For a class I carrier railroad, no farther than 10 miles.
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(2)
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For a class II carrier railroad, no farther than 25 miles.
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(3)
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For a class III carrier railroad, no farther than 35 miles.
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(c)
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If a freight train is operating on a track between wayside detector systems that do not comply with the spacing requirements of subdivision (b), then it shall not travel faster than 10 miles per hour and may only travel faster than 10 miles per hour after it passes a wayside detector system that is in compliance with the spacing requirements of subdivision (b) and has received a message from the wayside detector system indicating that there are no defects.
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(d)
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The commission shall adopt rules and processes to implement this section. The rules and processes shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
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<html:p>
(1)
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Minimum requirements for the wayside detector systems applicable to railroad corporations in the state and a process for railroad corporations to submit their wayside detector systems to the commission for review and approval.
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<html:p>
(2)
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A process for freight train crews to receive alerts from wayside detector systems and standards for freight train inspections to be conducted following the receipt of an alert from a wayside detector system, including the obligation of a railroad corporation to ensure that railroad employees are aware of these standards.
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(3)
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A penalty of not less than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) for each violation of this section by a railroad corporation.
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(e)
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This section shall not apply to a railroad track owned or leased by a class II or class III carrier that has a speed limit of 10 miles per hour or less.
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