,i  #aafth ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #dcjf  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,september #ab1      
#bjai,mr4 ,de,fazio 7for himself and    
,mr4 ,malinowski7 introduced the        
following bill2 which was referred to   
the ,committee on ,transportation and   
,infrastructure  ,a ,,bill  ,to require 
the ,administrator of the ,federal      
,railroad ,administration to conduct an 
evaluation of the safety1 security1 and 
environmental risks of transporting     
liquefied natural gas by rail1 and for  
other purposes4  #a4 ,short title ,this 
,act may be cited as the ,protecting    
,communities from ,liquefied ,natural   
,gas ,trains ,act4  #b4 ,transportation 
of liquefied natural gas by rail  7a7   
,evaluation ,not later than #ah months  
after the date of enactment of this     
,act1 the ,administrator of the ,federal
 ,railroad ,administration1 in          
coordination with the ,administrator of 
the ,pipeline and ,hazardous ,materials 
,safety ,administration1 shall conduct  

an evaluation of the safety1 security1  
and environmental risks of transporting 
liquefied natural gas by rail4  7b7     
,testing ,in conducting the evaluation  
under subsection 7a71 the ,administrator
 of the ,federal ,railroad              
,administration shall--  7#a7 perform   
physical testing of rail tank cars1     
including1 at a minimum1 the ,,dot-#aac 
specification1 to ensure such rail tank 
cars are able to withstand the effects  
of an accident or impact and prevent or 
mitigate the release of liquefied       
natural gas2  7#b7 analyze multiple     
release scenarios1 including            
derailments1 front-end collisions1      
rear-end collisions1 side-impact        
collisions1 grade-crossing collisions1  
punctures1 and impact of an incendiary  
device1 at a minimum of #c speeds of    
travel with a sufficient range of speeds
 to evaluate the safety1 security1 and  
environmental risks posed under         
real-world operating conditions2 and    
7#c7 examine the effects of exposure to 

climate conditions across rail networks1
 including temperature1 humidity1 and   
any other factors that the              
,administrator of the ,federal ,railroad
 ,administration determines could       
influence performance of the inner or   
outer walls of rail tank cars4  7c7     
,other factors ,to consider ,in         
conducting the evaluation under         
subsection 7a71 the ,administrator of   
the ,federal ,railroad ,administration  
shall evaluate the impact of a discharge
 of liquefied natural gas from a rail   
tank car on public safety and the       
environment1 and consider--  7#a7 the   
benefits of route restrictions1 speed   
restrictions1 enhanced brake            
requirements1 personnel requirements1   
rail tank car technological             
requirements1 and other operating       
controls2  7#b7 the advisability of     
consist restrictions1 including         
limitations on the arrangement and      
quantity of rail cars carrying liquefied
 natural gas in any given consist2  7#c7

 the identification of potential impact 
areas1 and the number of homes and      
structures that would be endangered by a
 discharge in rural1 suburban1 and urban
 environments2  7#d7 the impact of      
discharge on the environment1 including 
examining environmentally sensitive     
areas with rail tracks that move through
 them2  7#e7 the benefits of advanced   
notification to the ,department of      
,transportation1 ,state ,emergency      
,response ,commissions1 and ,tribal     
,emergency ,response ,commissions of    
routes for moving liquefied natural gas 
by rail tank car2  7#f7 how first       
responders respond to a discharge1      
including the extent to which           
specialized equipment or training would 
be required and the cost to communities 
for acquiring any necessary equipment or
 training2  7#g7 whether thermal        
radiation could occur from a discharge2 
7#h7 an evaluation of rail tank cars    
authorized by the ,secretary of         
,transportation1 a determination of     

which rail tank car would provide the   
best outcome in the event of a          
discharge1 and a determination of       
whether a new standard is necessary to  
ensure the safety of rail transport of  
liquefied natural gas2 and  7#i7 the    
risks posed by the transportation of    
liquefied natural gas by ,international 
,standard for ,organization containers  
authorized by the ,federal ,railroad    
,administration4  7d7 ,report ,not later
 than #b years after the date of        
enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary  
of ,transportation shall submit to the  
,committee on ,transportation and       
,infrastructure of the ,house of        
,representatives and the ,committee on  
,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation
 of the ,senate1 and make available to  
the public--  7#a7 a report based on the
 evaluation and testing conducted under 
subsections 7a7 and 7b71 which shall    
include the results of the evaluation   
and testing and recommendations for     
mitigating or eliminating the safety1   

security1 environmental1 and other risks
 of an accident or incident involving   
the transportation of liquefied natural 
gas by rail2 and  7#b7 a complete list  
of all research related to the          
transportation of liquefied natural gas 
by rail conducted by the ,federal       
,railroad ,administration1 the ,pipeline
 and ,hazardous ,materials ,safety      
,administration1 or any other entity of 
the ,department of ,transportation since
 #bjaj that includes1 for each research 
item--  7,a7 the title of any reports or
 studies produced with respect to the   
research2  7,b7 the agency1 entity1 or  
organization performing the research2   
7,c7 the names of all authors and       
co-authors of any report or study       
produced with respect to the research2  
and  7,d7 the date any related report   
was published or is expected to publish4
  7e7 ,data reporting ,the              
,administrator of the ,federal ,railroad
 ,administration and the ,administrator 
of the ,pipeline and ,hazardous         

,materials ,safety ,administration shall
 collect any relevant data necessary to 
complete the evaluation required by     
subsection 7a74  7f7 ,,gao report ,after
 the evaluation required by subsection  
7a7 has been completed1 the ,comptroller
 ,general of the ,united ,states shall  
conduct an independent evaluation to    
ensure the ,federal ,railroad           
,administration and the ,pipeline and   
,hazardous ,materials ,safety           
,administration complied with the       
requirements of this ,act1 and transmit 
to the ,committee on ,transportation and
 ,infrastructure of the ,house of       
,representatives and the ,committee on  
,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation
 of the ,senate a report on the findings
 of such independent evaluation4  7g7   
,congressional review requirements  7#a7
 ,review period defined ,in this        
subsection1 the term review period means
 the period beginning on the date of    
enactment of this ,act and ending on the
 earlier of-- 7,a7 the date that is #a  

year after the date of completion of the
 report under subsection 7f72 or  7,b7  
the date that is #d years after the date
 of enactment of this ,act4  7#b7       
,congressional authority ,the ,secretary
 of ,transportation may not issue any   
regulation authorizing the              
transportation of liquefied natural gas 
by rail or authorize such transportation
 through issuance of a special permit or
 approval before the conclusion of the  
review period4