DHS Announces Final Rule on Railroad Security Standards

DHS announced today on its web site the publication of the TSA’s final rule on Rail Transportation Security (49 CFR parts 1520 and 1580). Official publication in the Federal Register is expected shortly. The regulations will take effect 30 days after their publication in the Federal Register. Summary of Final Rule According to the DHS Fact Sheet posted today,

“The Rail Security final rule will require freight and passenger rail carriers to designate rail security coordinators and report significant security concerns to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The rule also will codify TSA’s broad inspection authority. For freight rail, the rule will ensure the positive handoff of security-sensitive materials as well as establish security protocols for custody transfers of security-sensitive material rail cars between receivers of these materials that are located in high threat urban areas, shippers of these materials, and rail carriers.”

Freight Rail and PIH/TIH Chemicals According to the summary section of the final rule:

“This rule further requires that freight rail carriers and certain facilities handling specified hazardous materials be able to (1) report location and shipping information to TSA upon request and (2) implement chain of custody requirements to ensure a positive and secure exchange of specified hazardous materials. TSA also clarifies and amends the sensitive security information (SSI) protections to cover certain information associated with rail transportation.”

More Detailed Review I will be conducting a more detailed review of this final regulation in upcoming blogs.