National Transportation Safety Board Reauthorization Act of 2006

        [Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3679 Referred in House (RFH)]

109th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 3679

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

September 25, 2006

Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

AN ACT

To authorize appropriations for the National Transportation Safety
Board, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``National
Transportation Safety Board Reauthorization Act of 2006''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Reports.
Sec. 3. Contracting requirements for investigation services.
Sec. 4. Technical corrections.
Sec. 5. AMTRAK plan to assist families of passengers involved in rail
passenger accidents.
Sec. 6. Inspector General of the National Transportation Safety Board.
Sec. 7. Audit procedures.
Sec. 8. DOT Inspector General to investigate Central Artery project
contractors and oversight agencies.
Sec. 9. Implementation of NTSB's ``Most Wanted Transportation Safety
Improvements, 2006''.
Sec. 10. Authorization of appropriations.

SEC. 2. REPORTS.

(a) Annual Reports.--
(1) In general.--Section 1117 of title 49, United States
Code, is amended--
(A) by striking ``and'' after the semicolon in
paragraph (2);
(B) by striking ``State.'' in paragraph (3) and
inserting ``State;''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(4) a description of the activities and operations of the
National Transportation Safety Board Academy during the prior
calendar year;
``(5) a list of accidents during the prior calendar year
that the Board was required to investigate under section 1131
of this title but did not investigate, and an explanation of
why they were not investigated; and
``(6) a list of ongoing investigations that have exceeded
the expected time allotted for completion by Board order and an
explanation for the additional time required to complete each
such investigation.''.
(2) Utilization plan.--
(A) Plan.--Within 90 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the National Transportation
Safety Board shall--
(i) develop a plan to achieve the self-
sufficient operation of the National
Transportation Safety Board Academy and utilize
fully the Academy's facilities and resources;
(ii) submit a draft of the plan to the
Comptroller General for review and comment; and
(iii) submit a draft of the plan to the
Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation and the House of Representatives
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
(B) Plan development considerations.--The Board
shall--
(i) give consideration in developing the
plan to subleasing the facility to another
entity or other revenue-generating measures;
and
(ii) include in the plan a detailed
financial statement that covers current Academy
expenses and revenues and an analysis of the
projected impact of the plan on the Academy's
expenses and revenues.
(C) Report.--Within 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the National Transportation
Safety Board shall submit a report to the Senate
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and
the House of Representatives Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure that includes--
(i) an updated copy of the plan;
(ii) any comments and recommendations made
by the Comptroller General pursuant to the
Government Accountability Office's review of
the draft plan; and
(iii) a response to the Comptroller
General's comments and recommendations,
including a description of any modifications
made to the plan in response to those comments
and recommendations.
(D) Implementation.--The plan shall be fully
implemented within 2 years after the date of enactment
of this Act.
(b) DOT Report on Compliance With Recommendations.--Within 90 days
after the Secretary of Transportation submits a report under section
1135(d) of title 49, United States Code, the National Transportation
Safety Board shall review the Secretary's report and transmit comments
on the report to the Secretary, the Senate Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation and the House of Representatives Committee
on Transportation and Infrastructure.
(c) Transportation Safety Reauthorization Recommendations.--The
Board shall, as appropriate, provide recommendations and comments to
the Congress pertaining to pending transportation safety legislation.

SEC. 3. CONTRACTING REQUIREMENTS FOR INVESTIGATION SERVICES.

(a) In General.--Section 1113(b) of title 49, United States Code,
is amended--
(1) by striking ``and'' after the semicolon in paragraph
(1)(H);
(2) by redesignating subparagraph (I) as subparagraph (J)
in paragraph (1);
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (H) of paragraph (1)
the following:
``(I) for an investigation under section 1131, enter into
agreements or contracts without regard to any other provision of law
requiring competition, if necessary to expedite the investigation;
and''; and
(4) by striking ``(1)(I)'' each place it appears in
paragraph (2) and inserting ``(1)(J)''.
(b) Report on Usage.--Section 1117 of title 49, United States Code,
as amended by section 2, is further amended--
(1) by striking ``and'' after the semicolon in paragraph
(5);
(2) by striking ``investigation.'' in paragraph (6) and
inserting ``investigation; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(7) a description of each contract executed during the
preceding calendar year under the authority of section
1113(b)(1)(I), and the rationale for dispensing with
competition requirements with respect to each such contract.''.

SEC. 4. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS.

(a) Functional Unit for Marine Investigations.--Section 1111(g) of
title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(5) marine.''.
(b) Marine Casualty Investigations.--Section 1131(a)(1)(E) of title
49, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking ``on the navigable waters or territorial
sea of the United States,'' and inserting ``on the navigable
waters, all internal waters, and the territorial sea of the
United States,''; and
(2) by inserting ``(as defined in section 2101(46))'' after
``vessel of the United States''.
(c) Reference to Departmental Authority.--Section 1131(c)(1) of
title 49, United States Code, is amended by inserting ``or the
Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating''
after ``Transportation''.
(d) Appointment of Managing Director.--Section 1111 of title 49,
United States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking paragraph (1) of subsection (e) and
inserting the following:
``(1) appoint and supervise officers and employees, other
than regular and fulltime employees in the immediate offices of
another member, necessary to carry out this chapter;'';
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection
(e) as paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively, and inserting
after paragraph (1) the following:
``(2) fix the pay of officers and employees necessary to
carry out this chapter;'';
(3) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection (k); and
(4) by inserting after subsection (h) the following:
``(i) Managing Director.--The Board shall have a Managing Director
who shall be--
``(1) appointed by the Chairman, in consultation with the
Board; and
``(2) approved by the Board, pursuant to a procedure
developed and adopted by the Board.
``(j) Board Member Staff.--Each member of the Board shall appoint
and supervise regular and fulltime employees in his or her immediate
office as long as any such employee has been approved for employment by
the designated agency ethics official under the same guidelines that
apply to all employees of the Board. The appointment authority provided
by this subsection is limited to the number of fulltime equivalent
positions, in addition to 1 senior professional staff at the GS-15
level and 1 administrative staff, allocated each member through the
Board's annual budget and allocation process.''.
(e) Board Approval.--Section 1113(c) of title 49, United States
Code, is amended by inserting ``The Board shall develop and approve a
process for the Board's review and comment or approval of documents
submitted to the President, Director of the Office of Management and
Budget, or the Congress under this subsection.'' after ``Congress.''.
(f) Investigation Tracking System.--Within 6 months after the date
of enactment of this Act, the National Transportation Safety Board
shall develop and implement a process or system available to all Board
members that tracks the status and activities associated with all
ongoing and pending investigations undertaken by the Board, including
the expected completion date, staff assignments, and such other
information as the Board may require for the investigations.
(g) Investigative Officers.--Section 1113 of title 49, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end thereof the following:
``(h) Investigative Officers.--The Board shall maintain at least 1
fulltime employee in each State located more than 1,000 miles from the
nearest Board regional office to provide initial investigative response
to accidents the Board is empowered to investigate under this chapter
that occur in those States.''.

SEC. 5. AMTRAK PLAN TO ASSIST FAMILIES OF PASSENGERS INVOLVED IN RAIL
PASSENGER ACCIDENTS.

(a) In General.--Chapter 243 of title 49, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 24316. Plans to address needs of families of passengers involved
in rail passenger accidents
``(a) Submission of Plan.--Not later than 6 months after the date
of the enactment of the National Transportation Safety Board
Reauthorization Act of 2006, Amtrak shall submit to the Chairman of the
National Transportation Safety Board, the Secretary of Transportation,
and the Secretary of Homeland Security a plan for addressing the needs
of the families of passengers involved in any rail passenger accident
involving an Amtrak intercity train and resulting in a loss of life.
``(b) Contents of Plans.--The plan to be submitted by Amtrak under
subsection (a) shall include, at a minimum, the following:
``(1) A process by which Amtrak will maintain and provide
to the National Transportation Safety Board and the Secretary
of Transportation, immediately upon request, a list (which is
based on the best available information at the time of the
request) of the names of the passengers aboard the train
(whether or not such names have been verified), and will
periodically update the list. The plan shall include a
procedure, with respect to unreserved trains and passengers not
holding reservations on other trains, for Amtrak to use
reasonable efforts to ascertain the number and names of
passengers aboard a train involved in an accident.
``(2) A plan for creating and publicizing a reliable, toll-
free telephone number within 4 hours after such an accident
occurs, and for providing staff, to handle calls from the
families of the passengers.
``(3) A process for notifying the families of the
passengers, before providing any public notice of the names of
the passengers, by suitably trained individuals.
``(4) A process for providing the notice described in
paragraph (2) to the family of a passenger as soon as Amtrak
has verified that the passenger was aboard the train (whether
or not the names of all of the passengers have been verified).
``(5) A process by which the family of each passenger will
be consulted about the disposition of all remains and personal
effects of the passenger within Amtrak's control; that any
possession of the passenger within Amtrak's control will be
returned to the family unless the possession is needed for the
accident investigation or any criminal investigation; and that
any unclaimed possession of a passenger within Amtrak's control
will be retained by the rail passenger carrier for at least 18
months.
``(6) A process by which the treatment of the families of
nonrevenue passengers will be the same as the treatment of the
families of revenue passengers.
``(7) An assurance that Amtrak will provide adequate
training to its employees and agents to meet the needs of
survivors and family members following an accident.
``(c) Use of Information.--The National Transportation Safety
Board, the Secretary of Transportation, and Amtrak may not release any
personal information on a list obtained under subsection (b)(1) but may
provide information on the list about a passenger to the family of the
passenger to the extent that the Board or Amtrak considers appropriate.
``(d) Limitation on Liability.--Amtrak shall not be liable for
damages in any action brought in a Federal or State court arising out
of the performance of Amtrak in preparing or providing a passenger
list, or in providing information concerning a train reservation,
pursuant to a plan submitted by Amtrak under subsection (b), unless
such liability was caused by Amtrak's conduct.
``(e) Limitation on Statutory Construction.--Nothing in this
section may be construed as limiting the actions that Amtrak may take,
or the obligations that Amtrak may have, in providing assistance to the
families of passengers involved in a rail passenger accident.
``(f) Funding.--There shall be made available to the Secretary of
Transportation for the use of Amtrak $500,000 for fiscal year 2007 to
carry out this section. Amounts made available pursuant to this
subsection shall remain available until expended.''.
(b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 243 of
title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following:

``24316.  Plan to assist families of passengers involved in rail
passenger accidents.''.

SEC. 6. INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD.

(a) In General.--Section 1137 of title 49, United States Code, is
amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 1137. Designation of the Department of Transportation Inspector
General as Inspector General of the National
Transportation Safety Board
``(a) Establishment of Inspector General of the National
Transportation Safety Board.--In order to promote economy, efficiency,
and effectiveness in the administration of, and to prevent and detect
fraud and abuse in the programs, operations, and activities of the
National Transportation Safety Board, the Inspector General of the
Department of Transportation shall serve as the Inspector General of
the National Transportation Safety Board.
``(b) Authority of the Inspector General.--
``(1) The Inspector General shall exercise such authority
as provided by the Inspector General Act of 1978, and other
applicable laws, over Board programs, operations and activities
not directly associated with specific accident investigations
or adjudications, including--
``(A) financial management, property management,
and business operations, including internal accounting
and administrative control systems;
``(B) information management and security,
including privacy protection of personally identifiable
information;
``(C) resource management;
``(D) workforce development;
``(E) procurement and contracting planning,
practices and policies;
``(F) malfeasance in office by Board employees and
contractors; and
``(G) allegations of false statements, fraud, and
other criminal activity within the jurisdiction of the
Board.
``(2) In consultation with the Senate Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation or the House Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, the Inspector
General may conduct an audit, investigation, or other review on
matters not described in subparagraphs (A) through (G) of
paragraph (1).
``(c) Duties.--In carrying out this section, the Inspector General
shall--
``(1) report directly to the Chairman of the Committee and
ensure that the Chairman is kept fully and currently informed
concerning fraud and other serious problems, abuses, and
deficiencies relating to the administration of programs,
operations, and activities of the Board;
``(2) recommend to the Chairman corrective action
concerning such problems, abuses, and deficiencies;
``(3) report to the Chairman on the progress made in
implementing such corrective action; and
``(4) promptly notify the Chairman on any problems related
to access for information or carrying out an audit or
investigation.
``(d) Information Provided to Board Members.--The Inspector General
and Chairman shall ensure that all members of the Board are informed of
major work in progress through regular and periodic briefings and, as
appropriate, on a timelier basis for matters of a significant nature.
``(e) Authorization for Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation for use by the
Inspector General of the Department of Transportation such sums as may
be necessary to cover expenses associated with activities pursuant to
the authority exercised as the Inspector General of the Board. In the
absence of an appropriation, the Inspector General and the Board shall
have a reimbursable agreement to cover such expenses.''.
(b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 11 of
title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking the item relating
to section 1137 and inserting the following:

``1137. Designation of the Department of Transportation Inspector
General as Inspector General of the
National Transportation Safety Board''.

SEC. 7. AUDIT PROCEDURES.

The National Transportation Safety Board, in consultation with the
Inspector General, shall continue to develop and implement
comprehensive internal audit controls for its operations. The audit
controls shall, at a minimum, address Board asset management systems,
including systems for accounting management, debt collection, travel,
and property and inventory management and control.

SEC. 8. DOT INSPECTOR GENERAL TO INVESTIGATE CENTRAL ARTERY PROJECT
CONTRACTORS AND OVERSIGHT AGENCIES.

(a) In General.--The Inspector General of the Department of
Transportation shall investigate the contractors involved in the
development and construction of the Central Artery tunnel project in
Boston, Massachusetts, and the public agencies that oversaw their work,
including the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority and the Federal Highway
Administration.
(b) Priorities and Procedure.--In carrying out the mandate provided
by subsection (a), the Inspector General shall--
(1) oversee any investigations related to the collapse of
ceiling plates in the tunnel on July 10, 2006;
(2) oversee a comprehensive review of the safety of the
Central Artery project; and
(3) audit and investigate parties involved in the
construction, maintenance, and oversight of the Central Artery
project, including the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority and the
Federal Highway Administration, in order to determine whether
the collapse of ceiling plates in the tunnel on July 10, 2006,
resulted from whether poor planning, development, construction,
or other factors.

SEC. 9. IMPLEMENTATION OF NTSB'S ``MOST WANTED TRANSPORTATION SAFETY
IMPROVEMENTS, 2006''.

Within 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall submit a
report to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
and the House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure explaining why the Federal Aviation Administration has
not implemented the aviation recommendations in the NTSB's ``Most
Wanted Transportation Safety Improvements, 2006''.

SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

(a) In General.--Section 1118(a) of title 49, United States Code,
is amended--
(1) by striking ``and'' after ``2005,''; and
(2) by striking ``2006.'' and inserting ``2006, $79,594,000
for fiscal year 2007, and $84,382,432 for fiscal year 2008.''.
(b) Emergency Fund.--Section 1118(b) of title 49, United States
Code, is amended to read as follows:
``(b) Emergency Fund.--There are authorized to be appropriated for
necessary expenses of the Board, not otherwise provided for, for
accident investigations amounts sufficient to maintain the emergency
fund at a level not to exceed $4,000,000, such sums to remain available
until expended.''.
(c) Fees, Refunds, and Reimbursements.--
(1) In general.--Section 1118(c) of title 49, United States
Code, is amended--
(A) by striking ``Academy.--'' and inserting
``Fees, Refunds, and Reimbursements.--'';
(B) by striking paragraph (1) and redesignating
paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) as paragraphs (1), (2),
and (3), respectively, and resetting each such
paragraph 2 ems from the left margin;
(C) by striking paragraph (1), as redesignated, and
inserting the following:
``(1) In general.--The Board may impose and collect such
fees, refunds, and reimbursements as it determines to be
appropriate for services provided by or through the Board.'';
(D) by striking ``fee'' the first place it appears
in paragraph (2), as redesignated, and inserting ``fee,
refund, or reimbursement''; and
(E) by striking ``imposed;'' in subparagraphs (A)
and (B) of paragraph (2), as redesignated, and
inserting ``imposed or with which the refund or
reimbursement is associated;''.
(2) Effective date.--The amendments made by paragraph (1)
shall take effect on October 1, 2005.
(d) Report.--Section 1118(d) of title 49, United States Code, is
repealed.

Passed the Senate September 25, 2006.

Attest:

EMILY J. REYNOLDS,

Secretary.