Washington Update

On September 16, Congress released a short-term Continuing Resolution (CR) through November 20, 2025, to continue to fund the government into FY2026 at current levels. The bill will need to be passed in both the House and Senate before September 30 to avoid a government shutdown.
 
On September 9, REMSA met with members of USDOT Secretary Duffy’s Advisory Board to advocate for REMSA members’ priorities at the Department.
 
On September 3, the FRA announced its plan to increase the number of safety inspectors who monitor railroad bridges from less than 10 to more than 160. See more info here:
https://railroads.dot.gov/about-fra/communications/newsroom/press-releases/us-transportation-secretary-sean-p-duffy-2
 
On August 27, President Trump fired STB board member Robert Primus in an unprecedented move. On September 11, Trump nominated Richard Kloster to fill former STB Chairman Marty Oberman’s seat and re-nominated current member Michelle Schultz. The nominations will now go to the Senate for confirmation. The STB is currently preparing to review the proposed merger between UP and NS.