Nevada officials delay hearing on rail safety

Monday, March 20, 2000 | 11:29 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- A new law designed to protect small businesses from burdensome government rules prompted the state Public Utilities Commission to delay a public hearing on increased railroad safety regulations.

Commissioner Richard McIntire last week ordered the PUC staff to conduct a study on the impact of the proposed regulation that is being sought by unions for railroad workers and opposed by the railroads.

The law, which became effective Jan. 1, calls for the state or a local government to hold workshops on proposed regulations to determine if the rules would have a "direct and significant burden" on companies with fewer than 150 employees. The study must include whether the regulation will restrict or hinder the expansion of the companies.

McIntire suggested the new law may not technically apply in the railroad case since the commission has already held four workshops, but he said he wanted to comply "in spirit" with the statute.

The utilities commission may be among the first, if not the first, state agency to conduct the impact statement.

The law, authored by Assemblyman David Goldwater, D-Las Vegas, received little notice during the 1999 Legislature. But it could have a major impact when state and local governments adopt new regulations.

If the agency determines there is a "direct and significant burden" on small businesses, then it must work with the companies to reduce the impact, such as lowering the standards for small companies, imposing smaller fines for violations and simplifying the proposed rule.

The regulation discussed Thursday concerns railroad spurs to companies, which could be forced to upgrade safety standards at a cost of thousands of dollars.

James T. Mular, regional legislative director for the Transportation Communications International Union, said he didn't think the regulations would affect small businesses. But McIntire, who is the presiding officer in the case, decided on the delay to allow time for the impact study.

The proposed regulations deal with the transportation and storage of hazardous materials, construction and maintenance of walkways near the tracks, fencing enclosures of abandoned railroad yards and repair and replacement of certain railroad devices.

Mular said the union's proposal on the tracking of hazardous waste aboard trains is "far more stringent" than the federal regulations. He suggested the state can adopt its own policy, as long as it is more strict than the federal government's.

But Carol Harris, attorney for Union Pacific Railroad, disputed whether the rules are more strict than the federal standards. She said the proposed regulation was "different" than the federal government's.

Harris said the state already has an inspector certified by the federal government to monitor the shipment of dangerous materials through Nevada.

The state regulation would require the railroads to report the type and quantity of hazardous materials being shipped through Nevada. There must be a 24-hour telephone number available to call for the railroad dispatcher in emergencies and the name and address of the railroad employee in charge of managing hazardous materials.

It requires railroads to develop emergency planning in case there is a release of the hazardous materials being shipped. And there are additional reports that must be made to the state.

The most contentious part of the regulation applies to the walkway standards on the areas adjacent to the tracks and in switching yards. These are the paths that the workers walk on to do repairs. The proposed rule would require they be near-level with a minimum width of 2 feet and be surfaced with small gravel, concrete, asphalt or planking to make it safe for workers to perform their repairs.

The railroad union said that many areas adjacent to tracks have severe dropoffs and some places are too narrow for working.

Harris suggested the railroads would have to build new lines in Nevada, costing up to $500 million. Parts of mountains would have to be cut away and huge amounts of fill would be needed in gullies that are sometimes adjacent to the tracks.

Of the overall proposed regulations, Harris said they were "extremely onerous." No other state, she said, has regulations this strict.