49 U.S.C. § 20103 — General authority

(a) Regulations and Orders. The Secretary of Transportation must write safety rules and issue orders for every part of railroad safety. These add to the rules already in place on October 16, 1970. If a rule or order is about security and affects railroad safety, the Secretary of Homeland Security must talk with the Secretary of Transportation first. (b) Regulations of Practice for Proceedings. The Secretary must write rules for how proceedings under this chapter work. The rules must fit the type of proceeding and set time limits. A proceeding can't take more than 12 months to finish. (c) Consideration of Information and Standards. When making rules or orders, the Secretary must look at existing safety information and standards. (d) Nonemergency Waivers. (1) In general. The Secretary may waive or pause any part of a safety rule or order if doing so serves the public interest and doesn't hurt railroad safety. (2) Notice required. Before granting a waiver, the Secretary must: publicly announce the request; share the application and non-secret data with interested people; let the public comment; and publish the reasons for each waiver on a public website. (3) Information protection. None of this forces the Secretary to release information the law protects from public disclosure. (4) Rulemaking. If a waiver or suspension has been in continuous effect for 6 straight years, the Secretary has 1 year after that to study whether turning it into a permanent rule would serve the public interest and railroad safety. The study must weigh the safety record under the waiver, whether other companies would likely have similar safety results, the materials submitted in applications (including comments on them), and related rulemaking activity. If the Secretary decides not to start a new rule, the study is published in the Federal Register along with the data collected. If the Secretary does start a new rule, the study becomes part of that rule's public notice. (5) Rule of construction. This subsection can't be used to delay any waiver already granted that is in the public interest and consistent with railroad safety. (e) Hearings. Before prescribing a regulation or order under this part — including one that establishes, changes, or grants a waiver described in subsection (d) — the Secretary must hold a hearing as described in section 553 of title 5, and give an opportunity for people to present their case out loud. (f) Tourist Railroad Carriers. When writing safety rules that affect tourist, historic, scenic, or excursion railroads, the Secretary must consider financial, operational, or other factors unique to those railroads. The Secretary had to report to Congress on actions taken under this subsection by September 30, 1995. (g) Emergency Waivers. (1) In general. The Secretary can waive a rule or order without prior notice and comment if: it's in the public interest; it isn't inconsistent with railroad safety; and it's necessary to address an actual or coming emergency. (2) Period of waiver. An emergency waiver lasts no more than 60 days. It can be renewed only after applying to the Secretary and getting notice and a hearing. The Secretary must immediately cancel it if keeping it would no longer fit the law's goals. (3) Statement of reasons. The Secretary must state, in the decision granting the waiver, the reasons for granting it. (4) Consultation. In granting an emergency waiver, the Secretary must consult and coordinate with other federal agencies the waiver may affect. (5) Emergency situation; emergency event. These terms mean a natural or manmade disaster — like a hurricane, flood, earthquake, mudslide, forest fire, snowstorm, terrorist act, biological outbreak, release of dangerous radiological, chemical, explosive, or biological material, or war-related activity — that risks death, serious illness, severe injury, or substantial property damage. The disaster can be local, regional, or national in scope.