49 U.S.C. § 20151 — Railroad trespassing, vandalism, and highway-rail grade crossing warning sign violation prevention strategy

(a) Evaluation of Existing Laws. Working with affected parties, the Secretary of Transportation must review current local, state, and federal laws on railroad trespassing, vandalism that affects railroad safety, and violations of highway-rail grade crossing signs, signals, markings, or other warning devices. From that review, the Secretary must develop model prevention strategies and enforcement laws for state and local governments to consider adopting. The first review had to be finished within 1 year after the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 became law, and the Secretary must periodically update the models afterward. (b) Outreach Program for Trespassing and Vandalism Prevention. The Secretary must build and maintain an outreach program to improve communication among federal railroad safety inspectors, state inspectors certified by the Federal Railroad Administration, railroad police, and state and local police, focused on trespassing and vandalism on railroad property and on strengthening enforcement. The program should raise public and police awareness of how illegal and dangerous trespassing on railroad rights-of-way is, come up with better prevention strategies, and improve enforcement of laws on railroad trespassing, vandalism, and safety. (c) Model Legislation. (1) Within 18 months after November 2, 1994, the Secretary, after talking with state and local governments and railroad companies, had to create and share with state and local governments model state legislation providing (A) civil or criminal penalties, or both, for vandalizing railroad equipment or property in a way that could endanger the public or railroad workers, and (B) civil or criminal penalties, or both, for trespassing on railroad-owned or leased rights-of-way. (2) Within 18 months after the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 became law, the Secretary, again after consulting state and local governments and railroads, had to create and share model state legislation providing civil or criminal penalties, or both, for violating highway-rail grade crossing signs, signals, markings, or other warning devices. (d) Definition. In this section, "violation of highway-rail grade crossing signs, signals, markings, or other warning devices" includes any of these actions by a driver, unless a safety officer told them to do it: (1) driving around a crossing gate meant to block the tracks; (2) driving through a flashing crossing signal; (3) driving through a crossing with only passive warning signs, like a simple crossbuck, without making sure it is safe to cross before a train arrives; and (4) creating a risk of an accident causing injury or property damage near a crossing.