Senator Baldwin Law Support Made America Freight Railcars Track Implementation

US Senator Tammy Baldwin's bipartisan legislation to support Made in America freight railcars is going into effect, safeguarding national security.

Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) made an announcement regarding the implementation of her bipartisan legislation aimed at supporting the production of American-made freight railcars. The legislation, known as the Stopping America's Foreign Enemies Through Rail and Infrastructure National Security Act (SAFE TRAINS Act), was introduced by Senator Baldwin in collaboration with Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) and was successfully added as an amendment to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in 2021.

The primary objective of the SAFE TRAINS Act is to safeguard the national security of the United States by preventing the use of railroad freight cars manufactured in or utilizing sensitive technologies from countries of concern, particularly state-owned enterprises in countries like China. These countries of concern are defined as nonmarket economies, those that do not adequately protect intellectual property rights, and violators of certain foreign trade practices and agreements.

The Federal Rail Administration (FRA) has recently taken the initial steps to implement Senator Baldwin's legislation by proposing a rule that would impose restrictions on newly built freight cars placed into service in the United States.

Erik Olson, the Executive Director of the Rail Security Alliance, emphasized the importance of protecting the nation's freight rail rolling stock from foreign adversaries, particularly China. He expressed gratitude for the leadership of Senators Baldwin and Cornyn in prioritizing the SAFE TRAINS Act as part of the 2021 infrastructure law, and also thanked the Federal Railroad Administration for their efforts. According to Olson, the security and economic well-being of the U.S. rail interchange system depend on safeguarding it from unfair competition and the infiltration of state-owned enterprises from adversarial countries.

For more information, an online version of this release is available here.