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By James Stem, 
UTU National Legislative Director – 

Coal is America’s most abundant source of energy, helping reduce our nation’s dependence on imported oil.

Coal also means jobs, with almost one in every five freight rail jobs dependent on transporting coal. And coal means high-paying jobs for coal miners, power plant workers and the building trades, who build, maintain and update coal-fired generating plants.

Troubling is that coal – and this means American jobs — is under attack within the Environmental Protection Agency and from some in Congress who want to impose such stringent new emissions regulations that as many as one-third of our coal-fired power plants could be closed and no new ones built. That puts thousands of jobs on the line.

This debate will continue until the process is discovered to allow carbon-dioxide gases from coal to be captured and used productively.

Railroads, coal producers, the electric power industry, rail labor and other labor organizations agree there is a better way to improve air quality than regulations so stringent that coal production would plummet and large numbers of coal-related jobs would disappear.

The UTU’s National Legislative Office and state legislative directors are working with these allied interests to educate federal regulators and Congress on the issues, and explain the harm that could come to rail employment, the Railroad Retirement system and other segments of the American economy from stringent new regulations limiting carbon dioxide emissions from new coal-fired generating plants.

A coalition of unions, including the UTU, are members of Union Jobs and the Environment (http://www.ujae.org/), working to ensure coal remains an important part of America’s energy mix.

Environmental science is complex. Seldom do solutions proposed by environmental scientists weigh economic considerations, such as the impact on American jobs from limiting the use of coal by electric utilities.

Other environmental scientists propose a more balanced and flexible approach that would achieve comparable reductions in harmful emissions while protecting rail and other coal-related jobs. Our mission is to educate decisions makers and opinion leaders as to the costs of acting without considering economic impacts and alternatives that are equally effective in improving air quality.

We support a new approach by the Obama administration that has awarded federal research funds to nine universities to develop new clean coal technologies that will permit the continued use of American coal. We are disappointed that the amount of research dollars is not significantly greater.

Coal loadings are second only to trailers and containers in the number of carloads hauled by railroads. Some 45 percent of railroad tonnage is represented by coal, which does more than provide low-cost energy and American energy security.

Coal means high-paying jobs with benefits, and the UTU is working diligently with our partners to protect those jobs.

Train, engine and mechanical forces represented by the UTU on shortline Western Rail Road in Texas are voting on a tentative new agreement reached with mediation assistance from the National Mediation Board.

An October tentative agreement was rejected by affected members, leading to participation of the NMB in this renewed round of negotiations. Affected members will be voting through Aug. 3.

Negotiations were led by UTU Vice President Paul Tibbit and UTU General Chairperson Doyle Turner (GO 347), who heads the UTU’s shortline outreach program.

“This tentative agreement, as with others negotiated with shortlines, is intended to bring parity in wages, benefits and work rules to the thousands of employees in the short line railroad industry, along with the many other protections offered by union membership,” Turner said. “The seniority, scope and discipline rules these members now enjoy are what makes union membership valuable.”

Western Rail Road, owned by Cemex, connects a quarry and cement plant at Dittlinger with Union Pacific’s Austin, Texas, subdivision. Dittlinger is four miles south of New Braunfels and about 50 miles south of Austin.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The UTU Transportation Safety Team is assisting the National Transportation Safety Board in investigating a fiery explosion following a Norfolk Southern derailment here July 11. Sixteen of 98 cars carrying ethanol, corn syrup and grain left the tracks around 2 a.m.

There were no injuries among the crew, but two nearby residents were slightly injured when the ethanol in three of the tank cars leaked and exploded into flame.

A witness said it looked as if the sun had fallen onto the tracks where the derailment and explosions occurred. About 100 nearby residents were evacuated from their homes during the height of the fire.

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — UTU-represented members employed as bus operators by the Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District have become “the highest-paid bus operators in America” following ratification of a new three-year labor agreement, said Bonnie Morr, vice president of the UTU Bus Department.

UTU Local 23 members ratified two agreements – the one by bus operators, and a second affecting drivers who perform services for the disabled.

Leading the negotiations were General Chairperson Eduardo Montesino and Vice Chairpersons Jason Andrews, Daniel Zaragosa, Todd Pinsky and Sergio Tabag. Morr provided negotiating assistance.

“These negotiations brought a balance to a workforce that had a 37-day strike in 2005 in order to obtain benefits that been denied them over the years,” Morr said.

A two-day training program on handling radioactive cargo traveling by rail will be conducted by the National Labor College in Silver Spring, Md., Aug. 17-18.

The Modular Emergency Response Radiological Transportation Training (MERRTT) course will be taught by officials from the Department of Energy. The course will be taught from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., both days.

Rail workers interested in attending this training must secure the time off from their employer, and confirm participation to attend by completing a registration form that includes a clear copy of your driver’s license or other government-issued identification. Use the following link to obtain the registration form:

http://www.nlc.edu/~bcantrell/register_radiological.htm

The completed registration form should be e-mailed to sroundtree@nlc.edu, or sent via facsimile to (301) 628-0165. 

Upon receipt of a completed registration form, participants will be sent a confirmation letter with information on travel, room and board. A federal grant pays for transportation, room and board for each training participant.
 
If you have any questions or desire additional information, email sroundtree@nlc.edu, or call (301) 628-4858.

High-speed rail has been given an energy-boosting vitamin B-12 shot by the California legislature and Amtrak for separate projects on the West and East Coasts.

In California, the legislature agreed to spend $6 billion to build the first 130-mile leg of a 520-mile high-speed line – with an estimated cost of some $68 billion — that eventually will connect Sacramento with San Francisco and Los Angeles. Gov. Jerry Brown, who has staked his political reputation on high-speed rail for California, is expected to sign the spending bill into law.

In Washingotn, D.C., Amtrak announced a formal vision for 220-mph travel along the entire Northeast Corridor.

This first 130-mile leg of California high-speed rail, in California’s Central Valley, will connect Madera with Bakersfield. Previously, California voters authorized a $9.95 billion bond measure as a down-payment on the projected $68 billion route, with the U.S. Department of Transportation providing $3.2 billion in federal grants. The funds voted by the state legislature will come from bond sales and be mated with already approved $3.2 billion in federal grants to total $5.8 billion for the Central Valley leg of the project.

The New York Times reported in November 2011:

“[While] for many Californians, struggling through a bleak era that has led some people to wonder if the state’s golden days are behind it, this project goes to the heart of the state’s pioneering spirit, recalling grand public investments in universities, water systems, roads and parks that once defined California as the leading edge of the nation.

“[Gov. Brown] has enthusiastically embraced the plan, no matter that at 73, he seems unlikely to be around for a ribbon-cutting ceremony that is projected to be more than 20 years away. ‘California’s high-speed rail project will create hundreds of thousands of jobs, linking California’s population centers and avoiding the huge problems of massive airport and highway expansion,’ Mr. Brown said.”

President Obama has been the strongest proponent of high-speed rail advances in America, advocating a nationwide 17,000-mile network of high-speed and higher-speed trains that could provide 80 percent of the American population access to train travel by 2036.

Amtrak, meanwhile, unveiled its formal vision for 220-mile train travel – by 2040 – along the 438-mile Northeast Corridor linking Washington, D.C. with Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and Boston.

The $151 billion improvement plan over the decades-long period of construction would require substantial federal and state financial support to assure – on “NextGen” named trains — 94 minute travel times between Washington, D.C., and New York and between New York and Boston. The Washington-New York trip current requires almost three-hours travel time and almost four hours between New York and Boston.

Some 40,000 new construction jobs annually, for 25 years, would result, says Amtrak.

Amtrak’s vision includes direct rail links to airports at Baltimore, Philadelphia, Newark, N.J., and White Plains, N.Y.

“The vision we will shape with the Northeastern states, Amtrak and all of our stakeholders will outlast the vagaries of politics, budgets and critics,” said Federal Railroad Administrator Joe Szabo.

GLENVIEW, Ill. — Two bodies have been found under a collapsed railroad bridge here following the July 4 derailment of a 138-car Union Pacific coal train. The dead were in a a vehicle buried under the bridge wreckage. Authorities said more bodies of motorists could be found.

Glenview is a suburb of Chicago.

Union Pacific said extreme heat may have caused the rails to expand, leading to the derailment. Thirty-one of the loaded coal cars were derailed.

The Federal Railroad Administration is investigating. The train was enroute from the Powder River Basin in Wyoming to an electric utility in Milwaukee.

The Chicago Tribune quoted a UP spokesperson that the 86-foot-long bridge was not designed to carry the cumulative load of the 31 derailed coal cars that piled onto the bridge at once.

The newspaper also quoted the UP spokesperson that railroad inspectors and monitoring equipment were on the tracks prior to the accident checking for track-gauge abnormalities, which is standard procedure twice a day during extreme heat or cold. A “slow order” was in effect for the train, and UP said a locomotive event recorder indicated the train was obeying the “slow order” prior to the derailment.

UTU members with questions on how the Affordable Care Act will affect them and their families should visit the websites of their health care insurance carriers.

For UTU members covered under the national railroad medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, and life insurance benefits plans, links to your health insurance providers’ websites can be found at http://www.utu.org/ by clicking on the “Health Care” link at the top of the home page.

In addition to accessing the UTU health care web pages for information, also view the Railroad Information Depot, accessible at:

https://www.rrinfodepot.com/

Following is general information on the Affordable Care Act:

* Those with health care insurance will continue to be covered under those plans.

* Those with health care insurance no longer will pay out-of-pocket for certain preventive care services when they are rendered by a network provider. The purpose is to promote wellness and reduce the high cost of treating and managing disease. For a list of preventive service covered, use the following link:

www.healthcare.gov/law/about/provisions/services/lists.html

This provision could prove a significant cost saver for UTU members covered by the national railroad health care plan because copays will be eliminated for many preventive health care services.

“When we entered the most recent round of negotiations with the carriers, our strategy was to hold the monthly cost sharing premium under $200 — rather than allow it to escalate to $300 or more — in exchange for somewhat higher copays,” said UTU International President Mike Futhey. “The Affordable Care Act now eliminates many of those copays. Our winning strategy will prove very beneficial to our members, who now will save out-of-pocket for many health care services while still having one of the lowest cost-sharing premiums in the public and private sectors.”

Additionally:

* Employer plans will be required to provide uniform summaries of benefits and coverage to participants.

* The Medicare hospital insurance tax rate of 1.45 percent per paycheck remains unchanged for those earning less than $200,000 annually ($250,000 for married couples filing jointly). The tax rate will be raised only for those with higher incomes.

* The Affordable Care Act ensures your right to appeal health insurance plan decisions — to ask that your plan reconsider its decision to deny payment for a service or treatment.

* It also contains a new Patient’s Bill of Rights, which can be accessed at the following website:

www.healthcare.gov/news/factsheets/2010/06/aca-new-patients-bill-of-rights.html
.
* Dependents will remain covered by their parents’ health care plans until age 26.

* Insurance companies no longer may deny health care due to pre-existing conditions or cancel coverage for people who become sick.

* No longer are there lifetime dollar limits on health care benefits.

* Retirees covered by Medicare already have saved $3.7 billion on prescription drugs in the Part D “donut hole” since the law was enacted, and will continue to save on prescriptions as the “donut hole” closes over the next eight years.

As more information becomes available on how the Affordable Care Act affects UTU members and their families, it will be reported at http://www.utu.org/ and in the UTU News.

Of importance to UTU-represented Great Lakes Airlines pilots and flight attendants, Congress has scrapped an attempt by conservatives to eliminate the Essential Air Service program.

Great Lakes Airlines is the largest recipient of Essential Air Service grants, which helps keep flights operating to 120 communities in 35 states. Such assistance is seen as crucial to the economies of rural communities.

Congress has changed a provision of the program to require that Essential Air Service routes average at least 10 passengers daily and that no new communities be added to the program.

It’s not all we wanted, but, maybe more important, it’s not as bad as it could have been.

Given the polarization of this Congress, the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century – MAP-21 – is as good a new transportation authorization bill as we could have hoped for. Passed by bipartisan majorities in the House and Senate June 29, President Obama is expected to sign the bill into law.

This is what MAP-21 does as it applies to bus, commuter rail, intercity passenger rail and freight rail:

* It increases federal expenditures for federal transit programs – bus and commuter rail – beginning in October and continuing through September 2014. Within those numbers, however, is a reduction in bus and bus facilities spending, which is a victory of sorts since an earlier version sought to zero out such spending.

* It allows transit systems operating fewer than 100 buses in peak service to use a portion of their capital grants for operating expenses. This will allow money for smaller, cash-strapped systems to keep buses on the road and return furloughed drivers to work. But, sadly, larger bus system do not gain such flexibility — even during periods of high unemployment.

* It extends a $17 billion federal loan program for transit and freight rail operators, making, for example, up to $350 million available to the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) for transit improvements.

* It grants authority to the Department of Transportation to create a national safety plan for all modes of public transportation, which will result in minimum standard safety performance standards for systems not currently regulated by the federal government. These safety performance standards will include establishment of a national safety certification training program for employees of federal- and state-owned transit system.

* It requires the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to establish a national registry of medical examiners within one year, and requires employers periodically to verify the commercial driver license status of employees.

* It provides 80 percent in federal match dollars for transit systems to develop and carry out state safety oversight programs. State oversight will include review, approval and enforcement of transit agency safety plans, including audits by the Federal Transit Administration.

* It scraps at attempt to eliminate overtime and minimum wage provisions for van drivers whose routes cross state lines.

* It strengthens Buy America requirements for all new bus and passenger-rail rolling stock and other capital expenditures, which means more American jobs.

* It leaves in place a requirement that positive train control be implemented on all track carrying passenger rail — commuter and Amtrak — by Dec. 31, 2015. It does, however, reduce the PTC installation requirement for freight railroads, providing that PTC to be installed on fewer than 40 percent of main line trackage by Dec. 31, 2015, with 60 percent (freight only trackage) continuing to use existing train control systems.

* Importantly, it does not include a provision sought by conservatives that would have blocked federal funds for operation of Amtrak’s long-distance trains in 27 states, nor does it include a provision that would have had the same effect by denying federal funds for subsidizing food and beverage service on long-distance trains.

* Also, on the positive side for Amtrak, it provides a new federal grant program to improve or preserve Amtrak routes exceeding 750 miles, and it makes Amtrak eligible for other federal grants on corridor routes and funds intended to help ease highway congestion. Other Amtrak operating and capital grants are provided in separate legislation.

* A provision that originated in the Senate to eliminate almost 75 percent of Alaska Railroad federal funding and the $6 million in congestion and air quality mitigation funding for Amtrak’s Downeaster train in New England was amended. The Alaska Railroad funding now will be cut by 13 percent in each of the next two years by applying a new funding formula, and the air quality mitigation funding will continue for the Downeaster.

* It does not increase weight and length limits for trucks on federal aid highways – which would adversely impact rail traffic and rail jobs – but does allow an extension for current higher weights on some highway corridors while another study on the impact of liberalizing truck weight and length limits is conducted.

“Even though it has shortcomings from what we would have preferred, our members are better off with the compromise. Had there been no bill, we may have faced the undermining of public transportation by conservatives who want to push public transportation’s expense to the fare box and those who can least afford it,” said UTU National Legislative Director James Stem.

The Federal Transit Administration has created a website to provide more information on MAP-21. Click below to view the website:

http://www.fta.dot.gov/map21/