News Archive
Batory sworn in as FRA administrator; Martinez takes helm of FMCSA
After months of waiting, Ronald L. Batory was sworn in on Feb. 28 as the new administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). “This day could not have happened soon enough,” Batory said in remarks delivered during the ceremony administered by Department [...]
Batory sworn in as FRA administrator
On February 28, 2018, Ron Batory was sworn in as Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration. Representing SMART General President Joe Sellers is Steve Dodd, director of government affairs, who is pictured with Ron Batory. Batory has more than 45 years of rail indust [...]
DOL Form LM filings only accepted electronically
Beginning with filings for the 2017 fiscal year, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) now requires secretaries and treasurers of SMART Transportation Division locals to electronically file their labor organization annual reports, co [...]
Federal Income Tax and Railroad Retirement Benefits
The following questions and answers describe the tax statements issued by the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) each January for Federal income tax purposes. Railroad retirement beneficiaries needing information about these statements, or about tax withholding from their benefi [...]DIPP payments changing to direct deposit March 1
Effective on March 1, 2018, all new and continuing claims for the SMART Transportation Discipline Income Protection Program (DIPP) will be paid via direct deposit into participants’ accounts. Please complete the authorization for automatic transfer that is attached to y [...]
Working people’s day of action to be held Feb. 24
https://www.facebook.com/AFSCME/videos/10155325175933061/ What is the Working People’s Day of Action? In 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his life in Memphis, Tenn., to help African-American sanitation workers come together to win freedom and dignity on the job. [...]
Online fundraiser begun for crew hurt in N.Y. derailment
An online fundraising effort has been started for a SMART TD conductor and an engineer who were severely injured Feb. 15 when their train derailed in Attica, N.Y. Conductor Ben Garland of Local 1566 out of Buffalo, N.Y., and engineer Dave Tobey were hospitalized after their N [...]
NTSB issues urgent safety recommendations
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued three urgent safety recommendations to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), acting upon the agency’s findings in two ongoing railroad accident investigations. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) received one u [...]