HB 7009

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to public transit; amending s. 341.301,
3	F.S.; providing definitions relating to commuter rail
4	service, rail corridors, and railroad operations for
5	purposes of the rail program within the Department of
6	Transportation; amending s. 341.302, F.S.; revising
7	certain citations; revising provisions relating to the
8	content of the department's rail system plan; revising the
9	time period within which the department must update the
10	rail system plan; requiring a status report to the
11	Legislature to accompany the plan; providing additional
12	duties for the department relating to a regional rail
13	system plan; authorizing the department to assume certain
14	liability on a rail corridor; authorizing the department
15	to indemnify and hold harmless a freight rail operator
16	when the department acquires a rail corridor from the
17	freight rail operator; providing allocation of risk;
18	providing a specific cap on the amount of the contractual
19	duty for such indemnification; authorizing the department
20	to purchase and provide insurance in relation to rail
21	corridors; authorizing marketing and promotional expenses;
22	extending provisions to other governmental entities
23	providing commuter rail service on public right-of-way;
24	providing an effective date.
25
26	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
27
28	Section 1.  Section 341.301, Florida Statutes, is amended
29	to read:
30	341.301  Definitions; ss. 341.302-341.303 ss. 341.302 and
31	341.303.--As used in ss. 341.302-341.303 ss. 341.302 and
32	341.303, the term:
33	(1)  "Ancillary development" includes any lessee or
34	licensee of the department, including other governmental
35	entities, vendors, retailers, restaurateurs, or contract service
36	providers, within a department-owned rail corridor, except for
37	providers of commuter rail service, intercity rail passenger
38	service, or freight rail service.
39	(2)(1)  "Branch line continuance project" means a project
40	that involves branch line rehabilitation, new connecting track,
41	rail banking, and other similar types of projects, including
42	those specifically identified in the federal Railroad
43	Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976, and subsequent
44	amendments to that act.
45	(3)  "Commuter rail passenger" or "commuter rail
46	passengers" means all persons, ticketed or unticketed, using the
47	commuter rail service on a department-owned rail corridor:
48	(a)  On board trains, locomotives, rail cars, or rail
49	equipment employed in commuter rail service or entraining and
50	detraining therefrom;
51	(b)  On or about the rail corridor for any purpose related
52	to the commuter rail service, including parking, inquiring about
53	commuter rail service, or purchasing tickets therefor, and
54	coming to, waiting for, leaving from, or observing trains,
55	locomotives, rail cars, or rail equipment; or
56	(c)  Meeting, assisting, or in the company of any person
57	described in paragraph (a) or paragraph (b).
58	(4)  "Commuter rail service" means the transportation of
59	commuter rail passengers and other passengers by rail pursuant
60	to a rail program provided by the department or any other
61	governmental entity.
62	(5)  "Governmental entity" or "governmental entities" has
63	the same meaning as in s. 11.45 and includes a "public agency"
64	as defined in s. 163.01.
65	(6)(2)  "Intercity rail transportation system" means the
66	network of railroad facilities used or available for interstate
67	and intrastate passenger and freight operations by railroads,
68	whether or not on a schedule or whether or not restricted.
69	(7)  "Multiuse corridor" includes accommodations for
70	alternative transportation and recreation uses, such as rail,
71	bicycle, hiking, and equestrian activities.
72	(8)  "Rail corridor" means a linear contiguous strip of
73	real property that is used for rail service. The term includes
74	the corridor and structures essential to railroad operations,
75	including the land, structures, improvements, rights-of-way,
76	easements, rail lines, rail beds, guideway structures, switches,
77	yards, parking facilities, power relays, switching houses, rail
78	stations, ancillary development, and any other facilities or
79	equipment used for the purposes of construction, operation, or
80	maintenance of a railroad that provides rail service.
81	(9)  "Rail corridor invitee" means all persons who are on
82	or about a department-owned rail corridor:
83	(a)  For any purpose related to any ancillary development
84	thereon; or
85	(b)  Meeting, assisting, or in the company of any person
86	described in paragraph (a).
87	(10)(3)  "Rail programs" means those programs administered
88	by the state or other governmental entities which involve
89	projects affecting the movement of people or goods by rail lines
90	that have been or will be constructed to serve freight or
91	passenger markets within a city or between cities.
92	(11)(4)  "Rail service development project" means a project
93	undertaken by a public agency to determine whether a new or
94	innovative technique or measure can be utilized to improve or
95	expand rail service. The duration of the project funding shall
96	be limited according to the type of project and in no case shall
97	exceed 3 years. Rail service development projects include those
98	projects and other actions undertaken to enhance railroad
99	operating efficiency or increased rail service, including
100	measures that result in improved speed profiles, operations, or
101	technological applications that lead to reductions in operating
102	costs and increases in productivity or service.
103	(12)(5)  "Railroad" or "rail system" means any common
104	carrier fixed-guideway transportation system such as the
105	conventional steel rail-supported, steel-wheeled system. The
106	term does not include a high-speed rail line developed by the
107	Department of Transportation pursuant to ss. 341.8201-341.842.
108	(13)(6)  "Railroad capital improvement project" means a
109	project identified by the rail component of the Florida
110	Transportation Plan, which project involves the leasing,
111	acquisition, design, construction, reconstruction, or
112	improvement to the existing intercity rail transportation system
113	or future segments thereof, including such items as locomotives
114	and other rolling stock, tracks, terminals, and rights-of-way
115	for the continuance or expansion of rail service as necessary to
116	ensure the continued effectiveness of the state's rail
117	facilities and systems in meeting mobility and industrial
118	development needs.
119	(14)  "Railroad operations" means the use of the rail
120	corridor to conduct commuter rail service, intercity rail
121	passenger service, or freight rail service.
122	(15)(7)  "Train" means any locomotive engine that is
123	powered by diesel fuel, electricity, or other means, with or
124	without cars coupled thereto, and operated upon a railroad track
125	or any other form of fixed guideway, except that the term does
126	not include a light rail vehicle such as a streetcar or people
127	mover.
128	Section 2.  Section 341.302, Florida Statutes, is amended
129	to read:
130	341.302  Rail program, duties and responsibilities of the
131	department.--The department, in conjunction with other
132	governmental entities units and the private sector, shall
133	develop and implement a rail program of statewide application
134	designed to ensure the proper maintenance, safety,
135	revitalization, and expansion of the rail system to assure its
136	continued and increased availability to respond to statewide
137	mobility needs. Within the resources provided pursuant to
138	chapter 216, and as authorized under federal law Title 49 C.F.R.
139	part 212, the department shall:
140	(1)  Provide the overall leadership, coordination, and
141	financial and technical assistance necessary to assure the
142	effective responses of the state's rail system to current and
143	anticipated mobility needs.
144	(2)  Promote and facilitate the implementation of advanced
145	rail systems, including high-speed rail and magnetic levitation
146	systems.
147	(3)  Develop and periodically update the rail system plan,
148	on the basis of an analysis of statewide transportation needs.
149	(a)  The plan may contain detailed regional components,
150	consistent with regional transportation plans, as needed to
151	ensure connectivity within the state's regions, and it shall be
152	consistent with the Florida Transportation Plan developed
153	pursuant to s. 339.155. The rail system plan shall include an
154	identification of priorities, programs, and funding levels
155	required to meet statewide and regional needs. The rail system
156	plan shall be developed in a manner that will assure the maximum
157	use of existing facilities and the optimum integration and
158	coordination of the various modes of transportation, public and
159	private, in the most cost-effective manner possible. The rail
160	system plan shall be updated at least every 5 2 years and
161	include plans for both passenger rail service and freight rail
162	service, accompanied by a report to the Legislature regarding
163	the status of the plan.
164	(b)  In recognition of the department's role in the
165	enhancement of the state's rail system to improve freight and
166	passenger mobility, the department shall:
167	1.  Work closely with the City of Lakeland and Plant City
168	along with Hillsborough and Polk Counties to identify and
169	address anticipated impacts associated with an increase in rail
170	freight traffic;
171	2.  Work with the impacted local governments and CSX
172	Transportation Company to identify and evaluate potential
173	alternative routes for through rail traffic destined for the CSX
174	Integrated Logistics Center in Winter Haven. As soon as possible
175	following the completion of the department's alternative rail
176	traffic evaluation, the department shall begin a project
177	development and environmental study of the preferred alternative
178	so that the negative impacts of commuter rail programs funded by
179	the state will be eliminated no later than 8 years after
180	commuter rail programs begin operation to enhance regional
181	passenger rail connectivity; and
182	3.  Provide technical assistance to a coalition of local
183	governments in Central Florida, including Brevard, Citrus,
184	Hernando, Hillsborough, Lake, Marion, Orange, Osceola, Pasco,
185	Pinellas, Polk, Manatee, Sarasota, Seminole, Sumter, and Volusia
186	Counties, and the municipalities within those counties, to
187	develop a regional rail system plan that addresses passenger and
188	freight opportunities in the region, is consistent with the
189	Florida Rail System Plan and the long-range transportation plans
190	of the impacted counties, and incorporates appropriate elements
191	of the Tampa Bay Area Regional Authority Master Plan, the
192	Metroplan Orlando Regional Transit System Concept Plan,
193	including the Sunrail project, and the Florida Department of
194	Transportation Alternate Rail Traffic Evaluation. The regional
195	rail system plan may include the design and implementation of a
196	multiuse corridor.
197	(4)  As part of the work program of the department,
198	formulate a specific program of projects and financing to
199	respond to identified railroad needs.
200	(5)  Provide technical and financial assistance to units of
201	local government to address identified rail transportation
202	needs.
203	(6)  Secure and administer federal grants, loans, and
204	apportionments for rail projects within this state when
205	necessary to further the statewide program.
206	(7)  Develop and administer state standards concerning the
207	safety and performance of rail systems, hazardous material
208	handling, and operations. Such standards shall be developed
209	jointly with representatives of affected rail systems, with full
210	consideration given to nationwide industry norms, and shall
211	define the minimum acceptable standards for safety and
212	performance.
213	(8)  Conduct, at a minimum, inspections of track and
214	rolling stock; train signals and related equipment; hazardous
215	materials transportation, including the loading, unloading, and
216	labeling of hazardous materials at shippers', receivers', and
217	transfer points; and train operating practices to determine
218	adherence to state and federal standards. Department personnel
219	may enforce any safety regulation issued under the Federal
220	Government's preemptive authority over interstate commerce.
221	(9)  Assess penalties, in accordance with the applicable
222	federal regulations, for the failure to adhere to the state
223	standards.
224	(10)  Administer rail operating and construction programs,
225	which programs shall include the regulation of maximum train
226	operating speeds, the opening and closing of public grade
227	crossings, the construction and rehabilitation of public grade
228	crossings, and the installation of traffic control devices at
229	public grade crossings, the administering of the programs by the
230	department including participation in the cost of the programs.
231	(11)  Coordinate and facilitate the relocation of railroads
232	from congested urban areas to nonurban areas when relocation has
233	been determined feasible and desirable from the standpoint of
234	safety, operational efficiency, and economics.
235	(12)  Implement a program of branch line continuance
236	projects when an analysis of the industrial and economic
237	potential of the line indicates that public involvement is
238	required to preserve essential rail service and facilities.
239	(13)  Provide new rail service and equipment when:
240	(a)  Pursuant to the transportation planning process, a
241	public need has been determined to exist;
242	(b)  The cost of providing such service does not exceed the
243	sum of revenues from fares charged to users, services purchased
244	by other public agencies, local fund participation, and specific
245	legislative appropriation for this purpose; and
246	(c)  Service cannot be reasonably provided by other
247	governmental or privately owned rail systems.
248
249	The department may own, lease, and otherwise encumber
250	facilities, equipment, and appurtenances thereto, as necessary
251	to provide new rail services; or the department may provide such
252	service by contracts with privately owned service providers.
253	(14)  Furnish required emergency rail transportation
254	service if no other private or public rail transportation
255	operation is available to supply the required service and such
256	service is clearly in the best interest of the people in the
257	communities being served. Such emergency service may be
258	furnished through contractual arrangement, actual operation of
259	state-owned equipment and facilities, or any other means
260	determined appropriate by the secretary.
261	(15)  Assist in the development and implementation of
262	marketing programs for rail services and of information systems
263	directed toward assisting rail systems users.
264	(16)  Conduct research into innovative or potentially
265	effective rail technologies and methods and maintain expertise
266	in state-of-the-art rail developments.
267	(17)  In conjunction with the acquisition, ownership,
268	construction, operation, maintenance, and management of a rail
269	corridor, have the authority to:
270	(a)  Assume the obligation by contract to forever protect,
271	defend, and indemnify and hold harmless the freight rail
272	operator, or its successors, from whom the department has
273	acquired a real property interest in the rail corridor, and that
274	freight rail operator's officers, agents, and employees, from
275	and against any liability, cost, and expense, including, but not
276	limited to, commuter rail passengers, rail corridor invitees,
277	and trespassers in the rail corridor, regardless of whether the
278	loss, damage, destruction, injury, or death giving rise to any
279	such liability, cost, or expense is caused in whole or in part
280	and to whatever nature or degree by the fault, failure,
281	negligence, misconduct, nonfeasance, or misfeasance of such
282	freight rail operator, its successors, or its officers, agents,
283	and employees, or any other person or persons whomsoever,
284	provided that such assumption of liability of the department by
285	contract shall not in any instance exceed the following
286	parameters of allocation of risk:
287	1.  The department may be solely responsible for any loss,
288	injury, or damage to commuter rail passengers, rail corridor
289	invitees, or trespassers, regardless of circumstances or cause,
290	subject to subparagraphs 2., 3., and 4.
291	2.  When only one train is involved in an incident, the
292	department may be solely responsible for any loss, injury, or
293	damage if the train is a department train or other train
294	pursuant to subparagraph 3., but only if in an instance when
295	only a freight rail operator train is involved, the freight rail
296	operator is solely responsible for any loss, injury, or damage,
297	except for commuter rail passengers, rail corridor invitees, and
298	trespassers, and the freight rail operator is solely responsible
299	for its property and all of its people in any instance when its
300	train is involved in an incident.
301	3.  For the purposes of this subsection, any train involved
302	in an incident that is neither the department's train nor the
303	freight rail operator's train, hereinafter referred to in this
304	subsection as an "other train," may be treated as a department
305	train, solely for purposes of any allocation of liability
306	between the department and the freight rail operator only, but
307	only if the department and the freight rail operator share
308	responsibility equally as to third parties outside the rail
309	corridor who incur loss, injury, or damage as a result of any
310	incident involving both a department train and a freight rail
311	operator train, and the allocation as between the department and
312	the freight rail operator, regardless of whether the other train
313	is treated as a department train, shall remain one-half each as
314	to third parties outside the rail corridor who incur loss,
315	injury, or damage as a result of the incident, and the
316	involvement of any other train shall not alter the sharing of
317	equal responsibility as to third parties outside the rail
318	corridor who incur loss, injury, or damage as a result of the
319	incident.
320	4.  When more than one train is involved in an incident:
321	a.  If only a department train and freight rail operator's
322	train, or only another train as described in subparagraph 3. and
323	a freight rail operator's train, are involved in an incident,
324	the department may be responsible for its property and all of
325	its people, all commuter rail passengers, rail corridor
326	invitees, and trespassers, but only if the freight rail operator
327	is responsible for its property and all of its people, and the
328	department and the freight rail operator share responsibility
329	one-half each as to third parties outside the rail corridor who
330	incur loss, injury, or damage as a result of the incident.
331	b.  If a department train, a freight rail operator train,
332	and any other train are involved in an incident, the allocation
333	of liability between the department and the freight rail
334	operator, regardless of whether the other train is treated as a
335	department train, shall remain one-half each as to third parties
336	outside the rail corridor who incur loss, injury, or damage as a
337	result of the incident; the involvement of any other train shall
338	not alter the sharing of equal responsibility as to third
339	parties outside the rail corridor who incur loss, injury, or
340	damage as a result of the incident; and, if the owner, operator,
341	or insurer of the other train makes any payment to injured third
342	parties outside the rail corridor who incur loss, injury, or
343	damage as a result of the incident, the allocation of credit
344	between the department and the freight rail operator as to such
345	payment shall not in any case reduce the freight rail operator's
346	third-party-sharing allocation of one-half under this paragraph
347	to less than one-third of the total third party liability.
348	5.  Any such contractual duty to protect, defend,
349	indemnify, and hold harmless such a freight rail operator shall
350	expressly include a specific cap on the amount of the
351	contractual duty, which amount shall not exceed $200 million
352	without prior legislative approval; require the department to
353	purchase liability insurance and establish a self-insurance
354	retention fund in the amount of the specific cap established
355	under this paragraph; provided that no such contractual duty
356	shall in any case be effective nor otherwise extend the
357	department's liability in scope and effect beyond the
358	contractual liability insurance and self-insurance retention
359	fund required pursuant to this paragraph; and provided that the
360	freight rail operator's compensation to the department for
361	future use of the department's rail corridor shall include a
362	monetary contribution to the cost of such liability coverage for
363	the sole benefit of the freight rail operator.
364	(b)  Purchase liability insurance, which amount shall not
365	exceed $200 million, and establish a self-insurance retention
366	fund for the purpose of paying the deductible limit established
367	in the insurance policies it may obtain, including coverage for
368	the department, any freight rail operator as described in
369	paragraph (a), commuter rail service providers, governmental
370	entities, or ancillary development; however, the insureds shall
371	pay a reasonable monetary contribution to the cost of such
372	liability coverage for the sole benefit of the insured. Such
373	insurance and self-insurance retention fund may provide coverage
374	for all damages, including, but not limited to, compensatory,
375	special, and exemplary, and be maintained to provide an adequate
376	fund to cover claims and liabilities for loss, injury, or damage
377	arising out of or connected with the ownership, operation,
378	maintenance, and management of a rail corridor.
379	(c)  Incur expenses for the purchase of advertisements,
380	marketing, and promotional items.
381
382	Neither the assumption by contract to protect, defend,
383	indemnify, and hold harmless; the purchase of insurance; nor the
384	establishment of a self-insurance retention fund shall be deemed
385	to be a waiver of any defense of sovereign immunity for torts
386	nor deemed to increase the limits of the department's or the
387	governmental entity's liability for torts as provided in s.
388	768.28. The requirements of s. 287.022(1) shall not apply to the
389	purchase of any insurance hereunder. The provisions of this
390	subsection shall apply and inure fully as to any other
391	governmental entity providing commuter rail service and
392	constructing, operating, maintaining, or managing a rail
393	corridor on publicly owned right-of-way under contract by the
394	governmental entity with the department or a governmental entity
395	designated by the department.
396	(18)(17)  Exercise such other functions, powers, and duties
397	in connection with the rail system plan as are necessary to
398	develop a safe, efficient, and effective statewide
399	transportation system.
400	Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.