Railroads are already required to report certain accidents and damage to federal regulators, but the rules don't clearly address cases where the railroad's own actions likely caused the harm, including fires that ignite alongside the tracks, such as brush fires. This bill, the HOWIE Act, directs the Department of Transportation's Federal Railroad Administration to update its reporting regulation so that a railroad must report a qualifying accident whenever it has "reasonable suspicion" that something it did caused the damage. That specifically covers trackside fires, a growing concern in wildfire-prone areas of the country. The bill does not create new penalties for railroads — it closes a reporting gap so regulators are notified sooner when a railroad's own operations may be responsible for damage or fire.
Transparency & Accountability
- Rail-carrier accident reporting — Carriers must report accidents, including trackside fires, when they suspect their own actions caused the damage
Congressional Summary
Helping Oversee and Ward off Infrastructure Emergencies Act or the HOWIE ActThis bill directs the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to revise current railroad accident reporting requirements to include additional causes of damage. Specifically, FRA must require a railroad to report a train accident that results in damage if the railroad has a reasonable suspicion that an action carried out by the railroad caused the damage. An accident includes any incident that causes a fire, including a brush fire, alongside a railroad track.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- House
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in House
- Action Date
- 2026-03-19
- Date Added
- 2026-07-18
- Source
- Congress.gov →
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