The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) released its 2021 Fiscal Year Enforcement Report last week containing regulatory compliance inspections and audits from the safety program.

In a May 19 press release, the FRA announced that its annual report had been published, covering everything from routine inspections to civil penalty enforcement actions from recorded violations.

“This enforcement report provides a snapshot of one important aspect of FRA’s safety oversight, highlighting the thousands of hours our teams invest in hands-on fieldwork each year,” said FRA Administrator Amit Bose, in the release. “Through the pandemic, FRA inspectors have continued this work to help ensure the safety of our nation’s railroads.”

For fiscal year 2021, roughly 70,000 inspections were conducted by the FRA on railroads to provide and guarantee that railroads maintained the metrics and regulations which the FRA imposes including "regulations and laws governing track, motive power and equipment, operating practices, signal and train control, hazardous materials, and others," the release stated.

Federal and state rail safety inspectors utilize several enforcement tools for their reviews, although civil monetary penalties are less frequently used and reserved for the most severe instances of non-compliance, according to the release.

To determine what sort of fine to impose, FRA inspectors and managers are required to consider the inherent seriousness of the condition or action, the degree of potential safety hazard the condition or action poses, harm that may have impacted persons or property already caused by the condition or action, and the offending entity’s general level of compliance, the release stated.

Civil penalties are assessed through specific guidelines outlined in the Code of Federal Regulations. The FRA can elect to settle such claims through authorization from the Federal Claims Collection Act, according to the release.