The more information that comes out regarding the Ohio train derailment, the more unfortunate, though preventable, the situation seems.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg seems to incorrectly suggest that he does not have the power to reinstate the ECP "brake rule", due to legislation passed in 2015. "Buttigieg’s tweet refers to a
law passed by Congress in 2015 — at the urging of the railroad industry — requiring the executive branch to conduct cost-benefit analysis of the ECP brake rule before enacting it. Trump used that law to kill the braking rule, but the cost-benefit analysis his administration used to do so was subsequently discredited". Asked about the braking rule, a spokesperson from the Department of Transportation said that it would be difficult "to reinstate the rule in its previous configuration," given previous legal challenges. Rail law and regulatory experts interviewed by
The Lever agreed that Buttigieg’s Transportation Department can and should redo that analysis to allow for a reinstatement of the braking rule".
"Meanwhile, Buttigieg’s agency is currently considering a
separate rule that would weaken brake testing standards. Buttigieg’s attempt to depict himself as powerless comes after ongoing reporting by
The Lever detailing the weakening of safety rules governing the transportation of hazardous materials.
Facing pressure to act, America’s chief rail regulator now insists he is “constrained.” He’s not.
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Additionally, Merrick Garland, the US Attorney General, appears to back Norfolk Southern's bid to block lawsuits against them. "In the case against Norfolk Southern, the Biden administration is siding with the railroad in its conflict with a cancer-stricken former rail worker. A high court ruling for Norfolk Southern could create a national precedent limiting where workers and consumers can bring cases against corporations. If the court rules in favor of Norfolk Southern, it could overturn plaintiff-friendly laws on the books in states including Pennsylvania, New York, and Georgia that give workers and consumers more leeway to choose where they take corporations to court — an advantage national corporations already enjoy, as they often require customers and employees to agree to file litigation in specific locales whose laws make it harder to hold companies accountable".
"Such a decision could affect lawsuits filed by residents exposed to hazardous chemicals as the result of accidents in other states — such as the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment disaster, which occurred five miles west of the Pennsylvania state line. Already, at least five
class-action negligence lawsuits have been filed in Ohio against Norfolk Southern. If Norfolk Southern prevails in this case, the company could use the ruling to block lawsuits related to the derailment in Pennsylvania and other nearby states, arguing that they were filed in the wrong venue". Thus, this would nullify these lawsuits altogether. Norfolk Southern’s attorneys have
succeeded previously in moving injury suits against the company to new venues. A spokesperson for Norfolk Southern told
The Lever that the company could not comment on ongoing litigation".
The company whose train derailed in Ohio is asking the Supreme Court to kill a suit by a sick rail worker — and help the firm block future lawsuits
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