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Makes Amtrak’s governance and pay practices more transparent and gives States more access to contract information. It requires clear quorum rules and public meeting notices for Amtrak’s Board, mandates public disclosure of discretionary bonus amounts paid to officers and non‑bargaining employees, and requires Amtrak to share vendor agreements of $250,000 or more used to run State‑supported routes when requested by a State or the State‑Amtrak Intercity Passenger Rail Committee.
Amend Section 24302 of title 49 by striking the text "; and" from subsection (a)(6).
Replace subsection (e) of 49 U.S.C. 24302 with new text establishing rules for Board meetings (quorum, notice, open meetings, and annual meeting with States).
A majority of the members serving on the Board who are eligible to vote shall constitute a quorum for doing business.
Not later than 30 days before convening any meeting of the Board, the Board must post an announcement on a publicly accessible website that includes the anticipated agenda for the meeting.
All meetings of the Board must comply with the requirements set forth in section 552b of title 5 (the Federal open-meetings law).
Who is affected and how:
Amtrak (organization): Must update governance procedures, public posting practices, payroll/compensation reporting for discretionary bonuses, and create processes to collect and share qualifying vendor contracts. These are administrative burdens but not direct new funding obligations.
State Governments and State‑Amtrak Intercity Passenger Rail Committee: Gain clear rights to request and receive vendor agreements worth $250,000+ that were used to implement State‑supported routes, improving their oversight and ability to review service‑delivery contracts.
Amtrak officers and non‑bargaining employees: Their discretionary bonus amounts must be publicly disclosed when paid, increasing transparency of pay but also exposing compensation to public scrutiny.
Vendors and contractors: Contracts and potentially commercially sensitive terms may be disclosed to States under the new rule; vendors may face increased requests for confidentiality or redaction, and Amtrak may need to manage commercially sensitive information carefully.
Public and oversight stakeholders: Benefit from increased transparency around Board meetings, executive compensation, and State‑route contracting, which can improve accountability and public trust.
Net effects and risks:
Adds a requirement that Amtrak, upon request, disclose to a State or the State-Amtrak Intercity Passenger Rail Committee any vendor agreement valued at not less than $250,000 for services procured to implement a service on a State-supported route.
Strikes the phrase 'The preceding sentence' and inserts language requiring Amtrak to publicly disclose the amount of each discretionary bonus paid to any officer or non-bargaining unit employee, and updates the subsequent reference to 'The 2 preceding sentences'.
Amends 49 U.S.C. 24302 by (1) striking punctuation in subsection (a)(6), and (2) replacing subsection (e) to specify quorum rules, notice requirements (posting an announcement with anticipated agenda at least 30 days before meetings), require compliance with 5 U.S.C. 552b for open meetings, and require an annual meeting inviting State Department of Transportation heads for States traversed by long-distance or State-supported routes.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
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Introduced January 21, 2025 by Debra Fischer · Last progress January 21, 2025
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Introduced in Senate