WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) announced today that the RESPONSE Act, bipartisan legislation he introduced with Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) to better prepare emergency responders to handle potential hazardous incidents such as crude oil train derailments, has unanimously passed the U.S. Senate.

“We’ve seen it time and time again: when there’s an emergency, Maine’s first responders act, selflessly putting their lives on the lines to save others and protect our communities,” Senator King said. “That’s why we need to support them by ensuring that they have access to the highest-quality training and best resources available, which is what this legislation will help do. Putting the necessary tools into the hands of our first responders will better prepare them and, ultimately, help save lives.”

The Railroad Emergency Services Preparedness, Operational Needs, and Safety Evaluation (RESPONSE) Act would enable first responders to get quality training and have access to the appropriate resources and effective communications equipment. Specifically, the legislation would establish a public-private council that combines emergency responders, federal agencies, and leading experts to review training and best practices for first responders. This council, co-chaired by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), would provide Congress with expert recommendations on how to address first responders’ safety needs with increased railway safety challenges so they can best protect communities across the country.

Senator King strongly supports increased rail safety measures. In 2014, he joined several of his colleagues in advocating for the creation of a Safe Transportation and Energy Products Fund to provide the U.S. Department of Transportation new flexibility to address emerging issues related to the transportation of combustible energy products – including more expeditious rulemaking, technical studies, increased rail and energy product inspections, safety mitigation and response planning, first responder training, and community outreach. He has also pressed the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to immediately implement National Transportation Safety Board recommendations that were the result of an investigation of the horrific train derailment in Lac-Megantic, Quebec in 2013.

Other cosponsors of the bill include Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri), and Bob Casey (D-Penn.).

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