Funding under the most recent surface transportation authorization, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58), expires at the end of this fiscal year on September 30, 2026. As Congress begins work on the next long-term surface transportation reauthorization, RSI is actively working to ensure the priorities of the rail supply industry are reflected in the final legislation.
Crafting a comprehensive surface transportation bill requires coordination across multiple authorizing committees in both the House and Senate. Throughout this process, RSI is actively working with committee leadership and congressional staff to provide technical expertise, industry insight, and policy recommendations.
Key Committees of Jurisdiction for the Surface Transportation Bill | |
|---|---|
| House of Representatives | Senate |
Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure
| Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
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Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
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Committee on Environmental and Public Works
| |
RSI’s Surface Transportation Priorities
RSI supports a multiyear surface transportation reauthorization that strengthens America’s core infrastructure by improving safety, reliability, and efficiency across the rail network. Representing the full railroad supply chain, including manufacturers, suppliers, railcar owners, and lessors, RSI prioritizes advancing policies that sustain predictable, dedicated federal investment and encourage innovation across freight, passenger, and transit rail systems.
Supporting Technology and Innovation
RSI supports policies that accelerate the deployment of advanced freight rail technologies, including telematics, onboard sensors, and data systems that improve real-time visibility, asset condition monitoring, and system transparency. RSI strongly supports, H.R.2515, the American Tank Car Modernization Act, bipartisan legislation that would authorize federal investment to expand the use of telematics and sensor technologies across the freight rail fleet. By enabling earlier and broader adoption of these tools, the legislation would enhance rail safety, improve operational efficiency, and provide shippers and railcar owners with greater insight into supply chain performance.
Maintaining Existing Federal Gross-Vehicle Weight Standards
RSI opposes increases to federal truck size and weight limits, which would accelerate wear on highways and bridges, and increase public maintenance costs. Rail remains one of the most fuel-efficient and environmentally sustainable modes of long-distance freight transportation and is essential to a balanced national freight system.
Rail Supply Stakeholder Representation on RSTAC
RSI supports expanding the Surface Transportation Board’s Railroad-Shipper Transportation Advisory Council (RSTAC) to include independent freight railcar lessors. Adding this representation would ensure that regulatory and legislative guidance reflects the perspectives of entities that own and maintain the majority of the North American freight railcar fleet.
Railway-Highway Crossing Safety
RSI strongly supports continued investment in FHWA’s Railway-Highway Crossing Safety Program (Section 130), which has significantly reduced fatalities through the installation of modern warning and signaling systems. Reauthorization of this program is critical to improving safety outcomes for rail operations and the motoring public. RSI also supports sustained investment in FRA’s Railroad Crossing Elimination Program, which provides competitive grants for projects such as grade separations and crossing closures that permanently remove or improve at-grade rail crossings.
Passenger Rail Manufacturing and Supply Chain Investment
IIJA introduced historic levels of federal spending towards passenger and transit rail that has begun to advance major rail projects across the country. RSI supports sustained federal investment in passenger rail programs that strengthen the domestic manufacturing base and enable deployment of next-generation equipment. As private-sector partners on major transit and intercity rail projects, RSI members bring advanced technologies to market that improve safety, efficiency, and service reliability. Federal investment in the rail industry has been proven to provide economic benefits throughout the country. To learn more, read our latest rail supply economic impact study.
Passenger Rail and Transit Fleet Modernization
RSI supports continued funding for programs that replace aging passenger rail and transit vehicles and address state-of-good-repair backlogs. Modern fleet investment improves system reliability, enhances passenger safety, and reduces long-term operating costs while supporting American manufacturing and job creation.
Domestic Manufacturing and Buy America Policy
RSI and its members remain committed to strong Buy America standards and domestic production. Predictable, long-term federal investment provides manufacturers with the certainty needed to expand U.S. facilities, invest in workforce development, and maintain global competitiveness across the rail supply chain.
Resources:
- RSI’s submission to U.S. DOT on surface transportation reauthorization priorities
- RSI’s 119th Congress Legislative Priorities
- Rail Vehicle Replacement Program One-Pager
Activities:
In summer 2025, RSI was invited to participate in a House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee hearing as part of the “America Builds” series. These hearings provide lawmakers with stakeholder feedback to help shape the next surface transportation reauthorization bill. RSI member Wabtec Corporation represented the association and the industry, delivering testimony and responding to lawmakers’ questions during the session.
- America Builds: The Role of Innovation and Technology in Rail Modernization
- 2025 Annual Innovation in Rail Showcase
- 2026 Innovation in Rail – July 15, 2026, Rayburn House Office Building Foyer
Contact RSI Government Affairs Staff:
For more information on RSI’s involvement in the surface transportation reauthorization process, please contact RSI’s government affairs team.
Lead Staff Contact and Freight Related Surface Priorities: Ashley Shelton, Vice President of Government Affairs, ashelton@rsiweb.org
Passenger / Transit Rail Related Surface Priorities: Matthew Delaney, Director of Government Affairs, mdelaney@rsiweb.org