H.R. 2515 — American Tank Car Modernization Act of 2025

This section establishes a grant program administered by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to provide funds to freight railcar owners for purchasing and installing onboard freight railcar telematics systems or gateway devices. (Telematics systems collect and transmit railcar data using GPS and sensors for location, asset health, mechanical issues (e.g., railcar impact, wheel bearing temperature, hand brake status, hatch status, internal temperature), efficiency, and real-time alerts to operators and stakeholders; gateway devices connect networks for data transmission.) The section specifies eligible uses of funds to enhance near real-time visibility of railcar location and health; safety of assets and commodities; sensor technology for maintenance; railcar utilization efficiency; automated data capture; mechanical issue alerts; and real-time stakeholder communications. In selecting grant recipients, FRA must prioritize installations on (1) newly built railcars from qualified manufacturers/facilities, (2) railcars entering certification events in qualified facilities, and (3) railcars entering shopping or maintenance events in qualified facilities; within those priorities, FRA must further prioritize railcar types as (1) tank cars in TIH/PIH (toxic inhalation hazard/poison inhalation hazard) service, (2) tank cars in Class I, II, or III flammable service, (3) other hazardous materials tank cars, (4) specialized service tank cars, (5) other tank cars, and (6) all other freight railcars. Railcars and related sensitive technology must comply with 49 U.S.C. §20171 to be eligible. Not later than three years after enactment, the Secretary of Transportation must submit to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure a publicly available report on the program's implementation and effects, including numbers of equipped railcars and costs, safety incidents, grant recipient experiences, and legislative recommendations developed in consultation with stakeholders.

This section establishes a Federal Railroad Administration pilot program to assist freight railcar owners and manufacturers in developing onboard sensor technologies—including those providing real-time visibility into wheel and wheel bearing temperature, hand brake status, hatch status, and internal railcar temperature—for monitoring freight railcar safety, commodities, maintenance needs, and potential hazards. Eligible entities are limited to freight railcar owners, and participating railcars and related sensitive technology must comply with restrictions under 49 U.S.C. 20171 (i.e., prohibiting sensitive technology from countries of concern, state-owned enterprises, or non-qualified facilities on U.S. railroad freight cars). Not later than one year after enactment, the FRA Administrator must report to Congress on program activities and sensor effectiveness, including types and numbers adopted for industry use. The section authorizes $10 million for each of FY2026 through FY2029, to remain available until expended.