2026-15847NoticeWallet

Amtrak crash payouts capped higher at $402 million

Published Date: 8/5/2026

Notice

Summary

This notice details the adjustment made to the rail passenger transportation liability cap as required by section 11415(b) of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act (December 4, 2015). Pursuant to the FAST Act, the rail passenger transportation liability cap is raised from $322,864,228 to $401,900,000.

Analyzed Economic Effects

2 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.

Rail passenger liability cap raised

If you are a rail passenger injured in a single accident, the total amount that all passengers can recover together (including punitive damages) has been raised from $322,864,228 to $401,900,000. This new cap becomes effective September 4, 2026.

Cap tied to CPI-U and five-year updates

The Department used the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) to adjust the cap from the December 1997 base ($200,000,000) using the December 1997 index (161.300) and the November 2025 index (324.122), and rounded the result to the nearest hundred thousand. The FAST Act directs the Secretary to update the liability cap every fifth year after the Act's December 4, 2015 enactment; the November 2025 CPI-U was used because October 2025 data were unavailable.

Personalized for You

How does this regulation affect your finances?

Personalize government policy and PRIA will tell you what this federal register document means for your household, plus every other regulation we track. PRIA reads each provision against your financial profile to show you exactly what matters to your wallet.

Key Dates

Published Date
Effective Date
8/5/2026
9/4/2026

Department and Agencies

Department
Independent Agency
Agency
Transportation Department
Transportation Department
Source: View HTML

Related Federal Register Documents

Previous / Next Documents

Back to Federal Register