§24322 Rolling Stock Purchases

Summary

Before signing any contract over $100,000,000 to buy rolling stock or locomotives, Amtrak must send a business case analysis to the Secretary of Transportation, the Senate Committees on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and on Appropriations, and the House Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure and on Appropriations. The business case must compare total lifecycle costs and expected benefits (such as revenue, efficiency, and reliability); list total payments by fiscal year; identify funding sources and amounts (Federal, State, Amtrak profits, loans or loan guarantees, and other funding); say whether any payment will increase Amtrak’s funding request in its general and legislative annual report required under section 24315(b); and explain how the purchase would change if future funding is not available. Amtrak does not have to share a vendor’s confidential pricing or sensitive business information before a contract is signed, and it may still enter into the contract after sending the business case.