Sec. 9221. Sense of Congress
305 words·~1 min read·
/bill/116/hr/2/rds/section-9221A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Congress finds the following: Amtrak received $1,018,000,000 in aid from Congress as part of the CARES Act, to help Amtrak and its state partners respond to the drastic drop in demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The CARES Act also included a provision requiring that, for any employee who is furloughed as a result of the pandemic, Amtrak provide such employee the opportunity to return to the job as service ramps back up, thereby helping prevent the health crisis from being a reason to outsource work.
Amtrak has requested additional funds to help it respond to the continued loss of passenger demand while also announcing plans to permanently cut 20 percent of its workforce, which could hinder its ability to serve the Amtrak national passenger rail system, including its long-distance routes, now and in the future. Additionally, Amtrak recently announced its intention to eliminate daily service on most of its long-distance routes, leaving only one long-distance route to operate daily.
These reductions are set to begin October 1, 2020. Estimates indicate the plan to decrease service would drastically impact as many as 461 stations. If the service disruptions are implemented, the passengers served by these long-distance trains would be disconnected from a critical transportation option, and these communities would lose important economic contributions generated by this service . These cuts would also impact the lives of Amtrak employees whose work contributes to the operation of these trains.
Amtrak has not provided Congress, the public at large, or its workforce, sufficient notice or explanation of its plan to restore service to communities served by long-distance routes. Congress is concerned by the recent announcements from Amtrak that it intends to reduce its workforce and its daily long-distance train service and calls on Amtrak to provide assurance about the future of the passenger rail network and its employees.