Title 49

SECTION 240.215

240.215 Retaining information supporting determinations.

§ 240.215 Retaining information supporting determinations.

(a) A railroad that issues, denies, or revokes a certificate after making the determinations required under § 240.203 shall maintain a record for each certified engineer or applicant for certification that contains the information the railroad relied on in making the determinations.

(b) The information concerning eligibility that the railroad shall retain includes:

(1) Any relevant data from the railroad's records concerning the person's prior safety conduct;

(2) Any relevant data furnished by another railroad;

(3) Any relevant data furnished by a governmental agency concerning the person's motor vehicle driving record; and

(4) Any relevant data furnished by the person seeking certification concerning his or her eligibility.

(1) The relevant test results data concerning acuity; and,

(2) If applicable, the relevant data concerning the professional opinion of the railroad's medical examiner on the adequacy of the person's acuity.

(d) The information concerning demonstrated knowledge that the railroad shall retain includes:

(1) Any relevant data from the railroad's records concerning the person's success or failure of the passage of knowledge test(s); and

(2) A sample copy of the written knowledge test or tests administered.

(e) The information concerning demonstrated performance skills that the railroad shall retain includes:

(1) The relevant data from the railroad's records concerning the person's success or failure on the performance skills test(s) that documents the relevant operating facts on which the evaluation is based including the observations and evaluation of the designated supervisor of locomotive engineers;

(2) If a railroad relies on the use of a locomotive operations simulator to conduct the performance skills testing required under this part, the relevant data from the railroad's records concerning the person's success or failure on the performance skills test(s) that documents the relevant operating facts on which the determination was based including the observations and evaluation of the designated supervisor of locomotive engineers; and

(3) The relevant data from the railroad's records concerning the person's success or failure on tests the railroad performed to monitor the engineer's operating performance in accordance with § 240.129.

(f) If a railroad is relying on successful completion of an approved training program conducted by another entity, the relying railroad shall maintain a record for each certified engineer that contains the relevant data furnished by the training entity concerning the person's demonstration of knowledge and performance skills and relied on by the railroad in making its determinations.

(g) If a railroad is relying on a certification decision initially made by another railroad, the relying railroad shall maintain a record for each certified engineer that contains the relevant data furnished by the other railroad which it relied on in making its determinations.

(h) All records required under this section shall be retained for a period of six years from the date of the certification, recertification, denial or revocation decision and shall be made available to FRA representatives upon request during normal business hours.

(i) It shall be unlawful for any railroad to knowingly or any individual to willfully:

(1) Make, cause to be made, or participate in the making of a false entry on the record(s) required by this section; or

(2) Otherwise falsify such records through material misstatement, omission, or mutilation.

(j) Nothing in this section precludes a railroad from maintaining the information required to be retained under this section in an electronic format provided that:

(1) The railroad maintains an information technology security program adequate to ensure the integrity of the electronic data storage system, including the prevention of unauthorized access to the program logic or individual records;

(2) The program and data storage system must be protected by a security system that utilizes an employee identification number and password, or a comparable method, to establish appropriate levels of program access meeting all of the following standards:

(i) No two individuals have the same electronic identity; and

(ii) A record cannot be deleted or altered by any individual after the record is certified by the employee who created the record;

(3) Any amendment to a record is either:

(i) Electronically stored apart from the record that it amends; or

(ii) Electronically attached to the record as information without changing the original record;

(4) Each amendment to a record uniquely identifies the person making the amendment;

(5) The system employed by the railroad for data storage permits reasonable access and retrieval of the information in usable format when requested to furnish data by FRA representatives; and

(6) Information retrieved from the system can be easily produced in a printed format which can be readily provided to FRA representatives in a timely manner and authenticated by a designated representative of the railroad as a true and accurate copy of the railroad's records if requested to do so by FRA representatives.

[56 FR 28254, June 19, 1991, as amended at 58 FR 19003, Apr. 9, 1993; 74 FR 68184, Dec. 23, 2009; 85 FR 81314, Dec. 15, 2020]