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Home/Bills/SB 667California · 2025–2026 Regular Session
Senate BillChaptered/SignedPublic Utilities

SB 667: Railroads: safety: report.

California · Senate · 2025–2026 Regular Session · last verified September 19, 2026

What SB 667 does, verified September 19, 2026

The bill aims to improve railroad safety by requiring freight trains to be equipped with a network of wayside detector systems. These systems scan passing trains and their components for defects. The bill sets a maximum spacing for individual detection devices along a continuous track and includes a hot wheel bearing detector. The systems must be installed and operated by the railroad corporation. The public utilities commission will adopt rules and processes to implement the provisions. A penalty of at least $25,000 will be imposed for violating the requirements. The bill does not apply to Class II or Class III carriers with a speed limit of 10 miles per hour or less.

Bill journey
✓IntroducedComplete
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✓GovernorComplete
6ChapteredCurrent
Last action: Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 316, Statutes of 2026. (2026-09-18)Alert me
Recent actions37 total · showing 5
Sep. 18, 2026Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 316, Statutes of 2026.
Sep. 18, 2026Approved by the Governor.
Sep. 02, 2026Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3 p.m.
Aug. 27, 2026Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 39. Noes 0.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.
Aug. 24, 2026Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 78. Noes 0. Page 6387.) Ordered to the Senate.
Full action history, 32 earlier actionsConnect Plus
Latest bill textEnrolled version, August 30, 2026 · 814 words

Enrolled August 30, 2026
Passed IN Senate August 27, 2026
Passed IN Assembly August 24, 2026
Amended IN Assembly June 03, 2026
Amended IN Senate January 22, 2026
Amended IN Senate January 05, 2026
Amended IN Senate April 29, 2025
Amended IN Senate April 08, 2025
Amended IN Senate March 24, 2025

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 667


Introduced by Senator Archuleta

February 20, 2025


An act to amend Section 916.2 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to transportation.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 667, Archuleta. Railroads: safety: report.
Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission to annually report to the Legislature on sites on railroad lines in the state that the commission finds to be hazardous, including a list of all railroad sites in the state that it determines pose a local safety hazard. Existing law authorizes the commission to submit in the annual report the list of railroad sites submitted in the immediate prior year annual report, and to amend or revise that list from the immediate prior year as necessary. In determining which railroad sites pose a local safety hazard, existing law requires the commission to consider, among other things, whether any local safety hazards at railroad sites have been eliminated or sufficiently remediated to warrant removal of the site from the list.
This bill would require the commission, on or before July 1, 2029, to review the list of railroad sites and, in the annual report, to include an evaluation of each site on the list and determine whether changes in conditions, operations, or safety data warrant the removal, modification, or addition of any site.
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

Section 916.2 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:

916.2.

(a) The commission shall annually report to the Legislature, on or before July 1, on sites on railroad lines in the state it finds to be hazardous. The report shall include, but not be limited to, information on all of the following:
(1) A list of all railroad derailment accident sites in the state on which accidents have occurred within at least the previous five years. The list shall describe the nature and probable causes of the accidents, if known, and shall indicate whether the accidents occurred at or near sites that the commission has determined, pursuant to paragraph (2), pose a local safety hazard.
(2) A list of all railroad sites in the state that the commission determines, pursuant to Section 20106 of Title 49 of the United States Code, pose a local safety hazard. The commission may submit in the annual report the list of railroad sites submitted in the immediate prior year annual report, and may amend or revise that list from the immediate prior year as necessary. Factors that the commission shall consider in determining a local safety hazard may include, but need not be limited to, all of the following:
(A) The severity of grade and curve of track.
(B) The value of special skills of train operators in negotiating the particular segment of railroad line.
(C) The value of special railroad equipment in negotiating the particular segment of railroad line.
(D) The types of commodities transported on or near the particular segment of railroad line.
(E) The hazard posed by the release of the commodity into the environment.
(F) The value of special railroad equipment in the process of safely loading, transporting, storing, or unloading potentially hazardous commodities.
(G) The proximity of railroad activity to human activity or sensitive environmental areas.
(H) A list of the root causes and significant contributing factors of all train accidents or derailments investigated.
(b) (1) In determining which railroad sites pose a local safety hazard pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), the commission shall consider the history of accidents at or near the sites. The commission shall not limit its determination to sites at which accidents have already occurred, but shall identify potentially hazardous sites based on the criteria enumerated in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) and all other criteria that the commission determines influence railroad safety. The commission shall also consider whether any local safety hazards at railroad sites have been eliminated or sufficiently remediated to warrant removal of the site from the list required under paragraph (2) of subdivision (a).
(2) On or before July 1, 2029, the commission shall review the list of railroad sites identified pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a). In reviewing these sites, the commission shall, in the report required pursuant to this section, include an evaluation of each site on the list and determine whether changes in conditions, operations, or safety data warrant the removal, modification, or addition of any site.
(c) The commission may combine the information required to be reported by this section with the report prepared pursuant to Section 916.

Text of SB 667 as enrolled, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions
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