HR 8713 Re-checks Congress.gov for new actions and updates the bill's status, and fills in any sponsors, committees, or related bills that are missing. It does not re-pull sponsors/cosponsors/committees/related — those rarely change — and it skips all work if nothing has changed upstream, so it's cheap to click.
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to require certain specifications for safety placards, and for other purposes.
Summary
This bill directs the Secretary of Transportation to issue regulations within one year requiring that hazardous materials placards on railcars be able to withstand heat in excess of 180 degrees Fahrenheit. The placards covered by these requirements are those specified in federal regulations for hazardous materials transportation. The Secretary may increase the heat resistance threshold based on recommendations from the National Transportation Safety Board. These enhanced specifications would help emergency responders identify the contents of railcars during accidents involving fire or extreme heat.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
1 cosponsor
Actions (2)
- May 7, 2026 Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. · house
- May 7, 2026 Introduced in House
Similar bills (6)
Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.
Full text
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 7, 2026
Mrs. Sykes (for herself and Mr. Rulli) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to require certain specifications for safety placards, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Railcar Accident Placard Integrity and Durability for Responders Act of 2026” or the “RAPID Responders Act of 2026”.
SEC. 2. SPECIFICATIONS FOR SAFETY PLACARDS.
(a) In General.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall issue regulations to require that placards covered under section 172.519 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, be able to withstand heat in excess of 180 degrees.
(b) Updates Based on Recommendations.—The Secretary may, upon recommendation from the National Transportation Safety Board, issue such regulations as are necessary to increase the heat threshold described in subsection (a). <all>
Comments