To amend title 49, United States Code, to repeal certain employee protective arrangements, and for other purposes.

On April 9, 2026, Representative Scott Perry (R-PA) introduced HR8232 in the 119th Congress. The bill is currently in early-stage status, referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. The bill text is brief and specific: it repeals subsection (b) of section 5333 of title 49, United States Code, removing employee protective arrangement requirements for federal transit grants. This is a deregulatory bill that eliminates a long-standing federal labor protection mandate that typically requires severance, retraining, and wage continuation for employees affected when transit service on federally funded rail projects is reduced or eliminated. The money trail here is not about direct spending but about cost reduction. Section 5333(b) does not authorize appropriations; it imposes a regulatory compliance cost on recipients of federal transit grants. The repeal removes these costs for transit agencies and, critically, for freight railroads that host transit operations on joint-use corridors. The actual savings depend on the scope of transit operations on each railroad's network — Class I railroads with significant commuter rail hosting agreements (UNP in Chicago, CSX in the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast, NSC in the Northeast Corridor) capture the largest direct benefit. Real market data shows strong recent momentum in rail stocks: UNP is at $265.55 (30-day change +9.45%), CSX at $44.86 (+9.26% 30-day), and NSC at $312.27 (+8.8% 30-day), all trading near their 52-week highs. These moves reflect broader infrastructure and economic tailwinds, with the bill providing additional sector-specific support. Midstream energy companies KMI ($32.70, 7-day +2.99%), ET ($19.99, 7-day +4.77%, hitting 52-week high), and WMB ($76.11, 7-day +5.44%) show accelerating momentum, partly driven by the DPA energy orders. The legislative timeline is uncertain — the bill has only three actions, all on introduction day, and a single sponsor who is not committee leadership. Passage requires committee markup, House floor vote, Senate introduction and passage, and Presidential signature. This is a multi-quarter to multi-year process with no guarantee of advancement. The deregulatory nature aligns with the current Republican House majority and DPA-driven infrastructure acceleration, but organized labor opposition is certain.