U.S. Department of Homeland Security Washington, DC 20472 Grant Programs Directorate Information Bulletin No. 301 December 10, 2008 TO: All Class I/II/III Railroad Carriers All Owners of Rail cars Used to Transport Materials Poisonous by Inhalation/Toxic Inhalation Hazard Materials All Offerors who Ship by Railroad Materials Poisonous by Inhalation/Toxic Inhalation Hazard Materials FROM: W. Ross Ashley III Assistant Administrator Grant Programs Directorate Federal Emergency Management Agency Doyle Raines General Manager, Network Integration Transportation Security Administration SUBJECT: FY 2009 Freight Rail Security Grant Program GPS Tracking Requirements On September 30, 2008, the President signed the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009 (Public Law 110-329), providing appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security for Fiscal Year (FY) 2009. This legislation appropriated $400 million for the Transit Security Grant Program (TSGP) of which $15 million funds the Freight Rail Security Grant Program (FRSGP). The FY 2009 FRSGP Guidance and Application Kit specifies on pages 25-26 the requirements for GPS tracking technology. After further discussions with its stakeholders, TSA has examined the GPS tracking technology requirements and determined that a revision is necessary in order to maximize the efficient use of the grant funds. The revision to the GPS Technology Requirements (see attachment) was developed to broaden the technical specifications and provide flexibility in allowing for continued growth of this technology in the rail industry while enhancing the visibility of rail cars that transport materials poisonous by inhalation/toxic inhalation hazardous (TIH) materials. Therefore, the attached GPS Tracking Requirements (Revised) document is replacing the previous GPS technology requirements that were on pages 25-26 of the FY 2009 FRSGP Guidance and Application Kit. For questions regarding the modification of GPS Tracking Requirements for the FY 2009 FRSGP, or for other questions regarding the FY 2009 FRSGP, please contact the Centralized Scheduling and Information Desk at 1-800-368-6498, or via email at askcsid@dhs.gov. Please also carbon copy tsagrants@tsa.dhs.gov. GPS Tracking Requirements (Revised) Bulk-TIH Rail Car Tracking Systems Implement tracking of rail cars transporting bulk amounts of TIH materials throughout the United States using satellite and/or land-based wireless GPS communications systems. The tracking systems requirements shall include the following: • The system shall have the capability of providing the current position by latitude and longitude. • The system shall have geofencing capabilities that allow authorized users to define and monitor routes through High Threat Urban Areas (HTUAs). • The system shall have the capability of sending an alert notification to the designated dispatch/operation center when the rail car enters and leaves an HTUA. • The system shall have the capability to allow polling of the rail car tracking units to request a current location and status report. • The system shall capable of operating with a reporting frequency that permits locating the rail car within a reasonable precision when requested by DHS/TSA representatives. • The tracking system shall meet all federal, state, local, and industry safety standards regarding the installation of the GPS equipment on the rail car. The tracking system shall be tested periodically and the results of the test recorded. Technology Standards Rail Car Tracking Systems shall conform to the “TSA Universal Communications Interface (UCI) – Interface Requirements Specification (IRS)” for enabling the transmission of data from commercially available tracking systems to a centralized government tracking center. The TSA UCI Interface Control Document provides the details to enable a commercial rail car tracking system to implement the nonproprietary universal interface set of protocols. Data Requirements The UCI provides the means for rail car owners and lessees to provide a government centralized tracking center with tracking data including information regarding Transportation Security Incidents involving rail cars transporting bulk amounts of TIH materials. Companies must provide TSA rail car tracking and shipment data through the UCI. Communications Plan A communication plan should be established to include standard operating procedures (SOP) for communications between rail car owners/lessees, appropriate railroad carrier personnel, and emergency services agencies. This plan should include the appropriate two-way communication technologies required to implement the communication plan, such as terrestrial or satellite-based systems. This is not intended to preclude the use of personal cell phones.