Colorado § 40-20-311.5 - Rail safety fee - rules - fund created.

§ 40-20-311.5. Rail safety fee - rules - fund created.

(1) (a) Beginning on July 1, 2027, and subject to the deadlines described in subsection (3)(a) of this section, the following types of railroads shall pay an annual fee to cover the office of rail safety's and the commission's direct and indirect costs of implementing the requirements of this article 20:

(I) A class I railroad;

(II) A railroad operating any line that was used by class I railroads as of July 1, 2024, except for a class II railroad or a class III railroad utilizing trackage rights or haulage rights in effect as of July 1, 2024, to operate on a line owned by a class I railroad; and

(III) A passenger rail system.

(b) (I) On or before September 30, 2026, the commission shall determine a methodology, through rule-making, for calculating the annual fee apportionment described in subsection (1)(a) of this section by rule for each railroad type described in subsection (1)(a) of this section operating within the state, totaling no less than the amount required for the office of rail safety to administer and enforce this article 20 and the railroads' related share of the commission's grade crossing safety program responsibilities described in section 40-4-106. The total amount collected pursuant to the annual fee must not exceed two million nine hundred thousand dollars in a calendar year.

(II) The methodology for calculating the annual fee described in subsection (1)(a) of this section may include in the calculation:

(A) The total train miles traveled in Colorado annually;

(B) The total gross ton-miles of freight train cars, contents, and cabooses; and

(C) The total public crossings.

(III) The commission shall consult with and solicit comment from the community rail safety advisory committee and the rail industry safety advisory committee during the rule-making process to establish the fee calculation methodology and yearly calculation of the fee pursuant to this subsection (1).

(IV) (A) The commission shall notify each railroad required to pay the annual fee described in subsection (1)(a) of this section of the amount of the annual fee for the upcoming state fiscal year on or before June 1, 2027, and on or before each June 1 thereafter.

(B) The commission shall send a quarterly invoice to each railroad required to pay the annual fee described in subsection (1)(a) of this section on or before June 1, 2027. Thereafter, the commission shall send a quarterly invoice to each railroad required to pay the annual fee on or before September 1, December 1, March 1, and June 1 of each state fiscal year.

(2) (a) The state treasurer shall credit the fees collected pursuant to this article 20 to the office of rail safety fund, which fund is created in the state treasury. The money in the fund is annually appropriated to the office of rail safety for the purposes set forth in this article 20 and for administering the railroads' share of the commission's grade crossing safety program responsibilities outlined in section 40-4-106. All interest earned from the deposit and investment of money in the fund is credited to the fund.

(b) The office of railroad safety shall not expend money from the rail safety fund on equipment or hiring staff until July 1, 2027.

(3) (a) Each railroad subject to the fee described in subsection (1)(a) of this section shall pay the fee to the commission in equal quarterly installments on or before July 1, October 1, January 1, and April 1 of each state fiscal year.

(b) If a railroad does not pay the fee before a quarterly deadline described in subsection (3)(a) of this section, the commission shall charge the railroad a penalty of ten percent of the installment due plus interest at the rate of one percent per month on the amount of the unpaid installment until the full amount of the installment, penalty, and interest has been paid.

(c) Upon failure, refusal, or neglect of any railroad to pay the fee or any penalty or interest, the attorney general shall commence an action on behalf of the state to collect the amount due.

Source: L. 2025: Entire section added, (SB 25-162), ch. 420, p. 2377, § 8, effective June 4.

Cross references: For the legislative declaration in SB 25-162, see section 1 of chapter 420, Session Laws of Colorado 2025.