49 U.S.C. § 20138
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- (a)The Secretary of Transportation shall prescribe regulations and issue orders to prohibit the willful tampering with, or disabling of, any specified railroad safety or operational monitoring device.
- (b)
- (1)A railroad carrier operating a train on which a safety or operational monitoring device is tampered with or disabled in violation of a regulation prescribed or order issued under subsection (a) of this section is liable to the United States Government for a civil penalty under section 21301 of this title.
- (2)An individual tampering with or disabling a safety or operational monitoring device in violation of a regulation prescribed or order issued under subsection (a) of this section, or knowingly operating or allowing to be operated a train on which such a device has been tampered with or disabled, is liable for penalties established by the Secretary. The penalties may include—