§ 1142.
(a)
In general
A public transportation agency, a contractor or a subcontractor of such agency, or an officer or employee of such agency, shall not discharge, demote, suspend, reprimand, or in any other way discriminate against an employee if such discrimination is due, in whole or in part, to the employee’s lawful, good faith act done, or perceived by the employer to have been done or about to be done—
(1)
to provide information, directly cause information to be provided, or otherwise directly assist in any investigation regarding any conduct which the employee reasonably believes constitutes a violation of any Federal law, rule, or regulation relating to public transportation safety or security, or fraud, waste, or abuse of Federal grants or other public funds intended to be used for public transportation safety or security, if the information or assistance is provided to or an investigation stemming from the provided information is conducted by—
(A)
a Federal, State, or local regulatory or law enforcement agency (including an office of the Inspector General under chapter 4 of title 5;
1
So in original. The semicolon probably should be preceded by a closing parenthesis.
(B)
any Member of Congress, any Committee of Congress, or the Government Accountability Office; or
(C)
a person with supervisory authority over the employee or such other person who has the authority to investigate, discover, or terminate the misconduct;
(2)
to refuse to violate or assist in the violation of any Federal law, rule, or regulation relating to public transportation safety or security;
(3)
to file a complaint or directly cause to be brought a proceeding related to the enforcement of this section or to testify in that proceeding;
(4)
to cooperate with a safety or security investigation by the Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or the National Transportation Safety Board; or
(5)
to furnish information to the Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the National Transportation Safety Board, or any Federal, State, or local regulatory or law enforcement agency as to the facts relating to any accident or incident resulting in injury or death to an individual or damage to property occurring in connection with public transportation.
(b)
Hazardous safety or security conditions
(1)
A public transportation agency, or a contractor or a subcontractor of such agency, or an officer or employee of such agency, shall not discharge, demote, suspend, reprimand, or in any other way discriminate against an employee for—
(A)
reporting a hazardous safety or security condition;
(B)
refusing to work when confronted by a hazardous safety or security condition related to the performance of the employee’s duties, if the conditions described in paragraph (2) exist; or
(C)
refusing to authorize the use of any safety- or security-related equipment, track, or structures, if the employee is responsible for the inspection or repair of the equipment, track, or structures, when the employee believes that the equipment, track, or structures are in a hazardous safety or security condition, if the conditions described in paragraph (2) of this subsection exist.
(2)
A refusal is protected under paragraph (1)(B) and (C) if—
(A)
the refusal is made in good faith and no reasonable alternative to the refusal is available to the employee;
(B)
a reasonable individual in the circumstances then confronting the employee would conclude that—
(i)
the hazardous condition presents an imminent danger of death or serious injury; and
(ii)
the urgency of the situation does not allow sufficient time to eliminate the danger without such refusal; and
(C)
the employee, where possible, has notified the public transportation agency of the existence of the hazardous condition and the intention not to perform further work, or not to authorize the use of the hazardous equipment, track, or structures, unless the condition is corrected immediately or the equipment, track, or structures are repaired properly or replaced.
(3)
In this subsection, only subsection (b)(1)(A) shall apply to security personnel, including transit police, employed or utilized by a public transportation agency to protect riders, equipment, assets, or facilities.
(h)
Disclosure of identity
(1)
Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, or with the written consent of the employee, the Secretary of Transportation or the Secretary of Homeland Security may not disclose the name of an employee who has provided information described in subsection (a)(1).
(2)
The Secretary of Transportation or the Secretary of Homeland Security shall disclose to the Attorney General the name of an employee described in paragraph (1) of this subsection if the matter is referred to the Attorney General for enforcement. The Secretary making such disclosure shall provide reasonable advance notice to the affected employee if disclosure of that person’s identity or identifying information is to occur.
([Pub. L. 110–53, title XIV, § 1413], Aug. 3, 2007, [121 Stat. 414]; [Pub. L. 117–286, § 4(b)(22)], Dec. 27, 2022, [136 Stat. 4345].)