View all text of Chapter 243 [§ 24301 - § 24323]
§ 24302. Board of directors
(a)Composition and Terms.—
(1) The Amtrak Board of Directors (referred to in this section as the “Board”) is composed of the following 10 directors, each of whom must be a citizen of the United States:
(A) The Secretary of Transportation.
(B) The Chief Executive Officer of Amtrak, who shall serve as a nonvoting member of the Board.
(C) 8 individuals appointed by the President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, with general business and financial experience, experience or qualifications in transportation, freight and passenger rail transportation, travel, hospitality, cruise line, or passenger air transportation businesses, or representatives of employees or users of passenger rail transportation or a State government, at least 1 of whom shall be an individual with a disability (as defined in section 3 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102)) who has a demonstrated history of, or experience with, accessibility, mobility, and inclusive transportation in passenger rail or commuter rail.
(2) In selecting individuals described in paragraph (1) for nominations for appointments to the Board, the President shall consult with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the minority leader of the House of Representatives, the majority leader of the Senate, and the minority leader of the Senate.
(3) An individual appointed under paragraph (1)(C) of this subsection shall be appointed for a term of 5 years. Such term may be extended until the individual’s successor is appointed and qualified. Not more than 5 individuals appointed under paragraph (1)(C) may be members of the same political party.
(4) Of the individuals appointed pursuant to paragraph (1)(C)—
(A) 2 individuals shall reside in or near a location served by a regularly scheduled Amtrak service along the Northeast Corridor;
(B) 4 individuals shall reside in or near regions of the United States that are geographically distributed outside of the Northeast Corridor, of whom—
(i) 2 individuals shall reside in States served by a long-distance route operated by Amtrak;
(ii) 2 individuals shall reside in States served by a State-supported route operated by Amtrak; and
(iii) an individual who resides in a State that is served by a State-supported route and a long-distance route may be appointed to serve either position referred to in clauses (i) and (ii);
(C) 2 individuals shall reside either—
(i) in or near a location served by a regularly scheduled Amtrak service on the Northeast Corridor; or
(ii) in a State served by long-distance or a State-supported route; and
(D) each individual appointed to the Board pursuant to this paragraph may only fill 1 of the allocations set forth in subparagraphs (A) through (C).
(5) The Board shall elect a chairperson and vice chairperson, other than the Chief Executive Officer of Amtrak, from among its membership. The vice chairperson shall act as chairperson in the absence of the chairperson.
(6) The Board shall meet at least annually with—
(A) representatives of Amtrak employees;
(B) representatives of persons with disabilities; and
(C) the general public, in an open meeting with a virtual attendance option, to discuss financial performance and service results.
(7) The Secretary may be represented at Board meetings by the Secretary’s designee.
(b)Pay and Expenses.—Each director not employed by the United States Government or Amtrak is entitled to reasonable pay when performing Board duties. Each director not employed by the United States Government is entitled to reimbursement from Amtrak for necessary travel, reasonable secretarial and professional staff support, and subsistence expenses incurred in attending Board meetings.
(c)Travel.—
(1) Each director not employed by the United States Government shall be subject to the same travel and reimbursable business travel expense policies and guidelines that apply to Amtrak’s executive management when performing Board duties.
(2) Not later than 60 days after the end of each fiscal year, the Board shall submit a report describing all travel and reimbursable business travel expenses paid to each director when performing Board duties to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.
(3) The report submitted under paragraph (2) shall include a detailed justification for any travel or reimbursable business travel expense that deviates from Amtrak’s travel and reimbursable business travel expense policies and guidelines.
(d)Vacancies.—A vacancy on the Board is filled in the same way as the original selection, except that an individual appointed by the President of the United States under subsection (a)(1)(C) of this section to fill a vacancy occurring before the end of the term for which the predecessor of that individual was appointed is appointed for the remainder of that term. A vacancy required to be filled by appointment under subsection (a)(1)(C) must be filled not later than 120 days after the vacancy occurs.
(e)Quorum.—A majority of the members serving who are eligible to vote shall constitute a quorum for doing business.
(f)Bylaws.—The Board may adopt and amend bylaws governing the operation of Amtrak. The bylaws shall be consistent with this part and the articles of incorporation.
(Pub. L. 103–272, § 1(e), July 5, 1994, 108 Stat. 906; Pub. L. 105–134, title IV, § 411(a), Dec. 2, 1997, 111 Stat. 2588; Pub. L. 110–432, div. B, title II, § 202(a), Oct. 16, 2008, 122 Stat. 4911; Pub. L. 114–94, div. A, title XI, § 11205, Dec. 4, 2015, 129 Stat. 1637; Pub. L. 117–58, div. B, title II, § 22202(a), Nov. 15, 2021, 135 Stat. 697.)