{"data":{"id":"us/49-cfr-246.120","jurisdiction":"us","citation":"49 CFR 246.120","heading":"Requirements for qualification.","body":"(a) After FRA has approved a railroad's certification program, a railroad shall not permit or require a person to serve as a signal employee, as defined in § 246.7, unless that railroad determines that:\n(1) The person is a certified signal employee; and\n(2) The person either:\n(i) Is qualified, as defined in § 246.7, on the signal system equipment and signal-related technology (whether existing or new) and therefore may reasonably be expected to be proficient on all safety related tasks the person is assigned to perform; or\n(ii) Is working under the direct and immediate supervision of a mentor or qualified instructor.\n(b) If a person is called to perform work on signal system equipment or signal-related technology that they are not qualified on, the person must immediately notify the railroad that they are not qualified on the signal system equipment or signal-related technology.\n(c) A person shall no longer be considered qualified on signal system equipment or signal-related technology if they have not performed work that requires certification pursuant to this part on signal system equipment or signal-related technology in the previous 12 months.\n(d) Each railroad shall adopt and comply with a program meeting the requirements of this section. When any person (including but not limited to a railroad; any manager, supervisor, official, or agent of a railroad; any owner, manufacturer, lessor, or lessee of railroad equipment, track, or facilities; any employee of such owner, manufacturer, lessor, lessee, or independent contractor or subcontractor) violates any requirement of a program which complies with the requirements of this section, that person shall be considered to have violated the requirements of this section.","path":["Title 49—Transportation","Subtitle B—Other Regulations Relating to Transportation","CHAPTER II—FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION","PART 246—CERTIFICATION OF SIGNAL EMPLOYEES","Subpart B—Program and Eligibility Requirements"],"source_url":"https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2026-08-25/title-49.xml","current_through":"2026-08-25","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-08-27T02:26:34Z","sha256":"d240aefce7ba22726f96f3d9906269f4a835095bf5465e8288fb62d5700af28b","source_id":"us-cfr","stale":true,"prev":"us/49-cfr-246.119","next":"us/49-cfr-246.121"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}