---
type: "LegalText"
title: "45 U.S.C. § 797l"
description: "Class II railroads receiving Federal assistance"
jurisdiction: "us"
corpus: "united_states_code"
kind: "code_section"
title_number: 45
title_name: "RAILROADS"
chapter_number: "16"
chapter_name: "REGIONAL RAIL REORGANIZATION"
section: "797l"
citation: "45 U.S.C. § 797l"
status: "current"
release_point: "119-100"
release_date: "2026-06-26"
source: "official"
source_url: "https://uscode.house.gov/download/releasepoints/us/pl/119/100/xml_usc45@119-100.zip"
source_identifier: "/us/usc/t45/s797l"
source_file: "data/legal/raw/us/code/title-45/usc45.xml"
source_hash: "76fd8f117586c168e2965cccde18a6f587f9fcf588ad893f1db25c0fdabc19a8"
raw_snapshot_hash: "6ff04cb352e22f8a18f24c94e9adb8036909cf2a75f41489d768a5934fb9667c"
text_hash: "2cf5b5f9721f59e6e3bedf5b98b53afc1237fadc31c397f6c3f79c97f1089fe8"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-04"
confidence: "official"
tags: ["legal", "us-code"]
---

# 45 U.S.C. § 797l - Class II railroads receiving Federal assistance

## Text

The Surface Transportation Board shall impose no labor protection conditions in approving an application under section 10902 of title 49 when the application involves a Class II rail carrier which—

(1) is headquartered in a State, and operates in at least one State, with a population of less than 1,000,000 persons, as determined by the 1990 census; and

(2) has, as of January 1, 1996, been a recipient of repayable Federal Railroad Administration assistance in excess of $5,000,000.

(Pub. L. 93–236, title VII, § 713, as added Pub. L. 104–88, title III, § 327(5)(A), formerly § 327(5), Dec. 29, 1995, 109 Stat. 952, renumbered Pub. L. 104–287, § 6(f)(4)(B), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3399.)

## Notes

Editorial Notes

Prior ProvisionsA prior section 797l, Pub. L. 93–236, title VII, § 713, as added Pub. L. 97–35, title XI, § 1143(a), Aug. 13, 1981, 95 Stat. 668, authorized appropriations to carry out activities for protection of employees of Consolidated Rail Corporation, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 99–509, title IV, § 4033(a)(2), Oct. 21, 1986, 100 Stat. 1908.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective DateSection effective Jan. 1, 1996, see section 2 of Pub. L. 104–88, set out as a note under section 1301 of Title 49, Transportation.