Faced with heavy workloads and short staffing, Wisconsin’s probation and parole program has been falling short on monitoring offenders and offering them rehabilitation resources, according to a nonpartisan legislative audit published Friday.

Auditors found that the Department of Corrections, which also oversees the state’s substantially understaffed prisons, has not completed required risk assessments or investigations of people on release or probation quickly enough. The agency also did not adequately review the penalties it imposed on people who violated the terms of their release to see which consequences were most effective at preventing re-offense, auditors said.

More than 63,000 people are part of Wisconsin’s community corrections program. Most are on probation, meaning they were sentenced to supervision instead of prison time, or on extended supervision, which is served after release from prison.

Some people receive services such as housing assistance or treatment for substance abuse through the program, but corrections agents said they believed many people under their supervision weren’t getting the help they needed — especially in areas including child and health care, education and mental health.

According to the audit, corrections staff didn’t have a central database to track whether people fulfilled the treatments or programs they were required to complete, and check-in programs were administered inconsistently across the state.

In a news release Friday, Republican Sen. Eric Wimberger, co-chair of the Legislature’s audit committee, laid blame on Democratic Gov. Tony Evers for the issues the nonpartisan audit discovered. Conservative groups attempted to brand Evers as soft on crime during his bid for reelection last year, and Evers and Republicans have disagreed on how to address crime rates and problems in prisons.

Evers’ spokesperson, Britt Cudaback, did not immediately respond Friday to an email asking for comment.

Between 2019 and 2022, the time period auditors examined, the Department of Corrections cited roughly 57,000 participants for more than 380,000 violations of the terms of their supervision, including broad restrictions against possessing drugs or alcohol, visiting certain places or people, or failing to attend required treatment.

More than half the violations were non-criminal, and most were for using drugs or alcohol. Less than 7% were violent criminal offenses.

Corrections agents were most likely to address violations with short jail stays, according to the audit. The next most popular options revoked someone’s release altogether or issued a warning.

Consequences varied based on the seriousness of the violation, but most corrections agents said they were frustrated by a push to use methods other than revoking someone’s release, since they didn’t believe those options protected the public or held offenders accountable.

The corrections agents overseeing the release program also overwhelmingly voiced unhappiness with their high workloads and low pay. As of July 2022, the program had more than 250 unfilled positions — nearly 13% of its total staffing. It’s a problem the corrections department faces across its workforce as lawmakers consider whether to increase wages for prison guards and other criminal justice workers.

The terms ‘open rule,’ ‘structured rule’ and ‘modified open-rule’ don’t mean much to people who don’t toil on Capitol Hill.

But those phrases speak volumes if you want to understand how House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., finally ascended to the Speaker’s suite after a raucous five days of balloting in the Speaker’s race.

Most major pieces of legislation to hit the House floor require a ‘rule.’ The powerful House Rules Committee establishes how the House will debate any given piece of legislation. The Rules Committee sets time limits for debate on the bill and if any amendments are in order.

For years, under both Republican and Democratic control, the House Rules Committee often locked down bills which came to the House floor. Very few bills hit the House floor with the opportunity for rank-and-file members to offer amendments.

HOUSE LAWMAKERS REIMBURSED FOR RENT, FOOD, OTHER EXPENSES AS NEW POLICY TAKES EFFECT

But most lawmakers prefer a more ‘open’ process. That allows them to have their say on the House floor.

However, if the Rules Committee – usually under the direction of the Speaker – says no amendments or only a few, that’s it. Lawmakers have a take it or leave it proposition. Leaders from both parties often designed the bills in such a way that they were streamlined to pass. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and former House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., tailored legislation to block ‘poison pills.’ They knew that certain ideas were popular. But they also knew those ideas – if adopted as an amendment – would detonate the bill.

That’s why they battened down the hatches on ‘must pass’ bills.’ Measures to fund the government. Lift the debt ceiling. Tax reform.

McCarthy promised something different.

That’s why the House considered 140 proposed amendments and alterations to a bill in January dealing with the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Republicans also allowed amendments to a bill setting a federal ‘parents bill of rights’ for education. The same with an energy package to expedite drilling.

A ‘closed rule’ crafted by the Rules Committee forbids any amendments. A ‘structured rule’ permits a few, pre-ordained amendments. A ‘modified open rule’ usually grants lawmakers the right to prep any amendment – so long as it’s done ahead of time. Some forms of ‘open rules’ means pretty much anything goes.

So, while lawmakers may embrace a more open amendment process, the gambit could also pose headaches for McCarthy.

‘Ultimately the job of the majority leadership is to pass its agenda,’ said Tom Kahn, a longtime former House Budget Committee Staff Director and now a professor at American University. ‘But you’ve got critical bills like the debt ceiling. Like spending bills. Like the defense bill. And if they get so bogged down (with amendments) then ultimately the agenda won’t pass.’

In fact, one of the objectives of House leaders to lock down bills wasn’t so much to prevent the minority party from offering amendments – but to block some of the more exigent proposals by the majority.

In essence, the Rules Committee functioned like a computer firewall. The goal was to keep the ‘spyware’ and ‘worms’ out of the bill.

Abortion was a great case study when it came to crafting a closed rule for floor debate.

HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE SUBPOENAS BANKS, BIDEN FAMILY ASSOCIATES IN PROBE OF FINANCES

When in the majority, House Republicans always wanted to vote on an abortion-related bill around the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision. Pro-choice members and liberals took a dim view of these pro-life bills. But the House Republican leadership always made sure that the bill was something which could pass. The brass might lock down a rule to prevent what even some pro-life Republicans would interpret as ‘too extreme.’ Say an amendment to outright ban all abortions.

The key was greasing the skids so a bill would pass.

House Republicans feature a big agenda on energy policy and social issues. But there are really only a few ‘must pass’ bills this year. There’s a bill to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration. There’s the farm bill. Then, the annual defense policy bill. A measure to fund the government and avoid a shutdown is due this fall. Finally, there will be legislation to lift the debt ceiling. So, if a bill isn’t going to make it through the Senate let alone earn President Biden’s signature, the House can pass any bill it wants. That makes good on the Republican agenda.

But it’s another story when you have to craft a bill which can make it through the Senate and score the President’s signature.

House Republicans touted their ‘Commitment to America’ to voters while campaigning in the fall of 2022.

One plank of that policy platform was the ‘parents bill of rights.’ The measure would mandate that parents have the right to be heard at school board meetings, understand the curriculum taught in the classroom and require schools release reading lists from libraries. The House approved that measure 213-208. Five GOPers voted nay: Reps. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., Ken Buck, R-Colo., Matt Gaetz, R-Fla, Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., and Matt Rosendale, R-Mont. No Democrats voted yea. Had all Democrats been present and voting, the roll call tally would have been 213-212. One more GOP defection would have killed the bill.

Fast forward to last month. The House approved the marquee of their legislative agenda – an energy package – 225-204. Only one Republican voted nay. But four Democrats crossed party lines to vote aye: Reps. Henry Cuellar, D-Tex., Vicente Gonzalez, D-Tex., Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Wash., and Jared Golden, D-Maine.

The House considered several dozen amendments. One senior source in the House GOP leadership structure remarked that it was hard to track who was for or against the bill. With so many amendments in play, the bill is organic. Its contents morphs in real time on the floor. That’s because someone’s vote could hinge on whether an amendment they liked or disliked made it into the bill or was euthanized.

‘It’s like ‘Whac-A-Mole,’’ said the source. ‘You just don’t know until the end.’

Gonzalez explained why he supported the package.

‘We should be leading the world in energy production,’ said Gonzalez. ‘We shouldn’t rely on the Middle East and other countries to produce energy.’

But Democratic leaders said their defectors should explain themselves.

‘Every member who either votes for or against a bill that, in my view, puts polluters over people, will articulate their perspective to the constituents that they represent back home,’ said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.

McCarthy dismissed questions about if it was harder to pass bills with an open amendment process. 

‘I think you’re overthinking it,’ said McCarthy. ‘You might analyze a lot and worry about what you think we’re doing. We don’t do that. We just focus on policy. Make good policy.’

Still some GOPers believe more amendments inhibits the viability of legislation.

‘The downside is that some of these rules become more partisan through the amendments,’ said Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb. ‘I’m looking to pass things that have a chance to go through the Senate.’

So what happens on a bill which could spark a financial crash like the debt ceiling? Or prompt a potential government shutdown this fall?

The concepts of ‘open rules’ and ‘modified open-rules’ boosted McCarthy to the Speakership in January.

But on a must pass bill?

Like an open rule, that remains an ‘open question’ for McCarthy.

Or, at the very least, a ‘modified open question.’

Republicans in North Carolina are sensing momentum as they look to push forward a wide-ranging legislative agenda with an extra pep in their step after a Democratic lawmaker changed parties this week, giving the GOP a veto-proof supermajority in the state House.

North Carolina state Rep. Tricia Cotham announced Wednesday that she is joining the Republican Party after long serving her deep blue Charlotte-area district as a Democrat. Beyond being symbolically important, the announcement could have a profound effect on the Tar Heel State.

While North Carolina Republicans have held majorities in both the state’s House and Senate chambers for years, the threat of a veto from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper has prevented them from implementing much of their agenda. But Cotham’s decision to join the GOP gives Republicans a clear path with a veto-proof majority in the House — complementing the GOP supermajority in the state Senate — to push a wide range of legislation without necessarily needing to compromise with Cooper.

‘If it’s a hot topic in American politics, the North Carolina General Assembly likely has a bill dealing with it,’ said Christopher Cooper, a professor of political science and public affairs at Western Carolina University. 

‘Transgender rights, election law, abortion, the role of critical race theory in schools are all issues the General Assembly has on its plate. If that’s not enough for you, there’s even a bill attempting to get rid of participation trophies in youth sports. We don’t know which bills will die a quiet death and which will make it out of the General Assembly. But, thanks to Tricia Cotham’s party switch, we know that the Republicans don’t need a single Democratic vote to enact the policies they want.’

Republicans didn’t waste time with their new veto-proof legislative majorities, introducing a flurry of bills this week focusing on transgender issues that were previously dead on arrival. Two of the bills would ensure athletes play on sports teams only with their own sex, which would be based on reproductive biology and genetics at birth. 

‘My sense is that we may see various efforts come to pass in North Carolina as in other majority Republican legislatures, such as policies related to transgender, education reform (especially since Rep. Cotham chairs that committee), likely revisions of election and voting laws (such as requiring mail-in ballots delivered by Election Day, rather than three days afterward), and certainly one of the most controversial, abortion,’ said Michael Bitzer, a professor of politics and history at Catawba College.

‘We may also see some topics previously vetoed by the governor return to consideration. Most of us are in a ‘wait and see’ mode when it comes to the exact policies and legislation proposed, but it feels like the Republicans have carte blanche to do what they want, based on caucus and chamber unity.’

The legislature will also look into school choice, parental involvement in schools, and redrawing congressional districts, according to experts on North Carolina politics.

‘The GOP will push through significant bills on education choice and parental involvement in schools. I believe Cotham will be on board with a lot of these forthcoming bills,’ said Chris Sinclair, a political strategist in North Carolina. ‘Finally, I believe the legislature will revisit the congressional and legislative maps and redraw these maps as has been speculated. They don’t need the governor for this, but believe they will draw a district for Cotham that is more competitive for an R than her current district, and she will support these new maps.’

However, Republicans, who had been just one seat shy of a supermajority, were already pursuing many of these agenda items before Cotham’s announcement, working with moderate Democrats to pass legislation.

‘I can honestly state that I am unaware of any change whatsoever in the issues we as a Republican Caucus intend to pursue,’ said Republican state Rep. Kristin Baker, the House deputy majority whip. ‘Our values, and our objectives, remain unaltered.’

Rep. Jason Saine, the House GOP caucus leader, echoed that point, outlining some of what’s on the agenda for his conference.

‘Coming into this year’s session, Republican leadership in the North Carolina House was already working with pragmatic Democrats to push for legislation that would limit emergency powers of the governor after school children, families, and small businesses suffered under his power grab during COVID,’ said Saine. ‘Much of what we can accomplish with a supermajority was already in play given that there are several Democrats who are working with us on a number of policy reforms.’

‘Expansion of school choice, election law reforms, as well as many other issues are still being discussed and planned,’ Saine continued. ‘Having just completed the House budget proposal and receiving the vote of nine Democrats on our budget bill, which also included a number of policy reforms, we think we are in a good place to continue to move our agenda forward.’

The state House on Thursday approved a two-year budget plan that now goes to the Senate for a vote.

‘The really big battle in North Carolina will be over the budget, and I suspect that it is here, in particular, that Cotham’s switch will have the most dramatic impact,’ said Steven Greene, a professor of political science at North Carolina State University. ‘So much of the partisan conflict in North Carolina comes out in the budget, and it is very often a party-line vote. I don’t think Cotham would have switched parties if she were not willing to vote with the Republicans on the budget, so, that alone, is a very big deal.’

However, Cotham may not be a sure yes vote when it comes to some GOP legislation, according to experts and lawmakers who note she doesn’t fall neatly into any one political box.

‘No doubt that Rep. Cotham’s decision to join the Republican Party was a seismic shift in North Carolina state politics,’ said Sinclair. ‘However, Rep. Cotham made it clear to everyone that she is an independent thinker. I don’t see her being a certain yes on all the GOP leadership’s legislative and policy considerations. Her switch doesn’t mean a blank check for everything under consideration by GOP leaders in the House.’

Greene cited in particular ‘Cotham’s history on LGBT issues’ as an indication she doesn’t seem an automatic vote for the full Republican agenda. Cotham’s Republican colleagues agreed with that conclusion — and seemed to embrace it.

‘Rep. Cotham has clearly stated that she is the same person; therefore, her approach to evaluating issues has not changed,’ said Baker. ‘Diversity of thought must not just be tolerated; it must be encouraged. And if we use this event to elevate that message, we will have served our citizens well.’

Saine similarly argued that Cotham may not agree with other House Republicans on everything but quickly added that, either way, ‘wokeism’ is dead in North Carolina.

‘The addition of Rep. Cotham to our caucus is a factor, but the fact of the matter remains, she has always been a very pragmatic legislator that has been willing to cross party lines,’ he said. ‘I am glad that she is now in a party that appreciates her independence and leadership. The bottom line is that ‘wokeism’ is finding a dead end in our state, and we will continue to push for policies that really matter to our people. We aren’t California, and we don’t want to be.’

Beyond Cotham’s own policy views, another factor for Republicans will be governing in such a way to put them in a strong position for 2024.

‘The question will be which bills leadership allows to the floor. While there is a super majority, leadership will be focused on an issue agenda that allows them to keep and expand that majority in the 2024 elections,’ said Paul Shumaker, a political strategist in North Carolina.

According to some experts, however, the GOP’s newfound supermajority may prove problematic if they don’t deliver for North Carolinians.

‘There’s no doubt the GOP had a good week in North Carolina,’ said Sinclair. ‘What they do with their new member and how far they go on issues will be critical — and they must be mindful of how far they go and will want to talk to their colleagues in Wisconsin and Kansas on how right they shift on key issues — especially on abortion. If they go too far, their newfound power could be short-lived after 2024, even with new maps.’

A judge canceled the air quality permit for a natural gas power plant that’s under construction along the Yellowstone River in Montana citing worries over climate change.

State District Judge Michael Moses ruled Thursday that Montana officials failed to adequately consider the 23 million tons of planet-warming greenhouse gases that the project would emit over several decades.

Many utilities across the U.S. have replaced coal power with less polluting natural gas plants in recent years. But the industry remains under pressure to abandon fossil fuels altogether as climate change worsens.

The $250 million plant is being built by Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based NorthWestern Energy and would operate for at least 30 years. The company will appeal the order, a spokesperson said in a statement Friday, saying that the ruling could jeopardize reliable power service.

Montana officials had argued they had no authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. They also said that because climate change is a global phenomenon, state law prevented them from looking at its impacts.

But Moses said officials from the Montana Department of Environmental Quality had misinterpreted the law. He ordered them to conduct further environmental review and said they must gauge the climate change impacts within Montana in relation to the project. Major flooding on the Yellowstone last year wiped out bridges and triggered widespread evacuations following extreme rains, which scientists say are becoming more frequent as the climate changes.

‘The emissions and impacts of the (gas plant) are potentially significant,’ Moses wrote. ‘Defendants do not dispute this.’

The judge also faulted officials for not considering how lights from the project could impact surrounding property owners. It’s on the outskirts of the town of Laurel across the river from a residential neighborhood.

The plant would produce up to 175 megawatts of electricity. Its air permit was challenged in a 2021 lawsuit from the Montana Environmental Information Center and Sierra Club.

The Department of Environmental Quality was reviewing Moses’ order and agency officials had no immediate comment, spokesperson Moira Davin said.

A NorthWestern Energy representative did not say if the ruling would halt construction. The company says the plant would ensure enough electricity is available at times of high demand, such as on hot days or cold nights.

‘Our air permit was reviewed and approved by the DEQ using standards that have been in effect for many years,’ Vice President John Hines said in a NorthWestern’s statement. ‘We will work with the DEQ to determine the path forward.’

The ruling comes as the Montana Legislature weighs bills that would make it more difficult for organizations and individuals to sue state agencies over environmental decisions.

The state Senate passed a bill requiring anyone who wants to challenge an agency environmental review to have commented during the review process. They’d also have to pay for some of the agency’s court costs. The bill would also bar nonprofit organizations from using tax deductible donations to pay for lawsuits against state agencies.

Cannabis regulators have halted operations at several outdoor pot farms and processing facilities on a stretch of former fruit orchards in north-central Washington state after testing found high levels of chemicals related to a dangerous pesticide used decades ago.

The sweeping action announced Thursday night by the state Liquor and Cannabis Board renewed concerns about pesticides in marijuana and put dozens of people at least temporarily out of work just as they were preparing for spring planting.

‘We are very concerned about the jobs and businesses, but we felt we needed to get a message out to our licensees and to take action for public safety,’ said board spokesperson Brian Smith.

Over the last several months, officials collected samples from grow operations and processors along a nearly 5-mile stretch of the Okanogan River north of Brewster, a region of former orchards where fruit growers used the cancer-causing pesticide DDT before the U.S. banned it in 1972.

Marijuana growers in the area are now dealing with the legacy of soil contamination at the orchards. The results of tests at seven licensees showed high levels of DDE, a chemical that remains when DDT breaks down. Regulators decided to issue ‘administrative holds’ on 16 producer licenses and two processing licenses in the area, forcing them to cease operations until further notice.

It wasn’t clear how many businesses were affected, because each one can hold multiple licenses.

One of the shuttered businesses, large-scale grower Walden Cannabis, advertises its cannabis as ‘sustainably sungrown’ and ‘pesticide-free,’ but its plants absorbed contaminants from the soil which then wound up in its products.

‘Orchards used DDT for a generation, and that caused widespread contamination throughout the Pacific Northwest and the whole country, really,’ said Walden Chief Executive Anders Taylor. ‘I’m still trying to process what this means. Financially, it just ruins me. I’ll be not only out of business — I’m going to lose my house, lose my farm and have to lay off my employees.’

Taylor said there are seven licensed grow operations on his property as well as processing operations, with roughly 50 workers in all.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, studies have shown that women with high amounts of DDE in their blood were more likely to give birth prematurely or to have a baby with a wheeze.

However, studies have focused on ingestion of the chemical, such as by eating fruit contaminated with pesticide residue; less is known about the effects of inhaling DDE.

Much of the marijuana grown in the area was sold wholesale to other processors. The Liquor Control Board said it is working with the growers and processors to identify which products the tainted cannabis wound up in so they can be tested off the shelf. Officials also asked affected companies to issue recalls.

Cannabis is known for its strong ability to remove contaminants from soil, and it has been studied for use in environmental cleanup. The levels of contaminants can be especially high in marijuana extracts and concentrates.

Due to marijuana’s illegal status under federal law, states have largely come up with their own rules about pesticide testing for their cannabis markets, said Gillian Schauer, executive director of the Cannabis Regulators Association, which includes cannabis officials from 35 U.S. states and territories.

There is wide variety among the states about which pesticides are regulated and what their tolerance levels are; it was unknown how many require testing for legacy pesticides or their components, such as DDE.

Regulators in Vermont early this year pulled pesticide-contaminated pot from five retail stores after a customer reported feeling sick, and Nevada officials issued an advisory about widely available products possibly being tainted with an unapproved pesticide.

Over the years, Washington has halted the operations or destroyed product in dozens of cases where cannabis tested above accepted levels for pesticides, but those have involved the recent spraying of unapproved pesticides. This is believed to be the first time the Liquor and Cannabis Board has issued an administrative hold related to the legacy use of pesticides, and it is the first time it has issued a hold covering an entire geographic area rather than an isolated business, the board said in an email.

Washington was one of the first two states, along with Colorado, to legalize the use and sale of cannabis by adults in 2012.

Washington’s Liquor and Cannabis Board has long conducted random tests for pesticides on products, including DDE, but they did not require producers to send in samples to state-certified labs for mandatory pesticide testing until last year. Washington was the only state with legal medical and recreational marijuana that had not already done so.

Under Washington’s testing requirements, samples sent in by businesses are screened for 59 pesticides. For now, DDE is not one of them, but the board said it would swiftly begin making rules to require testing for DDE and a related compound, DDD, in cannabis products.

Washington has also never required soil testing for outdoor marijuana farms. Jeremy Moberg, a licensed marijuana grower who owns CannaSol Farms in Okanogan County, north of the area targeted by regulators Thursday, said he nevertheless tested the soil at the former alfalfa farm he bought for his operation to make sure it was clean.

‘I did due diligence, because I knew there was lots of toxic ground in this county due to the historical application of pesticides,’ Moberg said. ‘People who did their due diligence did not buy land on old orchards.’

John Kirby, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, said that he doesn’t ‘buy the whole argument of chaos’ regarding the sudden U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, despite describing the scene as such in 2021.

In August 2021, President Biden began the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, prompting members of the Taliban to quickly retaliate and take control of the country despite assurances that Afghani forces supplied by the U.S. would keep the country stable.

During an Aug. 24, 2021, White House press briefing, Kirby described the scene of the withdrawal as chaotic, telling reporters in ‘the first few days’ of the event, there was ‘physical crush and chaos.’

Despite his initial description of the scene, Kirby recently attempted to walk back on his claim, telling reporters that he ‘just didn’t see’ the ‘chaos’ in the withdrawal that led to the deaths of 13 American soldiers.

Kirby made the comment on Thursday while discussing a new 12-page report detailing the White House’s review of Biden’s withdrawal.

‘For all this talk of chaos, I just didn’t see it. Not from my perch. At one point during the evacuation, there was an aircraft taking off full of people, Americans and Afghans alike, every 48 minutes. And not one single mission was missed,’ he said. 

‘So I’m sorry. I just don’t buy the whole argument of chaos. It was tough in the first few hours you would expect it to be. There was nobody at the airport and certainly no Americans. It took time to get in there,’ Kirby told reporters.

A Biden administration official said Kirby ‘was pushing back on the narrative that the evacuation itself that US troops carried out was chaotic and referencing how US troops did a masterful job accomplishing the evacuation of approximately 120,000 ppl in just over two weeks, an impressive feat and one of the largest airlifts in history.’

During Thursday’s press briefing, Kirby also insisted that the report was not about ‘accountability’ for the Biden administration. 

‘The purpose of the document that we’re putting out today is to sort of collate the chief reviews and findings of the agencies that did after action reviews. The purpose of it is not accountability. The purpose of it is to study lessons learned,’ Kirby told Fox News’ Peter Doocy when pressed on who would be held accountable for the withdrawal.

The report attempted to place blame on former President Donald Trump for the event, despite him not being in office at the time of the withdrawal.

During the withdrawal, 13 American soldiers were killed in a suicide bombing while protecting the Kabul airport, and a number of individuals were stranded.

Fox News Digital’s Peter Hasson and Brandon Gillespie contributed to this report. 

Federal regulators said Friday that railroads need to re-examine how they assemble their trains after a string of derailments in recent years that were at least partly caused by the way empty and loaded cars were mixed together with locomotives.

Heavy cars at the back of a train can push and pull against empty cars in the middle of a train as it goes over hills and around corners. Those forces have become more of a problem as the industry increasingly relies on longer trains with a wide variety of freight aboard.

Another factor complicating the issue is the industry’s practice of placing locomotives throughout trains. The locomotives can amplify the forces if they’re not used correctly.

The Federal Railroad Administration’s advisory cites six derailments since 2021 where those forces were a factor. They include a Norfolk Southern derailment near Springfield, Ohio, last month and a 2021 Union Pacific derailment that forced the evacuation of Sibley, Iowa, for three days. Regulators say these kind of derailments are happening with increasing frequency.

But regulators didn’t mention the fiery February derailment near East Palestine, Ohio, that prompted much of the recent concern nationwide about railroad safety as an example of this problem. The National Transportation Safety Board has said that an overheated bearing that caused an axle to fail on one of the railcars likely caused that derailment.

But it is still early in the East Palestine investigation, so it’s not clear if the makeup of the train was also a factor.

‘Railroads must prioritize proper train makeup to maintain safety, prevent accidents, and optimize train performance,’ the railroad administration said in the advisory. ‘Further, all operating employees must be properly trained in these technologies and the handling of complex trains to ensure safe operation and minimize human error.’

All of the derailments the FRA mentioned involved trains with at least 125 cars. In every case an empty car was the first to come off the tracks. The order doesn’t specifically single out long trains, but the kind of forces regulators are concerned about are amplified in longer trains, especially if large blocks of empty cars are placed in the middle or front of a train. In three of the six derailments, hazardous chemicals were released, highlighting the potential dangers of these accidents.

The major freight railroads have all overhauled their operations in recent years to rely more on longer trains so they don’t need as many crews or locomotives. Now trains routinely stretch longer than two or even three miles long.

As a train moves across uneven territory, its front half might be getting pulled up a hill while the back half is coming down and pushing forward against the rest of the cars. Those dynamics make it difficult for the engineer to manage.

‘Think about going thru undulating territory sort of like a Slinky. You’re either trying to keep it stretched out or you’re trying to keep it all bunched together to control the forces from going in and out because that’s what causes derailments. And it causes train separations,’ said Mark Wallace, who is second-highest ranking officer with the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union. ‘The way to prevent this stuff from happening is to control the train lengths.’

A spokeswoman for the Association of American Railroads trade group said the major freight railroads already use sophisticated computer software to help them build trains and properly distribute the weight. Not only is it important to consider where to put the loaded cars, but railroads also have to factor in that some goods are heavier than others and that the weight of the liquid inside a tank car will shift as the train moves. AAR spokeswoman Jessica Kahanek said the railroads will consider regulators’ recommendations.

‘The industry is committed to productive conversations about how we continue to advance our shared goal of ensuring the safety of the trains that serve customers and communities across the nation,’ Kahanek said.

A spokeswoman for Union Pacific, which handled three of the trains highlighted in the advisory, said the railroad is using high-tech tools to monitor train forces and makes adjustments as needed. Kristen South said UP has seen derailments decline along its network last year and this year, even as maximum train length reached 9,329 feet.

‘We constantly evaluate our processes and continue to work with government agencies and industry partners to further improve safety,’ South said.

Norfolk Southern officials declined to comment on the advisory. That railroad was responsible for two of the derailments in the advisory, as well as the one in East Palestine.

Since the East Palestine derailment, regulators and members of Congress have urged the railroads to take additional steps to prevent derailments. Two different federal agencies have also announced investigations of Norfolk Southern’s safety record, and that railroad’s CEO has had to testify twice at congressional hearings.