(a) General.—
The Secretary of Transportation shall prescribe regulations and issue orders to prohibit the willful tampering with, or disabling of, any specified railroad safety or operational monitoring device.
(b) Penalties.—
(1)
A railroad carrier operating a train on which a safety or operational monitoring device is tampered with or disabled in violation of a regulation prescribed or order issued under subsection (a) of this section is liable to the United States Government for a civil penalty under section 21301 of this title.
(2) An individual tampering with or disabling a safety or operational monitoring device in violation of a regulation prescribed or order issued under subsection (a) of this section, or knowingly operating or allowing to be operated a train on which such a device has been tampered with or disabled, is liable for penalties established by the Secretary. The penalties may include—