in effect
This is a presidential executive order (Executive Order 14374, signed January 14, 2026) that creates a second federal emergency board under the Railway Labor Act to investigate unresolved contract disputes between the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and five of its employee unions. It is a legally required step when the parties fail to accept the recommendations of a first emergency board.
A three-member board, appointed by the President and effective January 16, 2026, is now in place to review the disputes. Within 30 days of the board’s creation, both sides must submit their final settlement offers — no further negotiation, just a best-and-final proposal from each party. The board then has 30 more days to pick whichever offer it finds most reasonable and report that selection to the President. During this entire process — from the original request through 60 days after the board’s report — neither side may unilaterally change any of the working conditions at the center of the dispute. The board’s records will be preserved by the National Mediation Board after the board dissolves, and publication costs fall to the Department of Transportation.
The Long Island Rail Road and its employees represented by five unions — the Transportation Communications Union, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers — are the direct parties bound by this order. LIRR riders and the broader commuter rail system in the New York metro area are indirectly affected, as the order’s status-quo requirement prevents a strike or lockout while the board works.