(a) Each railroad's certification program shall describe how it will monitor the operational performance of its certified dispatchers by including procedures for:

(1) Giving each certified dispatcher at least one unannounced railroad and Federal rules, territorial and dispatch systems compliance test each calendar year, except as provided for in paragraph (c) of this section;

(2) Giving unannounced compliance tests to certified dispatchers who return to dispatcher service after performing service that does not require certification pursuant to this part, as described in paragraph (c) of this section; and

(3) What actions the railroad will take if it finds deficiencies in a dispatcher's performance during an unannounced compliance test.

(b) An unannounced compliance test shall:

(1) Test certified dispatchers for compliance with one or more operational tests in accordance with the provisions of § 217.9 of this chapter;

(2) Be performed by a railroad officer who meets the requirements of § 217.9(b)(1) of this chapter; and

(3) Be given to each certified dispatcher at least once each calendar year, except as provided for in paragraph (c) of this section.

(c) A certified dispatcher who is not performing service that requires certification pursuant to this part does not need to be given an unannounced compliance test. However, when the certified dispatcher returns to service that requires certification pursuant to this part after not being given an unannounced compliance test in a calendar year, the railroad shall:

(1) Give the certified dispatcher an unannounced compliance test within 30 days of their return to dispatcher service; and

(2) Retain a written record that includes the following information:

(i) The date the dispatcher stopped performing service that required certification pursuant to this part;

(ii) The date the dispatcher returned to service that required certification pursuant to this part; and

(iii) The date and the result of the unannounced compliance test that was performed following the dispatcher's return to service requiring certification.

(d) Each railroad shall adopt and comply with a program meeting the requirements of this section. When any person (including, but not limited to, each railroad, railroad officer, supervisor, and employee) 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.