A New Jersey state Senate committee has advanced bills that would require operators of trains carrying Bakken crude to have emergency plans in place and railroads to submit bridge inspection records.
The bills are in response to the growing number of trains carrying the volatile crude.
New Jersey officials have not made public how many trains are carrying the crude in New Jersey, though it's taken to refineries in Paulsboro and Linden and is transported on tracks in several counties.
There have been leaks and explosions elsewhere in North America as the trains have increased in frequency over the last few years. One in Canada in 2013 killed 47 people.
The Senate's Transportation Committee is also considering a resolution that would encourage Congress to limit to make stronger train regulations.