H.R. 8870

BUILD America 250 Act

Sponsor: Sam Graves

5 cosponsors
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Official summary

Written by the Congressional Research Service.

Building Unrivaled Infrastructure and Long-term Development for America's 250th Act or the BUILD America 250 Act

This bill authorizes federal surface transportation (highway, public transportation, and rail) programs and activities through FY2031. The bill also establishes or modifies Department of Transportation (DOT) programs and policies that are a part of the federal-aid highway, transit, highway safety, motor carrier, research, hazardous materials, and rail programs. 

For example, the bill authorizes appropriations through FY2031 out of the Highway Trust Fund for the federal-aid highway program, the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) program, highway safety programs, and bridge programs. The bill also authorizes funding through FY2031 for Amtrak. Current authorization for these programs expires on September 30, 2026.

Among other provisions, the bill

  • establishes a Surface Transportation Accelerator Grant (STAG) discretionary program to fund surface transportation projects in rural, urban, local, and regional communities;
  • requires the Federal Highway Administration to impose a new annual electric vehicle (EV) registration fee, starting at $130 for a covered EV and $35 for a covered plug-in hybrid vehicle;
  • exempts automated driving system technology and equipment from vehicle width requirements;
  • establishes a consolidated state block grant program that allows DOT to allocate a lump sum to participating states to fund public transportation services in rural and urbanized areas;
  • allows state rail safety inspectors to conduct railroad bridge inspections; and
  • establishes a system for state, local, and tribal governments to report safety concerns about the condition of railroad bridges.

Text of the bill

Expand all

I Federal-Aid Highways

A Authorizations and Programs

B Improved Project Delivery and Environmental Streamlining

C Miscellaneous

II Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation

III Public Transportation

A Reforms

B Miscellaneous

C Reorganization and Consolidation of Chapter 53

IV Highway Safety

V Motor Carriers

A General Provisions

Sec. 5005. Terms and conditions for exemptions

Section 31315 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—

(1) in subsection (b)—

(A) in paragraph (4)(A) by inserting , including data submission requirements, after terms and conditions; and

(B) by striking paragraph (8) and inserting the following:

Text this section adds to the law

(8) Terms and conditions

(A) In general. The Secretary shall establish terms and conditions for each exemption to ensure that the exemption will not likely degrade the level of safety achieved by the person or class of persons granted the exemption and allow the Secretary to evaluate whether an equivalent level of safety is maintained while the person or class of persons is operating under such exemption.

(B) Requirements. The terms and conditions established under this section shall require—

(i) the regular submission of relevant accident and incident data to the Secretary;

(ii) immediate notification to the Secretary in the event of a crash that results in a fatality or serious bodily injury; and

(iii) each person or class of persons operating under an exemption to maintain and produce upon inspection, either physically or electronically, official documentation from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration of each exemption under which they are operating.

(C) Implementation. The Secretary shall monitor the implementation of the exemption to ensure compliance with the terms and conditions of such exemption.

; and

(2) in subsection (e) by inserting , based on an analysis of data collected by the Secretary and submitted to the Secretary under subsection (b)(8) after safety.

B Commercial Motor Vehicle Operators

C Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety

D Household Goods Shipping Consumer Protection Reform

E Safe Integration of Autonomous Commercial Motor Vehicles

VI Innovation

VII Freight and Multimodal Transportation Programs

A Freight Policy

B Multimodal Policy and Programs

VIII Miscellaneous

IX Sport Fishing and Recreational Boating Safety

X Railroads and Hazardous Materials

A Authorization of Appropriations and Grant Reforms

B Amtrak Reforms

C Passenger Rail Policy

D Rail Safety and Innovation

E Project Delivery

F Hazardous Materials Transportation