H.R. 8870
BUILD America 250 Act
Sponsor: Sam Graves
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
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
B Commercial Motor Vehicle Operators
C Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety
(a) Safety performance history screening. Section 31150 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting or employment after preemployment;
(2) in subsection (b)—
(A) by inserting operator or before operator-applicant each place it appears; and
(B) in paragraph (2), by inserting operator’s or before operator-applicant’s written consent; and
(3) in subsection (c)—
(A) in the second sentence—
(i) by striking preemployment;
(ii) by inserting operator or before operator-applicant; and
(iii) by striking Use and inserting the following:
(2) Voluntary use; limitation. Use
(B) in the first sentence—
(i) by inserting driver-related after serious;
(ii) by striking as a preemployment condition;
(iii) by inserting or operator applicant’s after individual operator’s; and
(iv) by striking The process and inserting the following:
(1) In general. The process
; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
(3) Adverse actions. A person may not take an adverse action (as defined in section 603(k) of the Consumer Credit Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1681a(k))) with respect to an operator or operator-applicant based in whole or in part on the data in the reports provided under subsection (a) from the Motor Carrier Management Information System unless the person provides—
(A) notice to the operator or operator-applicant consistent with section 604(b)(3) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 1681b(b)(3)); and
(B) a reasonable period of time for—
(i) the operator to initiate an appeal under subsection (e); and
(ii) any appeal process initiated under such subsection to conclude pursuant to the issuance of a final disposition.
(b) DataQs improvement. Section 31150 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in subsection (d), by inserting safety after serious driver-related;
(2) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (f); and
(3) by inserting after subsection (c) the following:
(d) Data subject to review. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the BUILD America 250 Act, the Secretary shall ensure that during any period in which a safety violation is being contested, the report on such violation is labeled in a manner that indicates such violation is being contested in the Motor Carrier Management Information System and in any other relevant databases, including the Employment Screening Program, the Safety Measurement System, and Analysis and Information Online, until the review of the contested violation is complete.
(e) DataQs appeals process. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the BUILD America 250 Act, the Secretary shall promulgate DataQs program participation guidelines that direct States receiving funds under the motor carrier safety assistance program under section 31102 to provide for an appeals process by which—
(1) following the conclusion of a request for data review, an affected party may appeal the disposition of the review; and
(2) an appeal of the disposition is decided in a reasonable period of time by a person or persons other than the person that issued the violation.
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