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

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

Sec. 6010. Data privacy

(a) In general. In carrying out any activity of the Department related to predictive analytics, telematics, or any other validated methodology tools, the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, ensure that personally identifiable information is protected in accordance with applicable Federal privacy laws.

(b) Interoffice coordination. In carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary shall ensure that, with respect to the use of any tool described in subsection (a), all practices relating to the protection of personally identifiable information are consistent across each office and operating administration of the Department, including the—

(1) Federal Highway Administration;

(2) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration;

(3) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology; and

(4) Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office.

(c) Guidance. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall develop and issue guidance on best practices for—

(1) anonymizing and securing safety-related data and protecting personally identifiable information;

(2) promoting transparency and accountability in the use of predictive analytics, telematics, and other data-driven tools; and

(3) ensuring that safety-related data and technologies are grounded in validated methodologies to ensure reliability and effectiveness.

(d) Rule of construction. Nothing in subsection (a) shall be construed by the Secretary to preclude the use of innovative technologies or data sources that support safety outcomes and comply with applicable privacy protections.

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