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

VII Freight and Multimodal Transportation Programs

A Freight Policy

B Multimodal Policy and Programs

Sec. 7109. Advisory committee on cargo theft and freight fraud

(a) Establishment. Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish an advisory committee to provide advice and recommendations to the Secretary on regulations and policies to better deter and address cargo theft and freight fraud.

(b) Membership. The advisory committee established under subsection (a) shall be composed of not more than 20 members, appointed by the Secretary, including representatives of—

(1) Federal law enforcement agencies;

(2) local and State law enforcement agencies;

(3) motor carriers, including independent owner-operators;

(4) shipping and logistics companies, including third-party logistics providers;

(5) brokers;

(6) multimodal freight operators, including port and marine terminal operators;

(7) cybersecurity professionals; and

(8) other stakeholders that the Secretary determines appropriate.

(c) Considerations. The advisory committee established under subsection (a) shall consider—

(1) the various types of cargo theft, including—

(A) theft in which an entire load of cargo is physically stolen from a location;

(B) theft in which part of a load of cargo is stolen from an unattended trailer; and

(C) theft in which specific cargo is stolen, which may involve fleet impersonation or double-brokering;

(2) the geographic and type of location at which cargo theft occurs;

(3) the type of cargo being stolen;

(4) the financial costs of cargo theft, including—

(A) the indirect financial costs to consumers;

(B) supply chain operational disruptions;

(C) chain-of-custody responsibilities between carriers and customers; and

(D) insurance costs;

(5) the role of law enforcement and the cross-jurisdictional nature of freight movement;

(6) physical and cybersecurity measures used by carriers to combat cargo theft, including zero trust verification and detection of emulators and voice over internet protocol numbers; and

(7) regulations, policies, and guidance of the Department related to motor carriers, including motor carrier registration, data exchange and verification, and supply chain integrity.

(d) Report to Congress. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and biennially thereafter, the advisory committee established under subsection (a) shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report that—

(1) describes the advice and recommendations made to the Secretary under subsection (a); and

(2) includes an assessment of progress made by the Secretary in addressing cargo theft and freight fraud.

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