H.R. 8870

BUILD America 250 Act

Sponsor: Sam Graves

5 cosponsors
Follow this bill

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

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

Sec. 10426. Review of train dispatching technologies

(a) In general. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall review and evaluate the safety and effectiveness of various computerized train-dispatching systems.

(b) Inclusions. In carrying out the review under subsection (a), the Secretary shall include an assessment and evaluation of—

(1) with respect to each computerized train dispatching system—

(A) the safety, reliability, and performance of such systems;

(B) the cost and benefit of acquiring and operating such systems;

(C) the inspection, testing, and maintenance of such systems, including verification and evaluation of hardware, software, and human-machine interface components upgrades;

(D) the interoperability and integration of such systems with train control systems, including positive train control where applicable;

(E) the current practices used by rail carriers as backup to address incidents in which such a system is unexpectedly offline; and

(2) whether any additional legislative authorities or enforcement mechanisms are needed by the Secretary to ensure rail carriers are in compliance with Federal laws and regulations of such systems.

(c) Consultation. In carrying out the review under subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult with—

(1) manufacturers of centralized train dispatching systems;

(2) railroad carriers that use such systems; and

(3) organizations representing employees who use such systems.

(d) Report. The Secretary 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 containing the findings of the review under subsection (a).

(e) Computerized train-dispatching system defined. In this section, the term computerized train-dispatching system means any computer-aided dispatching platform, centralized traffic control board, or related technology used to authorize, control, protect, or direct the movement of trains, on-track equipment, or roadway workers on a railroad.

E Project Delivery

F Hazardous Materials Transportation