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
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
(a) Definitions. Section 22401 of title 49, United States Code, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
(17) Qualified financial institution. The term qualified financial institution means—
(A) an insured depository institution as defined in section 3(c) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1813(c));
(B) an insured credit union as defined in section 101 of the Federal Credit Union Act (12 U.S.C. 1752); or
(C) any other financial institution that—
(i) is regulated or supervised by—
(I) the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System;
(II) the Securities and Exchange Commission;
(III) the Federal Housing Finance Agency;
(IV) the Farm Credit Administration; or
(V) any other Federal financial regulatory agency;
(ii) is regularly engaged in the business of extending credit or making credit determinations; and
(iii) the Secretary determines has demonstrated experience in the underwriting or provision of credit.
(b) Direct loans and loan guarantees infrastructure partners. Section 22402(f) of title 49, United States Code, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
(8) Additional creditworthiness criteria. In evaluating a proposal submitted under this section, the Secretary may consider—
(A) the capital structure of the proposed project, including the sufficiency and stability of each non-Federal funding source;
(B) the incorporation of a capital structure of the proposed project with—
(i) a program share, under this chapter, of not more than 49 percent;
(ii) a cash equity contribution of not less than 20 percent of the estimated total project cost; and
(iii) debt provided through qualified financial institutions for an amount not less than 25 percent of the estimated total project cost;
(C) the circumstances of the applicant, including an applicant who has—
(i) executed all construction contracts expected to be necessary for the project;
(ii) acquired or otherwise reserved all rights-of-way expected to be necessary for the project; and
(iii) if applicable, received an environmental categorical exclusion, a finding of no significant impact, or a record of decision under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) with respect to the project;
(D) any credit risk assessments conducted by other participants in the capital structure of the project, including a description of the due diligence and underwriting standards applied qualified financial institutions or other capital providers;
(E) the due diligence and underwriting analysis carried out by qualified financial institutions providing debt under subparagraph (C)(ii), which may be used in combination with a creditworthiness analysis conducted by the Secretary for a loan provided under this section; and
(F) for a project described in subsection (b)(1)(F), an alternative demonstration of creditworthiness, such as—
(i) a joint liability agreement or equivalent between the project lead and a division of a State or local organization with a sufficient credit rating; or
(ii) an alternative rating or certification by a loan originator-servicer.
(9) Applicability. The criteria in subparagraphs (A) through (E) of paragraph (8) shall only apply to projects on railroads or on railroad property.
F Hazardous Materials Transportation