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

Sec. 2001. Infrastructure finance

(a) Definitions

(1) In general. Section 601(a) of title 23, United States Code, is amended—

(A) in paragraph (12)—

(i) in subparagraph (E)—

(I) in the matter preceding clause (i) by striking infrastructure and inserting infrastructure that is;

(II) by striking clause (ii); and

(III) in clause (i)—

(aa) by striking

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that—

(I) is

(bb) in subclause (II)—

(AA) by striking is a project and inserting a project; and

(BB) in item (dd) by striking and and the end; and

(cc) by redesignating subclause (II) as clause (ii) (and redesignating items (aa) through (dd) of such subclause as subclauses (I) through (IV), respectively);

(ii) in subparagraph (G) by striking for which and all that follows through for assistance; and

(iii) by striking subparagraph (H) and inserting the following:

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(H) purchasing or leasing of drayage trucks.

(B) by redesignating paragraphs (14) through (22) as paragraphs (16) through (24), respectively;

(C) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (13) as paragraphs (3) through (14), respectively;

(D) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:

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(2) Drayage truck. The term drayage truck means any in-use on-road vehicle that—

(A) has a gross vehicle weight rating greater than 26,000 pounds;

(B) is used for transporting cargo; and

(C) operates on, moves through, or operates in transit to or from, a seaport or an intermodal freight transfer facility to load, unload, or transport cargo, including empty containers or chassis.

; and

(E) by inserting after paragraph (14), as so redesignated, the following:

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(15) Qualified financial institution. The term qualified financial institution means—

(A) an insured depository institution as defined in section 3(c)(2) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1813(c)(2));

(B) an insured credit union as defined in section 101 of the Federal Credit Union Act (12 U.S.C. 1752); and

(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.

(2) Conforming amendments

(A) Determination of eligibility and project selection. Section 602 of title 23, United States Code, is amended—

(i) in subsection (a)(5)(B)(ii) by striking section 601(a)(12)(E) and inserting section 601(a)(13)(E); and

(ii) in subsection (e) by striking section 601(a)(2)(A) and inserting section 601(a)(3)(A).

(B) Funding. Section 608(a)(4) of title 23, United States Code, is amended by striking section 601(a)(12)(E) and inserting section 601(a)(13)(E) each place it appears.

(b) Determination of eligibility and project selection. Section 602 of title 23, United States Code, is further amended—

(1) in subsection (a)—

(A) in paragraph (2) by adding at the end the following:

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(C) Alternative credit assessment. The Secretary shall accept a due diligence analysis and underwriting analysis prepared by a qualified financial institution providing debt for a project as evidence of creditworthiness of the project supplemental to the applicable creditworthiness standards described in subparagraph (A).

; and

(B) in paragraph (5)(B)—

(i) in clause (i) by striking $15,000,000 and inserting $10,000,000; and

(ii) in clause (iii)—

(I) by striking In the case and inserting (I) In general.—In the case;

(II) by striking $100,000,000 and inserting $150,000,000; and

(III) by adding at the end the following:

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(II) Annual adjustment for inflation. Beginning in the first year after the date of enactment of this subclause, the Secretary shall adjust annually the $150,000,000 limit on eligible project costs in subclause (I) to reflect any increase in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Department of Labor.

; and

(2) in subsection (c)—

(A) in paragraph (1)(B) by striking the period at the end and inserting , subject to paragraph (2).; and

(B) in paragraph (2)—

(i) by striking No funding and inserting (A) In general.—No funding; and

(ii) by adding at the end the following:

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(B) Exemption

(i) In general. Subject to clause (ii), notwithstanding section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)), a finding of no significant impact, a record of decision, and any similar analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 prepared for purposes of complying with subparagraph (A) shall not include an evaluation of the environmental effects of the acquisition of real property by a nonpublic entity for use in a project described in section 601(a)(13)(E), for which an application for credit assistance under the TIFIA program has not been submitted as of the date of such acquisition.

(ii) Public entity ownership. Clause (i) shall not apply with respect to any component of a project described in clause (i) that is located within the geographic boundaries of the real property acquired and that will be owned, in full or in part, by a public entity for a majority of the term of a secured loan issued for such project.

(C) Categorical exclusions. The following activities, if carried out on or after the date of enactment of this subparagraph as a project (or part of a project) described in section 601(a)(13)(E), are a category of activities hereby designated as being categorically excluded from the preparation of an environmental assessment or an environmental impact statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.):

(i) Rehabilitation or conversion of an existing office building to a residential or mixed-use building occupying substantially the same geographic footprint.

(ii) Construction or reconstruction of a new commercial building—

(I) consistent with existing land use and zoning requirements; and

(II) on land disturbed for transportation use (as such phrase is used in section 771.118(c)(9) of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor regulations) or disturbed land adjacent to land disturbed for transportation use.

(c) Secured loans. Section 603(a) of title 23, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

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(4) Loan disbursement. Upon request from the obligor, the Secretary may delay issuance of the secured loan funds until a date, to be specified by the obligor, during the 2-year period beginning on the date that the project is determined to be in substantial completion, so long as the obligor is compliant with the credit agreement on the date of issuance.

(d) Program administration. Section 605(f)(1) of title 23, United States Code, is amended by striking $2,000,000 and inserting $3,000,000.

(e) Funding. Section 608(a) of title 23, United States Code, is amended—

(1) in paragraph (4)(B)—

(A) in clause (i) by striking under the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act of 2021; and

(B) in clause (ii)—

(i) by striking fiscal years 2022 through 2026 and inserting fiscal years 2027 through 2031; and

(ii) by striking (as of October 1, 2021) and inserting (as of October 1, 2026); and

(2) in paragraph (6) by striking fiscal years 2022 through 2026 and inserting fiscal years 2027 through 2031.

(f) State infrastructure bank program. Section 610 of title 23, United States Code, is amended—

(1) in subsection (d) by striking fiscal years 2022 through 2026 and inserting fiscal years 2027 through 2031 each place it appears; and

(2) in subsection (k) by striking fiscal years 2022 through 2026 and inserting fiscal years 2027 through 2031.

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

F Hazardous Materials Transportation