Leveraging Performance-Based Transportation Services Act of 2017

Summary: Leveraging Performance-Based Transportation Services Act of 2017 This bill authorizes an owner or operator of a leveraged system to submit directly to the National Transit Database data regarding the public transportation service provided by the system. &quot;Leveraged system&quot; means a provider of public transportation services, whether public or private, including commuter bus services and services provided by a private provider of public transportation by vanpool that the Department of Transportation determines: (1) is able to recover, through fare revenue or payments made directly by the provider, all operating costs associated with the services; (2) meets Federal Transit Administration requirements with respect to the provision of services; and (3) does not negatively impact other publicly subsidized or privately provided public transportation services. The data submitted by the owner or operator of a leveraged system to the National Transit Database shall be used by DOT in calculating apportionments for capital payments.   A public transportation service meets the requirements of this bill unless the service: (1) overlaps or directly competes with a service provided by the designated recipient concerned and has a direct effect on such service, including a projected ridership reduction of more than 3% along a corridor served by the designated recipient; or (2) is provided by a service provider that has fewer than 10 vehicles serving the recipient's designated area.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Leveraging Performance-Based 
Transportation Services Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. FUNDING FOR CAPITAL PROJECTS OF LEVERAGED SYSTEMS.

    (a) National Transit Database.--Section 5335 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) Direct Reporting by Leveraged Systems.--
            ``(1) In general.--An owner or operator of a leveraged 
        system may submit directly to the National Transit Database 
        data regarding the public transportation service provided by 
        the system.
            ``(2) Notice to designated recipient.--On the date of a 
        submission under paragraph (1), the owner or operator of a 
        leveraged system shall provide to the appropriate designated 
        recipient under section 5307, 5311, or 5339 and metropolitan 
        planning organization a copy of the submission.
            ``(3) Leveraged system defined.--In this subsection, the 
        term `leveraged system' means a provider of public 
        transportation services, whether public or private, including 
        commuter bus services and including services provided by a 
        private provider of public transportation by vanpool (as 
        defined in section 5323(i)(2)(C)), that the Secretary 
        determines--
                    ``(A) is able to recover, through fare revenue or 
                payments made directly by the provider, all operating 
                costs associated with the services;
                    ``(B) meets the requirements of the Federal Transit 
                Administration with respect to the provision of the 
                services; and
                    ``(C) does not, through the provision of the 
                services, negatively impact other publicly subsidized 
                or privately provided public transportation 
                services.''.
    (b) Leveraging Transit Services.--Section 5315 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (e); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the following:
    ``(d) Leveraging Transit Services.--
            ``(1) Passthrough.--
                    ``(A) Apportionments.--The data submitted by the 
                owner or operator of a leveraged system to the National 
                Transit Database under section 5335(d) shall be used by 
                the Secretary in calculating apportionments for capital 
                payments under each of sections 5307, 5311, and 5339.
                    ``(B) Agreements.--A designated recipient that 
                receives additional amounts in apportionments for a 
                fiscal year as a result of data submitted to the 
                National Transit Database by the owner or operator of a 
                leveraged system under section 5335(d) shall enter into 
                an agreement with the owner or operator that includes 
                assurances that not less than 90 percent of the 
                additional amounts will be transferred to the owner or 
                operator if the owner or operator demonstrates that the 
                transferred amounts will be used for capital 
                expenditures to expand public transportation services 
                meeting the requirements of paragraph (2) in the 
                geographic area represented by the designated 
                recipient.
            ``(2) Services.--A public transportation service meets the 
        requirements of this paragraph unless--
                    ``(A) the service--
                            ``(i) overlaps or directly competes with a 
                        service provided by the designated recipient 
                        concerned; and
                            ``(ii) has a direct effect on such service, 
                        including a projected ridership reduction of 
                        more than 3 percent along a corridor served by 
                        the designated recipient; or
                    ``(B) the service is provided by a service provider 
                that has less than 10 vehicles serving the recipient's 
                designated area.
            ``(3) Local consent.--
                    ``(A) Opportunity to object.--During the 30-day 
                period beginning on the date the owner or operator of a 
                leveraged system submits data to the National Transit 
                Database under section 5335(d), the metropolitan 
                planning organization representing the geographic area 
                in which the owner or operator proposes to provide 
                expanded public transportation services using amounts 
                made available under this subsection may submit to the 
                Secretary a letter that--
                            ``(i) objects to such use of funds based on 
                        a determination by the metropolitan planning 
                        organization that the expanded public 
                        transportation services do not meet the 
                        requirements of paragraph (2); or
                            ``(ii) objects to the use of the data in 
                        calculating apportionments based on a 
                        determination by the metropolitan planning 
                        organization that the owner or operator has not 
                        met the requirements of section 5335(d).
                    ``(B) Effect of objection.--In carrying out this 
                subsection, the Secretary shall take into account any 
                letter received from a metropolitan planning 
                organization under this paragraph.
            ``(4) Statutory construction.--Nothing in this subsection 
        may be construed--
                    ``(A) to allow a designated recipient to dictate 
                the service provided by the owner or operator of a 
                leveraged system; or
                    ``(B) to authorize the use of funds in a manner 
                that is inconsistent with this chapter.
            ``(5) Leveraged system defined.--In this subsection, the 
        term `leveraged system' has the meaning given that term in 
        section 5335(d).''.