Safer Trucks and Buses Act of 2015

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Safer Trucks and Buses Act of 
2015''.

SEC. 2. COMPLIANCE, SAFETY, ACCOUNTABILITY INITIATIVE.

    (a) Data Availability and Use.--
            (1) Availability.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretary of Transportation 
                shall ensure that covered motor carrier data is not 
                made available to the public.
                    (B) Rule of construction.--Subparagraph (A) may not 
                be construed to prevent covered motor carrier data from 
                being made available to law enforcement personnel.
                    (C) Termination.--Subparagraph (A) shall cease to 
                have effect on the date on which the Secretary submits 
                to Congress the report required under subsection (e).
            (2) Use.--Covered motor carrier data may not be admitted 
        into evidence or otherwise used in a civil action for damages 
        resulting from an incident involving a motor carrier.
    (b) Study.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 30 days after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall enter into an 
        agreement with the National Academy of Public Administration to 
        have the Academy conduct a study on how to improve the 
        Compliance, Safety, Accountability initiative of the Federal 
        Motor Carrier Safety Administration, including how to ensure 
        that the initiative--
                    (A) utilizes only safety data determined to be 
                predictive of motor carrier crashes;
                    (B) appropriately addresses concerns relating to 
                the age of utilized safety data, including violations;
                    (C) does not unfairly harm small motor carriers as 
                a result of limited safety data availability;
                    (D) appropriately addresses differences between 
                motor carriers transporting passengers and motor 
                carriers transporting freight;
                    (E) allows individual motor carriers to be 
                effectively compared; and
                    (F) utilizes accurate safety data, including--
                            (i) by appropriately addressing variations 
                        between State- and self-reported data;
                            (ii) by accounting for geographic 
                        differences with respect to enforcement; and
                            (iii) by not utilizing crash data from 
                        crashes with respect to which a motor carrier 
                        was free from fault.
            (2) Free from fault.--For purposes of paragraph 
        (1)(F)(iii), a motor carrier is free from fault with respect to 
        a crash if--
                    (A) the vehicle of the carrier was struck by 
                another vehicle that--
                            (i) crossed the center line or median of a 
                        roadway;
                            (ii) was driving the wrong way on a 
                        roadway;
                            (iii) struck the rear of the carrier's 
                        vehicle while the vehicle was being lawfully 
                        operated;
                            (iv) struck the carrier's vehicle while the 
                        vehicle was legally stopped at a traffic 
                        control device or off the traveled portion of a 
                        roadway; or
                            (v) was operated by an individual--
                                    (I) found to be driving under the 
                                influence of alcohol;
                                    (II) found by a law enforcement 
                                officer or agency to be responsible for 
                                the crash; or
                                    (III) who was the sole party cited 
                                by law enforcement for an action that 
                                contributed to the crash;
                    (B) the crash was the result of an individual, 
                other than the driver of the carrier's vehicle, 
                committing suicide;
                    (C) the vehicle of the carrier was struck by an 
                animal; or
                    (D) the carrier is otherwise determined not 
                responsible for the crash.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date on which the 
Secretary enters into an agreement under subsection (b), the National 
Academy of Public Administration shall submit to the Secretary, the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives, and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate a report on the results of the study 
conducted under subsection (b), including recommendations for 
improvement based on those results.
    (d) Implementation of Recommendations.--Not later than 90 days 
after the date on which the National Academy of Public Administration 
submits the report required under subsection (c), the Secretary shall 
begin implementing the recommendations included in that report.
    (e) Certification of Implementation.--Not later than 1 year after 
the date on which the Secretary begins implementing recommendations 
under subsection (d), the Secretary shall complete the implementation 
of such recommendations and shall submit to Congress a report that--
            (1) describes the implementation of such recommendations;
            (2) contains a document in which the Secretary certifies 
        that such implementation is complete; and
            (3) contains a document in which the Inspector General of 
        the Department of Transportation certifies that such 
        implementation is complete.
    (f) Definitions.--In this section, the following definitions apply:
            (1) Covered motor carrier data.--The term ``covered motor 
        carrier data'' means the Compliance, Safety, Accountability 
        Safety Measurement System scores and performance data of the 
        Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
            (2) Motor carrier.--The term ``motor carrier'' has the 
        meaning given that term in section 13102 of title 49, United 
        States Code.

Summary: Safer Trucks and Buses Act of 2015 The Department of Transportation (DOT) shall enter into an agreement with the National Academy of Public Administration to study how to improve the Compliance, Safety, Accountability initiative of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. DOT must ensure that motor carrier safety data predictive of crashes which is generated under this initiative is not made available to the public until the study findings and recommendations are reported to Congress. Such data may not be used used in a civil action for damages resulting from an incident involving a motor carrier.