I 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2992 

To provide for the continued operation of Amtrak, to establish a program 

for support of certain rail infrastructure projects, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 20, 2005 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. NADLER, and Ms. SCHWARTZ of Pennsylvania) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee 

on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 

Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within 

the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide for the continued operation of Amtrak, to establish a program for support of certain rail infrastructure 

projects, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘True Reinvestment for Amtrak Infrastructure in the 

6 21st Century Act’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

8 this Act is as follows: 
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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—AMTRAK 

Sec. 101. Findings amendments. 

Sec. 102. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 103. Labor standards. 

Sec. 104. Board of Directors. 

Sec. 105. Redemption of common stock. 

Sec. 106. Repeal of Amtrak Reform Council. 

Sec. 107. Revolving credit. 

TITLE II—RAIL SERVICE CORRIDORS 

Sec. 201. Enhanced Rail Service Corridor Pilot Program. 

Sec. 202. Additional projects. 

Sec. 203. State rail plans. 

Sec. 204. Additional high-speed rail corridors. 

Sec. 205. High-speed rail corridor development. 

TITLE III—RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCE CORPORATION 

Sec. 301. Establishment of Corporation. 

Sec. 302. Board of Directors. 

Sec. 303. Officers and employees. 

Sec. 304. Nonprofit and nonpolitical nature of the Corporation. 

Sec. 305. Purpose and activities of Corporation. 

Sec. 306. Report to Congress. 

Sec. 307. Administrative matters. 

Sec. 308. Rail Infrastructure Finance Trust. 

TITLE IV—RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE TAX CREDIT BONDS 

Sec. 401. Credit to holders of qualified rail infrastructure bonds. 

Sec. 402. Issuance of regulations. 

Sec. 403. Effective date. 

1 TITLE I—AMTRAK 

2 SEC. 101. FINDINGS AMENDMENTS. 

3 Section 24101(a) of title 49, United States Code, is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating paragraph (8) as para6 graph (10); and 

7 (2) by inserting after paragraph (7) the fol8 lowing new paragraphs: 
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1 ‘‘(8) Where Amtrak currently owns the rights-of-way 

2 over which it operates, the cost complexities and risk in3 herent in separating operations from infrastructure out4 weigh the benefits. 

5 ‘‘(9) The Federal Government, through Amtrak, is 

6 responsible for providing funding for capital and mainte7 nance support for the valuable interstate transportation 

8 asset that the Northeast Corridor represents.’’. 

9 SEC. 102. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

10 Section 24104 of title 49, United States Code, is 

11 amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘§ 24104. Authorization of appropriations 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be ap14 propriated to the Secretary of Transportation 

15 $2,000,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2006 through 

16 2011, for the benefit of Amtrak for capital expenditures 

17 under chapters 243, 247, and 249 of this title, operating 

18 expenses, and payments described in subsection (b). 

19 ‘‘(b) MANDATORY PAYMENTS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Funds authorized under 

21 subsection (a) shall include— 

22 ‘‘(A) an amount equal to the amount Am23 trak is required to pay under section 3221 of 

24 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 

25 3221) that is more than the amount needed for 
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1 anticipated benefits for individuals who retire 

2 from Amtrak and for their beneficiaries; and 

3 ‘‘(B) amounts necessary to pay— 

4 ‘‘(i) obligations of Amtrak under sec5 tion 8(a) of the Railroad Unemployment 

6 Insurance Act (45 U.S.C. 358(a)) due in 

7 those fiscal years that are more than obli8 gations of Amtrak calculated on an experi9 ence-related basis; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) obligations of Amtrak due under 

11 section 3321 of the Internal Revenue Code 

12 of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 3321). 

13 ‘‘(2) REQUEST FOR TRANSFER OF FUNDS.— 

14 The Secretary shall make payments to the Treasury 

15 of amounts authorized under paragraph (1) only 

16 after the Secretary has received from Amtrak a re17 quest for the transfer of such funds, which shall in18 clude materials supporting, to the satisfaction of the 

19 Secretary, the amount of the request. 

20 ‘‘(c) CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS.—From amounts 

21 appropriated pursuant to this section, the Secretary and 

22 the Amtrak Board of Directors shall ensure that sufficient 

23 funds are reserved to satisfy Amtrak’s contractual obliga24 tions for commuter and State-supported passenger rail 

25 service. 
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1 ‘‘(d) ANNUAL BUSINESS PLAN AND SUPPLEMENTAL

2 REPORTS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) BUSINESS PLAN.—Not later than Sep4 tember 15 of each of 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 

5 and 2010, Amtrak shall transmit to the Secretary 

6 and the Congress a comprehensive business plan for 

7 the subsequent fiscal year, including, as applicable, 

8 targets for ridership, revenues, and capital and oper9 ating expenses. The plan shall include the following: 

10 ‘‘(A) A separate accounting of such targets 

11 for each of the following: 

12 ‘‘(i) Northeast Corridor. 

13 ‘‘(ii) Commuter service. 

14 ‘‘(iii) Long-distance Amtrak service. 

15 ‘‘(iv) State-supported service. 

16 ‘‘(v) Commercial activities (including 

17 contract operations and mail and express). 

18 The plan shall also include targets for each 

19 intercity train route, including Autotrain. 

20 ‘‘(B) With respect to capital projects, a de21 scription of the work to be funded, a work time22 table, cost estimates, and a list of other funding 

23 sources if the project is not entirely funded by 

24 the Federal Government. 
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1 ‘‘(2) SUPPLEMENTAL REPORTS.—Not later 

2 than October 1, 2005, and once each alternate 

3 month thereafter, Amtrak shall transmit to the Sec4 retary and the Congress a supplemental report re5 garding the business plan transmitted under para6 graph (1), which shall describe the work completed 

7 to date, any changes to the business plan, and the 

8 reasons for such changes. 

9 ‘‘(e) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS AND EARLY APPRO10 PRIATIONS.—(1) Amounts appropriated under this section 

11 remain available until expended. 

12 ‘‘(2) Amounts for capital acquisitions and improve13 ments may be appropriated in a fiscal year before the fis14 cal year in which the amounts will be obligated. 

15 ‘‘(f) LIMITATIONS ON USE.—Amounts appropriated 

16 under this section may not be used to subsidize operating 

17 losses of commuter rail passenger or rail freight transpor18 tation.’’. 

19 SEC. 103. LABOR STANDARDS. 

20 (a) CURRENT EMPLOYEE PROTECTIONS.—Nothing 

21 in this Act, or in any amendment made by this Act, shall 

22 affect the level of protection provided to freight railroad 

23 employees, employees of the National Passenger Railroad 

24 Corporation, and mass transportation employees as it ex25 isted on the day before the date of enactment of this Act. 
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1 (b) LABOR STANDARDS.— 

2 (1) PREVAILING WAGES.—The Secretary of 

3 Transportation— 

4 (A) shall ensure that laborers and mechan5 ics employed by contractors and subcontractors 

6 in construction work financed in whole or in 

7 part by funds authorized by this Act or by any 

8 amendment made by this Act will be paid wages 

9 not less than those prevailing on similar con10 struction in the locality, as determined by the 

11 Secretary of Labor under the Act of March 3, 

12 1931 (known as the Davis-Bacon Act; 40 

13 U.S.C. 276a et seq.); and 

14 (B) may make such funds available with 

15 respect to construction work only after being 

16 assured that required labor standards will be 

17 maintained on the construction work. 

18 (2) WAGE RATES.—Wage rates in a collective 

19 bargaining agreement negotiated under the Railway 

20 Labor Act (45 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) are deemed for 

21 purposes of this subsection to comply with the Act 

22 of March 3, 1931 (known as the Davis-Bacon Act; 

23 40 U.S.C. 276a et seq.). 

24 (3) EMPLOYEE PROTECTION.—The Secretary of 

25 Transportation shall require as a condition of any 
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1 project financed in whole or in part by funds author2 ized by this Act that the project be conducted in a 

3 manner that provides a fair arrangement at least as 

4 protective of the interests of employees who are af5 fected by the project so funded as the terms imposed 

6 under arrangements reached under section 141 of 

7 the Amtrak Reform and Accountability Act of 1997 

8 (49 U.S.C. 24706 note). 

9 SEC. 104. BOARD OF DIRECTORS. 

10 Section 24302 of title 49, United States Code, is 

11 amended— 

12 (1) in subsection (a)(2)(A)— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘(A)(i)’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘(A)’’; 

15 (B) by inserting ‘‘, 6 of whom shall be’’ 

16 after ‘‘7 voting members’’; 

17 (C) by inserting ‘‘or until their successors 

18 are appointed, and the President of Amtrak, ex 

19 officio’’ after ‘‘term of 5 years’’; and 

20 (D) by striking clause (ii); 

21 (2) in subsection (a)(2)(C)(iii), by striking ‘‘6 

22 of the 7’’ and inserting ‘‘5 of the 6’’; and 

23 (3) by amending subparagraph (D) of sub24 section (a)(2) to read as follows: 
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1 ‘‘(D) The President of Amtrak may appoint 2 

2 additional nonvoting members who are not current 

3 employees of Amtrak.’’. 

4 SEC. 105. REDEMPTION OF COMMON STOCK. 

5 (a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—Section 24311(a)(1) of 

6 title 49, United States Code, is amended— 

7 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph 

8 (A); 

9 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub10 paragraph (B) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

11 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub12 paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(C) necessary to redeem its common stock out14 standing as of the date of enactment of this sub15 paragraph.’’. 

16 (b) EMPLOYEE STOCK OPTION PLANS.—Section 

17 24304 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by add18 ing at the end the following: ‘‘Amtrak may transfer to any 

19 such plan the stock redeemed from its common stock20 holders. Employees participating in such plans may elect 

21 one nonvoting member to Amtrak’s Board of Directors.’’. 

22 SEC. 106. REPEAL OF AMTRAK REFORM COUNCIL. 

23 Sections 203, 204, and 205 of the Amtrak Reform 

24 and Accountability Act of 1997 (42 U.S.C. 24101 note), 
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1 and the items relating thereto in the table of contents of 

2 that Act, are repealed. 

3 SEC. 107. REVOLVING CREDIT. 

4 Amtrak is authorized to issue and sell up to 

5 $250,000,000 of obligations in the form of revolving loans 

6 and letters of credit to the Federal Financing Bank. The 

7 Secretary of Transportation shall guarantee 100 percent 

8 of the principal and interest of such obligations. Such obli9 gations shall— 

10 (1) have a final maturity date no later than 10 

11 years after the date of commitment; 

12 (2) with respect to revolving loans, shall be re13 paid by Amtrak on an annual basis; and 

14 (3) with respect to letters of credit, shall be re15 paid on commercially reasonable terms that are ac16 ceptable to the Secretary of Transportation. 

17 TITLE II—RAIL SERVICE 

18 CORRIDORS 

19 SEC. 201. ENHANCED RAIL SERVICE CORRIDOR PILOT PRO20 GRAM. 

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Transpor22 tation shall establish an Enhanced Rail Service Corridor 

23 Pilot Program to support rail infrastructure projects un24 dertaken by States or multi-State compacts, using funding 
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1 provided through the Rail Infrastructure Finance Cor2 poration under title III. 

3 (b) PURPOSES.—The program established under sub4 section (a) shall be for the purpose of improving rail serv5 ice along the rail corridors described in subsection (c), 

6 with respect to the following performance metrics: 

7 (1) Increasing the frequency of trains along a 

8 corridor. 

9 (2) Decreasing the travel time along a corridor. 

10 (3) Increasing overall ridership. 

11 (4) Increasing the overall amount of passenger12 miles. 

13 (5) Increasing the ratio of operating revenue to 

14 operating expenses. 

15 (c) ELIGIBLE CORRIDORS.—Projects on the following 

16 4 corridors are eligible under the pilot program established 

17 under this section: 

18 (1) Southeast Corridor—From the District of 

19 Columbia to Jacksonville, Florida, via Richmond, 

20 Virginia, Raleigh, North Carolina, Columbia, South 

21 Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia, with branches 

22 from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Atlanta, Georgia, 

23 via Charlotte, North Carolina, and Greenville, South 

24 Carolina, and from Charlotte, North Carolina, to 
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1 Charleston, South Carolina, via Columbia, South 

2 Carolina. 

3 (2) Midwest Corridor—From Chicago, Illinois, 

4 to Detroit, Michigan; Chicago, Illinois, to Min5 neapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota, via Milwaukee, Wis6 consin, and Madison, Wisconsin; and Chicago, Illi7 nois, to Kansas City, Missouri, via St. Louis, Mis8 souri. 

9 (3) California Corridor—From the San Fran10 cisco Bay Area to San Diego via Santa Barbara and 

11 Los Angeles; from San Jose to Auburn via Oakland 

12 and Sacramento; and from Oakland to Bakersfield 

13 via Stockton. 

14 (4) Pacific Northwest Corridor—From Eugene, 

15 Oregon, to Vancouver, British Columbia, via Port16 land, Oregon, and Seattle, Washington. 

17 (d) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.—Only the following 

18 projects are eligible under the pilot program established 

19 under this section: 

20 (1) Planning, including activities described in 

21 section 26101(b)(1) of title 49, United States Code, 

22 and environmental impact studies. 

23 (2) New rail line development, including right 

24 of way and infrastructure acquisition and construc25 tion of track and facilities. 
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1 (3) Track upgrades and restoration. 

2 (4) Highway-rail grade crossing improvement or 

3 elimination. 

4 (5) Track, infrastructure, and facility reloca5 tion. 

6 (6) Acquisition, financing, or refinancing of lo7 comotives and rolling stock. 

8 (7) Intermodal and station facilities. 

9 (8) Tunnel and bridge repair or replacement. 

10 (9) Communications and signaling improve11 ments. 

12 (10) Environmental impact mitigation. 

13 (11) Security improvements. 

14 (e) APPROVED PROJECTS.—A project described in 

15 this section may receive assistance from the Rail Infra16 structure Finance Corporation under title III only if the 

17 Secretary of Transportation has approved it under this 

18 subsection. The Secretary shall approve projects under 

19 this subsection only if all of the following conditions are 

20 met: 

21 (1) The Secretary has approved under section 

22 22505 of title 49, United States Code, a State rail 

23 plan for the corridor. 
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1 (2) A near-term (6-year) service plan is pro2 vided that includes both a market/revenue forecast 

3 and an operating expense forecast. 

4 (3) A near-term (6-year) investment plan is 

5 provided for both infrastructure and equipment. 

6 (4) A signed agreement, with any owner of rail 

7 infrastructure or right of way over which service 

8 under the project will be operated, is provided that 

9 authorizes the State or multi-State compact to pro10 ceed with the project. 

11 (5) Existence is established of firm funding 

12 commitments to provide the 20 percent match for 

13 the Federal grant required under section 305(a)(4). 

14 (6) The project meets all safety and environ15 mental requirements, including applicable require16 ments under the National Environmental Policy Act 

17 of 1969. 

18 (7) Amtrak will be the sole operator of intercity 

19 passenger rail service on the corridor. 

20 SEC. 202. ADDITIONAL PROJECTS. 

21 (a) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of Transportation, 

22 using funding provided through the Rail Infrastructure 

23 Finance Corporation under title III, shall, pursuant to the 

24 allocation percentages under section 305(a)(5)(A), sup25 port additional rail infrastructure improvement projects— 
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1 (1) on high-speed corridors identified under sec2 tion 104(d) of title 23, United States Code; 

3 (2) sponsored by States or multi-State com4 pacts not at the time of the award of assistance 

5 served by Amtrak; 

6 (3) sponsored by States or multi-State com7 pacts served by Amtrak but not eligible for assist8 ance under section 201 of this Act; and 

9 (4) on the Alaska Railroad. 

10 (b) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.—Only projects that are de11 scribed in section 201(d)(1) through (11) are eligible to 

12 receive support under this section. 

13 (c) APPROVED PROJECTS.—A project described in 

14 this section may receive assistance from the Rail Infra15 structure Finance Corporation under title III only if the 

16 Secretary of Transportation has approved it under this 

17 subsection. The Secretary shall approve projects under 

18 this subsection only if all of the following conditions are 

19 met: 

20 (1) With respect to projects under subsection 

21 (a)(1) or (3)— 

22 (A) a signed agreement, with any owner of 

23 rail infrastructure or right of way over which 

24 service under the project will be operated, is 
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1 provided that authorizes the State or multi2 State compact to proceed with the project; 

3 (B) existence is established of firm funding 

4 commitments to provide the 20 percent match 

5 for the Federal grant required under section 

6 305(a)(4); 

7 (C) the project meets all safety and envi8 ronmental requirements, including applicable 

9 requirements under the National Environmental 

10 Policy Act of 1969; and 

11 (D) Amtrak will be the sole operator of 

12 intercity passenger rail service on the corridor. 

13 (2) With respect to projects under subsection 

14 (a)(2) or (4)— 

15 (A) a signed agreement, with any owner of 

16 rail infrastructure or right of way over which 

17 service under the project will be operated, is 

18 provided that authorizes the State or multi19 State compact to proceed with the project; 

20 (B) existence is established of firm funding 

21 commitments to provide the 20 percent match 

22 for the Federal grant required under section 

23 305(a)(4); and 

24 (C) the project meets all safety and envi25 ronmental requirements, including applicable 
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1 requirements under the National Environmental 

2 Policy Act of 1969. 

3 SEC. 203. STATE RAIL PLANS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part B of subtitle V of title 49, 

5 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘CHAPTER 225—STATE RAIL PLANS 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘22501. Authority. 

‘‘22502. Purposes. 

‘‘22503. Transparency; coordination; review. 

‘‘22504. Content. 

‘‘22505. Approval. 

‘‘22506. Definitions. 

8 ‘‘§ 22501. Authority 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State may prepare and 

10 maintain a State rail plan in accordance with the provi11 sions of this chapter. 

12 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS.—For the preparation and peri13 odic revision of a State rail plan, a State shall— 

14 ‘‘(1) establish or designate a State rail trans15 portation authority to prepare, maintain, coordinate, 

16 and administer the plan; 

17 ‘‘(2) establish or designate a State rail plan ap18 proval authority to approve the plan; 

19 ‘‘(3) submit the State’s approved plan to the 

20 Secretary of Transportation for approval; and 
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1 ‘‘(4) revise and resubmit a State-approved plan 

2 no less frequently than once every 5 years for re3 approval by the Secretary. 

4 ‘‘§ 22502. Purposes 

5 ‘‘(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of a State rail plan 

6 are as follows: 

7 ‘‘(1) To set forth State policy involving freight 

8 and passenger rail transportation, including com9 muter rail operations, in the State. 

10 ‘‘(2) To establish the period covered by the 

11 State rail plan. 

12 ‘‘(3) To present priorities and strategies to pre13 serve, enhance, or expand rail service in the State 

14 that benefits the public. 

15 ‘‘(4) To serve as the basis for Federal and 

16 State rail investments within the State. 

17 ‘‘(b) COORDINATION.—A State rail plan shall be co18 ordinated with other State transportation planning goals 

19 and programs and set forth rail transportation’s role with20 in the State transportation system. 

21 ‘‘§ 22503. Transparency; coordination; review 

22 ‘‘(a) PREPARATION.—A State shall provide adequate 

23 and reasonable notice and opportunity for comment and 

24 other input to the public, rail carriers, commuter and tran25 sit authorities operating in, or affected by rail operations 
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1 within the State, units of local government, and other in2 terested parties in the preparation and review of its State 

3 rail plan. 

4 ‘‘(b) INTERGOVERNMENTAL COORDINATION.—A 

5 State shall review the freight and passenger rail service 

6 activities and initiatives by regional planning agencies, re7 gional transportation authorities, and municipalities with8 in the State, or in the region in which the State is located, 

9 while preparing the plan, and shall include any rec10 ommendations made by such agencies, authorities, and 

11 municipalities as deemed appropriate by the State. 

12 ‘‘(c) ANNUAL REVIEWS.—Each State shall transmit 

13 an annual report on its plan to the Secretary of Transpor14 tation. The report shall include, for the year preceding the 

15 year in which submitted, the following matters: 

16 ‘‘(1) A review of progress made, and actions 

17 taken, under the plan during the year, including an 

18 update on the budget, schedule, and financing for 

19 each project on the freight or passenger rail capital 

20 project list compiled under section 22504(a). 

21 ‘‘(2) Any modifications made in the plan after 

22 approval of the plan by the Secretary or after the 

23 submission of the most recent annual report on the 

24 plan to the Secretary, including any modifications 
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1 made to the priority freight or passenger rail capital 

2 list required by section 22504(b). 

3 ‘‘(d) APPROVAL OF MODIFIED PLANS.—Modifica4 tions of a State rail plan that are determined substantive 

5 by the Secretary, including any modification to a priority 

6 freight or passenger rail capital project list required by 

7 section 22504(b), is subject to approval (for the purposes 

8 of this chapter) by the Secretary. 

9 ‘‘§ 22504. Content 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State rail plan shall con11 tain the following: 

12 ‘‘(1) An evaluation of the existing overall rail 

13 transportation system and rail services and facilities 

14 within the State, a prioritization of such services 

15 and facilities in terms of their contributions to the 

16 State’s rail and transportation system. 

17 ‘‘(2) A comprehensive review of all rail lines 

18 within the State, including proposed high speed rail 

19 corridors and significant rail line segments not cur20 rently in service, containing an overview of the 

21 transportation services provided by those lines, their 

22 ownership, operating characteristics, and the general 

23 state of their infrastructure. 

24 ‘‘(3) A statement of the State’s freight and pas25 senger rail service objectives, including minimum 
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1 service levels, for rail transportation routes in the 

2 State. 

3 ‘‘(4) A general analysis of rail’s transportation, 

4 economic, and environmental impacts in the State, 

5 including congestion mitigation, trade and economic 

6 development, air quality, land-use, energy-use, and 

7 community impacts. 

8 ‘‘(5) A long-range rail service and investment 

9 program for current and future freight and pas10 senger services in the State that meets the require11 ments of subsection (b). 

12 ‘‘(6) A statement of public financing issues for 

13 rail projects and service in the State, including a list 

14 of current and prospective capital and operating 

15 funding resources, public subsidies, State taxation, 

16 and other financial policies relating to rail service 

17 and rail infrastructure development. 

18 ‘‘(7) A statement of rail service issues within 

19 the State, such as congestion and capacity, and cur20 rent system deficiencies on a regional, intrastate, 

21 and interstate basis, that reflects consultation with 

22 neighboring States and describes any coordination of 

23 regional rail service. 

24 ‘‘(8) A review of major passenger and freight 

25 intermodal rail connections and facilities within the 
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1 State, including seaports, and prioritized options to 

2 maximize service integration and efficiency between 

3 rail and other modes of transportation within the 

4 State. 

5 ‘‘(9) A description of new technology that re6 lates to rail transportation within the State, includ7 ing logistics and process improvements. 

8 ‘‘(10) A review of publicly funded projects with9 in the State to improve rail transportation safety 

10 and security, including all major projects funded 

11 under section 130 of title 23. 

12 ‘‘(11) A performance evaluation of passenger 

13 rail services operating in the State, including pos14 sible improvements in those services, and a descrip15 tion of strategies to achieve those improvements. 

16 ‘‘(12) A compilation of studies and reports on 

17 high-speed rail corridor development within the 

18 State not included in a previous plan under this 

19 chapter, and a plan for funding any recommended 

20 development of such corridors in the State. 

21 ‘‘(13) A statement that the State is in compli22 ance with the requirements of section 22102. 

23 ‘‘(b) LONG-RANGE SERVICE AND INVESTMENT PRO24 GRAM.— 
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1 ‘‘(1) PROGRAM CONTENT.—A long-range rail 

2 service and investment program included in a State 

3 rail plan under subsection (a)(5) shall include the 

4 following matters: 

5 ‘‘(A) Two ranked lists for rail capital 

6 projects, 1 for freight rail capital projects and 

7 1 for intercity passenger rail capital projects. 

8 ‘‘(B) A detailed funding plan for the 

9 projects. 

10 ‘‘(2) PROJECT LIST CONTENT.—The ranked list 

11 of freight and intercity passenger rail capital 

12 projects shall contain— 

13 ‘‘(A) a description of the anticipated public 

14 and private benefits of each such project; and 

15 ‘‘(B) a statement of the correlation be16 tween— 

17 ‘‘(i) public funding contributions for 

18 the projects; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) the public benefits. 

20 ‘‘(3) CONSIDERATIONS FOR PROJECT LIST.—In 

21 preparing the ranked list of freight and intercity 

22 passenger rail capital projects, a State rail transpor23 tation authority shall take into consideration the fol24 lowing matters: 
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1 ‘‘(A) Contributions made by non-Federal 

2 and non-State sources through user fees, 

3 matching funds, or other private capital involve4 ment. 

5 ‘‘(B) Rail capacity and congestion effects. 

6 ‘‘(C) Effects to highway, aviation, and 

7 maritime capacity, congestion, or safety. 

8 ‘‘(D) Regional balance. 

9 ‘‘(E) Environmental impact. 

10 ‘‘(F) Competitive and service impacts for 

11 rail carriers and shippers. 

12 ‘‘(G) Preservation of rail service. 

13 ‘‘(H) Economic and employment impacts. 

14 ‘‘(I) Projected ridership and other service 

15 measures for passenger rail projects. 

16 ‘‘(c) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive any re17 quirement of subsection (a) upon application under cir18 cumstances that the Secretary determines appropriate. 

19 ‘‘§ 22505. Approval 

20 ‘‘(a) CRITERIA.—The Secretary may approve a State 

21 rail plan for the purposes of this chapter if— 

22 ‘‘(1) the plan meets all of the requirements ap23 plicable to State plans under this chapter; 
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1 ‘‘(2) for each ready-to-commence project listed 

2 on the ranked list of freight and intercity passenger 

3 rail capital projects under the plan— 

4 ‘‘(A) the project meets all safety and envi5 ronmental requirements including those pre6 scribed under the National Environmental Pol7 icy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4331 et seq.) that 

8 are applicable to the project under law; and 

9 ‘‘(B) the State has entered into an agree10 ment with any owner of rail infrastructure or 

11 right of way over which service under the 

12 project will be operated that authorizes the 

13 State to proceed with the project; and 

14 ‘‘(3) the content of the plan is coordinated 

15 with— 

16 ‘‘(A) State transportation plans developed 

17 pursuant to section 135 of title 23; and 

18 ‘‘(B) the national rail plan, the 50-year 

19 intermodal blueprint developed under section 

20 5503(e) of this title (if either is available), and 

21 any other transportation plan of the Federal 

22 Government that is required by law and that 

23 the Secretary considers relevant. 

24 ‘‘(b) PROCEDURES FOR STATE RAIL PLAN SUBMIS25 SION AND APPROVAL.—The Secretary shall prescribe pro-
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1 cedures for States to submit State rail plans for review 

2 under this chapter, including standardized format and 

3 data requirements and procedures for resubmittal if a 

4 State rail plan is disapproved. The procedures shall pro5 vide for the Secretary to review a State rail plan and issue 

6 a record of decision of approval or disapproval, with com7 ment, on such plan within 180 days after the plan is sub8 mitted. 

9 ‘‘§ 22506. Definitions 

10 ‘‘In this chapter: 

11 ‘‘(1) PRIVATE BENEFIT.—The term ‘private 

12 benefit’ means a benefit accrued to a person or pri13 vate entity, other than Amtrak, that directly im14 proves the economic and competitive condition of 

15 that person or entity through improved assets, cost 

16 reductions, service improvements, or any other 

17 means as defined by the Secretary of Transpor18 tation. The Secretary may seek the advice of the 

19 States and rail carriers in further defining this term. 

20 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC BENEFIT.—The term ‘public ben21 efit’ means a benefit accrued to the public in the 

22 form of enhanced mobility of people or goods, envi23 ronmental protection or enhancement, congestion 

24 mitigation, enhanced trade and economic develop25 ment, improved air quality or land use, more effi-
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1 cient energy use, enhanced public safety or security, 

2 reduction of public expenditures due to improved 

3 transportation efficiency or infrastructure preserva4 tion, and any other positive community effects as de5 fined by the Secretary. The Secretary make seek the 

6 advice of the States and rail carriers in further de7 fining this term. 

8 ‘‘(3) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means any of 

9 the 50 States and the District of Columbia. 

10 ‘‘(4) STATE RAIL TRANSPORTATION AUTHOR11 ITY.—The term ‘State rail transportation authority’ 

12 means the State agency or official responsible under 

13 the direction of the Governor of the State or a State 

14 law for preparation, maintenance, coordination, and 

15 administration of the State rail plan.’’. 

16 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of chapters 

17 for subtitle V of title 49, United States Code, is amended 

18 by inserting after the item relating to chapter 223 the fol19 lowing: 

‘‘225. STATE RAIL PLANS ..............................................................22501’’. 

20 SEC. 204. ADDITIONAL HIGH-SPEED RAIL CORRIDORS. 

21 Section 104(d)(2)(B) of title 23, United States Code, 

22 is amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause (iv); 

24 (2) by striking the period at the end of clause 

25 (v) and inserting a semicolon; and 
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1 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

2 clauses: 

3 ‘‘(vi) a Gulf of Mexico high-speed cor4 ridor from Mobile, Alabama, to San Anto5 nio, Texas, via New Orleans, Louisiana, 

6 and Houston, Texas; 

7 ‘‘(vii) a Mississippi River high-speed 

8 corridor from New Orleans, Louisiana, to 

9 Memphis, Tennessee, via Jackson, Mis10 sissippi; and 

11 ‘‘(viii) a Las Vegas high-speed cor12 ridor from Los Angeles, California, to Las 

13 Vegas, Nevada.’’. 

14 SEC. 205. HIGH-SPEED RAIL CORRIDOR DEVELOPMENT. 

15 (a) CORRIDOR DEVELOPMENT.— 

16 (1) AMENDMENTS.—Section 26101 of title 49, 

17 United States Code, is amended— 

18 (A) in the section heading, by striking 

19 ‘‘planning’’ and inserting ‘‘development’’; 

20 (B) in the heading of subsection (a), by 

21 striking ‘‘PLANNING’’ and inserting ‘‘DEVELOP22 MENT’’; 

23 (C) by striking ‘‘corridor planning’’ each 

24 place it appears and inserting ‘‘corridor devel25 opment’’; 
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1 (D) in subsection (b)(1)— 

2 (i) by inserting ‘‘, or if it is an activity 

3 described in subparagraph (M)’’ after 

4 ‘‘high-speed rail improvements’’; 

5 (ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of 

6 subparagraph (K); 

7 (iii) by striking the period at the end 

8 of subparagraph (L) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

9 and 

10 (iv) by adding at the end the following 

11 new subparagraph: 

12 ‘‘(M) the acquisition of locomotives, rolling 

13 stock, track, and signal equipment.’’; and 

14 (E) in subsection (c)(2), by striking ‘‘plan15 ning’’ and inserting ‘‘development’’. 

16 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The item re17 lating to section 26101 in the table of sections of 

18 chapter 261 of title 49, United States Code, is 

19 amended by striking ‘‘planning’’ and inserting ‘‘de20 velopment’’. 

21 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

22 26104 of title 49, United States Code, is amended to read 

23 as follows: 
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1 ‘‘§ 26104. Authorization of appropriations 

2 ‘‘(a) FISCAL YEARS 2006 THROUGH 2013.—There 

3 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary— 

4 ‘‘(1) $70,000,000 for carrying out section 

5 26101; and 

6 ‘‘(2) $30,000,000 for carrying out section 

7 26102, 

8 for each of the fiscal years 2006 through 2013. 

9 ‘‘(b) FUNDS TO REMAIN AVAILABLE.—Funds made 

10 available under this section shall remain available until ex11 pended.’’. 

12 TITLE III—RAIL INFRASTRUC13 TURE FINANCE CORPORA14 TION 

15 SEC. 301. ESTABLISHMENT OF CORPORATION. 

16 There is established a nonprofit corporation, to be 

17 known as the ‘‘Rail Infrastructure Finance Corporation’’. 

18 The Rail Infrastructure Finance Corporation is not an 

19 agency or establishment of the United States Government 

20 for purposes of any Federal law, including the Securities 

21 Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and 

22 the Trust Indenture Act of 1939. The Corporation shall 

23 be subject to the provisions of this title and, to the extent 

24 consistent with this section, to the laws of the State of 

25 Delaware applicable to corporations not for profit. 
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1 SEC. 302. BOARD OF DIRECTORS. 

2 (a) APPOINTMENT.—The Rail Infrastructure Fi3 nance Corporation shall have a Board of Directors con4 sisting of 9 voting members appointed by the President, 

5 by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The 

6 President shall submit all nominations for the initial 

7 Board not less than 180 days after the date of enactment 

8 of this Act. Not more than 5 voting members of the Board 

9 may be members of the same political party. 

10 (b) MEMBERSHIP QUALIFICATIONS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The 9 voting members of 

12 the Board shall be appointed from among citizens of 

13 the United States (not regular full-time employees of 

14 the United States) who are eminent in the fields of 

15 rail transportation, rail financing, intermodal trans16 portation planning, and the financing and manage17 ment of large-scale, long-term public-private cooper18 ative projects. 

19 (2) REPRESENTATION OF SPECIFIC INTER20 ESTS.—Of the 9 voting members of the Board, 8 

21 shall be selected as follows: 

22 (A) 1 member from among individuals who 

23 represent the interests of freight rail transpor24 tation. 
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1 (B) 1 member from among individuals who 

2 represent the interests of intermodal transpor3 tation. 

4 (C) 1 member from among individuals who 

5 represent the interests of passenger rail trans6 portation. 

7 (D) 1 member from among individuals who 

8 represent the interests of the States. 

9 (E) 1 member from among individuals who 

10 represent the interests of intercity passenger 

11 rail users. 

12 (F) 1 member from among individuals who 

13 represent the interests of organized rail labor. 

14 (G) 2 members from among persons who 

15 are involved in finance. 

16 (c) INCORPORATION.—The voting members initially 

17 appointed to the Board of Directors shall serve as 

18 incorporators and, upon the establishment of a quorum, 

19 shall take whatever actions are necessary to establish the 

20 Corporation under the laws of Delaware. 

21 (d) TERMS OF OFFICE.—Voting members of the 

22 Board shall be appointed for terms of 6 years. No voting 

23 member of the Board shall be eligible to serve in excess 

24 of 2 consecutive full terms. 
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1 (e) VACANCIES.—A voting member of the Board ap2 pointed to fill a vacancy occurring prior to the expiration 

3 of the term for which the member’s predecessor was ap4 pointed shall be appointed for the remainder of such term. 

5 Except as provided in subsection (f), upon the expiration 

6 of a voting member’s term, the member shall continue to 

7 serve until a successor is appointed. 

8 (f) ATTENDANCE REQUIRED.—Voting members of 

9 the Board shall attend not less than 50 percent of all duly 

10 convened meetings of the Board in any calendar year. A 

11 voting member who fails to meet the requirement of the 

12 preceding sentence shall forfeit membership and the Presi13 dent shall appoint a new member to fill the resulting va14 cancy not later than 90 days after such vacancy is deter15 mined by the Chairman of the Board. 

16 (g) PRESIDENT OF AMTRAK.—The President of Am17 trak shall serve as an ex officio, nonvoting member of the 

18 Board of Directors. 

19 (h) ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN AND VICE CHAIR20 MAN.—Voting members of the Board shall annually elect 

21 1 of their voting members to be Chairman and elect 1 or 

22 more of their voting members as a Vice Chairman or Vice 

23 Chairmen. 

24 (i) COMPENSATION.—The voting members of the 

25 Board shall not, by reason of such membership, be consid-
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1 ered to be officers or employees of the United States. 

2 Those voting members shall, while attending meetings of 

3 the Board or while engaged in duties related to such meet4 ings or other activities of the Board pursuant to this Act, 

5 be entitled to receive compensation at the rate of $300 

6 per day, including traveltime. No Board voting member 

7 shall receive compensation for service on the Board of 

8 more than $10,000 in any fiscal year. While away from 

9 their homes or regular places of business, all Board mem10 bers shall be allowed travel and actual, reasonable, and 

11 necessary expenses. 

12 (j) MEETINGS OPEN TO PUBLIC.—All meetings of 

13 the Board of Directors of the Corporation, including any 

14 committee of the Board, shall be open to the public under 

15 such terms, conditions, and exceptions as the Board may 

16 establish. 

17 (k) QUORUM AND PROCEEDINGS.—Five voting mem18 bers of the Board shall constitute a quorum for the Board 

19 to conduct business. All decisions of the Board shall be 

20 entered upon the records of the Board. 

21 SEC. 303. OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Rail Infrastructure Finance 

23 Corporation shall have a President, and such other officers 

24 as may be named and appointed by the Board for terms 

25 and at rates of compensation fixed by the Board. No indi-
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1 vidual other than a citizen of the United States may be 

2 an officer of the Corporation. No officer of the Corpora3 tion may receive any salary or other compensation (except 

4 for compensation for services on boards of directors of 

5 other organizations that do not receive funds from the 

6 Corporation, on committees of such boards, and in similar 

7 activities for such organizations) from any sources other 

8 than the Corporation for services rendered during the pe9 riod of his or her employment by the Corporation. Service 

10 by any officer on boards of directors of other organiza11 tions, on committees of such boards, and in similar activi12 ties for such organizations shall be subject to annual ad13 vance approval by the Board and subject to the provisions 

14 of a Statement of Ethical Conduct adopted by the Cor15 poration. All officers shall serve at the pleasure of the 

16 Board. An officer of the corporation shall not be consid17 ered to be an officer or employee of the United States by 

18 virtue of such office. 

19 (b) NONPARTISAN NATURE OF APPOINTMENTS.—No 

20 political test or qualification shall be used in selecting, ap21 pointing, promoting, or taking other personnel actions 

22 with respect to officers, agents, or employees of the Cor23 poration. 
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1 SEC. 304. NONPROFIT AND NONPOLITICAL NATURE OF THE 

2 CORPORATION. 

3 (a) STOCK.—The Rail Infrastructure Finance Cor4 poration shall have no power to issue any shares of stock, 

5 or to declare or pay any dividends. 

6 (b) NO PRIVATE BENEFIT.—No part of the income 

7 or assets of the Corporation shall inure to the benefit of 

8 any director, officer, employee, or any other individual ex9 cept as salary or reasonable compensation for services. 

10 (c) POLITICAL ACTIVITY PROHIBITED.—The Cor11 poration may not contribute to or otherwise support any 

12 political party or candidate for elective public office. 

13 (d) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—No director, officer, 

14 or employee of the Corporation shall in any manner, di15 rectly or indirectly, participate in the deliberation upon or 

16 the determination of any question affecting his or her per17 sonal interests or the interests of any corporation, partner18 ship, or organization in which he or she has a direct or 

19 indirect financial interest. Board members shall recuse 

20 themselves from Board decisions that directly affect either 

21 them or any company or organization that they represent 

22 or in which they have a financial interest regarding grants 

23 and other financial assistance provided to States by the 

24 Board. 

25 SEC. 305. PURPOSE AND ACTIVITIES OF CORPORATION. 

26 (a) PURPOSE.— 
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Rail Infrastructure Fi2 nance Corporation shall, through the issuance of 

3 qualified rail infrastructure bonds in accordance 

4 with section 54 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

5 1986 and this title, provide financial support for 

6 projects approved under sections 201 and 202. 

7 (2) SELECTION OF PROJECTS.—The Board of 

8 Directors may award grants for projects that have 

9 been approved by the Secretary of Transportation 

10 under sections 201 and 202. In selecting projects for 

11 such awards, the Board shall— 

12 (A) give preference to projects with high 

13 levels of estimated ridership, increased on-time 

14 performance, reduced trip time, and additional 

15 service frequency; 

16 (B) give preference to projects that encour17 age intermodal connectivity through direct con18 nections between train stations, airports, bus 

19 terminals, subway stations, ferry ports, and 

20 other modes of transportation; 

21 (C) ensure a general balance of grant 

22 funding across geographic regions of the United 

23 States, and avoid a disproportionate concentra24 tion of funding in any single Corridor; 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 (D) favor projects that also improve 

2 freight or commuter rail operations; 

3 (E) favor projects that are expected to 

4 have a significant favorable impact on air or 

5 highway traffic congestion, capacity, or safety; 

6 (F) favor projects that have significant en7 vironmental benefits; 

8 (G) favor projects that have positive eco9 nomic and employment impacts; 

10 (H) favor projects that encourage the use 

11 of positive train control technology; 

12 (I) favor projects that enhance national se13 curity; and 

14 (J) favor projects that have commitments 

15 of non-Federal funding in a total amount that 

16 exceeds the minimum amount required. 

17 (3) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—The Board shall 

18 not award contract authority under this title in an 

19 aggregate amount greater than $500,000,000 for 

20 any fiscal year. Awards shall be available for expend21 iture over a 6-year period. 

22 (4) NON-FEDERAL MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 

23 Recipients of awards under this title shall provide 

24 from non-Federal sources at least 20 percent of the 

25 costs of the project for which the award is made. 
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1 (5) DISTRIBUTION OF AWARDS.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—Of the amounts award3 ed under this title for any fiscal year— 

4 (i) 75 percent shall be for projects de5 scribed in section 201; 

6 (ii) 10 percent shall be for projects 

7 described in section 202(a)(1); 

8 (iii) 5 percent shall be for projects de9 scribed in section 202(a)(2); 

10 (iv) 5 percent shall be for projects de11 scribed in section 202(a)(3); and 

12 (v) 5 percent shall be for projects de13 scribed in section 202(a)(4). 

14 (B) CARRYOVER.—If sufficient viable ap15 plications are not available to distribute the en16 tire amount under subparagraph (A)(i), (ii), 

17 (iii), (iv), or (v) for a fiscal year, the remainder 

18 of amounts unspent shall be available for addi19 tional awards within the same category for sub20 sequent fiscal years. 

21 (b) BOND ISSUANCE AUTHORITY.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—In order to carry out its 

23 purposes, the Corporation is authorized to issue 

24 qualified rail infrastructure bonds (as defined in sec25 tion 54(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) 
40 

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1 during the 6-year period beginning on the day after 

2 the date of enactment of this Act. 

3 (2) LIMITATION.—The total face amount of the 

4 bonds outstanding under paragraph (1) at any time 

5 may not exceed $30,000,000,000. 

6 (3) NO FEDERAL GUARANTEE.— 

7 (A) OBLIGATIONS INSURED BY THE COR8 PORATION.—No obligation that is insured, 

9 guaranteed, or otherwise backed by the Cor10 poration shall be deemed to be an obligation 

11 that is guaranteed by the full faith and credit 

12 of the United States. 

13 (B) SPECIAL RULE.—This paragraph shall 

14 not affect the determination of whether such 

15 obligation is guaranteed for purposes of Federal 

16 income taxes. 

17 (C) SECURITIES OFFERED BY THE COR18 PORATION.—No debt or equity securities of the 

19 Corporation shall be deemed to be guaranteed 

20 by the full faith and credit of the United 

21 States. 

22 (4) AUTHORITY.—To carry out the purpose set 

23 forth in subsection (a) and engage in the activities 

24 described in subsection (b), the Corporation shall 
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1 have the usual powers conferred upon a nonprofit 

2 corporation under the laws of the State of Delaware. 

3 (c) FEDERAL ASSISTANCE.—The Corporation shall 

4 be eligible to receive discretionary grants, contracts, gifts, 

5 contributions, or technical assistance from any department 

6 or agency of the Federal Government, but only to the ex7 tent permitted by law and to the extent necessary to carry 

8 out the purpose set forth in subsection (a) and the activi9 ties described in subsection (b). 

10 SEC. 306. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than May 15 of each 

12 year, the Rail Infrastructure Finance Corporation shall 

13 submit an annual report for the fiscal year ending on Sep14 tember 30 of the preceding year to the Committee on 

15 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and 

16 the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of 

17 the House of Representatives. The report shall include a 

18 comprehensive and detailed report of the Corporation’s op19 erations, activities, financial condition, and accomplish20 ments under this title and such recommendations as the 

21 Corporation considers appropriate. 

22 (b) AVAILABILITY FOR TESTIMONY.—The officers 

23 and directors of the Corporation shall be available to tes24 tify before those committees with respect to such report 
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1 or any other matter which such committees may deter2 mine. 

3 SEC. 307. ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS. 

4 (a) BUDGET.—The Rail Infrastructure Finance Cor5 poration shall establish an annual budget for the Corpora6 tion, including the Rail Infrastructure Investment Account 

7 under subsection (c). 

8 (b) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.— 

9 (1) REQUIREMENT FOR PLAN.—The Corpora10 tion shall conduct a study and prepare a plan on 

11 how the Corporation can best achieve the purposes 

12 and fulfill the requirements of this title. 

13 (2) CONSULTATION.—In preparing the plan, 

14 the Corporation may consult with representatives of 

15 State and local governments, railroads, and other 

16 similar entities. 

17 (3) OTHER REQUIREMENTS.—The plan, which 

18 shall be based on the conclusions resulting from the 

19 study conducted under paragraph (1), shall be sub20 mitted by the Corporation to the Committee on 

21 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen22 ate and the Committee on Transportation and Infra23 structure of the House of Representatives not later 

24 than 180 days after the date on which the Corpora25 tion is incorporated. Unless directed otherwise by 
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1 law, the Corporation shall implement the plan dur2 ing the first fiscal year beginning after the fiscal 

3 year in which the plan is submitted to Congress. 

4 (c) RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT AC5 COUNT.— 

6 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Board of Directors 

7 for the Corporation shall establish an account to be 

8 known as the Rail Infrastructure Investment Ac9 count (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Account’’). 

10 (2) DEPOSIT OF BOND PROCEEDS.—The Cor11 poration shall deposit the proceeds of sales of any 

12 bonds issued under section 54 of the Internal Rev13 enue Code of 1986 into the Account. 

14 (3) DEPOSIT OF NON-FEDERAL CONTRIBU15 TIONS.—The Board shall deposit all non-Federal 

16 contributions received into the Account. 

17 (4) DISBURSEMENTS.—The Board may make 

18 available and may disburse, during the first fiscal 

19 year beginning after the date of enactment of this 

20 Act and during each succeeding fiscal year there21 after, such funds as may be available for obligation 

22 and expenditure from the Account. 

23 (5) USE OF ACCOUNT FUNDS.—Funds in the 

24 Account— 
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1 (A) shall be used by the Corporation for 

2 investment purposes through the Rail Infra3 structure Finance Trust established under sec4 tion 308 to generate an amount sufficient— 

5 (i) to repay the principal of the bonds 

6 at their maturity; and 

7 (ii) to pay the administrative costs of 

8 the Corporation and the Rail Infrastruc9 ture Finance Trust; and 

10 (B) shall, to the extent of the net spend11 able proceeds in the account, be held in the Rail 

12 Infrastructure Finance Trust established under 

13 section 308 and be available for distribution as 

14 grants of financial assistance for projects ap15 proved under sections 201 and 202. 

16 (6) NET SPENDABLE PROCEEDS DEFINED.—In 

17 this subsection, the term ‘‘net spendable proceeds’’, 

18 with respect to the Rail Infrastructure Investment 

19 Account, means the amount, determined by the 

20 Board of Trustees of the Rail Infrastructure Fi21 nance Trust, equal to the excess of— 

22 (A) the total amount in such Account, over 

23 (B) the amount in such Account that is 

24 needed for uses under paragraph (5)(A). 

25 (d) RECORDS AND AUDIT.— 
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Account and the Cor2 poration shall be audited annually in accordance 

3 with generally accepted auditing standards by inde4 pendent certified public accountants or independent 

5 licensed public accountants certified or licensed by a 

6 regulatory authority of a State or other political sub7 division of the United States. The audits shall be 

8 conducted at the place or places where the accounts 

9 of the Corporation are normally kept. All books, ac10 counts, financial records, reports, files, and all other 

11 papers, things, or property belonging to or in use by 

12 the Corporation and necessary to facilitate the au13 dits shall be made available to the person or persons 

14 conducting the audits; and full facilities for verifying 

15 transactions with the balances or securities held by 

16 depositories, fiscal agents and custodians shall be af17 forded to such person or persons. 

18 (2) AUDIT REPORT.—The report of each such 

19 independent audit shall be included in the annual re20 port required by section 306. The audit report shall 

21 set forth the scope of the audit and include such 

22 statements as are necessary to present fairly the 

23 Corporation’s assets and liabilities, surplus or def24 icit, with an analysis of the changes therein during 

25 the year, supplemented in reasonable detail by a 
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1 statement of the Corporation’s income and expenses 

2 during the year, and a statement of the sources and 

3 application of funds, together with the independent 

4 auditor’s opinion of those statements. 

5 (3) ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLES.—Not later than 

6 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

7 Corporation shall develop accounting principles 

8 which shall be used uniformly by all entities receiv9 ing funds under this title, taking into account orga10 nizational differences among various categories of 

11 such entities. Such principles shall be designed to 

12 account fully for all funds received and expended for 

13 purposes of this title by such entities. 

14 (4) REQUIREMENTS FOR RECIPIENTS.—Each 

15 entity receiving funds under this title shall— 

16 (A) keep its books, records, and accounts 

17 in such form as may be required by the Cor18 poration; 

19 (B) either— 

20 (i) undergo an annual audit by inde21 pendent certified public accountants or 

22 independent licensed public accountants 

23 certified or licensed by a regulatory au24 thority of a State, which audit shall be in 
47 

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1 accordance with auditing standards devel2 oped by the Corporation; or 

3 (ii) submit a financial statement in 

4 lieu of the audit described in clause (i) if 

5 the Corporation determines that the cost 

6 burden of such audit on such entity is ex7 cessive in light of the financial condition of 

8 such entity; and 

9 (C) furnish biennially to the Corporation a 

10 copy of the audit report or financial statement 

11 required pursuant to the subparagraph (B), as 

12 well as such other information regarding fi13 nances (including an annual financial report) as 

14 the Corporation may require. 

15 (5) ADDITIONAL RECORDKEEPING.—Any recipi16 ent of assistance by grant or contract under this 

17 title, other than a fixed price contract awarded pur18 suant to competitive bidding procedures, shall keep 

19 such records as may be reasonably necessary to dis20 close fully the amount and the disposition by such 

21 recipient of such assistance, the total cost of the 

22 project or undertaking in connection with which 

23 such assistance is given or used, and the amount 

24 and nature of that portion of the cost of the projects 
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1 or undertaking supplied by other sources, and such 

2 other records as will facilitate an effective audit. 

3 (6) ACCESS TO RECORDS.—The Corporation or 

4 any of its duly authorized representatives shall have 

5 access to any books, documents, papers, and records 

6 of any recipient of assistance for the purpose of au7 diting and examining all funds received from the 

8 Corporation. 

9 (7) PUBLIC INSPECTION.—The Corporation 

10 shall maintain the information described in para11 graphs (4), (5), and (6) at its offices for public in12 spection and copying for at least 3 years, according 

13 to such reasonable guidelines as the Corporation 

14 may issue. This public file shall be updated regu15 larly. 

16 SEC. 308. RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCE TRUST. 

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Board of Directors of the 

18 Rail Infrastructure Finance Corporation shall establish 

19 the Rail Infrastructure Finance Trust (in this section re20 ferred to as the ‘‘Trust’’) as a trust domiciled in the State 

21 of Delaware before the issuance of bonds under section 

22 305(b). The Trust shall, to the extent not inconsistent 

23 with this title, be subject to the laws of the State of Dela24 ware that are applicable to trusts. The Trust shall manage 

25 and invest the assets of the Rail Infrastructure Investment 
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1 Account established under section 307(c) that are trans2 ferred to it by the Board of Directors in the manner set 

3 forth in this section. 

4 (b) NOT A FEDERAL AGENCY OR INSTRUMEN5 TALITY.—The Trust is not a department, agency, or other 

6 instrumentality of the Government of the United States 

7 and shall not be subject to title 31, United States Code. 

8 (c) BOARD OF TRUSTEES.— 

9 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Trust shall have a 

10 Board of Trustees. 

11 (2) COMPOSITION.— 

12 (A) APPOINTMENT.—The Board of Trust13 ees shall consist of 5 members (in this title re14 ferred to as ‘‘Trustees’’), 3 of whom shall be 

15 appointed by a unanimous vote of the Board of 

16 Directors of the Rail Infrastructure Finance 

17 Corporation. 

18 (B) REPRESENTATION OF PARTICULAR IN19 TERESTS.—The 3 members of the Board of 

20 Trustees whose unanimous appointment is re21 quired under subparagraph (A) shall be selected 

22 as follows: 

23 (i) 1 from among persons who rep24 resent the interests of the States. 
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1 (ii) 1 from among persons who rep2 resent the interests of freight and pas3 senger railroads. 

4 (iii) 1 from among persons who rep5 resent the interests of classes of investors 

6 who would be reasonably expected to be7 come holders of qualified rail infrastruc8 ture bonds issued by the Rail Infrastruc9 ture Finance Corporation. 

10 (C) ELECTED TRUSTEES.—The 2 Trustees 

11 not appointed under subparagraph (A) shall be 

12 elected directly by holders of qualified rail infra13 structure bonds issued by the Rail Infrastruc14 ture Finance Corporation through procedures 

15 established by the Board of Trustees to rep16 resent the interests of such bond holders. The 

17 election shall be held, and both members elected 

18 under this subparagraph shall take office as 

19 Trustees, within 1 year after the initial issuance 

20 of bonds under section 305(b). 

21 (3) MEMBERS NOT UNITED STATES OFFI22 CIALS.—The members of the Board of Trustees may 

23 not be considered officers or employees of the Gov24 ernment of the United States. 
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1 (4) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Trustees shall be 

2 appointed only from among persons who have experi3 ence and expertise in the management of financial 

4 investments. No member of the Board of Directors 

5 of the Rail Infrastructure Finance Corporation is el6 igible to be a Trustee. 

7 (5) TERMS.—Each member of the Board of 

8 Trustees shall be appointed for a 3-year term. Any 

9 member whose term has expired may serve until 

10 such member’s successor has taken office, or until 

11 the end of the calendar year in which such member’s 

12 term has expired, whichever is earlier. A vacancy in 

13 the Board of Trustees shall not affect the powers of 

14 the Board of Trustees and shall be filled in the same 

15 manner as the member whose departure caused the 

16 vacancy. Any member appointed to fill a vacancy oc17 curring prior to the expiration of the term for which 

18 the member’s predecessor was appointed shall be ap19 pointed for the remainder of such term. 

20 (d) POWERS.—The Board of Trustees shall— 

21 (1) establish investment policies, including 

22 guidelines, and retain independent advisers to assist 

23 in the formulation and adoption of the investment 

24 guidelines; 
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1 (2) retain independent investment managers to 

2 invest the assets of the Trust in a manner consistent 

3 with such investment guidelines; 

4 (3) invest assets in the Trust, pursuant to the 

5 policies adopted under paragraph (1); 

6 (4) pay administrative expenses of the Trust 

7 from the assets in the Trust; 

8 (5) transfer money to the Rail Infrastructure 

9 Investment Account, upon request of the Board of 

10 Directors of the Rail Infrastructure Finance Cor11 poration, for bond repayment and administrative ex12 penses of the Corporation; 

13 (6) develop a formula, subject to approval by 

14 the Board of Directors before the issuance of bonds 

15 under section 305(b), for determining when there is 

16 a sufficient trust income stream for purposes of 

17 paragraph (7); and 

18 (7) transfer net spendable proceeds (within the 

19 meaning of section 507(c)(6)) to the Board of Direc20 tors to be used for grants under title II after deter21 mining that adequate trust funds are available, or 

22 that there is a trust income stream sufficient, to 

23 allow the Board of Trustees to meet its obligations 

24 under paragraphs (4) and (5). 
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1 (e) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND FIDUCIARY

2 STANDARDS.—The following reporting requirements and 

3 fiduciary standards shall apply with respect to the Trust: 

4 (1) DUTIES OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES.— 

5 The Trust and each member of the Board of Trust6 ees shall discharge the duties of the Trust and the 

7 duties of the Trustee, respectively (including the vot8 ing of proxies), with respect to the assets of the 

9 Trust solely in the interests of the Rail Infrastruc10 ture Finance Corporation and the programs funded 

11 under this title— 

12 (A) for the exclusive purposes of— 

13 (i) providing sufficient funds to repay 

14 qualified rail infrastructure bonds issued 

15 by the Rail Infrastructure Finance Cor16 poration; 

17 (ii) funding the administrative costs of 

18 the Rail Infrastructure Finance Corpora19 tion; 

20 (iii) defraying reasonable expenses of 

21 administering the Trust; and 

22 (iv) providing grants for projects 

23 under title II; and 

24 (B) with the care, skill, prudence, and dili25 gence under the circumstances then prevailing 
54 

•HR 2992 IH 

1 that a prudent person acting in a like capacity 

2 and familiar with such matters would use in the 

3 conduct of an enterprise of a like character and 

4 with like aims; 

5 (C) by diversifying investments so as to 

6 minimize the risk of large losses and to avoid 

7 disproportionate influence over a particular in8 dustry or firm, unless under the circumstances 

9 it is clearly prudent not to do so; and 

10 (D) in accordance with Trust governing 

11 documents and instruments insofar as such doc12 uments and instruments are consistent with 

13 this title. 

14 (2) PROHIBITIONS WITH RESPECT TO MEMBERS

15 OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES.—A member of the 

16 Board of Trustees may not— 

17 (A) deal with the assets of the Trust in the 

18 Trustee’s own interest or for the Trustee’s own 

19 account; 

20 (B) act in an individual or in any other ca21 pacity, in any transaction involving the assets 

22 of the Trust on behalf of a party (or represent 

23 a party) whose interests are adverse to the in24 terests of the Trust and the Rail Infrastructure 

25 Finance Corporation; or 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 (C) receive any consideration for the 

2 Trustee’s own personal account from any party 

3 dealing with the assets of the Trust. 

4 (3) EXCULPATORY PROVISIONS AND INSUR5 ANCE.—Any provision in an agreement or instru6 ment that purports to relieve a Trustee from respon7 sibility or liability for any responsibility, obligation, 

8 or duty under this title shall be void. Nothing in this 

9 paragraph shall be construed to preclude— 

10 (A) the Trust from purchasing insurance 

11 for its Trustees or for itself to cover liability or 

12 losses occurring by reason of the act or omis13 sion of a Trustee, if such insurance permits re14 course by the insurer against the Trustee in the 

15 case of a breach of a fiduciary obligation by 

16 such Trustee; 

17 (B) a Trustee from purchasing insurance 

18 to cover liability under this section from and for 

19 his own account; or 

20 (C) an employer or an employee organiza21 tion from purchasing insurance to cover poten22 tial liability of 1 or more Trustees with respect 

23 to their fiduciary responsibilities, obligations, 

24 and duties under this section. 

25 (4) TRUSTEES, BONDS.— 
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1 (A) REQUIREMENT.—Each Trustee and 

2 every person who handles funds or other prop3 erty of the Trust (in this section referred to as 

4 ‘‘Trust official’’) shall be bonded. The bond 

5 shall provide protection to the Trust against 

6 loss by reason of acts of fraud or dishonesty on 

7 the part of any Trust official, directly or 

8 through the connivance of others. 

9 (B) AMOUNT.—The amount of a bond for 

10 a Trustee under this paragraph shall be fixed 

11 at the beginning of each fiscal year of the Trust 

12 by the Board of Directors of the Rail Infra13 structure Finance Corporation. The amount 

14 may not be less than 10 percent of the amount 

15 of the funds administered by the Trust. 

16 (C) UNLAWFUL CONDUCT.—It shall be un17 lawful for— 

18 (i) any Trust official to receive, han19 dle, disburse, or otherwise exercise custody 

20 or control of any of the funds or other 

21 property of the Trust without being bond22 ed as required by this subsection; 

23 (ii) any Trust official, or any other 

24 person having authority to direct the per25 formance of such functions, to permit such 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 functions, or any of them, to be performed 

2 by any Trust official, with respect to whom 

3 the requirements of this subsection have 

4 not been met; and 

5 (iii) any person to procure any bond 

6 required by this subsection from any sur7 ety or other company or through any agent 

8 or broker in whose business operations 

9 such person has any control or significant 

10 financial interest, direct or indirect. 

11 (f) ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS.— 

12 (1) AUTHORITY.—The Board of Trustees shall 

13 have the authority to make rules to govern its oper14 ations, employ professional staff, and contract with 

15 outside advisors (including the Rail Infrastructure 

16 Finance Corporation) to provide legal, accounting, 

17 investment advisory, or other services necessary for 

18 the proper administration of this section. In the case 

19 of a contract for investment advisory services, com20 pensation for such services may be provided on a 

21 fixed fee basis or on such other terms and conditions 

22 as are customary for such services. 

23 (2) QUORUM AND PROCEEDINGS.—Three mem24 bers of the Board of Trustees shall constitute a 

25 quorum for the Board to conduct business. Invest-
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 ment guidelines shall be adopted by a unanimous 

2 vote of the entire Board of Trustees. All other deci3 sions of the Board of Trustees shall be decided by 

4 a majority vote of the quorum present. All decisions 

5 of the Board of Trustees shall be entered upon the 

6 records of the Board of Trustees. 

7 (3) COMPENSATION OF TRUSTEES AND EM8 PLOYEES.—The salaries of the Trustees are subject 

9 to the limitations in section 302(i). 

10 (4) COMPENSATION ARRANGEMENTS.—The 

11 Board of Trustees may compensate investment advi12 sory service providers and employees of the Trust on 

13 a fixed contract fee basis or on such other terms and 

14 conditions as are customary for such services. 

15 (5) FUNDING.—The expenses of the Trust and 

16 the Board of Trustees that are incurred under this 

17 section shall be paid from the Trust. 

18 (g) AUDIT AND REPORT.— 

19 (1) REQUIREMENT FOR ANNUAL AUDIT.—The 

20 Trust shall annually engage an independent qualified 

21 public accountant to audit the financial statements 

22 of the Trust. 

23 (2) ANNUAL MANAGEMENT REPORT.—The 

24 Trust shall submit an annual management report to 

25 be included in the annual report of the Corporation 
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1 required under section 306. The management report 

2 under this paragraph shall include the following 

3 matters: 

4 (A) A statement of financial position. 

5 (B) A statement of operations. 

6 (C) A statement of cash flows. 

7 (D) A statement on internal accounting 

8 and administrative control systems. 

9 (E) The report resulting from an audit of 

10 the financial statements of the Trust conducted 

11 under paragraph (1). 

12 (F) Any other comments and information 

13 necessary to inform Congress about the oper14 ations and financial condition of the Trust. 

15 (h) ENFORCEMENT.—The Rail Infrastructure Fi16 nance Corporation may commence a civil action— 

17 (1) to enjoin any act or practice by the Trust, 

18 its Board of Trustees, or its employees or agents 

19 that violates any provision of this title; or 

20 (2) to obtain other appropriate relief to redress 

21 such violations, or to enforce any provisions of this 

22 title. 

23 (i) EXEMPTION FROM TAX FOR RAIL INFRASTRUC24 TURE FINANCE TRUST.—Subsection (c) of section 501 of 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding 

2 at the end the following new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(29) The Rail Infrastructure Finance Trust 

4 established under section 308 of the True Reinvest5 ment for Amtrak Infrastructure in the 21st Century 

6 Act.’’. 

7 TITLE IV—RAIL INFRASTRUC8 TURE TAX CREDIT BONDS 

9 SEC. 401. CREDIT TO HOLDERS OF QUALIFIED RAIL INFRA10 STRUCTURE BONDS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part IV of subchapter A of chap12 ter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to 

13 credits against tax) is amended by adding at the end the 

14 following new subpart: 

15 ‘‘Subpart H—Nonrefundable Credit for Holders of 

16 Qualified Rail Infrastructure Bonds 

‘‘Sec. 54. Credit to holders of qualified rail infrastructure bonds. 

17 ‘‘SEC. 54. CREDIT TO HOLDERS OF QUALIFIED RAIL INFRA18 STRUCTURE BONDS. 

19 ‘‘(a) ALLOWANCE OF CREDIT.—In the case of a tax20 payer who holds a qualified rail infrastructure bond on 

21 a credit allowance date of such bond which occurs during 

22 the taxable year, there shall be allowed as a credit against 

23 the tax imposed by this chapter for such taxable year an 

24 amount equal to the sum of the credits determined under 
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1 subsection (b) with respect to credit allowance dates dur2 ing such year on which the taxpayer holds such bond. 

3 ‘‘(b) AMOUNT OF CREDIT.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of the credit 

5 determined under this subsection with respect to any 

6 credit allowance date for a qualified rail infrastruc7 ture bond is 25 percent of the annual credit deter8 mined with respect to such bond. 

9 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL CREDIT.—The annual credit de10 termined with respect to any qualified rail infra11 structure bond is the product of— 

12 ‘‘(A) the applicable credit rate, multiplied 

13 by 

14 ‘‘(B) the outstanding face amount of the 

15 bond. 

16 ‘‘(3) APPLICABLE CREDIT RATE.—For purposes 

17 of paragraph (2), the applicable credit rate with re18 spect to an issue is the rate equal to an average 

19 market yield (as of the day before the date of sale 

20 of the issue) on outstanding long-term corporate 

21 debt obligations (determined under regulations pre22 scribed by the Secretary). 

23 ‘‘(4) CREDIT ALLOWANCE DATE.—For purposes 

24 of this section, the term ‘credit allowance date’ 

25 means— 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 ‘‘(A) March 15, 

2 ‘‘(B) June 15, 

3 ‘‘(C) September 15, and 

4 ‘‘(D) December 15. 

5 Such term includes the last day on which the bond 

6 is outstanding. 

7 ‘‘(5) SPECIAL RULE FOR ISSUANCE AND RE8 DEMPTION.—In the case of a bond which is issued 

9 during the 3-month period ending on a credit allow10 ance date, the amount of the credit determined 

11 under this subsection with respect to such credit al12 lowance date shall be a ratable portion of the credit 

13 otherwise determined based on the portion of the 3- 

14 month period during which the bond is outstanding. 

15 A similar rule shall apply when the bond is re16 deemed. 

17 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION BASED ON AMOUNT OF TAX.—The 

18 credit allowed under subsection (a) for any taxable year 

19 shall not exceed the excess of— 

20 ‘‘(1) the sum of the regular tax liability (as de21 fined in section 26(b)) plus the tax imposed by sec22 tion 55, over 

23 ‘‘(2) the sum of the credits allowable under this 

24 part (other than this subpart and subpart C). 
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1 ‘‘(d) CREDIT INCLUDED IN GROSS INCOME.—Gross 

2 income includes the amount of the credit allowed to the 

3 taxpayer under this section (determined without regard to 

4 subsection (c)) and the amount so included shall be treat5 ed as interest income. 

6 ‘‘(e) QUALIFIED RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE BOND.— 

7 For purposes of this part, the term ‘qualified rail infra8 structure bond’ means any bond issued as part of an issue 

9 if— 

10 ‘‘(1) the bond is issued by the Rail Infrastruc11 ture Finance Corporation and is in registered form, 

12 ‘‘(2) the term of each bond which is part of 

13 such issue does not exceed 20 years, 

14 ‘‘(3) the payment of principal with respect to 

15 such bond is the obligation of the Rail Infrastruc16 ture Finance Corporation and not an obligation of 

17 the United States, 

18 ‘‘(4) all proceeds from the sale of the issue are 

19 used for the purposes set forth in section 307(c)(5) 

20 of the True Reinvestment for Amtrak Infrastructure 

21 in the 21st Century Act, and 

22 ‘‘(5) 95 percent or more of the net spendable 

23 proceeds from the sale of such issue are to be used 

24 for expenditures incurred after the date of enact25 ment of this section for any qualified project de-
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1 scribed in section 201 or 202 of the True Reinvest2 ment for Amtrak Infrastructure in the 21st Century 

3 Act subject to the limitations established by that 

4 Act. 

5 ‘‘(f) SPECIAL RULES RELATING TO NET SPENDABLE

6 PROCEEDS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

8 an issue shall be treated as meeting the require9 ments of this subsection if, as of 6 years after the 

10 date of issuance, the issuer reasonably expects— 

11 ‘‘(A) to award grants under section 305(a) 

12 of the True Reinvestment for Amtrak Infra13 structure in the 21st Century Act in a total 

14 amount that is at least 95 percent of the net 

15 spendable proceeds of the issue for 1 or more 

16 qualified projects within the 6-year period be17 ginning on such date, 

18 ‘‘(B) to incur a binding commitment with 

19 a third party— 

20 ‘‘(i) to spend at least 10 percent of 

21 the net spendable proceeds of the issue, or 

22 to commence construction, with respect to 

23 such projects within the 12-month period 

24 beginning on such date, and 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 ‘‘(ii) to proceed with due diligence to 

2 complete such projects, and 

3 ‘‘(C) to expend the total amount of the net 

4 spendable proceeds of the issue. 

5 ‘‘(2) RULES REGARDING CONTINUING COMPLI6 ANCE AFTER 6-YEAR DETERMINATION.—If at least 

7 95 percent of the net spendable proceeds of the issue 

8 is not awarded as grants to be expended for 1 or 

9 more qualified projects within the 6-year period be10 ginning 6 years after the date of issuance, but the 

11 requirements of paragraph (1) are otherwise met, an 

12 issue shall be treated as continuing to meet the re13 quirements of paragraph (1) if either the require14 ment under subparagraph (A) or the requirements 

15 under subparagraph (B) are met, as follows: 

16 ‘‘(A) The issuer uses all unspent proceeds 

17 from the sale of the issue to redeem bonds of 

18 the issue within 90 days after the end of such 

19 6-year period and disburses any remaining net 

20 spendable proceeds to the Secretary of Treasury 

21 within 30 days after the end of such 6-year pe22 riod. 

23 ‘‘(B) The issuer— 

24 ‘‘(i) awards in grants under section 

25 305(a) of the True Reinvestment for Am-
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 trak Infrastructure in the 21st Century 

2 Act at least 75 percent of the net spend3 able proceeds of the issue for 1 or more 

4 qualified projects within the 6-year period 

5 beginning 6 years after the date of 

6 issuance, and 

7 ‘‘(ii) awards in grants under section 

8 305(a) of the True Reinvestment for Am9 trak Infrastructure in the 21st Century 

10 Act at least 95 percent of the net spend11 able proceeds of the issue for 1 or more 

12 qualified projects within the 7-year period 

13 beginning 6 years after the date of 

14 issuance. 

15 ‘‘(g) RECAPTURE OF PORTION OF CREDIT WHERE

16 CESSATION OF COMPLIANCE.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If any bond which when 

18 issued purported to be a qualified rail infrastructure 

19 bond ceases to be such a qualified bond, the issuer 

20 shall pay to the United States (at the time required 

21 by the Secretary) an amount equal to the sum of— 

22 ‘‘(A) the aggregate of the credits allowable 

23 under this section with respect to such bond 

24 (determined without regard to subsection (c)) 

25 for taxable years ending during the calendar 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 year in which such cessation occurs and the 2 

2 preceding calendar years, and 

3 ‘‘(B) interest at the underpayment rate 

4 under section 6621 on the amount determined 

5 under subparagraph (A) for each calendar year 

6 for the period beginning on the first day of 

7 such calendar year. 

8 ‘‘(2) NONCULPABLE DISQUALIFICATIONS.—If a 

9 qualified rail infrastructure bond ceases to qualify as 

10 such a bond due to action taken by the recipient of 

11 a grant made under section 305(a) of the True Re12 investment for Amtrak Infrastructure in the 21st 

13 Century Act, the issuer may seek compensation 

14 under paragraph (1) of this subsection. 

15 ‘‘(h) RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCE TRUST.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The following amounts 

17 shall be held in a trust account by the Rail Infra18 structure Finance Corporation: 

19 ‘‘(A) An amount of the proceeds from the 

20 sale of all bonds designated for purposes of this 

21 section that, when combined with amounts de22 scribed in subparagraphs (B), (C), and (D), is 

23 sufficient— 

24 ‘‘(i) to ensure the Corporation’s abil25 ity to redeem all bonds upon maturity; and 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 ‘‘(ii) to pay the administrative ex2 penses of the Corporation and the Rail In3 frastructure Finance Trust. 

4 ‘‘(B) The amount of any non-Federal con5 tributions required under section 305(a)(4) of 

6 the True Reinvestment for Amtrak Infrastruc7 ture in the 21st Century Act. 

8 ‘‘(C) The temporary period investment 

9 earnings on proceeds from the sale of such 

10 bonds. 

11 ‘‘(D) Any earnings on any amounts de12 scribed in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C). 

13 ‘‘(2) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts in the trust ac14 count may be used only for investment purposes to 

15 generate sufficient funds to redeem qualified rail in16 frastructure bonds at maturity and pay the adminis17 trative expenses of the Corporation and the Trust. 

18 ‘‘(3) USE OF REMAINING FUNDS ON TRUST AC19 COUNT.—If the Corporation determines that the 

20 amount in the trusts account exceeds the amount re21 quired to comply with paragraph (2), the Corpora22 tion may transfer the excess to the Rail Infrastruc23 ture Investment account to be available for awarding 

24 grants as provided for in section 307(c)(5)(B) of the 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 True Reinvestment for Amtrak Infrastructure in the 

2 21st Century Act. 

3 ‘‘(4) REVERSION OF REMAINING PROCEEDS.— 

4 Upon retirement of all bonds issued by the Corpora5 tion, any remaining proceeds from the sale of such 

6 bonds shall be covered into the general fund of the 

7 Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous re8 ceipts. 

9 ‘‘(i) OTHER DEFINITIONS AND SPECIAL RULES.— 

10 For purposes of this section— 

11 ‘‘(1) BOND.—The term ‘bond’ includes any ob12 ligation. 

13 ‘‘(2) NET SPENDABLE PROCEEDS.—The term 

14 ‘net spendable proceeds’ has the meaning given such 

15 term in section 307(c)(6) of the True Reinvestment 

16 for Amtrak Infrastructure in the 21st Century Act. 

17 ‘‘(3) QUALIFIED PROJECT.—The term ‘qualified 

18 project’ means any project that is eligible for grant 

19 funding under section 201 or 202 of the True Rein20 vestment for Amtrak Infrastructure in the 21st Cen21 tury Act. 

22 ‘‘(4) PARTNERSHIP; S CORPORATION; AND

23 OTHER PASS-THRU ENTITIES.—Under regulations 

24 prescribed by the Secretary, in the case of a partner25 ship, trust, S corporation, or other pass-thru entity, 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 rules similar to the rules of section 41(g) shall apply 

2 with respect to the credit allowable under subsection 

3 (a). 

4 ‘‘(5) BONDS HELD BY REGULATED INVEST5 MENT COMPANIES.—If any qualified rail infrastruc6 ture bond is held by a regulated investment com7 pany, the credit determined under subsection (a) 

8 shall be allowed to shareholders of such company 

9 under procedures prescribed by the Secretary. 

10 ‘‘(6) REPORTING.—Issuers of qualified rail in11 frastructure bonds shall submit reports similar to 

12 the reports required under section 149(e).’’. 

13 (b) AMENDMENTS TO OTHER CODE SECTIONS.— 

14 (1) REPORTING.—Subsection (d) of section 

15 6049 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating 

16 to returns regarding payments of interest) is amend17 ed by adding at the end the following new para18 graph: 

19 ‘‘(8) REPORTING OF CREDIT ON QUALIFIED

20 RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE BONDS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of sub22 section (a), the term ‘interest’ includes amounts 

23 includible in gross income under section 54(d) 

24 and such amounts shall be treated as paid on 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 the credit allowance date (as defined in section 

2 54(b)(4)). 

3 ‘‘(B) REPORTING TO CORPORATIONS, 

4 ETC.—Except as otherwise provided in regula5 tions, in the case of any interest described in 

6 subparagraph (A), subsection (b)(4) shall be 

7 applied without regard to subparagraphs (A), 

8 (H), (I), (J), (K), and (L)(i) of such subsection. 

9 ‘‘(C) REGULATORY AUTHORITY.—The Sec10 retary may prescribe such regulations as are 

11 necessary or appropriate to carry out the pur12 poses of this paragraph, including regulations 

13 which require more frequent or more detailed 

14 reporting.’’. 

15 (2) TREATMENT FOR ESTIMATED TAX PUR16 POSES.— 

17 (A) INDIVIDUAL.—Section 6654 of such 

18 Code (relating to failure by individual to pay es19 timated income tax) is amended by redesig20 nating subsection (m) as subsection (n) and by 

21 inserting after subsection (l) the following new 

22 subsection: 

23 ‘‘(m) SPECIAL RULE FOR HOLDERS OF QUALIFIED

24 RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE BONDS.—For purposes of this 

25 section, the credit allowed by section 54 to a taxpayer by 
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•HR 2992 IH 

1 reason of holding a qualified rail infrastructure bond on 

2 a credit allowance date shall be treated as if it were a 

3 payment of estimated tax made by the taxpayer on such 

4 date.’’. 

5 (B) CORPORATE.—Section 6655 of such 

6 Code (relating to failure by corporation to pay 

7 estimated income tax) is amended by adding at 

8 the end of subsection (g) the following new 

9 paragraph: 

10 ‘‘(5) SPECIAL RULE FOR HOLDERS OF QUALI11 FIED RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE BONDS.—For purposes 

12 of this section, the credit allowed by section 54 to 

13 a taxpayer by reason of holding a qualified rail in14 frastructure bond on a credit allowance date shall be 

15 treated as if it were a payment of estimated tax 

16 made by the taxpayer on such date.’’. 

17 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 

18 (1) The table of subparts for part IV of sub19 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code 

20 of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the fol21 lowing new item: 

‘‘SUBPART H—NONREFUNDABLE CREDIT FOR HOLDERS OF QUALIFIED RAIL

INFRASTRUCTURE BONDS’’. 

22 (2) Section 6401(b)(1) of such Code is amend23 ed by striking ‘‘and G’’ and inserting ‘‘G, and H’’. 
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1 SEC. 402. ISSUANCE OF REGULATIONS. 

2 The Secretary of the Treasury shall issue regulations 

3 required under section 54 of the Internal Revenue Code 

4 of 1986 not later than 90 days after the date of the enact5 ment of this Act. 

6 SEC. 403. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

7 The amendments made by section 401 shall apply to 

8 obligations issued after the date of enactment of this Act. 

Æ