I

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2789

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for the establishment

of an intercity passenger rail trust fund, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

DECEMBER 15, 1995

Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut introduced the following bill; which was referred

to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee

on Transportation and Infrastructure, 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 amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide

for the establishment of an intercity passenger rail trust

fund, 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.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Intercity Passenger

5 Rail Trust Fund Act of 1995’’.

6 SEC. 2. INTERCITY PASSENGER RAIL TRUST FUND.

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF TRUST FUND.—Subchapter

8 A of chapter 98 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
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1 (relating to trust fund code) is amended by adding at the

2 end the following new section:

3 ‘‘SEC. 9512. INTERCITY PASSENGER RAIL TRUST FUND.

4 ‘‘(a) CREATION OF TRUST FUND.—There is estab5 lished in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund

6 to be known as the ‘Intercity Passenger Rail Trust Fund’,

7 consisting of such amounts as may be transferred or cred8 ited to the Trust Fund as provided in section 9503(c)(7)

9 or section 9602(b).

10 ‘‘(b) EXPENDITURES FROM TRUST FUND.—

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para12 graph (2), amounts in the Intercity Passenger Rail

13 Trust Fund shall be available, as provided by appro14 priation Acts, to finance qualified expenses of—

15 ‘‘(A) the National Railroad Passenger Cor16 poration, and

17 ‘‘(B) each eligible State, to the extent de18 termined under paragraph (3).

19 ‘‘(2) DIRECT SPENDING AMOUNTS.—The follow20 ing amounts in the Intercity Passenger Rail Trust

21 Fund are hereby appropriated to finance qualified

22 expenses:

Amount

‘‘Fiscal year: Available:

1996 .........................................................................................$131,000,000

1997 ......................................................................................... 663,000,000

1998 ......................................................................................... 667,000,000

1999 ......................................................................................... 670,000,000

2000 ......................................................................................... 672,000,000.
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1 ‘‘(3) MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF FUNDS TO ELIGI2 BLE STATES.—Each eligible State shall receive

3 under this subsection an amount equal to the lesser

4 of—

5 ‘‘(A) the State’s qualified expenses for the

6 fiscal year, or

7 ‘‘(B) the product of—

‘‘(i) 1 8 ⁄12 of 1 percent of the lesser of—

9 ‘‘(I) the aggregate amounts

10 transferred and credited to the Inter11 city Passenger Rail Trust Fund under

12 subsection (a) for such fiscal year, or

13 ‘‘(II) the aggregate amounts ap14 propriated from the Intercity Pas15 senger Rail Trust Fund under this

16 subsection for such fiscal year, and

17 ‘‘(ii) the number of months such State

18 was an eligible State in the preceding fiscal

19 year.

20 If the amount determined under subparagraph (B)

21 exceeds the amount under subparagraph (A) for any

22 fiscal year, the amount under subparagraph (B) for

23 the following fiscal year shall be increased by the

24 amount of such excess.

25 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section—
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1 ‘‘(1) QUALIFIED EXPENSES.—The term ‘quali2 fied expenses’ means expenses incurred, with respect

3 to obligations made, after December 31, 1995, and

4 before October 1, 2000—

5 ‘‘(A) in the case of—

6 ‘‘(i) the National Railroad Passenger

7 Corporation, for capital improvements in

8 intercity passenger rail service, or

9 ‘‘(ii) an eligible State, for capital im10 provements in intercity rail service, and

11 ‘‘(B) certified by the Secretary of Trans12 portation as meeting the requirements of sub13 paragraph (A).

14 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE STATE.—The term ‘eligible

15 State’ means any State which does not receive inter16 city passenger rail service from the National Rail17 road Passenger Corporation.

18 ‘‘(d) TERMINATION.—The Secretary shall determine

19 and retain, not later than October 1, 2000, the amount

20 in the Intercity Passenger Rail Trust Fund necessary to

21 pay any outstanding qualified expenses, and shall transfer

22 any amount not so retained to the Mass Transit Account

23 under section 9503(e).’’

24 (b) TRANSFERS FROM HIGHWAY TRUST FUND.—

25 Section 9503(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (re-
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1 lating to expenditures from Highway Trust Fund) is

2 amended by adding at the end the following new para3 graph:

4 ‘‘(7) TRANSFERS FROM TRUST FUND FOR

5 INTERCITY PASSENGER RAIL.—

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall

7 transfer from time to time from the Highway

8 Trust Fund to the Intercity Passenger Rail

9 Trust Fund under section 9512 the intercity

10 passenger rail portion of the amounts appro11 priated to the Highway Trust Fund under sub12 section (b) which are attributable to taxes

13 under sections 4041 and 4081 imposed after

14 December 31, 1995, and before October 1,

15 2000.

16 ‘‘(B) INTERCITY PASSENGER RAIL POR17 TION.—For purposes of subparagraph (A), the

18 term ‘intercity passenger rail portion’ means

19 the amount—

20 ‘‘(i) determined at the rate of 0.5 cent

21 for each gallon with respect to which tax

22 was imposed under section 4041 or 4081,

23 and

24 ‘‘(ii) reduced (but not below zero) by

25 the amount by which—
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1 ‘‘(I) the outlays of the Mass

2 Transit Account for the fiscal year

3 with respect to which such tax was

4 imposed, as estimated by the Sec5 retary, exceed

6 ‘‘(II) the available funds in the

7 Mass Transit Account for such fiscal

8 year (as so estimated).’’

9 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

10 (1) Section 9503(e)(2) of the Internal Revenue

11 Code of 1986 (relating to transfers to mass transit

12 account) is amended by striking ‘‘4081.’’ and insert13 ing ‘‘4081 (for the period beginning after December

14 31, 1995, and ending before October 1, 2000, an

15 amount determined at the rate of 1.5 cents for each

16 such gallon, increased by the amount described in

17 subsection (c)(7)(B)(ii)).’’.

18 (2) The table of sections for subchapter A of

19 chapter 98 of such Code (relating to trust fund

20 code) is amended by adding at the end the following

21 new item:

‘‘Sec. 9512. Intercity Passenger Rail Trust Fund.’’

22 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

23 this section shall apply with respect to taxes imposed after

24 December 31, 1995.

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