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[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4867 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4867

To authorize appropriations for high-speed rail transportation, and for 
                            other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 1, 1994

  Ms. Schenk (for herself, Mr. Swift, and Mr. Dingell) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                                Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To authorize appropriations for high-speed rail transportation, and for 
                            other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``High-Speed Rail Development Act of 
1994''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) high-speed rail offers safe and efficient 
        transportation in certain densely traveled corridors linking 
        major metropolitan areas in the United States;
            (2) high-speed rail may have environmental advantages over 
        certain other forms of intercity transportation;
            (3) Amtrak's Metroliner service between Washington, 
        District of Columbia, and New York, New York, the United States 
        premiere high-speed rail service, has shown that Americans will 
        use high-speed rail when that transportation option is 
        available;
            (4) new high-speed rail service should not receive Federal 
        subsidies for operating and maintenance expenses;
            (5) State and local governments should take the prime 
        responsibility for the development and implementation of high-
        speed rail service;
            (6) the private sector should participate in funding the 
        development of high-speed rail systems;
            (7) in some intercity corridors, Federal planning 
        assistance may be required to supplement the funding 
        commitments of State and local governments and the private 
        sector to ensure the adequate planning, including reasonable 
        estimates of the costs and benefits, of high-speed rail 
        systems;
            (8) improvement of existing technologies can facilitate the 
        development of high-speed rail systems in the United States; 
        and
            (9) Federal assistance is required for the improvement, 
        adoption, and integration of developed technologies for 
        commercial application in high-speed rail service in the United 
        States.

SEC. 3. NATIONAL HIGH-SPEED RAIL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.

    (a) Amendments.--(1) Part D of subtitle V of title 49, United 
States Code, is redesignated as part E, chapter 261 of such title is 
redesignated as chapter 281, and sections 26101 and 26102 of such title 
are redesignated as sections 28101 and 28102.
    (2) Subtitle V of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 
inserting after part C the following new part:

                       ``PART D--HIGH-SPEED RAIL

               ``CHAPTER 261--HIGH-SPEED RAIL ASSISTANCE

``Sec.
``26101. Corridor planning.
``26102. High-speed rail technology improvements.
``26103. Safety regulations.
``26104. Authorization of appropriations.
``26105. Definitions.

``SEC. 26101. CORRIDOR PLANNING.

    ``(a) Corridor Planning Assistance.--(1) The Secretary may provide 
under this section financial assistance to a public agency or group of 
public agencies for corridor planning for up to 50 percent of the 
publicly funded costs associated with eligible activities.
    ``(2) No less than 20 percent of the publicly funded costs 
associated with eligible activities shall come from State and local 
sources, not including funds from any Federal program.
    ``(b) Eligible Activities.--(1) A corridor planning activity is 
eligible for financial assistance under subsection (a) if the Secretary 
determines it to be necessary to establish appropriate engineering, 
operational, financial, environmental, or socioeconomic projections 
preliminary to implementation of specific high-speed rail improvements. 
Eligible corridor planning activities include--
            ``(A) environmental assessments;
            ``(B) feasibility studies emphasizing commercial technology 
        improvements or applications;
            ``(C) economic analyses, including ridership, revenue, and 
        operating expense forecasting;
            ``(D) assessing the impact on rail employment of developing 
        high-speed rail corridors;
            ``(E) assessing community economic impacts;
            ``(F) coordination with State and metropolitan area 
        transportation planning and corridor planning with other 
        States;
            ``(G) operational planning;
            ``(H) route selection analyses and purchase of rights-of-
        way for proposed high-speed rail service;
            ``(I) preliminary engineering and design;
            ``(J) identification of specific improvements to a 
        corridor, including electrification, line straightening and 
        other right-of-way improvements, bridge rehabilitation and 
        replacement, use of advanced locomotives and rolling stock, 
        ticketing, coordination with other modes of transportation, 
        parking and other means of passenger access, track, signal, 
        station, and other capital work, and use of intermodal 
        terminals;
            ``(K) preparation of financing plans and prospectuses; and
            ``(L) creation of public/private partnerships.
    ``(2) No financial assistance shall be provided under this section 
for corridor planning with respect to the main line of the Northeast 
Corridor, between Washington, District of Columbia, and Boston, 
Massachusetts.
    ``(c) Criteria for Determining Financial Assistance.--Selection by 
the Secretary of recipients of financial assistance under this section 
shall be based on such criteria as the Secretary considers appropriate, 
including--
            ``(1) the relationship of the corridor to the Secretary's 
        national high-speed ground transportation policy;
            ``(2) the extent to which the proposed planning focuses on 
        systems which will achieve sustained speeds of 125 mph or 
        greater;
            ``(3) the integration of the corridor into metropolitan 
        area and statewide transportation planning;
            ``(4) the potential interconnection of the corridor with 
        other parts of the Nation's transportation system, including 
        the interconnection with other countries;
            ``(5) the anticipated effect of the high-speed rail service 
        on the congestion of other modes of transportation;
            ``(6) whether the work to be funded will aid the efforts of 
        State and local governments to comply with the Clean Air Act;
            ``(7) the past and proposed financial commitments and other 
        support of State and local governments and the private sector 
        to the proposed high-speed rail program, including the 
        acquisition of rolling stock;
            ``(8) the estimated level of ridership;
            ``(9) the estimated capital cost of corridor improvements, 
        including the cost of closing, improving, or separating 
        highway-rail grade crossings;
            ``(10) rail transportation employment impacts;
            ``(11) community economic impacts;
            ``(12) the extent to which the projected revenues of the 
        high-speed rail service, along with any financial commitments 
        of State or local governments and the private sector, are 
        expected to cover capital costs and operating and maintenance 
        expenses;
            ``(13) whether a specific route has been selected, specific 
        improvements identified, and capacity studies completed; and
            ``(14) whether the corridor has been designated as a high-
        speed rail corridor by the Secretary.

``SEC. 26102. HIGH-SPEED RAIL TECHNOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS.

    ``(a) Authority.--The Secretary may undertake activities for the 
improvement, adaptation, and integration of developed technologies for 
commercial application in high-speed rail service in the United States.
    ``(b) Eligible Recipients.--In carrying out activities authorized 
by subsection (a), the Secretary may provide financial assistance to 
any United States private business, educational institution located in 
the United States, State or local government or public authority, or 
agency of the Federal Government.
    ``(c) Consultation With Other Agencies.--In carrying out activities 
authorized by subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult with such 
other governmental agencies as may be necessary concerning the 
availability of appropriate technologies for commercial application in 
high-speed rail service in the United States.

``SEC. 26103. SAFETY REGULATIONS.

    ``The Secretary shall promulgate such safety regulations as may be 
necessary for high-speed rail.

``SEC. 26104. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    ``(a) Fiscal Year 1995.--There are authorized to be appropriated to 
the Secretary $29,000,000 for fiscal year 1995, for carrying out 
sections 26101 and 26102.
    ``(b) Fiscal Year 1996.--(1) There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary $40,000,000 for fiscal year 1996, for 
carrying out section 26101.
    ``(2) There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 
$30,000,000 for fiscal year 1996, for carrying out section 26102.
    ``(c) Fiscal Year 1997.--(1) There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary $45,000,000 for fiscal year 1997, for 
carrying out section 26101.
    ``(2) There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 
$40,000,000 for fiscal year 1997, for carrying out section 26102.
    ``(d) Funds to Remain Available.--Funds made available under this 
section shall remain available until expended.

``SEC. 26105. DEFINITIONS.

    ``For purposes of this chapter--
            ``(1) the term `financial assistance' includes grants, 
        contracts, and cooperative agreements;
            ``(2) the term `high-speed rail' has the meaning given such 
        term under section 511(n) of the Railroad Revitalization and 
        Regulatory Reform Act of 1976;
            ``(3) the term `publicly funded costs' means the costs 
        funded after April 29, 1993, by Federal, State, and local 
        governments;
            ``(4) the term `State' means any of the several States, the 
        District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana 
        Islands, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and any 
        other territory or possession of the United States; and
            ``(5) the term `United States private business' means a 
        business entity organized under the laws of the United States, 
        or of a State, and conducting substantial business operations 
        in the United States.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--(1) The table of chapters of subtitle V 
of title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking the items 
relating to part D and inserting in lieu thereof the following:

                       ``PART D--HIGH-SPEED RAIL

``261. HIGH-SPEED RAIL ASSISTANCE...........................      26101
                        ``PART E--MISCELLANEOUS

``281. LAW ENFORCEMENT......................................   28101''.
    (2) The table of sections of chapter 281 of title 49, United States 
Code, as such chapter is redesignated by subsection (a)(1) of this 
section, is amended--
            (A) by striking ``26101'' and inserting in lieu thereof 
        ``28101''; and
            (B) by striking ``26102'' and inserting in lieu thereof 
        ``28102''.
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