I 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5616 

To establish a National Commission on the Infrastructure of the United 

States. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 14, 2006 

Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL 

To establish a National Commission on the Infrastructure 

of the United States. 

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 ‘‘National Infrastruc5 ture Improvement Act of 2006’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) ACQUISITION.—The term ‘‘acquisition’’ in9 cludes the addition of land, sites, equipment, strucVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:34 Jun 15, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5616.IH H5616

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1 tures, facilities, or rolling stock by purchase, lease2 purchase, trade, or donation. 

3 (2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

4 means the National Commission on the Infrastruc5 ture of the United States established by section 3(a). 

6 (3) CONSTRUCTION.—The term ‘‘construction’’ 

7 means— 

8 (A) the design, planning, and erection of 

9 new infrastructure; 

10 (B) the expansion of existing infrastruc11 ture; 

12 (C) the reconstruction of an infrastructure 

13 project at an existing site; and 

14 (D) the installation of initial or replace15 ment infrastructure equipment. 

16 (4) INFRASTRUCTURE.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘infrastruc18 ture’’ means a nonmilitary structure or facility 

19 and equipment associated with that structure or 

20 facility. 

21 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘infrastruc22 ture’’ includes— 

23 (i) a surface transportation facility 

24 (such as a road, bridge, highway, public 

25 transportation facility, and freight and 


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1 passenger rail), as the Commission, in con2 sultation with the National Surface Trans3 portation Policy and Revenue Study Com4 mission established by section 1909(b)(1) 

5 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Effi6 cient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy 

7 for Users (Public Law 109–59; 119 Stat. 

8 1471), determines to be appropriate; 

9 (ii) a mass transit facility; 

10 (iii) an airport or airway facility; 

11 (iv) a resource recovery facility; 

12 (v) a water supply and distribution 

13 system; 

14 (vi) a wastewater collection, treat15 ment, and related facility; 

16 (vii) waterways, locks, and dams; 

17 (viii) a levee and any related flood18 control facility; 

19 (ix) a dock or port; and 

20 (x) a solid waste disposal facility. 

21 (5) MAINTENANCE.—The term ‘‘maintenance’’ 

22 means any regularly scheduled activity, such as a 

23 routine repair, intended to ensure that infrastruc24 ture continues to operate efficiently. 


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1 (6) REHABILITATION.—The term ‘‘rehabilita2 tion’’ means— 

3 (A) the correction of a deficiency in exist4 ing infrastructure so as to extend the useful life 

5 or improve the effectiveness of the infrastruc6 ture; 

7 (B) the modernization or replacement of 

8 equipment of existing infrastructure; and 

9 (C) the modernization of, or replacement 

10 of parts for, rolling stock relating to infrastruc11 ture. 

12 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a com14 mission to be known as the ‘‘National Commission on the 

15 Infrastructure of the United States’’ to ensure that the 

16 infrastructure of the United States— 

17 (1) meets current and future demand; and 

18 (2) facilitates economic growth. 

19 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

20 (1) COMPOSITION.—The Commission shall be 

21 composed of 7 members, of whom— 

22 (A) 3 members shall be appointed by the 

23 President; 

24 (B) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

25 Speaker of the House of Representatives; 


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1 (C) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

2 minority leader of the House of Representa3 tives; 

4 (D) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

5 majority leader of the Senate; and 

6 (E) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

7 minority leader of the Senate. 

8 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each member of the 

9 Commission shall have experience in 1 or more of 

10 the fields of economics, public administration, civil 

11 engineering, public works, construction, and related 

12 design professions, planning, or public investment fi13 nancing. 

14 (3) DATE OF APPOINTMENTS.—The members 

15 of the Commission shall be appointed under para16 graph (1) not later than 90 days after the date of 

17 enactment of this Act. 

18 (c) TERM; VACANCIES.— 

19 (1) TERM.—A member shall be appointed for 

20 the life of the Commission. 

21 (2) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Commis22 sion— 

23 (A) shall not affect the powers of the Com24 mission; and 


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1 (B) shall be filled, not later than 30 days 

2 after the date on which the vacancy occurs, in 

3 the same manner as the original appointment 

4 was made. 

5 (d) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 30 days after 

6 the date on which all members of the Commission have 

7 been appointed, the Commission shall hold the initial 

8 meeting of the Commission. 

9 (e) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet at the 

10 call of the Chairperson or the majority of the Commission 

11 members. 

12 (f) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the 

13 Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser num14 ber of members may hold hearings. 

15 (g) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON.—The 

16 Commission shall select a Chairperson and Vice Chair17 person from among the members of the Commission. 

18 SEC. 4. DUTIES. 

19 (a) STUDY.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than February 15, 

21 2009, the Commission, in consultation with the advi22 sory group established by paragraph (3)(A), shall 

23 complete a study of all matters relating to the state 

24 of the infrastructure of the United States. 


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1 (2) MATTERS TO BE STUDIED.—In carrying out 

2 paragraph (1), the Commission shall study such 

3 matters as— 

4 (A) the capacity of infrastructure improve5 ments to sustain current and anticipated eco6 nomic development and competitiveness, includ7 ing long-term economic growth, and to support 

8 a sustained and expanding economy; 

9 (B) the age and condition of public infra10 structure (including congestion and changes in 

11 the condition of that infrastructure as com12 pared with preceding years); 

13 (C) the methods used to finance the con14 struction, acquisition, rehabilitation, and main15 tenance of public works improvements (includ16 ing general obligation bonds, tax-credit bonds, 

17 revenue bonds, user fees, excise taxes, direct 

18 governmental assistance, and private invest19 ment); 

20 (D) any trends or innovations in methods 

21 used to finance that construction, acquisition, 

22 rehabilitation, and maintenance; 

23 (E) investment requirements, by type of 

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1 ties and the investment needed (as adjusted for 

2 inflation and expressed in real dollars) to im3 prove those facilities in the future; 

4 (F)(i) the projected share of Federal, 

5 State, local, and other government levels of in6 vestment requirements as identified in subpara7 graph (E); and 

8 (ii) the projected expenditure on infra9 structure facility improvements described in 

10 subparagraph (E) by each level of government; 

11 (G) estimates of the return to the economy 

12 from public works investment; 

13 (H) any trends or innovations in infra14 structure procurement methods; and 

15 (I) any trends or innovations in construc16 tion methods or materials. 

17 (3) CONSULTATION.— 

18 (A) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is estab19 lished an advisory group to provide assistance 

20 and advice on request of the Commission. 

21 (B) MEMBERSHIP.—The advisory group 

22 shall be composed of— 

23 (i) the Secretary of the Army; 

24 (ii) the Secretary of Agriculture; 

25 (iii) the Secretary of Transportation; 


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1 (iv) the Administrator of the Environ2 mental Protection Agency; 

3 (v) the Secretary of Commerce; 

4 (vi) the Secretary of Education; 

5 (vii) the Secretary of Energy; 

6 (viii) the Secretary of the Treasury; 

7 (ix) the Secretary of the Interior; 

8 (x) the Administrator of General Serv9 ices; 

10 (xi) the Director of the Office of Man11 agement and Budget; 

12 (xii) a representative of the National 

13 Governors Association; 

14 (xiii) a representative of the National 

15 Association of Counties; 

16 (xiv) a representative of the United 

17 States Conference of Mayors; and 

18 (xv) a representative of the National 

19 Conference of State Legislatures. 

20 (C) COMPENSATION.—The members of the 

21 advisory group shall serve without compensa22 tion. 

23 (D) TERMINATION.—The advisory group 

24 shall terminate on September 30, 2009. 


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1 (4) RESOURCES; DATA.—In carrying out para2 graph (1), to the maximum extent practicable, the 

3 Commission shall— 

4 (A) use existing studies, data, sampling 

5 techniques, and reports of other commissions; 

6 and 

7 (B) if collecting new data under this sec8 tion, make every effort to ensure that the data 

9 is collected in consultation with the States so as 

10 to ensure that uniform methods, categories, and 

11 analyses are used. 

12 (b) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Commission shall de13 velop recommendations— 

14 (1) on a Federal infrastructure plan that will 

15 detail national infrastructure program priorities, in16 cluding alternative methods of meeting national in17 frastructure investment needs to effectuate balanced 

18 growth and economic development; 

19 (2) on public works improvements and methods 

20 of delivering and providing for public work facilities; 

21 (3) for analysis or criteria and procedures that 

22 may be used by Federal agencies and State and local 

23 governments in— 

24 (A) inventorying existing and needed pub25 lic works improvements; 


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1 (B) assessing the condition of public works 

2 improvements; and 

3 (C) developing uniform criteria and proce4 dures for use in conducting those inventories 

5 and assessments; and 

6 (4) for proposed guidelines for the uniform re7 porting, by Federal agencies, of construction, acqui8 sition, rehabilitation, and maintenance data with re9 spect to infrastructure improvements. 

10 (c) STATEMENT AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not 

11 later than February 15, 2009, the Commission shall sub12 mit to Congress— 

13 (1) a detailed statement of the findings and 

14 conclusions of the Commission; and 

15 (2) the recommendations of the Commission 

16 under subsection (b), including recommendations for 

17 such legislation and administrative actions for 5-, 

18 15-, 30-, and 50-year time periods as the Commis19 sion considers to be appropriate. 

20 SEC. 5. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION. 

21 (a) HEARINGS.—The Commission shall hold such 

22 hearings, meet and act at such times and places, take such 

23 testimony, administer such oaths, and receive such evi24 dence as the Commission considers advisable to carry out 

25 this Act. 


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1 (b) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may secure 

3 directly from a Federal agency such information as 

4 the Commission considers necessary to carry out this 

5 Act. 

6 (2) PROVISION OF INFORMATION.—On request 

7 of the Chairperson of the Commission, the head of 

8 the Federal agency shall provide the information to 

9 the Commission. 

10 (c) GIFTS.—The Commission may accept, use, and 

11 dispose of gifts or donations of services or property. 

12 (d) CONTRACTS.—The Commission may enter into 

13 contracts with other entities, including contracts under 

14 which 1 or more entities, with the guidance of the Com15 mission, may conduct the study required under section 

16 4(a). 

17 (e) POSTAL SERVICES.—The Commission may use 

18 the United States mails in the same manner and under 

19 the same conditions as other agencies of the Federal Gov20 ernment. 

21 SEC. 6. COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS. 

22 (a) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.—A member of the 

23 Commission shall serve without pay, but shall be allowed 

24 a per diem allowance for travel expenses, at rates author25 ized for an employee of an agency under subchapter I of 

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1 chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while away from 

2 the home or regular place of business of the member in 

3 the performance of the duties of the Commission. 

4 (b) STAFF.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Chairperson of the 

6 Commission may, without regard to the civil service 

7 laws, including regulations, appoint and terminate 

8 an executive director and such other additional per9 sonnel as are necessary to enable the Commission to 

10 perform the duties of the Commission. 

11 (2) CONFIRMATION OF EXECUTIVE DIREC12 TOR.—The employment of an executive director shall 

13 be subject to confirmation by a majority of the mem14 bers of the Commission. 

15 (3) COMPENSATION.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

17 subparagraph (B), the Chairperson of the Com18 mission may fix the compensation of the execu19 tive director and other personnel without regard 

20 to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter 

21 III of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, 

22 relating to classification of positions and Gen23 eral Schedule pay rates. 

24 (B) MAXIMUM RATE OF PAY.—In no event 

25 shall any employee of the Commission (other 


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1 than the executive director) receive as com2 pensation an amount in excess of the maximum 

3 rate of pay for Executive Level IV under sec4 tion 5315 of title 5, United States Code. 

5 (c) DETAIL OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOY6 EES.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—An employee of the Federal 

8 Government may be detailed to the Commission 

9 without reimbursement. 

10 (2) CIVIL SERVICE STATUS.—The detail of a 

11 Federal employee shall be without interruption or 

12 loss of civil service status or privilege. 

13 (d) PROCUREMENT OF TEMPORARY AND INTERMIT14 TENT SERVICES.—On request of the Commission, the Sec15 retary of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers, 

16 shall provide, on a reimbursable basis, such office space, 

17 supplies, equipment, and other support services to the 

18 Commission and staff of the Commission as are necessary 

19 for the Commission to carry out the duties of the Commis20 sion under this Act. 

21 SEC. 7. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE REVIEW. 

22 Not later than 90 days after the date on which the 

23 report under section 4(c) is submitted to Congress by the 

24 Commission, the Congressional Budget Office shall review 

25 the report and submit a report on the results of the review 


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1 to the Committee on Environment and Public Works and 

2 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

3 of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and 

4 Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. 

5 SEC. 8. FUNDING. 

6 (a) FISCAL YEAR 2007.—For fiscal year 2007, from 

7 amounts otherwise made available to the Secretary of the 

8 Treasury and the Secretary of Transportation for admin9 istrative and policy measures for that fiscal year, each of 

10 the Secretaries shall transfer to the Commission not more 

11 than $1,000,000, as the Commission may request to carry 

12 out this Act. 

13 (b) FUTURE FISCAL YEARS.—There is authorized to 

14 be appropriated to the Commission to carry out this Act 

15 $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 and 2009. 

16 SEC. 9. TERMINATION OF COMMISSION. 

17 The Commission shall terminate on September 30, 

18 2009. 

Æ 


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