II

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1234

To improve transportation safety, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

SEPTEMBER 29, 1997

Mr. HOLLINGS introduced the following bill; which was read twice and

referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

A BILL

To improve transportation safety, 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 ‘‘Highway and Surface

5 Transportation Safety Act of 1997’’.

6 SEC. 2. AMENDMENT OF TITLE 49, UNITED STATES CODE;

7 TABLE OF SECTIONS.

8 (a) AMENDMENT OF TITLE 49, UNITED STATES

9 CODE.—Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever

10 in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms

11 of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other

12 provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to
2

•S 1234 IS

1 a section or other provision of title 49, United States

2 Code.

3 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections for

4 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title.

Sec. 2. Amendment of title 49, United States Code; table of sections.

Sec. 3. Awards.

TITLE I—HIGHWAY SAFETY

Sec. 101. Highway safety programs.

Sec. 102. National driver register.

Sec. 103. Authorizations of appropriations.

Sec. 104. Global environmental and safety standards for vehicles.

Sec. 105. Amendments to chapter 323 (consumer information).

Sec. 106. Amendment to chapter 329 (automobile fuel economy).

Sec. 107. Amendments to chapter 331 (theft prevention).

Sec. 108. Dealer notification program for prohibited sale of nonqualifying vehicles for use as schoolbuses.

TITLE II—HAZARDOUS MATERIALS TRANSPORTATION

REAUTHORIZATION

Sec. 201. Short title.

Sec. 202. Findings and purposes; definitions.

Sec. 203. Handling criteria repeal.

Sec. 204. Hazmat employee training requirements.

Sec. 205. Registration.

Sec. 206. Highway transportation of hazardous materials.

Sec. 207. Shipping paper retention.

Sec. 208. Public sector training curriculum.

Sec. 209. Planning and training grants.

Sec. 210. Special permits and exclusions.

Sec. 211. Cooperative agreements.

Sec. 212. Enforcement.

Sec. 213. Penalties.

Sec. 214. Preemption.

Sec. 215. Judicial review.

Sec. 216. Hazardous material transportation reauthorization.

Sec. 217. Authorization of appropriations.

TITLE III—SANITARY FOOD TRANSPORTATION

Sec. 301. Short title.

Sec. 302. Findings.

Sec. 303. Responsibilities of the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Sec. 304. Department of Transportation requirements.

Sec. 305. Effective date.

TITLE IV—RAIL AND MASS TRANSPORTATION ANTI-TERRORISM

Sec. 401. Short title.
3

•S 1234 IS

Sec. 402. Purpose.

Sec. 403. Amendments to the ‘‘wrecking trains’’ statute.

Sec. 404. Terrorist attacks against mass transportation.

Sec. 405. Investigative jurisdiction.

TITLE V—RAIL AND MASS TRANSPORTATION SAFETY

Sec. 501. Safety considerations in grants or loans to commuter railroads.

Sec. 502. Railroad accident and incident reporting.

Sec. 503. Vehicle weight limitations—mass transportation buses.

TITLE VI—MOTOR CARRIER SAFETY

Subtitle A—State Grants and Other Commmercial Vehicle Programs

Sec. 601. Statement of purpose.

Sec. 602. Grants to States.

Sec. 603. Federal share.

Sec. 604. Availability of amounts.

Sec. 605. Information systems and strategic safety initiatives.

Sec. 606. Authorization of appropriations.

Sec. 607. Conforming amendments.

Subtitle B—Motor Carrier Safety Act of 1997

Sec. 651. Short title.

Sec. 652. Safety regulations.

Sec. 653. Commercial motor vehicle operators.

Sec. 654. Penalties.

Sec. 655. International registration plan and international fuel tax agreement.

Sec. 656. Study of adequacy of parking facilities.

Sec. 657. National minimum drinking age—technical corrections.

TITLE VII—RESEARCH

Subtitle A—Programs and Activities

Sec. 701. Transportation research and development.

Sec. 702. Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

Sec. 703. Research and technology program.

Sec. 704. National technology deployment initiatives.

Subtitle B—Intelligent Transportation Systems

Sec. 751. Short title and findings.

Sec. 752. Definitions; conforming amendment.

Sec. 753. Scope of program.

Sec. 754. General authorities and requirements.

Sec. 755. National ITS program plan, implementation, and report to Congress.

Sec. 756. Technical, training, planning, research and operational testing project

assistance.

Sec. 757. Applications of technology.

Sec. 758. Funding.

TITLE VIII—BOATING SAFETY

Sec. 801. Short title.

Sec. 802. Amendment of 1950 Act.
4

•S 1234 IS

Sec. 803. Outreach and communications programs.

Sec. 804. Clean Vessel Act funding.

Sec. 805. Boating infrastructure.

1 SEC. 3. AWARDS.

2 (a) Section 326 is amended—

3 (1) by adding at the end thereof the following:

4 ‘‘(e) For the purpose of executing the powers and du5 ties of the Department, and as a means to encourage safe6 ty improvements by making special or periodic awards, the

7 Secretary may provide for the honorary recognition of in8 dividuals and organizations that significantly contribute to

9 programs, missions, or operations, including state and

10 local governments, transportation unions, and commercial

11 and nonprofit organizations, and pay for plaques, medals,

12 trophies, badges, and similar items to acknowledge the

13 contribution, including reasonable expenses of ceremony

14 and presentation, using any appropriations or other funds

15 available to the Department and its agencies.’’; and

16 (2) by inserting ‘‘and awards’’ after

17 ‘‘Gifts’’ in the section caption.

18 (b) The analysis of sections for chapter 3 is amended

19 by striking the item relating to section 326 and inserting

20 the following:

‘‘326. Gifts and awards.’’.
5

•S 1234 IS

1 TITLE I—HIGHWAY SAFETY

2 SEC. 101. HIGHWAY SAFETY PROGRAMS.

3 (a) UNIFORM GUIDELINES.—Section 402(a) of title

4 23, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘section

5 4007’’ and inserting ‘‘section 4004’’.

6 (b) ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS.—Section

7 402(b) of such title is amended—

8 (1) by striking the period at the end of sub9 paragraph (A) and subparagraph (B) of paragraph

10 (1) and inserting a semicolon;

11 (2) by inserting ‘‘, including Indian tribes,’’

12 after ‘‘subdivisions of such State’’ in paragraph

13 (1)(C);

14 (3) by striking the period at the end of para15 graph (1)(C) and inserting a semicolon and ‘‘and’’;

16 and

17 (4) by striking paragraphs (3) and (4) and re18 designating paragraph (5) as paragraph (3).

19 (c) APPORTIONMENT OF FUNDS—Section 402(c) of

20 such title is amended—

21 (1) by inserting ‘‘the apportionment to the Sec22 retary of the Interior shall not be less than three23 fourths of 1 percent of the total apportionment and’’

24 after ‘‘except that’’ in the sixth sentence; and

25 (2) by striking the seventh sentence.
6

•S 1234 IS

1 (d) APPLICATION IN INDIAN COUNTRY—Section

2 402(i) of such title is amended to read as follows:

3 ‘‘(i) APPLICATION IN INDIAN COUNTRY.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of applica5 tion of this section in Indian country, the terms

6 ‘State’ and ‘Governor of a State’ include the Sec7 retary of the Interior and the term ‘political subdivi8 sion of a State’ includes an Indian tribe. Notwith9 standing the provisions of subparagraph (b)(1)(C) of

10 this section, 95 percent of the funds apportioned to

11 the Secretary of the Interior under this section shall

12 be expended by Indian tribes to carry out highway

13 safety programs within their jurisdictions. The pro14 visions of subparagraph (b)(1)(D) of this section

15 shall be applicable to Indian tribes, except to those

16 tribes with respect to which the Secretary deter17 mines that application of such provisions would not

18 be practicable.

19 ‘‘(2) INDIAN COUNTRY DEFINED.—For the pur20 poses of this subsection, the term ‘Indian country’

21 means—

22 ‘‘(A) all land within the limits of any In23 dian reservation under the jurisdiction of the

24 United States, notwithstanding the issuance of
7

•S 1234 IS

1 any patent, and including rights-of-way running

2 through the reservation;

3 ‘‘(B) all dependent Indian communities

4 within the borders of the United States whether

5 within the original or subsequently acquired ter6 ritory thereof and whether within or without

7 the limits of a State; and

8 ‘‘(C) all Indian allotments, the Indian ti9 tles to which have not been extinguished, in10 cluding rights-of-way running through such al11 lotments.’’.

12 (e) RULEMAKING PROCESS.—Section 402(j) of such

13 title is amended to read as follows:

14 ‘‘(j) RULEMAKING PROCESS.—The Secretary may

15 from time to time conduct a rulemaking process to identify

16 highway safety programs that are highly effective in re17 ducing motor vehicle crashes, injuries and deaths. Any

18 such rulemaking shall take into account the major role of

19 the States in implementing such programs. When a rule

20 promulgated in accordance with this section takes effect,

21 States shall consider these highly effective programs when

22 developing their highway safety programs.’’.

23 (f) SAFETY INCENTIVE GRANTS.—Section 402 of

24 such title is amended by striking subsection (k) and insert25 ing the following:
8

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(k)(1) SAFETY INCENTIVE GRANTS: GENERAL AU2 THORITY.—The Secretary shall make a grant to a State

3 that takes specific actions to advance highway safety

4 under subsection (l), (m), (n), or (o) of this section. A

5 State may qualify for more than one grant and shall re6 ceive a separate grant for each subsection for which it

7 qualifies. Such grants may only be used by recipient

8 States to implement and enforce, as appropriate, the pro9 grams for which the grants are awarded.

10 ‘‘(2) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—No grant may be

11 made to a State under subsection (l) or (m) of this section

12 in any fiscal year unless such State enters into such agree13 ments with the Secretary as the Secretary may require

14 to ensure that such State will maintain its aggregate ex15 penditures from all other sources for the specific actions

16 for which a grant is provided at or above the average level

17 of such expenditures in its 2 fiscal years preceding the

18 date of the enactment of this subsection.

19 ‘‘(3) MAXIMUM PERIOD OF ELIGIBILITY; FEDERAL

20 SHARE FOR GRANTS.—Each grant under subsection (l) or

21 (m) of this section shall be available for not more than

22 6 fiscal years beginning in the fiscal year after September

23 30, 1997, in which the State becomes eligible for the

24 grant. The Federal share payable for any grant under sub25 section (l) or (m) shall not exceed—
9

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(A) in the first and second fiscal years in

2 which the State receives the grant, 75 percent of the

3 cost of implementing and enforcing, as appropriate,

4 in such fiscal year a program adopted by the State;

5 ‘‘(B) in the third and fourth fiscal years in

6 which the State receives the grant, 50 percent of the

7 cost of implementing and enforcing, as appropriate,

8 in such fiscal year such program; and

9 ‘‘(C) in the fifth and sixth fiscal years in which

10 the State receives the grant, 25 percent of the cost

11 of implementing and enforcing, as appropriate, in

12 such fiscal year such program.

13 ‘‘(l) ALCOHOL-IMPAIRED DRIVING COUNTER14 MEASURES: BASIC GRANT ELIGIBILITY.—The Secretary

15 shall make grants to those States that adopt and imple16 ment effective programs to reduce traffic safety problems

17 resulting from persons driving under the influence of alco18 hol. A State shall become eligible for one or more of three

19 basic grants under this subsection by adopting or dem20 onstrating the following to the satisfaction of the Sec21 retary:

22 ‘‘(1) BASIC GRANT A.—At least 4 of the follow23 ing:

24 ‘‘(A) ADMINISTRATIVE LICENSE REVOCA25 TION.—An administrative driver’s license sus-
10

•S 1234 IS

1 pension or revocation system for persons who

2 operate motor vehicles while under the influence

3 of alcohol which requires that—

4 ‘‘(i) in the case of a person who, in

5 any 5-year period beginning after the date

6 of enactment of this subsection, is deter7 mined on the basis of a chemical test to

8 have been operating a motor vehicle under

9 the influence of alcohol or is determined to

10 have refused to submit to such a test as

11 proposed by a law enforcement officer, the

12 State agency responsible for administering

13 drivers’ licenses, upon receiving the report

14 of the law enforcement officer—

15 ‘‘(I) shall suspend the driver’s li16 cense of such person for a period of

17 not less than 90 days if such person

18 is a first offender in such 5-year pe19 riod; and

20 ‘‘(II) shall suspend the driver’s li21 cense of such person for a period of

22 not less than 1 year, or revoke such li23 cense, if such person is a repeat of24 fender in such 5-year period; and
11

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) the suspension and revocation re2 ferred to under clause (A)(i) of this sub3 paragraph shall take effect not later than

4 30 days after the day on which the person

5 refused to submit to a chemical test or re6 ceived notice of having been determined to

7 be driving under the influence of alcohol,

8 in accordance with the State’s procedures.

9 ‘‘(B) UNDERAGE DRINKING PROGRAM.—

10 An effective system, as determined by the Sec11 retary, for preventing operators of motor vehi12 cles under age 21 from obtaining alcoholic bev13 erages. Such system shall include the issuance

14 of drivers’ licenses to individuals under age 21

15 that are easily distinguishable in appearance

16 from drivers’ licenses issued to individuals age

17 21 years of age or older.

18 ‘‘(C) STOPPING MOTOR VEHICLES.—Ei19 ther—

20 ‘‘(i) a statewide program for stopping

21 motor vehicles on a nondiscriminatory,

22 lawful basis for the purpose of determining

23 whether the operators of such motor vehi24 cles are driving while under the influence

25 of alcohol, or
12

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) a statewide Special Traffic En2 forcement Program for impaired driving

3 that emphasizes publicity for the program.

4 ‘‘(D) REPEAT OFFENDERS.—Effective

5 sanctions for repeat offenders convicted of driv6 ing under the influence of alcohol. Such sanc7 tions, as determined by the Secretary, may in8 clude electronic monitoring; alcohol interlocks;

9 intensive supervision of probation; vehicle im10 poundment, confiscation, or forfeiture; and

11 dedicated detention facilities.

12 ‘‘(E) GRADUATED LICENSING SYSTEM.—A

13 three-stage graduated licensing system for

14 young drivers that includes nighttime driving

15 restrictions during the first 2 stages, requires

16 all vehicle occupants to be properly restrained,

17 and makes it unlawful for a person under age

18 21 to operate a motor vehicle with a blood alco19 hol concentration of .02 percent or greater.

20 ‘‘(2) BASIC GRANT B.—Both of the following:

21 ‘‘(A) ADMINISTRATIVE LICENSE REVOCA22 TION.—An administrative driver’s license sus23 pension or revocation system for persons who

24 operate motor vehicles while under the influence

25 of alcohol which requires that—
13

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(i) in the case of a person who, in

2 any 5-year period beginning after the date

3 of enactment of this subsection, is deter4 mined on the basis of a chemical test to

5 have been operating a motor vehicle under

6 the influence of alcohol or is determined to

7 have refused to submit to such a test as

8 requested by a law enforcement officer, the

9 State agency responsible for administering

10 drivers’ licenses, upon receiving the report

11 of the law enforcement officer—

12 ‘‘(I) shall suspend the driver’s li13 cense of such person for a period of

14 not less than 90 days if such person

15 is a first offender in such 5-year pe16 riod; and

17 ‘‘(II) shall suspend the driver’s li18 cense of such person for a period of

19 not less than 1 year, or revoke such li20 cense, if such person is a repeat of21 fender in such 5-year period; and

22 ‘‘(ii) the suspension and revocation re23 ferred to under clause (A)(i) of this sub24 paragraph shall take effect not later than

25 30 days after the day on which the person
14

•S 1234 IS

1 refused to submit to a chemical test or re2 ceives notice of having been determined to

3 be driving under the influence of alcohol,

4 in accordance with the State’s procedures;

5 and

6 ‘‘(B) .08 BAC PER SE LAW.—A law that

7 provides that any person with a blood alcohol

8 concentration of 0.08 percent or greater while

9 operating a motor vehicle shall be deemed to be

10 driving while intoxicated.

11 ‘‘(3) BASIC GRANT C.—Both of the following:

12 ‘‘(A) FATAL IMPAIRED DRIVER PERCENT13 AGE REDUCTION.—The percentage of fatally in14 jured drivers with 0.10 percent or greater blood

15 alcohol concentration in the State has decreased

16 in each of the 3 most recent calendar years for

17 which statistics for determining such percent18 ages are available.

19 ‘‘(B) FATAL IMPAIRED DRIVER PERCENT20 AGE COMPARISON.—The percentage of fatally

21 injured drivers with 0.10 percent or greater

22 blood alcohol concentration in the State has

23 been lower than the average percentage for all

24 States in each of such calendar years.
15

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(4) BASIC GRANT AMOUNT.—The amount of

2 each basic grant under this subsection for any fiscal

3 year shall be up to 15 percent of the amount appor4 tioned to the State for fiscal year 1997 under sec5 tion 402 of this title.

6 ‘‘(5) ALCOHOL-IMPAIRED DRIVING COUNTER7 MEASURES: SUPPLEMENTAL GRANTS.—During the

8 period in which a State is eligible for a basic grant

9 under this subsection, the State shall be eligible to

10 receive a supplemental grant in no more than 2 fis11 cal years of up to 5 percent of the amount appor12 tioned to the State in fiscal year 1997 under section

13 402 of this title. The State may receive a separate

14 supplemental grant for meeting each of the following

15 criteria:

16 ‘‘(A) OPEN CONTAINER LAWS.—The State

17 makes unlawful the possession of any open alco18 holic beverage container, or the consumption of

19 any alcoholic beverage, in the passenger area of

20 any motor vehicle located on a public highway

21 or the right-of-way of a public highway, ex22 cept—

23 ‘‘(i) as allowed in the passenger area,

24 by a person (other than the driver), of any

25 motor vehicle designed to transport more
16

•S 1234 IS

1 than 10 passengers (including the driver)

2 while being used to provide charter trans3 portation of passengers; or

4 ‘‘(ii) as otherwise specifically allowed

5 by such State, with the approval of the

6 Secretary, but in no event may the driver

7 of such motor vehicle be allowed to possess

8 or consume an alcoholic beverage in the

9 passenger area.

10 ‘‘(B) MANDATORY BLOOD ALCOHOL CON11 CENTRATION TESTING PROGRAMS.—The State

12 provides for mandatory blood alcohol concentra13 tion testing whenever a law enforcement officer

14 has probable cause under State law to believe

15 that a driver of a motor vehicle involved in a

16 crash resulting in the loss of human life or, as

17 determined by the Secretary, serious bodily in18 jury, has committed an alcohol-related traffic

19 offense.

20 ‘‘(C) VIDEO EQUIPMENT FOR DETECTION

21 OF DRUNK DRIVERS.—The State provides for a

22 program to acquire video equipment to be used

23 in detecting persons who operate motor vehicles

24 while under the influence of alcohol and in
17

•S 1234 IS

1 prosecuting those persons, and to train person2 nel in the use of that equipment.

3 ‘‘(D) BLOOD ALCOHOL CONCENTRATION

4 FOR PERSONS UNDER AGE 21.—The State en5 acts and enforces a law providing that any per6 son under age 21 with a blood alcohol con7 centration of 0.02 percent or greater when driv8 ing a motor vehicle shall be deemed to be driv9 ing while intoxicated or driving under the influ10 ence of alcohol, and further provides for a mini11 mum suspension of the person’s driver’s license

12 for not less than 30 days.

13 ‘‘(E) SELF-SUSTAINING DRUNK DRIVING

14 PREVENTION PROGRAM.—The State provides

15 for a self-sustaining drunk driving prevention

16 program under which a significant portion of

17 the fines or surcharges collected from individ18 uals apprehended and fined for operating a

19 motor vehicle while under the influence of alco20 hol are returned to those communities which

21 have comprehensive programs for the preven22 tion of such operations of motor vehicles.

23 ‘‘(F) REDUCING DRIVING WITH A SUS24 PENDED LICENSE.—The State enacts and en25 forces a law to reduce driving with a suspended
18

•S 1234 IS

1 license. Such law, as determined by the Sec2 retary, may require a ‘zebra’ stripe that is

3 clearly visible on the license plate of any motor

4 vehicle owned and operated by a driver with a

5 suspended license.

6 ‘‘(G) EFFECTIVE DWI TRACKING SYS7 TEM.—The State demonstrates an effective

8 driving while intoxicated (DWI) tracking sys9 tem. Such a system, as determined by the Sec10 retary, may include data covering arrests, case

11 prosecutions, court dispositions and sanctions,

12 and provide for the linkage of such data and

13 traffic records systems to appropriate jurisdic14 tions and offices within the State.

15 ‘‘(H) ASSESSMENT OF PERSONS CON16 VICTED OF ABUSE OF CONTROLLED SUB17 STANCES; ASSIGNMENT OF TREATMENT FOR

18 ALL DWI/DUI OFFENDERS.—The State provides

19 for assessment of individuals convicted of driv20 ing while intoxicated or driving under the influ21 ence of alcohol or controlled substances, and for

22 the assignment of appropriate treatment.

23 ‘‘(I) USE OF PASSIVE ALCOHOL SEN24 SORS.—The State provides for a program to ac25 quire passive alcohol sensors to be used by po-
19

•S 1234 IS

1 lice officers in detecting persons who operate

2 motor vehicles while under the influence of alco3 hol, and to train police officers in the use of

4 that equipment.

5 ‘‘(J) EFFECTIVE PENALTIES FOR PROVI6 SION OR SALE OF ALCOHOL TO PERSONS

7 UNDER 21.—The State enacts and enforces a

8 law that provides for effective penalties or other

9 consequences for the sale or provision of alco10 holic beverages to any individual under 21 years

11 of age. The Secretary shall determine what pen12 alties are effective.

13 ‘‘(6) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this

14 subsection, the following definitions apply:

15 ‘‘(A) ‘Alcoholic beverage’ has the meaning

16 such term has under section 158(c) of this title.

17 ‘‘(B) ‘Controlled substances’ has the mean18 ing such term has under section 102(6) of the

19 Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802(6)).

20 ‘‘(C) ‘Motor vehicle’ means a vehicle driven

21 or drawn by mechanical power and manufac22 tured primarily for use on public streets, roads,

23 and highways, but does not include a vehicle op24 erated only on a rail line.
20

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(D) ‘Open alcoholic beverage container’

2 means any bottle, can, or other receptacle—

3 ‘‘(i) which contains any amount of an

4 alcoholic beverage; and

5 ‘‘(ii)(I) which is open or has a broken

6 seal, or

7 ‘‘(II) the contents of which are par8 tially removed.

9 ‘‘(m) STATE HIGHWAY SAFETY DATA IMPROVE10 MENTS.—The Secretary shall make a grant to a State that

11 takes effective actions to improve the timeliness, accuracy,

12 completeness, uniformity, and accessibility of the State’s

13 data needed to identify priorities within State and local

14 highway and traffic safety programs, to evaluate the effec15 tiveness of such efforts, and to link these State data sys16 tems, including traffic records, together and with other

17 data systems within the State, such as systems that con18 tain medical and economic data:

19 ‘‘(1) FIRST-YEAR GRANT ELIGIBILITY.—A State

20 is eligible for a first-year grant under this subsection

21 in a fiscal year if such State either:

22 ‘‘(A) Demonstrates, to the satisfaction of

23 the Secretary, that it has—

24 ‘‘(i) established a Highway Safety

25 Data and Traffic Records Coordinating
21

•S 1234 IS

1 Committee with a multi-disciplinary mem2 bership including the administrators, col3 lectors, and users of such data (including

4 the public health, injury control, and motor

5 carrier communities) of highway safety and

6 traffic records databases;

7 ‘‘(ii) completed within the preceding 5

8 years a highway safety data and traffic

9 records assessment or audit of its highway

10 safety data and traffic records system; and

11 ‘‘(iii) initiated the development of a

12 multi-year highway safety data and traffic

13 records strategic plan to be approved by

14 the Highway Safety Data and Traffic

15 Records Coordinating Committee that

16 identifies and prioritizes its highway safety

17 data and traffic records needs and goals,

18 and that identifies performance-based

19 measures by which progress toward those

20 goals will be determined; or

21 ‘‘(B) Provides, to the satisfaction of the

22 Secretary—

23 ‘‘(i) certification that it has met the

24 provisions outlined in clauses (A)(i) and
22

•S 1234 IS

1 (A)(ii) of subparagraph (A) of this para2 graph;

3 ‘‘(ii) a multi-year plan that identifies

4 and prioritizes the State’s highway safety

5 data and traffic records needs and goals,

6 that specifies how its incentive funds for

7 the fiscal year will be used to address those

8 needs and the goals of the plan, and that

9 identifies performance-based measures by

10 which progress toward those goals will be

11 determined; and

12 ‘‘(iii) certification that the Highway

13 Safety Data and Traffic Records Coordi14 nating Committee continues to operate and

15 supports the multi-year plan described in

16 clause (B)(ii) of this subparagraph.

17 ‘‘(2) FIRST-YEAR GRANT AMOUNT.—The

18 amount of a first-year grant made for State highway

19 safety data and traffic records improvements for any

20 fiscal year to any State eligible for such a grant

21 under subparagraph (1)(A) of paragraph (A) of this

22 subsection shall equal $1,000,000, subject to the

23 availability of appropriations, and for any State eli24 gible for such a grant under subparagraph (1)(B)

25 of this subsection shall equal a proportional amount
23

•S 1234 IS

1 of the amount apportioned to the State for fiscal

2 year 1997 under section 402 of this title, except that

3 no State shall receive less than $250,000, subject

4 to the availability of appropriations. The Secretary

5 may award a grant of up to $25,000 for one year

6 to any State that does not meet the criteria estab7 lished in paragraph (1). The grant may only be used

8 to conduct activities needed to enable that State to

9 qualify for first-year funding to begin in the next

10 fiscal year.

11 ‘‘(3) STATE HIGHWAY SAFETY DATA AND TRAF12 FIC RECORDS IMPROVEMENTS; SUCCEEDING-YEAR

13 GRANTS.—A State shall be eligible for a grant in

14 any fiscal year succeeding the first fiscal year in

15 which the State receives a State highway safety data

16 and traffic records grant if the State, to the satis17 faction of the Secretary:

18 ‘‘(A) Submits or updates a multi-year plan

19 that identifies and prioritizes the State’s high20 way safety data and traffic records needs and

21 goals, that specifies how its incentive funds for

22 the fiscal year will be used to address those

23 needs and the goals of the plan, and that iden24 tifies performance-based measures by which

25 progress toward those goals will be determined;
24

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(B) Certifies that its Highway Safety

2 Data and Traffic Records Coordinating Com3 mittee continues to support the multi-year plan;

4 and

5 ‘‘(C) Reports annually on its progress in

6 implementing the multi-year plan.

7 ‘‘(4) SUCCEEDING-YEAR GRANT AMOUNTS.—

8 The amount of a succeeding-year grant made for

9 State highway safety data and traffic records im10 provements for any fiscal year to any State that is

11 eligible for such a grant shall equal a proportional

12 amount of the amount apportioned to the State for

13 fiscal year 1997 under section 402 of this title, ex14 cept that no State shall receive less than $225,000,

15 subject to the availability of appropriations.’’.

16 (g) OCCUPANT PROTECTION PROGRAM.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 410 of title 23,

18 United States Code, is amended to read as follows:

19 ‘‘§ 410. Safety belts and occupant protection program

20 ‘‘The Secretary shall make basic grants to those

21 States that adopt and implement effective programs to re22 duce highway deaths and injuries resulting from persons

23 riding unrestrained or improperly restrained in motor ve24 hicles. A State may establish its eligibility for one or both
25

•S 1234 IS

1 of the grants by adopting or demonstrating the following

2 to the satisfaction of the Secretary:

3 ‘‘(1) BASIC GRANT A.—At least 4 of the follow4 ing:

5 ‘‘(A) SAFETY BELT USE LAW FOR ALL

6 FRONT SEAT OCCUPANTS.—The State has in ef7 fect a safety belt use law that makes unlawful

8 throughout the State the operation of a pas9 senger motor vehicle whenever a person in the

10 front seat of the vehicle (other than a child who

11 is secured in a child restraint system) does not

12 have a safety belt properly secured about the

13 person’s body.

14 ‘‘(B) PRIMARY SAFETY BELT USE LAW.—

15 The State provides for primary enforcement of

16 its safety belt use law.

17 ‘‘(C) CHILD PASSENGER PROTECTION

18 LAW.—The State has in effect a law that re19 quires minors who are riding in a passenger

20 motor vehicle to be properly secured in a child

21 safety seat or other appropriate restraint sys22 tem.

23 ‘‘(D) CHILD OCCUPANT PROTECTION EDU24 CATION PROGRAM.—The State demonstrates

25 implementation of a statewide comprehensive
26

•S 1234 IS

1 child occupant protection education program

2 that includes education about proper seating

3 positions for children in air bag equipped motor

4 vehicles and instruction on how to reduce the

5 improper use of child restraints systems. The

6 states are to submit to the Secretary an evalua7 tion or report on the effectiveness of the pro8 grams at least three years after receipt of the

9 grant.

10 ‘‘(E) MINIMUM FINES.—The State re11 quires a minimum fine of at least $25 for viola12 tions of its safety belt use law and a minimum

13 fine of at least $25 for violations of its child

14 passenger protection law.

15 ‘‘(F) SPECIAL TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT

16 PROGRAM.—The State demonstrates implemen17 tation of a statewide Special Traffic Enforce18 ment Program for occupant protection that em19 phasizes publicity for the program.

20 ‘‘(2) BASIC GRANT B.—Both of the following:

21 ‘‘(A) STATE SAFETY BELT USE RATE.—

22 The State demonstrates a statewide safety belt

23 use rate in both front outboard seating posi24 tions in all passenger motor vehicles of 80 per25 cent or higher in each of the first 3 years a
27

•S 1234 IS

1 grant under this paragraph is received, and of

2 85 percent or higher in each of the fourth, fifth,

3 and sixth years a grant under this paragraph is

4 received.

5 ‘‘(B) SURVEY METHOD.—The State follows

6 safety belt use survey methods which conform

7 to guidelines issued by the Secretary ensuring

8 that such measurements are accurate and rep9 resentative.

10 ‘‘(3) BASIC GRANT AMOUNT.—The amount of

11 each basic grant for which a State qualifies under

12 this subsection for any fiscal year shall equal up to

13 20 percent of the amount apportioned to the State

14 for fiscal year 1997 under section 402 of this title.

15 ‘‘(4) OCCUPANT PROTECTION PROGRAM: SUP16 PLEMENTAL GRANTS.—During the period in which a

17 State is eligible for a basic grant under this sub18 section, the State shall be eligible to receive a sup19 plemental grant in a fiscal year of up to 5 percent

20 of the amount apportioned to the State in fiscal year

21 1997 under section 402 of this title. The State may

22 receive a separate supplemental grant for meeting

23 each of the following criteria:

24 ‘‘(A) PENALTY POINTS AGAINST A DRIV25 ER’S LICENSE FOR VIOLATIONS OF CHILD PAS-
28

•S 1234 IS

1 SENGER PROTECTION REQUIREMENTS.—The

2 State has in effect a law that requires the impo3 sition of penalty points against a driver’s li4 cense for violations of child passenger protec5 tion requirements.

6 ‘‘(B) ELIMINATION OF NON-MEDICAL EX7 EMPTIONS TO SAFETY BELT AND CHILD PAS8 SENGER PROTECTION LAWS.—The State has in

9 effect safety belt and child passenger protection

10 laws that contain no nonmedical exemptions.

11 ‘‘(C) SAFETY BELT USE IN REAR SEATS.—

12 The State has in effect a law that requires safe13 ty belt use by all rear-seat passengers in all

14 passenger motor vehicles with a rear seat.

15 ‘‘(5) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this sub16 section—

17 ‘‘(A) ‘Child safety seat’ means any device

18 except safety belts, designed for use in a motor

19 vehicle to restrain, seat, or position children

20 who weigh 50 pounds or less.

21 ‘‘(B) ‘Motor vehicle’ means a vehicle driven

22 or drawn by mechanical power and manufac23 tured primarily for use on public streets, roads,

24 and highways, but does not include a vehicle op25 erated only on a rail line.
29

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(C) ‘Multipurpose passenger vehicle’

2 means a motor vehicle with motive power (ex3 cept a trailer), designed to carry not more than

4 10 individuals, that is constructed either on a

5 truck chassis or with special features for occa6 sional off-road operation.

7 ‘‘(D) ‘Passenger car’ means a motor vehi8 cle with motive power (except a multipurpose

9 passenger vehicle, motorcycle, or trailer) de10 signed to carry not more than 10 individuals.

11 ‘‘(E) ‘Passenger motor vehicle’ means a

12 passenger car or a multipurpose passenger

13 motor vehicle.

14 ‘‘(F) ‘Safety belt’ means—

15 ‘‘(i) with respect to open-body pas16 senger vehicles, including convertibles, an

17 occupant restraint system consisting of a

18 lap belt or a lap belt and a detachable

19 shoulder belt; and

20 ‘‘(ii) with respect to other passenger

21 vehicles, an occupant restraint system con22 sisting of integrated lap and shoulder

23 belts.’’.

24 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter

25 analysis for chapter 4 of that chapter is amended by
30

•S 1234 IS

1 striking the item relating to section 410 and insert2 ing the following:

‘‘410. Safety belts and occupant protection program.’’.

3 (h) DRUGGED DRIVER RESEARCH AND DEMONSTRA4 TION PROGRAM.—Section 403(b) of title 23, United

5 States Code, is amended—

6 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘In addition’’;

7 (2) by striking ‘‘is authorized to’’ and inserting

8 ‘‘shall’’;

9 (3) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as

10 subparagraphs (A) and (B); and

11 (4) by inserting after subparagraph (B), as re12 designated, the following:

13 ‘‘(C) Measures that may deter drugged driv14 ing.’’.

15 SEC. 102. NATIONAL DRIVER REGISTER.

16 (a) TRANSFER OF SELECTED FUNCTIONS TO NON17 FEDERAL MANAGEMENT.—Section 30302 is amended by

18 adding at the end thereof the following:

19 ‘‘(e) TRANSFER OF SELECTED FUNCTIONS TO NON20 FEDERAL MANAGEMENT.—(1) The Secretary may enter

21 into an agreement with an organization that represents

22 the interests of the States to manage, administer, and op23 erate the National Driver Register’s computer timeshare

24 and user assistance functions. If the Secretary decides to

25 enter into such an agreement, the Secretary shall ensure
31

•S 1234 IS

1 that the management of these functions is compatible with

2 this chapter and the regulations issued to implement this

3 chapter.

4 ‘‘(2) Any transfer of the National Driver Register’s

5 computer timeshare and user assistance functions to an

6 organization that represents the interests of the States

7 shall begin only after a determination is made by the Sec8 retary that all States are participating in the National

9 Driver Register’s ‘Problem Driver Pointer System’ (the

10 system used by the Register to effect the exchange of

11 motor vehicle driving records), and that the system is

12 functioning properly.

13 ‘‘(3) The agreement entered into under this sub14 section shall include a provision for a transition period suf15 ficient to allow the States to make the budgetary and leg16 islative changes they may need to pay fees charged by the

17 organization representing their interests for their use of

18 the National Driver Register’s computer timeshare and

19 user assistance functions. During this transition period,

20 the Secretary (through the National Highway Traffic

21 Safety Administration) shall continue to fund these trans22 ferred functions.

23 ‘‘(4) The total of the fees charged by the organization

24 representing the interests of the States in any fiscal year

25 for the use of the National Driver Register’s computer
32

•S 1234 IS

1 timeshare and user assistance functions shall not exceed

2 the total cost to the organization for performing these

3 functions in such fiscal year.

4 ‘‘(5) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to

5 diminish, limit, or otherwise affect the authority of the

6 Secretary to carry out this chapter.’’.

7 (b) ACCESS TO REGISTER INFORMATION.—Section

8 30305(b) is amended—

9 (1) by striking ‘‘request.’’ in paragraph (2) and

10 inserting the following: ‘‘request, unless the informa11 tion is about a revocation or suspension still in effect

12 on the date of the request’’;

13 (2) by inserting after paragraph (6) the follow14 ing:

15 ‘‘(7) The head of a Federal department or

16 agency that issues motor vehicle operator’s licenses

17 may request the chief driver licensing official of a

18 State to obtain information under subsection (a) of

19 this section about an individual applicant for a

20 motor vehicle operator’s license from such depart21 ment or agency. The department or agency may re22 ceive the information, provided it transmits to the

23 Secretary a report regarding any individual who is

24 denied a motor vehicle operator’s license by that de25 partment or agency for cause; whose motor vehicle
33

•S 1234 IS

1 operator’s license is revoked, suspended or canceled

2 by that department or agency for cause; or about

3 whom the department or agency has been notified of

4 a conviction of any of the motor vehicle-related of5 fenses or comparable offenses listed in subsection

6 30304(a)(3) and over whom the department or agen7 cy has licensing authority. The report shall contain

8 the information specified in subsection 30304(b).

9 ‘‘(8) The head of a Federal department or

10 agency authorized to receive information regarding

11 an individual from the Register under this section

12 may request and receive such information from the

13 Secretary.’’;

14 (3) by redesignating paragraphs (7) and (8) as

15 paragraphs (9) and (10); and

16 (4) by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)’’ in paragraph

17 (10), as redesignated, and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)

18 of this section’’.

19 SEC. 103. AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS.

20 (a) HIGHWAY SAFETY PROGRAMS.—The following

21 sums are authorized to be appropriated out of the High22 way Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Account):

23 (1) CONSOLIDATED STATE HIGHWAY SAFETY

24 PROGRAMS.—
34

•S 1234 IS

1 (A) For carrying out the State and Com2 munity Highway Safety Program under section

3 402 of title 23, United States Code, by the Na4 tional Highway Traffic Safety Administration,

5 except for the incentive programs under sub6 sections (l) and (m) of that section,

7 $142,700,000 for fiscal year 1998, and

8 $166,700 for each of fiscal years 1999, 2000,

9 2001, and 2002, and $171,034,000 for fiscal

10 year 2003.

11 (B) To carry out the alcohol-impaired driv12 ing countermeasures incentive grant provisions

13 of subsection (l) of section 402 of title 23, Unit14 ed States Code, by the National Highway Traf15 fic Safety Administration, $35,000,000 for fis16 cal year 1998, $39,000,000 for each of fiscal

17 years 1999, 2000, and 2001, $46,000,000 for

18 fiscal year 2002, and $49,000,000 for fiscal

19 year 2003. Amounts made available to carry

20 out subsection (l) are authorized to remain

21 available until expended, provided that, in each

22 fiscal year the Secretary may reallocate any

23 amounts remaining available under subsections

24 (l) and (m) of section 402 of title 23, United

25 States Code, as necessary to ensure, to the
35

•S 1234 IS

1 maximum extent possible, that States may re2 ceive the maximum incentive funding for which

3 they are eligible under these programs.

4 (C) To carry out the occupant protection

5 program incentive grant provisions of section

6 410 of title 23, United States Code, by the Na7 tional Highway Traffic Safety Administration,

8 $20,000,000 for fiscal year 1998, $22,000,000

9 for each of fiscal years 1999, 2000, and 2001,

10 $24,000,000 for fiscal year 2002, and

11 $23,312,000 for fiscal year 2003. Amounts

12 made available to carry out subsection (m) are

13 authorized to remain available until expended,

14 provided that, in each fiscal year the Secretary

15 may reallocate any amounts remaining available

16 under subsections (l) and (m) to subsections (l),

17 (n), and (o) of section 402 of title 23, United

18 States Code, as necessary to ensure, to the

19 maximum extent possible, that States may re20 ceive the maximum incentive funding for which

21 they are eligible under these programs.

22 (D) To carry out the State highway safety

23 data improvements incentive grant provisions of

24 subsection (n) of title 23, United States Code,

25 by the National Highway Traffic Safety Admin-
36

•S 1234 IS

1 istration, $12,000,000 for each of fiscal years

2 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2001. Amounts made

3 available to carry out subsection (n) are author4 ized to remain available until expended.

5 (E) To carry out the drugged driving re6 search and demonstration programs of section

7 403(b)(1) of title 23, United States Code, by

8 the National Highway Traffic Safety Adminis9 tration, $2,500,000 for each of fiscal years

10 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002, and $1,000,000

11 for fiscal year 2003.

12 (2) NHTSA OPERATIONS AND RESEARCH.—

13 For carrying out the functions of the Secretary, by

14 the National Highway Traffic Safety Administra15 tion, for traffic and highway safety under (A) sec16 tion 403 of title 23, United States Code (Highway

17 Safety Research and Development), (B) Chapter

18 301 of Title 49, United States Code (Motor Vehicle

19 Safety), and (C) Part C of Subtitle VI of Title 49,

20 United States Code (Information, Standards, and

21 Requirements), there are authorized to be appro22 priated $147,500,000, for each of fiscal years 1998,

23 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002, and $151,335,000 for

24 fiscal year 2003.
37

•S 1234 IS

1 (3) NATIONAL DRIVER REGISTER.—For carry2 ing out chapter 303 (National Driver Register) of

3 title 49, United States Code, by the National High4 way Traffic Safety Administration, there are author5 ized to be appropriated under section 30308(a) of

6 such chapter $2,300,000 for each of fiscal years

7 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002, and $2,360,000

8 for fiscal year 2003.

9 SEC. 104. GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND SAFETY STAND10 ARDS FOR VEHICLES.

11 (a) DEVELOPMENT OF A GLOBAL REGISTRY.—The

12 Secretary of Transportation (hereinafter in this section re13 ferred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) and the Administrator of

14 the Environmental Protection Agency (hereinafter in this

15 section referred to as the ‘‘Administrator’’) may partici16 pate in the development of an international compendium

17 of national motor vehicle standards, including both safety

18 and environmental standards.

19 (b) PROMOTION OF INTERNATIONAL COOPERATIVE

20 PROGRAMS.—The Secretary or Administrator may partici21 pate in activities to promote international cooperative pro22 grams for conducting research, development, demonstra23 tion projects, training, and other forms of technology

24 transfer and exchange, including safety conferences, semi25 nars, and expositions, to enhance international motor vehi-
38

•S 1234 IS

1 cle safety, and provide technical assistance to other coun2 tries relating to their adoption of United States Federal

3 standards for vehicles. This effort shall not reduce or di4 minish the Secretary’s or Administrator’s obligation to

5 conduct research on issues of vehicle safety, environmental

6 protection, and testing relevant to the operation of vehicles

7 in the United States.

8 (c) INTERNATIONAL HARMONIZATION OF SAFETY

9 AND ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION OF VEHICLES.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the Ad11 ministrator may participate in international negotia12 tions (including working parties, other international

13 bodies, and panels of experts) and may agree to har14 monized rules for vehicular safety and environmental

15 pollution if the United States position to be taken in

16 such an international negotiation is developed in ac17 cordance with paragraphs (2), (3), and (4).

18 (2) ADOPTION OF HIGHER GLOBAL STAND19 ARDS.—The Secretary or Administrator may adopt

20 the global standard if the Secretary or Adminis21 trator determines that—

22 (A) in light of the Secretary’s or Adminis23 trator’s determination under both subpara24 graphs (B) and (C), the harmonized standard

25 provides an overall higher level of safety per-
39

•S 1234 IS

1 formance or environmental protection than the

2 comparable United States standard;

3 (B) the harmonized standard or any por4 tion of the standard provides a unique or higher

5 level of safety or environmental performance

6 than the comparable United States standard;

7 (C) the comparable United States standard

8 or any portion thereof does not provide a

9 unique or higher level of safety or environ10 mental performance not contained in the har11 monized standard;

12 (D) it is adopted through a rulemaking

13 procedure conducted in accordance with the

14 provisions of chapters 5 and 7 of title 5, United

15 States Code, relating to rulemaking; and

16 (E) the requirements of subsections (d)

17 and (e) are met.

18 (3) ACTUAL BENEFITS TO BE WEIGHED.—In

19 making the determinations under paragraph (2), the

20 Secretary or the Administrator shall take into ac21 count the overall safety and environmental benefits

22 that will accrue to users under real-world driving

23 conditions from adoption of a harmonized standard.

24 (4) RETENTION OF HIGHER DOMESTIC STAND25 ARDS.—Any standard adopted by the Secretary or
40

•S 1234 IS

1 the Administrator under paragraph (2) shall retain

2 those portions of the comparable United States

3 standard determined by the Secretary or the Admin4 istrator, under paragraph (2)(C), to provide unique

5 practices or levels of safety performance or environ6 mental protection not contained in the global stand7 ard.

8 (d) GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.—

9 (1) PUBLIC DISCLOSURE OF ALL MATTER.—

10 Notwithstanding any provision of law, any docu11 mentation, proposal, negotiating document, internal

12 discussion memorandum, meeting notes, correspond13 ence (including electronic mail), and submissions

14 from the private sector in connection with such ne15 gotiations received by the Secretary or the Adminis16 trator shall be made available to the public through

17 a docket published by the Department of Transpor18 tation or the Environmental Protection Agency.

19 (2) NOTICE OF MEETINGS; PUBLIC COM20 MENT.—Not less than 90 days before any bilateral

21 or multilateral harmonization meeting attended by

22 the Secretary or the Administrator (or their dele23 gates) is scheduled to be held, the Secretary or the

24 Administrator, or both, as appropriate—
41

•S 1234 IS

1 (A) shall publish notice of the purpose of

2 the meeting in the Federal Register under the

3 heading ‘‘Harmonization and Equivalence’’; and

4 (B) shall establish a public docket number

5 and hold a hearing in accordance with the pro6 visions of chapter 5 of title 5, United States

7 Code, on the subject matter of the meeting.

8 (e) WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION ACTION FORE9 CLOSED.—Before the United States may enter into any

10 international agreement or agree to any standard-setting

11 procedure, the agreement shall provide that any existing

12 or future State standard or future United States Federal

13 standard that is higher, more stringent, or more rigorous

14 than the standard to be established by that agreement or

15 procedure—

16 (1) may not be challenged before the World

17 Trade Organization or any other international orga18 nization on the basis of a higher level of protection

19 or its means of implementation; or

20 (2) shall contain the following clause, and other

21 necessary safeguards: ‘‘any domestic standard pro22 viding a higher level of protection is not actionable

23 before the World Trade Organization or other inter24 national organization on the basis of its level of pro25 tection or its means of implementation’’.
42

•S 1234 IS

1 (f) USE OF INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS IN DOMES2 TIC PROCEEDINGS.—In any domestic proceeding, any

3 agreement or standard setting procedure (arrived at or

4 being negotiated) shall not be cited or used by the United

5 States as a rationale for opposing efforts to provide for

6 a greater or different level of protection.

7 SEC. 105. AMENDMENTS TO CHAPTER 323 (CONSUMER IN8 FORMATION).

9 Section 32302 is amended by striking subsection (c).

10 SEC. 106. AMENDMENT TO CHAPTER 329 (AUTOMOBILE

11 FUEL ECONOMY).

12 Section 32907(a)(2) is amended to read as follows:

13 ‘‘(2) A manufacturer shall submit a report

14 under paragraph (1) of this subsection during the

15 30 days before the beginning of each model year.’’.

16 SEC. 107. AMENDMENTS TO CHAPTER 331 (THEFT PREVEN17 TION).

18 Section 33104(a)(6) is repealed.

19 SEC. 108. DEALER NOTIFICATION PROGRAM FOR PROHIB20 ITED SALE OF NONQUALIFYING VEHICLES

21 FOR USE AS SCHOOLBUSES.

22 Section 30112 is amended by adding at the end

23 thereof the following:

24 ‘‘(c) NOTIFICATION PROGRAM FOR DEALERS CON25 CERNING SALES OF VEHICLES AS SCHOOLBUSES.—Not
43

•S 1234 IS

1 later than September 1, 1998, the Secretary shall develop

2 and implement a program to notify dealers and distribu3 tors in the United States that subsection (a) prohibits the

4 sale or delivery of any vehicle for use as a schoolbus (as

5 that term is defined in section 30125(a)(1) of this title)

6 that does not meet the standards prescribed under section

7 30125(b) of this title.’’.

8 TITLE II—HAZARDOUS MATE9 RIALS TRANSPORTATION RE10 AUTHORIZATION

11 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

12 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Hazardous Materials

13 Transportation Safety Reauthorization Act of 1997’’.

14 SEC. 202. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES; DEFINITIONS.

15 (a) FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.—Section 5101 is

16 amended to read as follows:

17 ‘‘§ 5101. Findings and purposes

18 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds with respect to

19 hazardous materials transportation that—

20 ‘‘(1) approximately 4 billion tons of regulated

21 hazardous materials are transported each year and

22 that approximately 500,000 movements of hazardous

23 materials occur each day, according to the Depart24 ment of Transportation estimates;
44

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(2) accidents involving the release of hazard2 ous materials are a serious threat to public health

3 and safety;

4 ‘‘(3) many States and localities have enacted

5 laws and regulations that vary from Federal laws

6 and regulations pertaining to the transportation of

7 hazardous materials, thereby creating the potential

8 for unreasonable hazards in other jurisdictions and

9 confounding shippers and carriers that attempt to

10 comply with multiple and conflicting registration,

11 permitting, routings, notification, loading, unloading,

12 incidental storage, and other regulatory require13 ments;

14 ‘‘(4) because of the potential risks to life, prop15 erty and the environment posed by unintentional re16 leases of hazardous materials, consistency in laws

17 and regulations governing the transportation of haz18 ardous materials, including loading, unloading, and

19 incidental storage, is necessary and desirable;

20 ‘‘(5) in order to achieve greater uniformity and

21 to promote the public health, welfare, and safety at

22 all levels, Federal standards for regulating the trans23 portation of hazardous materials in intrastate, inter24 state, and foreign commerce are necessary and desir25 able;
45

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(6) in order to provide reasonable, adequate,

2 and cost-effective protection from the risks posed by

3 the transportation of hazardous materials, a network

4 of adequately trained State and local emergency re5 sponse personnel is required;

6 ‘‘(7) the movement of hazardous materials in

7 commerce is necessary and desirable to maintain

8 economic vitality and meet consumer demands, and

9 shall be conducted in a safe and efficient manner;

10 and

11 ‘‘(8) primary authority for the regulation of

12 such transportation should be consolidated in the

13 Department of Transportation to ensure the safe

14 and efficient movement of hazardous materials in

15 commerce.

16 ‘‘(9) emergency response personnel have a con17 tinuing need for training on responses to releases of

18 hazardous materials in transportation and small

19 businesses have a continuing need for training on

20 compliance with hazardous materials regulations.

21 ‘‘(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this chapter are—

22 ‘‘(1) to ensure the safe and efficient transpor23 tation of hazardous materials in intrastate, inter24 state, and foreign commerce, including the loading,
46

•S 1234 IS

1 unloading, and incidental storage of hazardous ma2 terial;

3 ‘‘(2) to provide the Secretary with preemption

4 authority to achieve uniform regulation of hazardous

5 material transportation, to eliminate inconsistent

6 rules that apply differently from Federal rules, to

7 ensure efficient movement of hazardous materials in

8 commerce, and to promote the national health, wel9 fare, and safety; and

10 ‘‘(3) to ensure adequate training of hazardous

11 materials emergency responders, including small

12 businesses involved in hazardous materials transpor13 tation.’’.

14 (b) DEFINITIONS.—Section 5102 is amended—

15 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the

16 following:

17 ‘‘(1) ‘commerce’ means trade or transportation

18 in the jurisdiction of the United States—

19 ‘‘(A) between a place in a State and a

20 place outside of the State;

21 ‘‘(B) that affects trade or transportation

22 between a place in a State and a place outside

23 of the State; or

24 ‘‘(C) on a United States-registered air25 craft.’’;
47

•S 1234 IS

1 (2) by striking paragraphs (3) and (4) and in2 serting the following:

3 ‘‘(3) ‘hazmat employee’ means an individual

4 who—

5 ‘‘(A) is—

6 ‘‘(i) employed by a hazmat employer,

7 ‘‘(ii) self-employed, or

8 ‘‘(iii) an owner-operator of a motor

9 vehicle; and

10 ‘‘(B) during the course of employment—

11 ‘‘(i) loads, unloads, or handles hazard12 ous material;

13 ‘‘(ii) manufactures, reconditions, or

14 tests containers, drums, or other

15 packagings represented as qualified for use

16 in transporting hazardous material;

17 ‘‘(iii) performs any function pertain18 ing to the offering of hazardous material

19 for transportation;

20 ‘‘(iv) is responsible for the safety of

21 transporting hazardous material; or

22 ‘‘(v) operates a vehicle used to trans23 port hazardous material.

24 ‘‘(4) ‘hazmat employer’ means a person who—

25 ‘‘(A) either—
48

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(i) is self-employed,

2 ‘‘(ii) is an owner-operator of a motor

3 vehicle, or

4 ‘‘(iii) has at least one employee; and

5 ‘‘(B) performs a function, or uses at least

6 one employee, in connection with—

7 ‘‘(i) transporting hazardous material

8 in commerce;

9 ‘‘(ii) causing hazardous material to be

10 transported in commerce, or

11 ‘‘(iii) manufacturing, reconditioning,

12 or testing containers, drums, or other

13 packagings represented as qualified for use

14 in transporting hazardous material.’’;

15 (3) by striking ‘‘title.’’ in paragraph (7) and in16 serting ‘‘title, except that a freight forwarder is in17 cluded only if performing a function related to high18 way transportation.’’;

19 (4) by redesignating paragraphs (9) through

20 (13) as paragraphs (12) through (16);

21 (5) by inserting after paragraph (8) the follow22 ing:

23 ‘‘(9) ‘out-of-service order’ means a mandate

24 that an aircraft, vessel, motor vehicle, train, other
49

•S 1234 IS

1 vehicle, or a part of any of these, not be moved until

2 specified conditions have been met.

3 ‘‘(10) ‘package’ or ‘outside package’ means a

4 packaging plus its contents.

5 ‘‘(11) ‘packaging’ means a receptacle and any

6 other components or materials necessary for the re7 ceptacle to perform its containment function in con8 formance with the minimum packaging requirements

9 established by the Secretary of Transportation.’’;

10 and

11 (6) by striking ‘‘or transporting hazardous ma12 terial to further a commercial enterprise;’’ in para13 graph 12(A), as redesignated by paragraph (4) of

14 this subsection, and inserting a comma and ‘‘trans15 porting hazardous material to further a commercial

16 enterprise, or manufacturing, reconditioning, or test17 ing containers, drums, or other packagings rep18 resented as qualified for use in transporting hazard19 ous material’’.

20 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The chapter analysis

21 of chapter 51 is amended by striking the item relating to

22 section 5101 and inserting the following:

‘‘5101. Findings and purposes.’’.
50

•S 1234 IS

1 SEC. 203. HANDLING CRITERIA REPEAL.

2 Section 5106 is repealed and the chapter analysis of

3 chapter 51 is amended by striking the item relating to

4 that section.

5 SEC. 204. HAZMAT EMPLOYEE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS.

6 Section 5107(f)(2) is amended by striking ‘‘and sec7 tions 5106, 5108(a)-(g)(1) and (h), and’’.

8 SEC. 205. REGISTRATION.

9 Section 5108 is amended—

10 (1) by striking subsection (b)(1)(C) and insert11 ing the following:

12 ‘‘(C) each State in which the person car13 ries out any of the activities.’’;

14 (2) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the

15 following:

16 ‘‘(c) FILING SCHEDULE.—Each person required to

17 file a registration statement under subsection (a) of this

18 section shall file that statement annually in accordance

19 with regulations issued by the Secretary.’’;

20 (3) by striking ‘‘552(f)’’ in subsection (f) and

21 inserting ‘‘552(b)’’; and

22 (4) by striking ‘‘may’’ in subsection (g)(1) and

23 inserting ‘‘shall’’.

24 (5) by amending section (i)(2)(B) by adding

25 ‘‘an Indian tribe’’ after ‘‘State,’’
51

•S 1234 IS

1 SEC. 206. HIGHWAY TRANSPORTATION OF HAZARDOUS MA2 TERIALS.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5109 is amended to read

4 as follows:

5 ‘‘§ 5109. Hazardous materials pilot program

6 ‘‘(a) GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation

7 shall implement a pilot program to evaluate the use of

8 automated carrier assessment programs for carriers of

9 certain hazardous materials.

10 ‘‘(b) HAZARDOUS MATERIALS COVERED.—The Sec11 retary shall determine the hazardous materials to be cov12 ered by the pilot program. The Secretary may limit mate13 rials to—

14 ‘‘(1) class 1.1, 1.2, or 1.3 explosives;

15 ‘‘(2) liquefied natural gas;

16 ‘‘(3) hazardous materials the Secretary des17 ignates as extremely toxic by inhalation;

18 ‘‘(4) a highway route controlled quantity of ra19 dioactive material, as defined by the Secretary; or

20 ‘‘(5) any other hazardous material designated

21 by the Secretary under section 5103(a) of this

22 title.’’.

23 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The chapter analysis

24 for chapter 51 is amended by striking the item relating

25 to section 5109 and inserting the following:

‘‘5109. Hazardous materials pilot program.’’.
52

•S 1234 IS

1 SEC. 207. SHIPPING PAPER RETENTION.

2 Section 5110(e) is amended by striking the first sen3 tence and inserting ‘‘After expiration of the requirement

4 in subsection (c) of this section, the person who provided

5 the shipping paper and the carrier required to maintain

6 it under subsection (a) of this section shall retain the

7 paper or an electronic image thereof, for a period of 1

8 year after the shipping paper was provided to the carrier,

9 to be accessible through their respective principal places

10 of business.’’.

11 SEC. 208. PUBLIC SECTOR TRAINING CURRICULUM.

12 Section 5115 is amended—

13 (1) by striking ‘‘DEVELOPMENT AND UPDAT14 ING.—Not later than November 16, 1992, in’’ in

15 subsection (a) and inserting ‘‘UPDATING.—In’’;

16 (2) by striking ‘‘develop and’’ in the first sen17 tence of subsection (a);

18 (3) by striking the second sentence of sub19 section (a);

20 (4) by striking ‘‘developed’’ in the first sentence

21 of subsection (b);

22 (5) by inserting ‘‘or involving an alternative fuel

23 vehicle’’ after ‘‘material’’ in subparagraphs (A) and

24 (B) of subsection (b)(1); and

25 (6) by striking subsection (d) and inserting the

26 following:
53

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(d) DISTRIBUTION AND PUBLICATION.—With the

2 national response team, the Secretary of Transportation

3 may publish a list of programs that use a course developed

4 under this section for training public sector employees to

5 respond to an accident or incident involving the transpor6 tation of hazardous material.’’.

7 SEC. 209. PLANNING AND TRAINING GRANTS.

8 Section 5116 is amended—

9 (1) by striking ‘‘of’’ in the second sentence of

10 subsection (e) and inserting ‘‘received by’’;

11 (2) by striking subsection (f) and inserting the

12 following:

13 ‘‘(f) MONITORING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—

14 The Secretary of Transportation shall monitor public sec15 tor emergency response planning and training for an acci16 dent or incident involving hazardous material. Considering

17 the results of the monitoring, the Secretary shall provide

18 technical assistance to a State, political subdivision of a

19 State, or Indian tribe for carrying out emergency response

20 training and planning for an accident or incident involving

21 hazardous material and shall coordinate the assistance

22 using the existing coordinating mechanisms of the Na23 tional Response Team for Oil and Hazardous Substances

24 and, for radioactive material, the Federal Radiological

25 Preparedness Coordinating Committee.’’; and
54

•S 1234 IS

1 (3) by adding at the end thereof the following:

2 ‘‘(l) SMALL BUSINESSES.—The Secretary may

3 authorize a State or Indian tribe receiving a grant

4 under this section to use up to 25 percent of the

5 amount of the grant to assist small businesses in

6 complying with regulations issued under this chap7 ter.’’.

8 SEC. 210. SPECIAL PERMITS AND EXCLUSIONS.

9 (a) Section 5117 is amended—

10 (1) by striking the section caption and inserting

11 the following:

12 ‘‘§ 5117. Special permits and exclusions’’;

13 (2) by striking ‘‘exemption’’ each place it ap14 pears and inserting ‘‘special permit’’;

15 (3) by inserting ‘‘authorizing variances’’ after

16 ‘‘special permit’’ the first place it appears; and

17 (4) by striking ‘‘2’’ and inserting ‘‘4’’ in sub18 section (a)(2).

19 (b) The chapter analysis for chapter 51 is amended

20 by striking the item related to section 5117 and inserting

21 the following:

‘‘5117. Special permits and exclusions.’’.

22 SEC. 211. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.

23 Section 5121, as amended by section 211(a), is fur24 ther amended by adding at the end thereof the following:
55

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(c) AUTHORITY FOR COOPERATIVE AGREE2 MENTS.—To carry out this chapter, the Secretary may

3 enter into grants, cooperative agreements, and other

4 transactions with a person, agency or instrumentality of

5 the United States, a unit of State or local government,

6 an Indian tribe, a foreign government (in coordination

7 with the State Department), an educational institution, or

8 other entity to further the objectives of this chapter. The

9 objectives of this chapter include the conduct of research,

10 development, demonstration, risk assessment, emergency

11 response planning and training activities.’’.

12 SEC. 212. ENFORCEMENT.

13 Section 5122, as amended by section 211(b), is fur14 ther amended—

15 (1) by inserting ‘‘inspect,’’ after ‘‘may’’ in the

16 first sentence of subsection (a);

17 (2) by striking the last sentence of subsection

18 (a) and inserting: ‘‘Except as provided in subsection

19 (e) of this section, the Secretary shall provide notice

20 and an opportunity for a hearing prior to issuing

21 an order requiring compliance with this chapter or

22 a regulation, order, special permit, or approval is23 sued under this chapter.’’;
56

•S 1234 IS

1 (2) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as

2 subsections (f) and (g), and inserting after sub3 section (c) the following:

4 ‘‘(d) OTHER AUTHORITY.—During inspections and

5 investigations, officers, employees, or agents of the Sec6 retary may—

7 ‘‘(1) open and examine the contents of a pack8 age offered for, or in, transportation when—

9 ‘‘(A) the package is marked, labeled, cer10 tified, placarded, or otherwise represented as

11 containing a hazardous material, or

12 ‘‘(B) there is an objectively reasonable and

13 articulable belief that the package may contain

14 a hazardous material;

15 ‘‘(2) take a sample, sufficient for analysis, of

16 material marked or represented as a hazardous ma17 terial or for which there is an objectively reasonable

18 and articulable belief that the material may be a

19 hazardous material, and analyze that material;

20 ‘‘(3) when there is an objectively reasonable and

21 articulable belief that an imminent hazard may exist,

22 prevent the further transportation of the material

23 until the hazardous qualities of that material have

24 been determined; and
57

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(4) when safety might otherwise be com2 promised, authorize properly qualified personnel to

3 conduct the examination, sampling, or analysis of a

4 material.

5 ‘‘(e) EMERGENCY ORDERS.—

6 ‘‘(1) If, through testing, inspection, investiga7 tion, or research carried out under this chapter, the

8 Secretary decides that an unsafe condition or prac9 tice, or a combination of them, causes an emergency

10 situation involving a hazard of death, personal in11 jury, or significant harm to the environment, the

12 Secretary may immediately issue or impose restric13 tions, prohibitions, recalls, or out-of-service orders,

14 without notice or the opportunity for a hearing, that

15 may be necessary to abate the situation.

16 ‘‘(2) The Secretary’s action under this sub17 section must be in a written order describing the

18 condition or practice, or combination of them, that

19 causes the emergency situation; stating the restric20 tions, prohibitions, recalls, or out-of-service orders

21 being issued or imposed; and prescribing standards

22 and procedures for obtaining relief from the order.

23 ‘‘(3) After taking action under this subsection,

24 the Secretary shall provide an opportunity for review

25 of that action under section 554 of title 5.
58

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(4) If a petition for review is filed and the re2 view is not completed by the end of the 30-day pe3 riod beginning on the date the petition was filed, the

4 action will cease to be effective at the end of that

5 period unless the Secretary determines in writing

6 that the emergency situation still exists.’’.

7 SEC. 213. PENALTIES.

8 (a) Section 5123(a)(1) is amended by striking the

9 first sentence and inserting the following: ‘‘A person that

10 knowingly violates this chapter or a regulation, order, spe11 cial permit, or approval issued under this chapter is liable

12 to the United States Government for a civil penalty of at

13 least $250 but not more than $27,500 for each violation.’’.

14 (b) Section 5123(c)(2) is amended to read as follows:

15 ‘‘(2) with respect to the violator, the degree of

16 culpability, any good-faith efforts to comply with the

17 applicable requirements, any history of prior viola18 tions, any economic benefit resulting from the viola19 tion, the ability to pay, and any effect on the ability

20 to continue to do business; and’’.

21 (c) Section 5124 is amended to read as follows:

22 ‘‘§ 5124. Criminal penalty

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A person knowingly violating

24 section 5104(b) of this title or willfully violating this chap25 ter or a regulation, order, special permit, or approval is-
59

•S 1234 IS

1 sued under this chapter, shall be fined under title 18, im2 prisoned for not more than 5 years, or both.

3 ‘‘(b) AGGRAVATED VIOLATIONS.—A person know4 ingly violating section 5104(b) of this title or willfully vio5 lating this chapter or a regulation, order, special permit,

6 or approval issued under this chapter, and thereby causing

7 the release of a hazardous material, shall be fined under

8 title 18, imprisoned for not more than 20 years, or both.’’.

9 SEC. 214. PREEMPTION.

10 (a) REQUIREMENTS CONTRARY TO PURPOSES OF

11 CHAPTER.—Section 5125(a)(2) is amended by inserting

12 a comma and ‘‘the purposes of this chapter,’’ after ‘‘this

13 chapter’’ the first place it appears.

14 (b) DEADWOOD.—Section 5125(b)(2) is amended by

15 striking ‘‘prescribes after November 16, 1990.’’ and in16 serting ‘‘prescribes.’’.

17 (c) Add § 5125(h) as follows: ‘‘RELATIONSHIP TO

18 OTHER LAW.—No preemption authority established by

19 subsection (a), (b), (c) or (g) of this section, or section

20 5119(a) of this chapter, shall be construed to limit or be

21 limited by any other preemption authority of this section

22 or chapter.
60

•S 1234 IS

1 SEC. 215. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

2 (a) Chapter 51 is amended by redesignating section

3 5127 as section 5128, and by inserting after section 5126

4 the following new section:

5 ‘‘§ 5127. Judicial review

6 ‘‘(a) FILING AND VENUE.—Except as provided in

7 section 20114(c) of this title, a person disclosing a sub8 stantial interest in a final order issued, under the author9 ity of section 5122 or 5123 of this title, by the Secretary

10 of Transportation, the Administrators of the Research and

11 Special Programs Administration, the Federal Aviation

12 Administration, or the Federal Highway Administration,

13 or the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard

14 (‘modal Administrator’), with respect to the duties and

15 powers designated to be carried out by the Secretary

16 under this chapter, may apply for review in the United

17 States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia or

18 in the court of appeals for the United States for the circuit

19 in which the person resides or has its principal place of

20 business. The petition must be filed not more than 60 days

21 after the order is issued. The court may allow the petition

22 to be filed after the 60th day only if there are reasonable

23 grounds for not filing by the 60th day.

24 ‘‘(b) JUDICIAL PROCEDURES.—When a petition is

25 filed under subsection (a) of this section, the clerk of the

26 court immediately shall send a copy of the petition to the
61

•S 1234 IS

1 Secretary or the modal Administrator, as appropriate. The

2 Secretary or the modal Administrator shall file with the

3 court a record of any proceeding in which the order was

4 issued, as provided in section 2112 of title 28.

5 ‘‘(c) AUTHORITY OF COURT.—When the petition is

6 sent to the Secretary or the modal Administrator, the

7 court has exclusive jurisdiction to affirm, amend, modify,

8 or set aside any part of the order and may order the Sec9 retary or the modal Administrator to conduct further pro10 ceedings. After reasonable notice to the Secretary or the

11 modal Administrator, the court may grant interim relief

12 by staying the order or taking other appropriate action

13 when good cause for its action exists. Findings of fact by

14 the Secretary or the modal Administrator, if supported by

15 substantial evidence, are conclusive.

16 ‘‘(d) REQUIREMENT FOR PRIOR OBJECTION.—In re17 viewing a final order under this section, the court may

18 consider an objection to a final order of the Secretary or

19 the modal Administrator only if the objection was made

20 in the course of a proceeding or review conducted by the

21 Secretary, the modal Administrator, or an administrative

22 law judge, or if there was a reasonable ground for not

23 making the objection in the proceeding.

24 ‘‘(e) SUPREME COURT REVIEW.—A decision by a

25 court under this section may be reviewed only by the Su-
62

•S 1234 IS

1 preme Court under section 1254 of title 28, United States

2 Code.’’.

3 (b) The chapter analysis for chapter 51 is amended

4 by striking the item related to section 5127 and inserting

5 the following:

‘‘5127. Judicial review.

‘‘5128. Authorization of appropriations.’’.

6 SEC. 216. HAZARDOUS MATERIAL TRANSPORTATION REAU7 THORIZATION.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 51, as amended by sec9 tion 216 of this Act, is amended by redesignating section

10 5128 as section 5129 and by inserting after section 5127

11 the following:

12 ‘‘§ 5128. High risk hazardous material; motor carrier

13 safety study

14 ‘‘(a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Transportation shall

15 conduct a study—

16 ‘‘(1) to determine the safety benefits and ad17 ministrative efficiency of implementing a Federal

18 permit program for high risk hazardous material

19 carriers;

20 ‘‘(2) to identify and evaluate alternative regu21 latory methods and procedures that may improve the

22 safety of high risk hazardous material carriers and

23 shippers;
63

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(3) to examine the safety benefits of increased

2 monitoring of high risk hazardous material carriers,

3 and the costs, benefits, and procedures of existing

4 State permit programs;

5 ‘‘(4) to make such recommendations as may be

6 appropriate for the improvement of uniformity

7 among existing State permit programs; and

8 ‘‘(5) to assess the potential of advanced tech9 nologies for improving the assessment of high risk

10 hazardous material carriers’ compliance with motor

11 carrier safety regulations.

12 ‘‘(b) TIMEFRAME.—The Secretary shall begin the

13 study required by subsection (a) within 6 months after

14 the date of enactment of the Surface Transportation Safe15 ty Act of 1997 and complete it within 30 months.

16 ‘‘(c) REPORT.—The Secretary shall report the find17 ings of the study required by subsection (a), together with

18 such recommendations as may be appropriate, within 36

19 months after the date of enactment of that Act.’’.

20 (b) SECTION 5109 REGULATIONS TO REFLECT

21 STUDY FINDINGS.—Section 5109(h) is amended by strik22 ing ‘‘not later than November 16, 1991.’’ and inserting

23 ‘‘based upon the findings of the study required by section

24 5128(a).’’.
64

•S 1234 IS

1 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analy2 sis for chapter 51, as amended by section 216, is amended

3 by striking the item relating to section 5128 and inserting

4 the following:

‘‘5128. High risk hazardous material; motor carrier safety study.

‘‘5129. Authorization of appropriations.’’.

5 SEC. 217. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

6 Section 5129, as redesignated, is amended—

7 (1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the

8 following:

9 ‘‘(a) GENERAL.—Not more than $15,492,000 may be

10 appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation for fiscal

11 year 1998, and such sums as may be necessary for fiscal

12 years 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003, to carry out

13 this chapter (except sections 5107(e), 5108(g)(2), 5113,

14 5115, 5116, and 5119).’’;

15 (2) by striking subsections (c) and (d) and in16 serting the following:

17 ‘‘(c) TRAINING CURRICULUM.—Not more than

18 $200,000 is available to the Secretary of Transportation

19 from the account established under section 5116(i) of this

20 title for each of the fiscal years ending September 30,

21 1999–2003, to carry out section 5115 of this title.

22 ‘‘(d) PLANNING AND TRAINING.—

23 (1) Not more than $2,444,000 is available to

24 the Secretary of Transportation from the account es-
65

•S 1234 IS

1 tablished under section 5116(i) of this title for the

2 fiscal year ending September 30, 1998, and such

3 sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 1999–

4 2003, to carry out section 5116(a) of this title.

5 ‘‘(2) Not more than $3,666,000 is available to

6 the Secretary of Transportation from the account es7 tablished under section 5116(i) of this title for the

8 fiscal year ending September 30, 1998, and such

9 sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 1999–

10 2003, to carry out section 5116(b) of this title.

11 ‘‘(3) by Not more than $600,000 is available to

12 the Secretary of Transportation from the account es13 tablished under section 5116(i) of this title for the

14 fiscal year ending September 30, 1998, and such

15 sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 1999–

16 2003, to carry out section 5116(f) of this title.’’; and

17 (3) striking subsection (e) and inserting the fol18 lowing:

19 ‘‘(e) UNIFORM FORMS AND PROCEDURES.—Not

20 more than $250,000 may be appropriated to the Secretary

21 of Transportation for each of fiscal years 1998, 1999, and

22 2000 for making grants under section 5119(c).’’.
66

•S 1234 IS

1 TITLE III—SANITARY FOOD

2 TRANSPORTATION

3 SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE.

4 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Sanitary Food Trans5 portation Act of 1997’’.

6 SEC. 302. FINDINGS.

7 Congress finds that—

8 (1) the Department of Transportation, the De9 partment of Agriculture, and the Food and Drug

10 Administration in the Department of Health and

11 Human Services have consulted about how best to

12 ensure that food is not adulterated as a result of the

13 conditions under which it is transported. As a result

14 of these consultations, the agencies have confirmed

15 that steps to ensure the safety of food are more effi16 cient if taken by the agencies directly charged with

17 the responsibility for food safety;

18 (2) the Secretary of Agriculture has ample au19 thority under the Federal Meat Inspection Act (21

20 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), the Poultry Products Inspection

21 Act (21 U.S.C. 451 et seq.), and the Egg Products

22 Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 1031 et seq.), to inspect

23 and regulate continuously the transportation of

24 meat, poultry, and eggs in commerce for use in

25 human food, has exercised the statutory authority in
67

•S 1234 IS

1 a diligent manner so as to prevent the transpor2 tation of unwholesome or adulterated meat, poultry,

3 and egg products in commerce, and does not need

4 additional enforcement authority to regulate the

5 transportation of meat, poultry, and egg products in

6 commerce;

7 (3) certain statutory changes are necessary to

8 provide the Secretary of Health and Human Services

9 with the authority necessary to ensure that food,

10 other than that regulated by the Secretary of Agri11 culture, will not be rendered adulterated in transpor12 tation;

13 (4) the appropriate role for the Secretary of

14 Transportation is to provide assistance concerning

15 the transportation aspects of food safety; and

16 (5) therefore, amendment of chapter 57 of title

17 49, United States Code, and the transfer of certain

18 authorities to the Secretary of Health and Human

19 Services, is appropriate.

20 SEC. 303. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE SECRETARY OF

21 HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES.

22 (a) UNSANITARY TRANSPORT DEEMED ADULTERA23 TION.—Section 402 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cos24 metic Act (21 U.S.C. 342) is amended by adding at the

25 end the following:
68

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(h) If it is transported under conditions that are not

2 in compliance with the sanitary transportation practices

3 prescribed by the Secretary under section 414.’’.

4 (b) SANITARY TRANSPORTATION REQUIREMENTS.—

5 Chapter IV of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act

6 (21 U.S.C. 341 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end

7 the following:

8 ‘‘SEC. 414. SANITARY TRANSPORTATION OF FOOD.

9 ‘‘(a) SANITARY TRANSPORTATION PRACTICES.—The

10 Secretary shall establish by regulation sanitary transpor11 tation practices which shippers, carriers, receivers, and

12 other persons engaged in the transportation of food shall

13 be required to follow to ensure that the food is not trans14 ported under conditions that may render it adulterated,

15 including such practices as the Secretary may find appro16 priate relating to—

17 ‘‘(1) sanitation;

18 ‘‘(2) packaging, isolation, and other protective

19 measures;

20 ‘‘(3) limitations on the use of vehicles;

21 ‘‘(4) information to be disclosed—

22 ‘‘(A) to a carrier by a person arranging for

23 the transport of food, and

24 ‘‘(B) to a manufacturer or other persons

25 arranging for the transport of food by a carrier
69

•S 1234 IS

1 or other person furnishing a tank or bulk vehi2 cle for the transport of food; and

3 ‘‘(5) recordkeeping.

4 ‘‘(b) LIST OF UNACCEPTABLE NONFOOD PROD5 UCTS.—The Secretary, by publication in the Federal Reg6 ister, may establish and periodically amend—

7 ‘‘(1) a list of nonfood products that the Sec8 retary determines may, if shipped in a tank or bulk

9 vehicle, render adulterated food transported subse10 quently in such vehicle; and

11 ‘‘(2) a list of nonfood products that the Sec12 retary determines may, if shipped in a motor or rail

13 vehicle (other than a tank or bulk vehicle), render

14 adulterated food transported simultaneously or sub15 sequently in such vehicle.

16 ‘‘(c) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may waive

18 all or part of this section, or any requirement under

19 this section, with respect to any class of persons, of

20 vehicles, of food, or of nonfood products, if the Sec21 retary determines that such waiver—

22 ‘‘(A) will not result in the transportation

23 of food under conditions that would be unsafe

24 for human or animal health; and
70

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(B) will not be contrary to the public in2 terest or this Act.

3 ‘‘(2) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary shall pub4 lish in the Federal Register any waiver and the rea5 sons for the waiver.

6 ‘‘(d) PREEMPTION.—

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No State or political sub8 division of a State may directly or indirectly estab9 lish or continue in effect, as to any food in interstate

10 commerce, any authority or requirement concerning

11 that transportation of food that is not identical to

12 the requirement of this section.

13 ‘‘(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The provisions of this

14 subsection apply only with respect to transportation

15 occurring on or after the effective date of regulations

16 prescribed under subsection (a).

17 ‘‘(e) ASSISTANCE OF OTHER AGENCIES.—The Sec18 retary of Transportation, the Secretary of Agriculture, the

19 Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency,

20 and the heads of other Federal agencies, as appropriate,

21 shall provide assistance upon request, to the extent re22 sources are available, to the Secretary of Health and

23 Human Services for the purposes of carrying out this sec24 tion.

25 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section—
71

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(1) The term ‘transportation’ means any

2 movement of property in commerce by motor vehicle

3 or rail vehicle.

4 ‘‘(2) The term ‘tank or bulk vehicle’ includes

5 any vehicle in which food is shipped in bulk and in

6 which the food comes directly into contact with the

7 vehicle, including tank trucks, hopper trucks, rail

8 tank cars, hopper cars, cargo tanks, portable tanks,

9 freight containers, or hopper bins.’’.

10 (c) INSPECTION OF TRANSPORTATION RECORDS.—

11 (1) AMENDMENT OF CHAPTER VII.—Chapter

12 VII of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act

13 (21 U.S.C. 371 et seq.) is amended by inserting

14 after section 703 the following new section:

15 ‘‘SEC. 703A. FOOD TRANSPORTATION RECORDS.

16 ‘‘Shippers, carriers by motor vehicle or rail vehicle,

17 and other persons subject to section 414 shall, upon re18 quest of an officer or employee duly designated by the Sec19 retary, permit such officer or employee, at reasonable

20 times, to have access to and to copy all records that the

21 Secretary requires them to make or retain under section

22 414(a)(5) of this Act.’’.

23 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The second

24 proviso of section 703 of the Act (21 U.S.C. 373)
72

•S 1234 IS

1 is amended by inserting ‘‘, unless otherwise explicitly

2 provided,’’ after ‘‘That’’.

3 (d) PROHIBITED ACTS.—

4 (1) AMENDMENT OF SECTION 301(c).—Section

5 301(c) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act

6 (21 U.S.C. 331(e)) is amended—

7 (A) by striking ‘‘or 703’’ and inserting ‘‘,

8 703, or 703A’’; and

9 (B) by inserting ‘‘414,’’ before ‘‘505(i)’’.

10 (2) UNSAFE FOOD TRANSPORTATION.—Section

11 301 of the Act (21 U.S.C. 331) is further amend12 ed—

13 (A) by redesignating subsection (u) as sub14 section (v); and

15 (B) by adding at the end the following new

16 subsection:

17 ‘‘(w) The failure, by a shipper, carrier, receiver, or

18 any other person engaged in the transportation of food,

19 to comply with the sanitary transportation practices pre20 scribed by the Secretary under section 414.’’.

21 SEC. 304. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION REQUIRE22 MENTS.

23 Chapter 57 relating to sanitary food transportation,

24 is amended to read as follows:
73

•S 1234 IS

‘‘CHAPTER 57—SANITARY FOOD TRANSPORTATION

‘‘Sec.

‘‘5701. Findings.

‘‘5702. Food transportation safety inspections.

1 ‘‘§ 5701. Findings

2 ‘‘Congress finds that—

3 ‘‘(1) the United States public is entitled to re4 ceive food and other consumer products that are not

5 made unsafe because of certain transportation prac6 tices;

7 ‘‘(2) the United States public is threatened by

8 the transportation of products potentially harmful to

9 consumers in motor vehicles and rail vehicles that

10 are used to transport food and other consumer prod11 ucts; and

12 ‘‘(3) the risks to consumers by those transpor13 tation practices are unnecessary and those practices

14 must be ended.

15 ‘‘§ 5702. Food transportation safety inspections

16 ‘‘(a) INSPECTION PROCEDURES.—

17 ‘‘(1) The Secretary of Transportation, in con18 sultation with the Secretaries of Health and Human

19 Services and Agriculture, shall establish procedures

20 to be used in performing transportation safety in21 spections for the purpose of identifying suspected in22 cidents of contamination or adulteration of food that

23 may violate regulations issued under section 414 of
74

•S 1234 IS

1 the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and shall

2 train personnel of the Department of Transportation

3 in the appropriate use of such procedures.

4 ‘‘(2) The procedures established under para5 graph (1) of this subsection shall apply, at a mini6 mum, to the Department of Transportation person7 nel who perform commercial motor vehicle and rail8 road safety inspections.

9 ‘‘(b) NOTIFICATION OF SECRETARIES OF HEALTH

10 AND HUMAN SERVICES AND AGRICULTURE.—The Sec11 retary of Transportation shall promptly notify the Sec12 retary of Health and Human Services or the Secretary of

13 Agriculture, as applicable, of any instances of potential

14 food contamination or adulteration of a food identified

15 during transportation safety inspections.

16 ‘‘(c) USE OF STATE EMPLOYEES.—The Secretary of

17 Transportation may carry out notification under sub18 section (b) by transmittal of reports of inspections con19 ducted in accordance with such procedures by State em20 ployees using funds authorized to be appropriated under

21 sections 31102 through 31104 of this title.’’.

22 SEC. 305. EFFECTIVE DATE.

23 Unless otherwise specified, the provisions of this title

24 take effect on October 1, 1997.
75

•S 1234 IS

1 TITLE IV—RAIL AND MASS

2 TRANSPORTATION ANTI-TER3 RORISM

4 SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE.

5 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Transportation Anti6 Terrorism Act of 1997’’.

7 SEC. 402. PURPOSE.

8 The purpose of this title is to protect the passengers

9 and employees of railroad carriers and mass transpor10 tation systems and the movement of freight by railroad

11 from terrorist attacks.

12 SEC. 403. AMENDMENTS TO THE ‘‘WRECKING TRAINS’’ STAT13 UTE.

14 (a) Section 1992 of title 18, United States Code, is

15 amended to read as follows:

16 ‘‘§ 1992. Terrorist attacks against railroads

17 ‘‘(a) GENERAL PROHIBITIONS.—Whoever willfully—

18 ‘‘(1) wrecks, derails, sets fire to, or disables any

19 train, locomotive, motor unit, or freight or passenger

20 car used, operated, or employed by a railroad car21 rier;

22 ‘‘(2) brings, carries, possesses, places or causes

23 to be placed any destructive substance, or destruc24 tive device in, upon, or near any train, locomotive,

25 motor unit, or freight or passenger car used, oper-
76

•S 1234 IS

1 ated, or employed by a railroad carrier, without pre2 viously obtaining the permission of the carrier, and

3 with intent to endanger the safety of any passenger

4 or employee of the carrier, or with a reckless dis5 regard for the safety of human life;

6 ‘‘(3) sets fire to, or places any destructive sub7 stance, or destructive device in, upon or near, or un8 dermines any tunnel, bridge, viaduct, trestle, track,

9 signal, station, depot, warehouse, terminal, or any

10 other way, structure, property, or appurtenance used

11 in the operation of, or in support of the operation

12 of, a railroad carrier, or otherwise makes any such

13 tunnel, bridge, viaduct, trestle, track, station, depot,

14 warehouse, terminal, or any other way, structure,

15 property, or appurtenance unworkable or unusable

16 or hazardous to work or use, knowing or having rea17 son to know such activity would likely derail, disable,

18 or wreck a train, locomotive, motor unit, or freight

19 or passenger car used, operated, or employed by a

20 railroad carrier;

21 ‘‘(4) removes appurtenances from, damages, or

22 otherwise impairs the operation of any railroad sig23 nal system, including a train control system, central24 ized dispatching system, or highway-railroad grade
77

•S 1234 IS

1 crossing warning signal on a railroad line used, op2 erated, or employed by a railroad carrier;

3 ‘‘(5) interferes with, disables or incapacitates

4 any locomotive engineer, conductor, or other person

5 while they are operating or maintaining a train, lo6 comotive, motor unit, or freight or passenger car

7 used, operated, or employed by a railroad carrier,

8 with intent to endanger the safety of any passenger

9 or employee of the carrier, or with a reckless dis10 regard for the safety of human life;

11 ‘‘(6) commits an act intended to cause death or

12 serious bodily injury to an employee or passenger of

13 a railroad carrier while on the property of the car14 rier;

15 ‘‘(7) causes the release of a hazardous material

16 being transported by a rail freight car, with the in17 tent to endanger the safety of any person, or with

18 a reckless disregard for the safety of human life;

19 ‘‘(8) conveys or causes to be conveyed false in20 formation, knowing the information to be false, con21 cerning an attempt or alleged attempt being made or

22 to be made, to do any act which would be a crime

23 prohibited by this subsection; or

24 ‘‘(9) attempts, threatens, or conspires to do any

25 of the aforesaid acts,
78

•S 1234 IS

1 shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than

2 twenty years, or both, if such act is committed, or in the

3 case of a threat or conspiracy such act would be commit4 ted, within the United States on, against, or affecting a

5 railroad carrier engaged in or affecting interstate or for6 eign commerce, or if in the course of committing such acts,

7 that person travels or communicates across a State line

8 in order to commit such acts, or transports materials

9 across a State line in aid of the commission of such acts:

10 Provided however, That whoever is convicted of any crime

11 prohibited by this subsection shall be—

12 ‘‘(A) imprisoned for not less than thirty

13 years or for life if the railroad train involved

14 carried high-level radioactive waste or spent nu15 clear fuel at the time of the offense;

16 ‘‘(B) imprisoned for life if the railroad

17 train involved was carrying passengers at the

18 time of the offense; and

19 ‘‘(C) imprisoned for life or sentenced to

20 death if the offense has resulted in the death of

21 any person.

22 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITIONS ON THE USE OF FIREARMS AND

23 DANGEROUS WEAPONS.—

24 ‘‘(1) Except as provided in paragraph (4), who25 ever knowingly possesses or causes to be present any
79

•S 1234 IS

1 firearm or other dangerous weapon on board a pas2 senger train of a railroad carrier, or attempts to do

3 so, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not

4 more than one year, or both, if such act is commit5 ted on a railroad carrier that is engaged in or affect6 ing interstate or foreign commerce, or if in the

7 course of committing such act, that person travels or

8 communicates across a State line in order to commit

9 such act, or transports materials across a State line

10 in aid of the commission of such act.

11 ‘‘(2) Whoever, with intent that a firearm or

12 other dangerous weapon be used in the commission

13 of a crime, knowingly possesses or causes to be

14 present such firearm or dangerous weapon on board

15 a passenger train or in a passenger terminal facility

16 of a railroad carrier, or attempts to do so, shall be

17 fined under this title or imprisoned not more than

18 5 years, or both, if such act is committed on a rail19 road carrier that is engaged in or affecting inter20 state or foreign commerce, or if in the course of

21 committing such act, that person travels or commu22 nicates across a State line in order to commit such

23 act, or transports materials across a State line in

24 aid of the commission of such act.
80

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(3) A person who kills or attempts to kill a

2 person in the course of a violation of paragraph (1)

3 or (2), or in the course of an attack on a passenger

4 train or a passenger terminal facility of a railroad

5 carrier involving the use of a firearm or other dan6 gerous weapon, shall be punished as provided in sec7 tions 1111, 1112, and 1113 of this title.

8 ‘‘(4) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to—

9 ‘‘(A) the possession of a firearm or other

10 dangerous weapon by an officer, agent, or em11 ployee of the United States, a State, or a politi12 cal subdivision thereof, while engaged in the

13 lawful performance of official duties, who is au14 thorized by law to engage in the transportation

15 of people accused or convicted of crimes, or su16 pervise the prevention, detection, investigation,

17 or prosecution of any violation of law;

18 ‘‘(B) the possession of a firearm or other

19 dangerous weapon by an officer, agent, or em20 ployee of the United States, a State, or a politi21 cal subdivision thereof, while off duty, if such

22 possession is authorized by law;

23 ‘‘(C) the possession of a firearm or other

24 dangerous weapon by a Federal official or a
81

•S 1234 IS

1 member of the Armed Forces if such possession

2 is authorized by law; or

3 ‘‘(D) an individual transporting a firearm

4 on board a railroad passenger train (except a

5 loaded firearm) in baggage not accessible to any

6 passenger on board the train, if the railroad

7 carrier was informed of the presence of the

8 weapon prior to the firearm being placed on

9 board the train.

10 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION AGAINST PROPELLING OB11 JECTS.—Whoever willfully or recklessly throws, shoots, or

12 propels a rock, stone, brick, or piece of iron, steel, or other

13 metal or any deadly or dangerous object or destructive

14 substance at any locomotive or car of a train, knowing

15 or having reason to know such activity would likely cause

16 personal injury, shall be fined under this title or impris17 oned for not more than 5 years, or both, if such act is

18 committed on or against a railroad carrier engaged in or

19 affecting interstate or foreign commerce, or if in the

20 course of committing such act, that person travels or com21 municates across a State line in order to commit such act,

22 or transports materials across a State line in aid of the

23 commission of such act. Whoever is convicted of any crime

24 prohibited by this subsection shall also be subject to im-
82

•S 1234 IS

1 prisonment for not more than twenty years if the offense

2 has resulted in the death of any person.

3 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section—

4 ‘‘(1) ‘dangerous device’ has the meaning given

5 to that term in section 921(a)(4) of this title;

6 ‘‘(2) ‘dangerous weapon’ has the meaning given

7 to that term in section 930 of this title;

8 ‘‘(3) ‘destructive substance’ has the meaning

9 given to that term in section 31 of this title, except

10 that (A) the term ‘radioactive device’ does not in11 clude any radioactive device or material used solely

12 for medical, industrial, research, or other peaceful

13 purposes, and (B) ‘destructive substance’ includes

14 any radioactive device or material that can be used

15 to cause a harm listed in subsection (a) and that is

16 not in use solely for medical, industrial, research, or

17 other peaceful purposes;

18 ‘‘(4) ‘firearm’ has the meaning given to that

19 term in section 921 of this title;

20 ‘‘(5) ‘hazardous material’ has the meaning

21 given to that term in section 5102(2) of title 49,

22 United States Code;

23 ‘‘(6) ‘high-level radioactive waste’ has the

24 meaning given to that term in section 10101(12) of

25 title 42, United States Code;
83

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(7) ‘railroad’ has the meaning given to that

2 term in section 20102(1) of title 49, United States

3 Code;

4 ‘‘(8) ‘railroad carrier’ has the meaning given to

5 that term in section 20102(2) of title 49, United

6 States Code;

7 ‘‘(9) ‘serious bodily injury’ has the meaning

8 given to that term in section 1365 of this title;

9 ‘‘(10) ‘spent nuclear fuel’ has the meaning

10 given to that term in section 10101(23) of title 42,

11 United States Code; and

12 ‘‘(11) ‘State’ has the meaning given to that

13 term in section 2266 of this title.’’.

14 (b) In the analysis of chapter 97 of title 18, United

15 States Code, item ‘‘1992’’ is amended to read:

‘‘1992. Terrorist attacks against railroads.’’.

16 SEC. 404. TERRORIST ATTACKS AGAINST MASS TRANSPOR17 TATION.

18 (a) Chapter 97 of title 18, United States Code, is

19 amended by adding at the end thereof the following new

20 section:

21 ‘‘§ 1994. Terrorist attacks against mass transportation

22 ‘‘(a) GENERAL PROHIBITIONS.—Whoever willfully—

23 ‘‘(1) wrecks, derails, sets fire to, or disables a

24 mass transportation vehicle or vessel;
84

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(2) places or causes to be placed any destruc2 tive substance in, upon, or near a mass transpor3 tation vehicle or vessel, without previously obtaining

4 the permission of the mass transportation provider,

5 and with intent to endanger the safety of any pas6 senger or employee of the mass transportation pro7 vider, or with a reckless disregard for the safety of

8 human life;

9 ‘‘(3) sets fire to, or places any destructive sub10 stance in, upon, or near any garage, terminal, struc11 ture, supply, or facility used in the operation of, or

12 in support of the operation of, a mass transportation

13 vehicle, knowing or having reason to know such ac14 tivity would likely derail, disable, or wreck a mass

15 transportation vehicle used, operated, or employed

16 by a mass transportation provider;

17 ‘‘(4) removes appurtenances from, damages, or

18 otherwise impairs the operation of a mass transpor19 tation signal system, including a train control sys20 tem, centralized dispatching system, or rail grade

21 crossing warning signal;

22 ‘‘(5) interferes with, disables or incapacitates

23 any driver or person while they are employed in op24 erating or maintaining a mass transportation vehicle

25 or vessel, with intent to endanger the safety of any
85

•S 1234 IS

1 passenger or employee of the mass transportation

2 provider, or with a reckless disregard for the safety

3 of human life;

4 ‘‘(6) commits an act intended to cause death or

5 serious bodily injury to an employee or passenger of

6 a mass transportation provider on the property of a

7 mass transportation provider;

8 ‘‘(7) conveys or causes to be conveyed false in9 formation, knowing the information to be false, con10 cerning an attempt or alleged attempt being made or

11 to be made, to do any act which would be a crime

12 prohibited by this subsection; or

13 ‘‘(8) attempts, threatens, or conspires to do any

14 of the aforesaid acts,

15 shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than

16 twenty years, or both, if such act is committed, or in the

17 case of a threat or conspiracy such act would be commit18 ted, within the United States on, against, or affecting a

19 mass transportation provider engaged in or affecting

20 interstate or foreign commerce, or if in the course of com21 mitting such act, that person travels or communicates

22 across a State line in order to commit such act, or trans23 ports materials across a State line in aid of the commis24 sion of such act. Whoever is convicted of a crime prohib25 ited by this section shall also be subject to imprisonment
86

•S 1234 IS

1 for life if the mass transportation vehicle or vessel was

2 carrying a passenger at the time of the offense, and im3 prisonment for life or sentenced to death if the offense

4 has resulted in the death of any person.

5 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITIONS ON THE USE OF FIREARMS AND

6 DANGEROUS WEAPONS.—

7 ‘‘(1) Except as provided in paragraph (4), who8 ever knowingly possesses or causes to be present any

9 firearm or other dangerous weapon on board a mass

10 transportation vehicle or vessel, or attempts to do

11 so, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not

12 more than one year, or both, if such act is commit13 ted on a mass transportation provider engaged in or

14 affecting interstate or foreign commerce, or if in the

15 course of committing such act, that person travels or

16 communicates across a State line in order to commit

17 such act, or transports materials across a State line

18 in aid of the commission of such act.

19 ‘‘(2) Whoever, with intent that a firearm or

20 other dangerous weapon be used in the commission

21 of a crime, knowingly possesses or causes to be

22 present such firearm or dangerous weapon on board

23 a mass transportation vehicle or vessel, or in a mass

24 transportation passenger terminal facility, or at25 tempts to do so, shall be fined under this title, or
87

•S 1234 IS

1 imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both, if such

2 act is committed on a mass transportation provider

3 engaged in or affecting interstate or foreign com4 merce, or if in the course of committing such act,

5 that person travels or communicates across a State

6 line in order to commit such act, or transports mate7 rials across a State line in aid of the commission of

8 such act.

9 ‘‘(3) A person who kills or attempts to kill a

10 person in the course of a violation of paragraphs (1)

11 or (2), or in the course of an attack on a mass

12 transportation vehicle or vessel, or a mass transpor13 tation passenger terminal facility involving the use

14 of a firearm or other dangerous weapon, shall be

15 punished as provided in sections 1111, 1112, and

16 1113 of this title.

17 ‘‘(4) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to—

18 ‘‘(A) the possession of a firearm or other

19 dangerous weapon by an officer, agent, or em20 ployee of the United States, a State, or a politi21 cal subdivision thereof, while engaged in the

22 lawful performance of official duties, who is au23 thorized by law to engage in the transportation

24 of people accused or convicted of crimes, or su-
88

•S 1234 IS

1 pervise the prevention, detection, investigation,

2 or prosecution of any violation of law;

3 ‘‘(B) the possession of a firearm or other

4 dangerous weapon by an officer, agent, or em5 ployee of the United States, a State, or a politi6 cal subdivision thereof, while off duty, if such

7 possession is authorized by law;

8 ‘‘(C) the possession of a firearm or other

9 dangerous weapon by a Federal official or a

10 member of the Armed Forces if such possession

11 is authorized by law; or

12 ‘‘(D) an individual transporting a firearm

13 on board a mass transportation vehicle or vessel

14 (except a loaded firearm) in baggage not acces15 sible to any passenger on board the vehicle or

16 vessel, if the mass transportation provider was

17 informed of the presence of the weapon prior to

18 the firearm being placed on board the vehicle or

19 vessel.

20 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION AGAINST PROPELLING OB21 JECTS.—Whoever willfully or recklessly throws, shoots, or

22 propels a rock, stone, brick, or piece of iron, steel, or other

23 metal or any deadly or dangerous object or destructive

24 substance at any mass transportation vehicle or vessel,

25 knowing or having reason to know such activity would like-
89

•S 1234 IS

1 ly cause personal injury, shall be fined under this title or

2 imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, if such

3 act is committed on or against a mass transportation pro4 vider engaged in or substantially affecting interstate or

5 foreign commerce, or if in the course of committing such

6 acts, that person travels or communicates across a State

7 line in order to commit such acts, or transports materials

8 across a State line in aid of the commission of such acts.

9 Whoever is convicted of any crime prohibited by this sub10 section shall also be subject to imprisonment for not more

11 than twenty years if the offense has resulted in the death

12 of any person.

13 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section—

14 ‘‘(1) ‘dangerous device’ has the meaning given

15 to that term in section 921(a)(4) of this title;

16 ‘‘(2) ‘dangerous weapon’ has the meaning given

17 to that term in section 930 of this title;

18 ‘‘(3) ‘destructive substance’ has the meaning

19 given to that term in section 31 of this title, except

20 that (A) the term ‘radioactive device’ does not in21 clude any radioactive device or material used solely

22 for medical, industrial, research, or other peaceful

23 purposes, and (B) ‘destructive substance’ includes

24 any radioactive device or material that can be used

25 to cause a harm listed in subsection (a) and that is
90

•S 1234 IS

1 not in use solely for medical, industrial, research, or

2 other peaceful purposes;

3 ‘‘(4) ‘firearm’ has the meaning given to that

4 term in section 921 of this title;

5 ‘‘(5) ‘mass transportation’ has the meaning

6 given to that term in section 5302(a)(7) of title 49,

7 United States Code, except that the term shall in8 clude schoolbus, charter, and sightseeing transpor9 tation;

10 ‘‘(6) ‘serious bodily injury’ has the meaning

11 given to that term in section 1365 of this title; and

12 ‘‘(7) ‘State’ has the meaning given to that term

13 in section 2266 of this title.’’.

14 (b) The analysis of chapter 97 of title 18, United

15 States Code, is amended by adding at the end thereof:

‘‘1994. Terrorist attacks against mass transportation.’’.

16 SEC. 405. INVESTIGATIVE JURISDICTION.

17 The Federal Bureau of Investigation shall lead the

18 investigation of all offenses under sections 1192 and 1994

19 of title 18, United States Code. The Federal Bureau of

20 Investigation shall cooperate with the National Transpor21 tation Safety Board and with the Department of Trans22 portation in safety investigations by these agencies, and

23 with the Treasury Department’s Bureau of Alcohol, To24 bacco and Firearms concerning an investigation regarding

25 the possession of firearms and explosives.
91

•S 1234 IS

1 TITLE V—RAIL AND MASS

2 TRANSPORTATION SAFETY

3 SEC. 501. SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS IN GRANTS OR LOANS

4 TO COMMUTER RAILROADS.

5 Section 5329 is amended by adding at the end the

6 following:

7 ‘‘(c) COMMUTER RAILROAD SAFETY CONSIDER8 ATIONS.—In making a grant or loan under this chapter

9 that concerns a railroad subject to the Secretary’s railroad

10 safety jurisdiction under section 20102 of this title, the

11 Federal Transit Administrator shall consult with the Fed12 eral Railroad Administrator concerning relevant safety is13 sues. The Secretary may use appropriate authority under

14 this chapter, including the authority to prescribe particu15 lar terms or covenants under section 5334 of this title,

16 to address any safety issues identified in the project sup17 ported by the loan or grant.’’.

18 SEC. 502. RAILROAD ACCIDENT AND INCIDENT REPORTING.

19 Section 20901(a) is amended to read as follows:

20 ‘‘(a) GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.—On a periodic basis

21 as specified by the Secretary of Transportation, a railroad

22 carrier shall file a report with the Secretary on all acci23 dents and incidents resulting in injury or death to an indi24 vidual or damage to equipment or a roadbed arising from

25 the carrier’s operations during that period. The report
92

•S 1234 IS

1 shall state the nature, cause, and circumstances of each

2 reported accident or incident. If a railroad carrier assigns

3 human error as a cause, the report shall include, at the

4 option of each employee whose error is alleged, a state5 ment by the employee explaining any factors the employee

6 alleges contributed to the accident or incident.’’.

7 SEC. 503. VEHICLE WEIGHT LIMITATIONS—MASS TRANS8 PORTATION BUSES.

9 Section 1023(h)(1) of the Intermodal Surface Trans10 portation Efficiency Act of 1991, as amended (23 U.S.C.

11 127 note), is amended by striking ‘‘the date on which’’

12 and all that follows through ‘‘1995’’ and inserting ‘‘Janu13 ary 1, 2003’’.

14 TITLE VI—MOTOR CARRIER

15 SAFETY

16 Subtitle A—State Grants and Other

17 Commmercial Vehicle Programs

18 SEC. 601. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.

19 Chapter 311 is amended—

20 (1) by inserting before section 31101 the follow21 ing:

22 ‘‘§ 31100. Purpose

23 ‘‘The purposes of this subchapter are—

24 ‘‘(1) to improve commercial motor vehicle and

25 driver safety;
93

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(2) to facilitate efforts by the Secretary,

2 States, and other political jurisdictions, working in

3 partnership, to focus their resources on strategic

4 safety investments;

5 ‘‘(3) to increase administrative flexibility;

6 ‘‘(4) to strengthen enforcement activities;

7 ‘‘(5) to invest in activities related to areas of

8 the greatest crash reduction;

9 ‘‘(6) to identify high risk carriers and drivers;

10 and

11 ‘‘(7) to improve information and analysis sys12 tems.’’; and

13 (2) by inserting before the item relating to sec14 tion 31101 in the chapter analysis for chapter 311

15 the following:

‘‘§ 31100. Purposes.’’.

16 SEC. 602. GRANTS TO STATES.

17 (a) PERFORMANCE-BASED GRANTS.—Section 31102

18 is amended—

19 (1) by inserting ‘‘improving motor carrier safety

20 and’’ in subsection (a) after ‘‘programs for’’; and

21 (2) by striking ‘‘adopt and assume responsibil22 ity for enforcing’’ in the first sentence of paragraph

23 (b)(1) and inserting ‘‘assume responsibility for im24 proving motor carrier safety and to adopt and en25 force’’.
94

•S 1234 IS

1 (b) HAZARDOUS MATERIALS.—Section 31102 is

2 amended—

3 (1) by inserting a comma and ‘‘hazardous mate4 rials transportation safety,’’ after ‘‘commercial

5 motor vehicle safety’’ in subsection (a); and

6 (2) by inserting a comma and ‘‘hazardous mate7 rials transportation safety,’’ in the first sentence of

8 subsection (b) after ‘‘commercial motor vehicle safe9 ty’’.

10 (c) CONTENTS OF STATE PLANS.—Section

11 31102(b)(1) is amended—

12 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through

13 (Q) as subparagraphs (B) through (R), respectively;

14 (2) by inserting before subparagraph (B), as re15 designated, the following:

16 ‘‘(A) implements performance-based activi17 ties by fiscal year 2003;’’

18 (3) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ in subparagraph (K), as

19 redesignated, after ‘‘(c)’’; and

20 (4) by striking subparagraphs (L) and (M), as

21 redesignated, and inserting the following:

22 ‘‘(L) ensures consistent, effective, and rea23 sonable sanctions;

24 ‘‘(M) ensures that the State agency will co25 ordinate the plan, data collection, and informa-
95

•S 1234 IS

1 tion systems with the State highway safety pro2 grams under title 23;

3 (5) by striking subparagraph (O), as redesig4 nated;

5 (6) by striking ‘‘activities—’’ in subparagraph

6 (P), as redesignated, and inserting ‘‘activities in

7 support of national priorities and performance goals

8 including—’’;

9 (7) by striking ‘‘to remove’’ in clause (i) of sub10 paragraph (P), as redesignated, and inserting ‘‘ac11 tivities aimed at removing’’;

12 (8) by striking ‘‘to provide’’ in clause (ii) of

13 subparagraph (P), as redesignated, and inserting

14 ‘‘activities aimed at providing’’;

15 (9) by inserting ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in

16 clause (ii) of subparagraph (P), as redesignated;

17 (10) by striking clauses (iii) and (iv) of sub18 paragraph (P), as redesignated;

19 (11) by inserting after clause (ii) of subpara20 graph (P), as redesignated, the following:

21 ‘‘(iii) interdiction activities affecting

22 the transportation of controlled substances

23 by commercial motor vehicle drivers and

24 training on appropriate strategies for car-
96

•S 1234 IS

1 rying out those interdiction activities.’’;

2 and

3 (12) by striking subparagraph (Q), as redesig4 nated, and redesignating subparagraph (R), as re5 designated, as subparagraph (Q).

6 SEC. 603. FEDERAL SHARE.

7 Section 31103 is amended—

8 (1) by inserting before ‘‘The Secretary of

9 Transportation’’ the following:

10 ‘‘(a) COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY PRO11 GRAMS AND ENFORCEMENT.—’’;

12 (2) by inserting ‘‘improve commercial motor ve13 hicle safety and’’ in the first sentence before ‘‘en14 force’’; and

15 (3) by adding at the end the following:

16 ‘‘(b) OTHER ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary may reim17 burse State agencies, local governments, or other persons

18 up to 100 percent for those activities identified in

19 31104(f)(2).’’.

20 SEC. 604. AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 31104(a) is amended to

22 read as follows:

23 ‘‘(a) GENERAL.—Subject to section 9503(c)(1) of the

24 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 9503(c)(1)),

25 there are available from the Highway Trust Fund (except
97

•S 1234 IS

1 the Mass Transit Account) for the Secretary of Transpor2 tation to incur obligations to carry out section 31102 of

3 this title, not more than $83,000,000 for each of the fiscal

4 years ending September 30, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001,

5 2002, and 2003.’’.

6 (b) AVAILABILITY AND REALLOCATION.—Section

7 31104(b)(2) is amended to read as follows:

8 ‘‘(2) Amounts made available under section

9 4002(e)(1) and (2) of the Intermodal Surface Trans10 portation Efficiency Act of 1991 before October 1,

11 1996, that are not obligated on October 1, 1997, are

12 available for obligation under paragraph (1) of this

13 subsection.’’.

14 (c) ALLOCATION CRITERIA.—Section 31104(f) is

15 amended to read as follows:

16 ‘‘(f) ALLOCATION CRITERIA AND ELIGIBILITY.—

17 ‘‘(1) On October 1 of each fiscal year or as

18 soon after that date as practicable, the Secretary,

19 after making the deduction described in subsection

20 (e) of this section, shall allocate, under criteria the

21 Secretary prescribes through regulation, the

22 amounts available for that fiscal year among the

23 States with plans approved under section 31102 of

24 this title.
98

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may designate up to 12 per2 cent of such amounts to reimburse States for border

3 commercial motor vehicle safety programs and en4 forcement and other high priority activities and

5 projects. These amounts may be allocated by the

6 Secretary to State agencies and local governments,

7 that use trained and qualified officers and employ8 ees, and to other persons, in coordination with State

9 motor vehicle safety agencies, for the improvement

10 of commercial motor vehicle safety.’’.

11 (d) OTHER AMENDMENTS.—

12 (1) Section 31104 is amended by striking sub13 section (g) and redesignating subsection (h) as sub14 section (g).

15 (2) Section 31104(j) is amended by striking

16 ‘‘tolerance’’ in the first sentence.

17 (3) Section 31104 is amended by striking sub18 section (i) and redesignating subsection (j) as sub19 section (h).

20 SEC. 605. INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND STRATEGIC SAFETY

21 INITIATIVES.

22 Section 31106 is amended to read as follows:

23 ‘‘§ 31106. Information Systems and Strategic Safety

24 Initiatives

25 ‘‘(a) INFORMATION SYSTEMS.—
99

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized

2 to establish motor carrier information systems and

3 data analysis programs to support motor carrier reg4 ulatory and enforcement activities required under

5 this title. In cooperation with the States, the infor6 mation systems shall be coordinated into a network

7 providing identification of motor carriers and driv8 ers, registration and licensing tracking, and motor

9 carrier and driver safety performance. The Secretary

10 shall develop and maintain data analysis capacity

11 and programs to provide the means to develop strat12 egies to address safety problems and to use data

13 analysis to measure the effectiveness of these strate14 gies and related programs; to determine the cost ef15 fectiveness of State and Federal safety compliance,

16 enforcement programs, and other countermeasures;

17 to evaluate the safety fitness of motor carriers and

18 drivers; to identify and collect necessary data; and to

19 adapt, improve, and incorporate other information

20 and information systems as deemed appropriate by

21 the Secretary.

22 ‘‘(2) PERFORMANCE AND REGISTRATION INFOR23 MATION SYSTEM MANAGEMENT.—

24 ‘‘(A) The Secretary may include as part of

25 the information system authorized under para-
100

•S 1234 IS

1 graph (1), an information system, to be called

2 the Performance and Registration Information

3 System Management, to serve as a clearing4 house and repository of information related to

5 State registration and licensing of commercial

6 motor vehicles and the safety system of the

7 commercial motor vehicle registrants or the

8 motor carriers operating the vehicles. The Sec9 retary may include in the system information

10 on the safety fitness of each of the motor car11 riers and registrants and other information the

12 Secretary considers appropriate, including in13 formation on vehicle, driver, and motor carrier

14 safety performance.

15 ‘‘(B) The Secretary may prescribe tech16 nical and operational standards to ensure—

17 ‘‘(i) uniform, timely and accurate in18 formation collection and reporting by the

19 States necessary to carry out this system;

20 ‘‘(ii) uniform State and Federal proce21 dures and policies necessary to operate the

22 Commercial Vehicle Information System;

23 and
101

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(iii) the availability and reliability of

2 the information to the States and the Sec3 retary from the information system.

4 ‘‘(C) The system shall link the Federal

5 motor carrier safety systems with State driver

6 and commercial vehicle registration and licens7 ing systems, and shall be designed—

8 ‘‘(i) to enable a State, when issuing li9 cense plates or throughout the registration

10 period for a commercial motor vehicle, to

11 determine, through the use of the informa12 tion system, the safety fitness of the reg13 istrant or motor carrier;

14 ‘‘(ii) to allow a State to decide, in co15 operation with the Secretary, the types of

16 sanctions that may be imposed on the reg17 istrant or motor carrier, or the types of

18 conditions or limitations that may be im19 posed on the operations of the registrant

20 or motor carrier that will ensure the safety

21 fitness of the registrant or motor carrier;

22 ‘‘(iii) to monitor the safety fitness of

23 the registrant or motor carrier during the

24 registration period; and
102

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(iv) to require the State, as a condi2 tion of participation in the system, to im3 plement uniform policies, procedures, and

4 standards, and to possess or seek authority

5 to impose commercial motor vehicle reg6 istration sanctions on the basis of a Fed7 eral safety fitness determination.

8 ‘‘(D) Of the amounts available for expendi9 ture under this section, not more than

10 $6,000,000 in each of fiscal years 1998, 1999,

11 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003 may be made

12 available to carry out paragraph (a)(2) of this

13 section. The Secretary may authorize the oper14 ation of the information system by contract,

15 through an agreement with one or more States,

16 or by designating, after consultation with the

17 States, a third party that represents the inter18 ests of the States.

19 ‘‘(b) COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE DRIVER SAFETY

20 PROGRAM.—The Secretary is authorized to establish a

21 program focusing on improving commercial motor vehicle

22 driver safety. The objectives of the program shall in23 clude—

24 ‘‘(1) enhancing the exchange of driver licensing

25 information among the States and among the
103

•S 1234 IS

1 States, the Federal Government, and foreign coun2 tries;

3 ‘‘(2) providing information to the judicial sys4 tem on the commercial motor vehicle driver licensing

5 program; and

6 ‘‘(3) evaluating any aspect of driver perform7 ance and safety as deemed appropriate by the Sec8 retary.

9 ‘‘(c) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS, GRANTS, AND

10 CONTRACTS.—The Secretary may carry out this section

11 either independently or in cooperation with other Federal

12 departments, agencies, and instrumentalities, or by mak13 ing grants to and entering into contracts and cooperative

14 agreements with States, localities, associations, institu15 tions, corporations (profit or nonprofit) or other persons.’’.

16 SEC. 606. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

17 Section 31107 is amended to read as follows:

18 ‘‘§ 31107. Authorization of appropriations for infor19 mation systems and strategic safety ini20 tiatives

21 ‘‘(a) GENERAL.—There shall be available from the

22 Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Ac23 count) for the Secretary to incur obligations to carry out

24 section 31106 of this title the sum of $17 million for each

25 of the fiscal years 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, and
104

•S 1234 IS

1 2003. The amounts made available under this subsection

2 shall remain available until expended.

3 ‘‘(b) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—Approval by the Sec4 retary of a grant under this section imposes upon the

5 United States Government a contractual obligation for

6 payment of the Government’s share of costs incurred in

7 carrying out the objectives of the grant.’’.

8 SEC. 607. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

9 The chapter analysis for chapter 311 is amended—

10 (1) by striking the heading for subchapter I

11 and inserting the following:

‘‘SUBCHAPTER I. STATE GRANTS AND OTHER COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE

PROGRAMS.’’;

12 and

13 (2) by striking the items relating to sections

14 31106 and 31107 and inserting the following:

‘‘31106. Information Systems and Strategic Safety Initiatives.

‘‘31107. Authorization of Appropriations for Information Systems and Strategic

Safety Initiatives.’’.

15 Subtitle B—Motor Carrier Safety

16 Act of 1997

17 SEC. 651. SHORT TITLE.

18 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Motor Carrier

19 Safety Act of 1997’’.

20 SEC. 652. SAFETY REGULATIONS.

21 (a) REPEAL OF REVIEW PANEL.—Subchapter III of

22 chapter 311 is amended—
105

•S 1234 IS

1 (1) by striking sections 31134 and 31140; and

2 (2) by striking the items relating to sections

3 31134 and 31140 in the chapter analysis for that

4 chapter.

5 (b) REVIEW PROCEDURE.—

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 31141 is amended—

7 (A) by striking subsection (b) and redesig8 nating subsections (c), (d), (e), (f), (g), and (h)

9 as subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), and (g), re10 spectively;

11 (B) by striking so much of subsection (b),

12 as redesignated, as precedes paragraph (2) and

13 inserting the following:

14 ‘‘(b) REVIEW AND DECISIONS BY THE SECRETARY.—

15 ‘‘(1) The Secretary shall review the laws and

16 regulations on commercial motor vehicle safety in ef17 fect in each State, and decide—

18 ‘‘(A) whether the State law or regulation—

19 ‘‘(i) has the same effect as a regula20 tion prescribed by the Secretary under sec21 tion 31136 of this title;

22 ‘‘(ii) is less stringent than that regula23 tion; or

24 ‘‘(iii) is additional to or more strin25 gent than that regulation; and
106

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(B) for each State law or regulation

2 which is additional to or more stringent than

3 the regulation prescribed by the Secretary,

4 whether—

5 ‘‘(i) the State law or regulation has no

6 safety benefit;

7 ‘‘(ii) the State law or regulation is in8 compatible with the regulation prescribed

9 by the Secretary under section 31136 of

10 this title; or

11 ‘‘(iii) enforcement of the State law or

12 regulation would cause an unreasonable

13 burden on interstate commerce.’’;

14 (C) by striking paragraph (5) of subsection

15 (b)(5), as redesignated, and inserting the fol16 lowing:

17 ‘‘(5) In deciding under paragraph (4) of this

18 subsection whether a State law or regulation will

19 cause an unreasonable burden on interstate com20 merce, the Secretary may consider the effect on

21 interstate commerce of implementation of all similar

22 laws and regulations of other States.’’;

23 (D) by striking subsections (d) and (e), as

24 redesignated, and inserting the following:
107

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(d) WRITTEN NOTICE OF DECISIONS.—The Sec2 retary shall give written notice of the decision under sub3 section (b) of this section to the State concerned.’’; and

4 (E) by redesignating subsections (f) and

5 (g), as redesignated, as subsections (e) and (f),

6 respectively.

7 (2) CONFORMING CHANGES.—

8 (A) The caption of section 31141 of such

9 title is amended to read as follows:

10 ‘‘§ 31141. Preemption of State laws and regulations’’.

11 (B) The chapter analysis of chapter 311 of

12 such title is amended by striking the item relat13 ing to section 31141 and inserting the follow14 ing:

‘‘31141. Preemption of State laws and regulations.’’.

15 (c) INSPECTION OF VEHICLES.—

16 (1) Section 31142 is amended—

17 (A) by striking ‘‘part 393 of title 49, Code

18 of Federal Regulations’’ in subsection (a) and

19 inserting ‘‘regulations issued pursuant to sec20 tion 31135 of this title’’; and

21 (B) by striking subsection (c)(1)(C) and

22 inserting the following:

23 ‘‘(C) prevent a State from participating in

24 the activities of a voluntary group of States en-
108

•S 1234 IS

1 forcing a program for inspection of commercial

2 motor vehicles; or’’.

3 (2) Subchapter IV of chapter 311 is amended—

4 (A) by striking sections 31161 and 31162;

5 and

6 (B) by striking the items relating to sec7 tions 31161 and 31162 in the chapter analysis

8 for that chapter.

9 (3) Section 31102(b)(1) is amended—

10 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub11 paragraph (P);

12 (B) by striking ‘‘thereunder.’’ in subpara13 graph (Q) and inserting ‘‘thereunder; and’’; and

14 (C) by adding at the end thereof the fol15 lowing:

16 ‘‘(R) provides that the State will establish

17 a program (i) to ensure the proper and timely

18 correction of commercial motor vehicle safety

19 violations noted during an inspection carried

20 out with funds authorized under section 31104

21 of this title; and (ii) to ensure that information

22 is exchanged among the States in a timely man23 ner.’’.

24 (d) SAFETY FITNESS OF OWNERS AND OPERA25 TORS.—Section 31144 is amended to read as follows:
109

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘§ 31142. Safety fitness of owners and operators

2 ‘‘(a) PROCEDURE.—The Secretary of Transportation

3 shall maintain in regulation a procedure for determining

4 the safety fitness of owners and operators of commercial

5 motor vehicles, including persons seeking new or addi6 tional operating authority as motor carriers under section

7 13902 of this title. The procedure shall include—

8 ‘‘(1) specific initial and continuing requirements

9 to be met by the owners, operators, and other per10 sons to demonstrate safety fitness;

11 ‘‘(2) a means of deciding whether the owners,

12 operators, or other persons meet the safety require13 ments under paragraph (1) of this subsection; and

14 ‘‘(3) specific time deadlines for action by the

15 Secretary in making fitness decisions.

16 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITED TRANSPORTATION.—Except as

17 provided in sections 521(b)(5)(A) and 5113 of this title,

18 a motor carrier that fails to meet the safety fitness re19 quirements established under subsection (a) of this section

20 may not operate in interstate commerce beginning on the

21 61st day after the date of the determination by the Sec22 retary that the motor carrier fails to meet the safety fit23 ness requirements and until the motor carrier meets the

24 safety fitness requirements. The Secretary may, for good

25 cause shown, provide a carrier with up to an additional

26 60 days to meet the safety fitness requirements.
110

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(c) RATING REVIEW.—The Secretary shall review

2 the factors that resulted in a motor carrier failing to meet

3 the safety fitness requirements not later than 45 days

4 after the motor carrier requests a review.

5 ‘‘(d) GOVERNMENT USE PROHIBITED.—A depart6 ment, agency, or instrumentality of the United States

7 Government may not use a motor carrier that does not

8 meet the safety fitness requirements.

9 ‘‘(e) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY; UPDATING OF FITNESS

10 DETERMINATIONS.—The Secretary shall amend the motor

11 carrier safety regulations in subchapter B of chapter III

12 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, to establish a

13 system to make readily available to the public, and to up14 date periodically, the safety fitness determinations of

15 motor carriers made by the Secretary.

16 ‘‘(f) PENALTIES.—The Secretary shall prescribe reg17 ulations setting penalties for violations of this section con18 sistent with section 521 of this title.’’.

19 (e) SAFETY FITNESS OF PASSENGER AND HAZARD20 OUS MATERIAL CARRIERS.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 5113 is amended—

22 (A) by striking subsection (a) and insert23 ing the following:

24 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITED TRANSPORTATION.—
111

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(1) A motor carrier that fails to meet the safe2 ty fitness requirements established under subsection

3 31144(a) of this title may not operate a commercial

4 motor vehicle (as defined in section 31132 of this

5 title)—

6 ‘‘(A) to transport hazardous material for

7 which placarding of a motor vehicle is required

8 under regulations prescribed under this chapter;

9 or

10 ‘‘(B) to transport more than 15 individ11 uals.

12 ‘‘(2) The prohibition in paragraph (1) of this

13 subsection applies beginning on the 46th day after

14 the date on which the Secretary determines that a

15 motor carrier fails to meet the safety fitness require16 ments and applies until the motor carrier meets the

17 safety fitness requirements.’’;

18 (B) by striking ‘‘RATING’’ in the caption of

19 subsection (b) and inserting ‘‘FITNESS’’;

20 (C) by striking ‘‘receiving an unsatisfac21 tory rating’’ in subsection (b) and inserting

22 ‘‘failing to meet the safety fitness require23 ments’’;

24 (D) by striking ‘‘has an unsatisfactory rat25 ing from the Secretary’’ in subsection (c) and
112

•S 1234 IS

1 inserting ‘‘failed to meet the safety fitness re2 quirements’’;

3 (E) by striking ‘‘RATINGS’’ in the caption

4 of subsection (d) and inserting ‘‘FITNESS DE5 TERMINATIONS’’;

6 (F) by striking ‘‘, in consultation with the

7 Interstate Commerce Commission,’’ in sub8 section (d); and

9 (G) by striking ‘‘ratings of motor carriers

10 that have unsatisfactory ratings from’’ in sub11 section (d) and inserting ‘‘fitness determina12 tions of motor carriers made by’’.

13 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

14 (A) The caption of section 5113 of such

15 chapter is amended to read as follows:

16 ‘‘§ 5113. Safety fitness of passenger and hazardous

17 material carriers’’.

18 (B) The chapter analysis for such chapter

19 is amended by striking the item relating to sec20 tion 5113 and inserting the following:

‘‘5113. Safety fitness of passenger and hazardous material carriers.’’.

21 (f) DEFINITIONS.—

22 (1) Section 31101(1) is amended—

23 (A) by inserting ‘‘or gross vehicle weight,

24 whichever is greater,’’ after ‘‘rating’’ in sub25 paragraph (A);
113

•S 1234 IS

1 (ii) by striking ‘‘10,000’’ and inserting

2 ‘‘10,001’’;

3 (B) by striking ‘‘10’’ in subparagraph (B)

4 and inserting ‘‘15’’; and

5 (C) by inserting ‘‘and transported in a

6 quantity requiring placarding under regulations

7 prescribed by the Secretary under section

8 5103’’ after ‘‘title’’ in subparagraph (C).

9 (2) Section 31132 is amended—

10 (A) by inserting ‘‘or gross vehicle weight,

11 whichever is greater,’’ after ‘‘rating’’ in para12 graph (1)(A); and

13 (B) by adding at the end of paragraph (3)

14 the following:

15 ‘‘For purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘business

16 affecting interstate commerce’ means a business em17 ploying a commercial motor vehicle in interstate

18 commerce and includes all operations of the business

19 in intrastate commerce which use vehicles otherwise

20 defined as commercial motor vehicles under para21 graph (1) of this section.’’.

22 (g) MINIMUM FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR

23 TRANSPORTING PETROLEUM PRODUCTS.—Section

24 31139(c)(2)(A)(i) is amended by inserting ‘‘or petroleum
114

•S 1234 IS

1 products classified as hazardous materials’’ after ‘‘Admin2 istrator)’’.

3 (h) EMPLOYEE PROTECTIONS.—Section 31105 is

4 amended—

5 (1) by adding at the end of subsection (d) the

6 following: ‘‘An employee may also independently

7 bring a civil action to enforce an order issued under

8 subsection (b) of this section in the district court of

9 the United States for the judicial circuit in which

10 the violation occurred.’’; and

11 (2) by adding at the end thereof the following:

12 ‘‘(e) ATTENDANCE AND TESTIMONY OF WITNESSES

13 AND PRODUCTION OF EVIDENCE; ENFORCEMENT OF

14 SUBPOENA.—In carrying out the authority under this sec15 tion, the Secretary may require the attendance and testi16 mony of witnesses and the production of evidence under

17 oath. Witnesses shall be paid the same fees and mileage

18 that are paid witnesses in the courts of the United States.

19 In cases of failure or refusal by any person to obey such

20 an order, any district court of the United States for the

21 jurisdiction in which such person is found, resides, or

22 transacts business, shall have jurisdiction to issue, upon

23 application by the Secretary, an order requiring such per24 son to appear and produce evidence and to give testimony

25 relating to the matter under investigation or in question.
115

•S 1234 IS

1 Any failure to obey such order of the court may be pun2 ished by said court as a contempt thereof.’’.

3 SEC. 653. COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE OPERATORS.

4 (a) REPEAL OF OBSOLETE GRANT PROGRAMS.—

5 Chapter 313 is amended—

6 (1) by striking sections 31312 and 31313; and

7 (2) by striking the items relating to sections

8 31312 and 31313 in the chapter analysis for that

9 chapter.

10 (b) COMMERCIAL DRIVER’S LICENSE REQUIRE11 MENT.—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 31302 is amended

13 to read as follows:

14 ‘‘§ 31302. Commercial driver’s license requirement

15 ‘‘No individual shall operate a commercial motor ve16 hicle without a commercial driver’s license issued accord17 ing to section 31308 of this title.’’.

18 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

19 (A) The chapter analysis for that chapter

20 is amended by striking the item relating to sec21 tion 31302 and inserting the following:

‘‘31302. Commercial driver’s license requirement.’’.

22 (B) Section 31305(a) is amended by redes23 ignating paragraphs (2) through (8) as para24 graphs (3) through (9), respectively, and by in25 serting after paragraph (1) the following:
116

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(2) may establish performance based testing

2 and licensing standards that more accurately meas3 ure and reflect an individual’s knowledge and skills

4 as an operator;’’.

5 (c) COMMERCIAL DRIVER’S LICENSE INFORMATION

6 SYSTEM.—Section 31309 is amended—

7 (1) by striking ‘‘make an agreement under sub8 section (b) of this section for the operation of, or es9 tablish under subsection (c) of this section,’’ in sub10 section (a) and inserting ‘‘maintain’’;

11 (2) by striking subsections (b) and (c) and re12 designating subsections (d), (e), and (f) as sub13 sections (b), (c), and (d) respectively;

14 (3) by striking ‘‘Not later than December 31,

15 1990, the’’ in paragraph (2) of subsection (b), as re16 designated, and inserting ‘‘The’’; and

17 (3) by striking ‘‘shall’’ in paragraph (2) of sub18 section (b), as redesignated, and inserting ‘‘may’’;

19 (4) by inserting after the caption of subsection

20 (c), as redesignated, the following: ‘‘Information

21 about a driver in the information system may be

22 made available under the following circumstances:’’;

23 and
117

•S 1234 IS

1 (5) by starting a new paragraph with ‘‘(1) On

2 request’’ and indenting the paragraph 2 ems from

3 the lefthand margin.

4 (d) REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE PARTICIPATION.—

5 Section 31311(a) is amended—

6 (1) by striking ‘‘31310 (b)–(e)’’ in paragraph

7 (15) and inserting ‘‘31310 (b)–(e), and (g) (1)(A)

8 and (2)’’;

9 (2) by striking paragraph (17); and

10 (3) by redesignating paragraph (18) as para11 graph (17).

12 (e) WITHHOLDING AMOUNTS FOR STATE NON13 COMPLIANCE.—Section 31314 is amended—

14 (1) by striking ‘‘, (2), (5), and (6)’’ and insert15 ing ‘‘(3), and (5)’’; and

16 (2) by striking ‘‘1992’’ in subsections (a) and

17 (b) and inserting ‘‘1995’’;

18 (3) by striking paragraph (1) of subsection (c);

19 (4) by striking ‘‘(2)’’ in subsection (c)(2);

20 (5) by striking subsection (d); and

21 (6) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub22 section (d).

23 (f) COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE DEFINED.—Sec24 tion 31301 is amended—
118

•S 1234 IS

1 (1) by inserting ‘‘or gross vehicle weight, which2 ever is greater,’’ after ‘‘rating’’ each place it appears

3 in paragraph (4)(A); and

4 (2) by inserting ‘‘is’’ in paragraph (4)(C)(ii) be5 fore ‘‘transporting’’ each place it appears and before

6 ‘‘not otherwise’’.

7 (g) SAFETY PERFORMANCE HISTORY OF NEW DRIV8 ERS; LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.—

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 is amended by

10 adding at the end thereof the following:

11 ‘‘§ 508. Safety performance history of new drivers;

12 limitation on liability

13 ‘‘(a) LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.—No action or pro14 ceeding for defamation, invasion of privacy, or interference

15 with a contract that is based on the furnishing or use of

16 safety performance records in accordance with regulations

17 issued by the Secretary may be brought against—

18 ‘‘(1) a motor carrier requesting the safety per19 formance records of an individual under consider20 ation for employment as a commercial motor vehicle

21 driver as required by and in accordance with regula22 tions issued by the Secretary;

23 ‘‘(2) a person who has complied with such a re24 quest; or
119

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(3) the agents or insurers of a person de2 scribed in paragraph (1) or (2) of this subsection.

3 ‘‘(b) RESTRICTIONS.—

4 ‘‘(1) Subsection (a) does not apply unless—

5 ‘‘(A) the motor carrier requesting the safe6 ty performance records at issue, the person

7 complying with such a request, and their agents

8 have taken all precautions reasonably necessary

9 to ensure the accuracy of the records and have

10 fully complied with the regulations issued by

11 the Secretary in using and furnishing the

12 records, including the requirement that the in13 dividual who is the subject of the records be af14 forded a reasonable opportunity to review and

15 comment on the records;

16 ‘‘(B) the motor carrier requesting the safe17 ty performance records, the person complying

18 with such a request, their agents, and their in19 surers, have taken all precautions reasonably

20 necessary to protect the privacy of the individ21 ual who is the subject of the records, including

22 protecting the records from disclosure to any

23 person, except for their insurers, not directly in24 volved in forwarding the records or deciding

25 whether to hire that individual; and
120

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(C) the motor carrier requesting the safe2 ty performance records has used those records

3 only to assess the safety performance of the in4 dividual who is the subject of those records in

5 deciding whether to hire that individual.

6 ‘‘(2) Subsection (a) does not apply to persons

7 who knowingly furnish false information.

8 ‘‘(c) PREEMPTION OF STATE AND LOCAL LAW.—No

9 State or political subdivision thereof may enact, prescribe,

10 issue, continue in effect, or enforce any law (including any

11 regulation, standard, or other provision having the force

12 and effect of law) that prohibits, penalizes, or imposes li13 ability for furnishing or using safety performance records

14 in accordance with regulations issued by the Secretary.’’.

15 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter

16 analysis for that chapter is amended by inserting

17 after the item relating to section 507 the following:

‘‘508. Safety performance history of new drivers; limitation on liability.’’.

18 SEC. 654. PENALTIES.

19 (a) NOTIFICATION OF VIOLATIONS AND ENFORCE20 MENT PROCEDURES.—Section 521(b)(1) is amended—

21 (1) by inserting: ‘‘with the exception of report22 ing and recordkeeping violations,’’ in the first sen23 tence of subparagraph (A) after ‘‘under any of those

24 provisions,’’;
121

•S 1234 IS

1 (2) by striking ‘‘fix a reasonable time for abate2 ment of the violation,’’ in the third sentence of sub3 paragraph (A);

4 (3) by striking ‘‘(A)’’ in subparagraph (A); and

5 (4) by striking subparagraph (B).

6 (b) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Section 521(b)(2) is amend7 ed—

8 (1) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting

9 the following:

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise

11 provided in this subsection, any person who is

12 determined by the Secretary, after notice and

13 opportunity for a hearing, to have committed

14 an act which is a violation of regulations issued

15 by the Secretary under subchapter III of chap16 ter 311 (except sections 31137 and 31138) or

17 section 31502 of this title shall be liable to the

18 United States for a civil penalty in an amount

19 not to exceed $10,000 for each offense. Not20 withstanding any other provision of this section

21 (except subparagraph (C)), no civil penalty

22 shall be assessed under this section against an

23 employee for a violation in an amount exceeding

24 $2,500.’’;
122

•S 1234 IS

1 (2) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) and

2 (C) as subparagraphs (C) and (D), respectively; and

3 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the fol4 lowing:

5 ‘‘(B) RECORDKEEPING AND REPORTING

6 VIOLATIONS.—

7 ‘‘(i) A person required to make a re8 port to the Secretary, answer a question,

9 or make, prepare, or preserve a record

10 under section 504 of this title or under any

11 regulation issued by the Secretary pursu12 ant to subchapter III of chapter 311 (ex13 cept sections 31137 and 31138) or section

14 31502 of this title about transportation by

15 motor carrier, motor carrier of migrant

16 workers, or motor private carrier, or an of17 ficer, agent, or employee of that person,

18 who—

19 ‘‘(I) does not make that report;

20 ‘‘(II) does not specifically, com21 pletely, and truthfully answer that

22 question in 30 days from the date the

23 Secretary requires the question to be

24 answered; or
123

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(III) does not make, prepare, or

2 preserve that record in the form and

3 manner prescribed by the Secretary,

4 shall be liable to the United States for a

5 civil penalty in an amount not to exceed

6 $500 for each offense, and each day of the

7 violation shall constitute a separate of8 fense, except that the total of all civil pen9 alties assessed against any violator for all

10 offenses related to any single violation

11 shall not exceed $5,000.

12 ‘‘(ii) Any such person, or an officer,

13 agent, or employee of that person, who—

14 ‘‘(I) knowingly falsifies, destroys,

15 mutilates, or changes a required re16 port or record;

17 ‘‘(II) knowingly files a false re18 port with the Secretary;

19 ‘‘(III) knowingly makes or causes

20 or permits to be made a false or in21 complete entry in that record about

22 an operation or business fact or trans23 action; or
124

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(IV) knowingly makes, prepares,

2 or preserves a record in violation of a

3 regulation or order of the Secretary,

4 shall be liable to the United States for a

5 civil penalty in an amount not to exceed

6 $5,000 for each violation, provided that

7 any such action can be shown to have mis8 represented a fact that constitutes a viola9 tion other than a reporting or record10 keeping violation.’’.

11 (c) PENALTY FOR AIDING AND ABETTING.—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 is amended by

13 adding at the end thereof the following:

14 ‘‘§ 527. Aiding and abetting

15 ‘‘A person who knowingly aids, abets, counsels, com16 mands, induces, or procures a violation of a regulation or

17 order issued by the Secretary under chapter 311 or section

18 31502 of this title shall be subject to civil and criminal

19 penalties under this chapter to the same extent as the

20 motor carrier or driver who commits a violation.’’.

21 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter

22 analysis for that chapter is amended by inserting

23 after the item relating to section 526 the following:

‘‘527. Aiding and abetting.’’.

24 (d) AUTHORITY TO INVESTIGATE.—Section 506(a) is

25 amended—
125

•S 1234 IS

1 (1) by inserting ‘‘, freight forwarder, shipper,

2 broker, consignee, or other person’’ after ‘‘motor pri3 vate carrier’’;

4 (2) by striking ‘‘or’’ after ‘‘migrant workers’’;

5 and

6 (3) by striking the last sentence.

7 (e) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 507(a)(2) is amend8 ed—

9 (1) by inserting ‘‘, shipper, broker, consignee,

10 or other person’’ after ‘‘freight forwarder’’; and

11 (2) by striking ‘‘or’’ after ‘‘motor private car12 rier’’.

13 (f) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

14 (1) Section 503(a) is amended by striking ‘‘(ex15 cept a motor contract carrier)’’.

16 (2) Section 522 is amended—

17 (A) by striking ‘‘(a)’’ in subsection (a);

18 and

19 (B) by striking subsection (b).

20 SEC. 655. INTERNATIONAL REGISTRATION PLAN AND

21 INTERNATIONAL FUEL TAX AGREEMENT.

22 Chapter 317 is amended—

23 (1) by striking sections 31702, 31703, and

24 31708; and
126

•S 1234 IS

1 (2) by striking the items relating to sections

2 31702, 31703, and 31708 in the chapter analysis

3 for that chapter.

4 SEC. 656. STUDY OF ADEQUACY OF PARKING FACILITIES.

5 The Secretary shall conduct a study to determine the

6 location and quantity of parking facilities at commercial

7 truck stops and travel plazas and public rest areas that

8 could be used by motor carriers to comply with Federal

9 hours-of-service rules. The study shall include an inven10 tory of current facilities serving the National Highway

11 System, analyze where shortages exist or are projected to

12 exist, and propose a plan to reduce the shortages. The

13 study may be carried out in cooperation with research en14 tities representing the motor carrier and travel plaza in15 dustry.

16 SEC. 657. NATIONAL MINIMUM DRINKING AGE—TECHNICAL

17 CORRECTIONS.

18 Section 158 of title 23, United States Code, is

19 amended—

20 (1) by striking ‘‘104(b)(2), 104(b)(5), and

21 104(b)(6)’’ each place it appears in subsection (a)

22 and inserting ‘‘104(b)(3), and 104(b)(5)(B)’’; and

23 (2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the

24 following:
127

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(b) AVAILABILITY OF WITHHELD FUNDS.—No

2 funds withheld under this section from apportionment to

3 any State after September 31, 1988, shall be available for

4 apportionment to such State.’’.

5 TITLE VII—RESEARCH

6 Subtitle A—Programs and

7 Activities

8 SEC. 701. TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH AND DEVELOP9 MENT.

10 Subtitle III is amended by adding a new chapter 52

11 to read as follows:

‘‘CHAPTER 52—RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

‘‘SUBCHAPTER I—GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE

‘‘Sec.

‘‘5201. Transactional authority.

‘‘5202. Reliance on competition.

‘‘5203. Authorizations.

‘‘SUBCHAPTER II—PLANNING

‘‘5221. Planning.

‘‘5222. Implementation.

‘‘SUBCHAPTER III—ADVANCED TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH AND

DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

‘‘5231. Intermodal transportation research and development program.

‘‘SUBCHAPTER IV—PROFESSIONAL CAPACITY BUILDING

‘‘5241.—National university transportation centers.

12 ‘‘Subchapter I—General and Administrative

13 ‘‘§ 5201. Transactional authority

14 ‘‘To carry out this chapter, the Secretary of Trans15 portation may enter into contracts, grants, cooperative

16 agreements, and other transactions with any person, agen-
128

•S 1234 IS

1 cy, or instrumentality of the United States, any unit of

2 State or local government, any educational institution, and

3 any other entity to further the objectives of this chapter.

4 ‘‘§ 5202. Reliance on competition

5 ‘‘The Secretary of Transportation may award grants

6 or contracts to university transportation centers estab7 lished through competition under section 5241 of this title

8 without further competition. A noncompetitive award au9 thorized by this section must be for transportation re10 search, development, education or training consistent with

11 the strategic plan approved as part of the selection process

12 for the center.

13 ‘‘§ 5203. Authorizations

14 ‘‘(a) There is available from the Highway Trust

15 Fund, other than the Mass Transit Account, for the Sec16 retary of Transportation $10,000,000 for fiscal year 1998,

17 $15,000,000 for fiscal year 1999, $20,000,000 for fiscal

18 year 2000, $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2001, $30,000,000

19 for fiscal year 2002, and $35,000,000 for fiscal year 2003,

20 to carry out subchapters II and III of this chapter.

21 ‘‘(b) CONTRACT AUTHORITY AND AVAILABILITY OF

22 FUNDS.—Funds authorized by this section shall be avail23 able for obligation in the same manner as if such funds

24 were apportioned under chapter 1 of title 23, United

25 States Code; except that any Federal share of the cost
129

•S 1234 IS

1 of any activity under subchapters II and III of this chap2 ter shall be in accordance with the provision of those sub3 chapters, and such funds shall remain available for obliga4 tion for a period of 2 years after the last day of the fiscal

5 year for which such funds are authorized.

6 ‘‘Subchapter II—Planning

7 ‘‘§ 5221. Planning

8 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of Transportation

9 shall establish a strategic planning process to determine

10 national transportation research and technology priorities,

11 coordinate Federal transportation research and technology

12 activities, and measure the impact of these research and

13 technology investments on the performance of the national

14 transportation system.

15 ‘‘(b) CRITERIA.—In developing strategic plans for

16 intermodal, multimodal, and modal research and tech17 nology, the Secretary shall consider the need to:

18 ‘‘(1) Coordinate and link Federal, regional,

19 state, and metropolitan planning activities;

20 ‘‘(2) Ensure that standard-setting in transpor21 tation is compatible with the concept of a seamless

22 transportation system;

23 ‘‘(3) Encourage innovation;

24 ‘‘(4) Identify and facilitate initiatives and part25 nerships to deploy advanced technology with the po-
130

•S 1234 IS

1 tential for improving transportation systems over ten

2 years;

3 ‘‘(5) Identify core research to support the Na4 tion’s long-term transportation technology and sys5 tem needs, including safety;

6 ‘‘(6) Ensure the Nation’s ability to compete on

7 a global basis; and

8 ‘‘(7) Provide a means of assessing the impact of

9 Federal research and technology investments on the

10 performance of the Nation’s transportation system.

11 ‘‘§ 5222. Implementation

12 ‘‘In implementing section 5221, the Secretary of

13 Transportation shall adopt such policies and procedures

14 as appropriate—

15 ‘‘(1) to provide for consultation among the Ad16 ministrators of the operating administrations of the

17 Department and other Federal officials with respon18 sibility for research important to national transpor19 tation needs;

20 ‘‘(2) to promote the maximum exchange of in21 formation on transportation-related research and de22 velopment activities among the operating elements of

23 the Department, other Federal departments and

24 agencies, state and local governments, colleges and
131

•S 1234 IS

1 universities, industry and other private and public

2 sector organizations engaged in such activities;

3 ‘‘(3) to ensure that the Department’s research

4 and development programs do not duplicate other

5 Federal research and development programs;

6 ‘‘(4) to ensure that the Department’s research

7 and development activities make appropriate use of

8 the talents, skills, and abilities residing at the Fed9 eral laboratories and leverage, to the extent prac10 tical, the research capabilities of institutions of high11 er education and private industry; and

12 ‘‘(5) to validate the scientific and technical as13 sumptions underlying the Department’s research

14 and technology plans.

15 ‘‘Subchapter III—Advanced Transportation

16 Research and Development Programs

17 ‘‘§ 5231. Intermodal transportation research and de18 velopment program

19 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Transpor20 tation shall establish a program to be known as the ‘Inter21 modal Transportation Research and Development Pro22 gram’.

23 ‘‘(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the Intermodal

24 Transportation Research and Development Program are

25 to—
132

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(1) enhance the capabilities of Federal agen2 cies in meeting national transportation needs as de3 fined by their missions through support for basic

4 and applied research and development impacting the

5 various modes of transportation including research

6 and development in safety, security, mobility, energy

7 and environment, information and physical infra8 structure, and industrial design;

9 ‘‘(2) identify and apply innovative research per10 formed by the Government, academia and the pri11 vate sector to the intermodal and multimodal trans12 portation research, development, and deployment

13 needs of the Department and the Nation’s transpor14 tation enterprise;

15 ‘‘(3) identify and leverage research, tech16 nologies, and other information developed by the

17 Government for national defense and non-defense

18 purposes for the benefit of public, commercial and

19 defense transportation sectors; and

20 ‘‘(4) share information, analytical and research

21 capabilities among Federal, state and local govern22 ments, colleges and universities, and private organi23 zations to advance their transportation research, de24 velopment and deployment needs.
133

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘Subchapter IV—Professional Capacity

2 Building

3 ‘‘§ 5241. National university transportation centers

4 ‘‘(a) REGIONALLY-BASED CENTERS.—The Secretary

5 of Transportation shall make grants to nonprofit institu6 tions of higher learning to establish and operate one uni7 versity transportation center in each of the ten (10) Unit8 ed States Government regions that comprise the Standard

9 Federal Regional Boundary System.

10 ‘‘(b) OTHER CENTERS.—The Secretary may make

11 grants to non-profit institutions of higher learning to es12 tablish and operate up to ten other university transpor13 tation centers to address transportation management, re14 search and development, with special attention to increas15 ing the number of highly skilled minority individuals and

16 women entering the transportation workforce; transpor17 tation and industrial productivity; rural transportation;

18 advanced transportation technology; international trans19 portation policy studies; transportation infrastructure

20 technology; urban transportation research; transportation

21 and the environment; surface transportation safety; or

22 such other national transportation issues designated by

23 the Secretary.

24 ‘‘(c) SELECTION CRITERIA.—A nonprofit institution

25 of higher learning interested in receiving a grant under
134

•S 1234 IS

1 this section shall submit an application to the Secretary

2 in the way and containing the information the Secretary

3 prescribes. The Secretary shall select each recipient

4 through a competitive process on the basis of the follow5 ing:

6 ‘‘(1) for regionally based centers, the location of

7 the center within the Federal Region to be served;

8 ‘‘(2) the demonstrated research and extension

9 resources available to the recipient to carry out this

10 section;

11 ‘‘(3) the capability of the recipient to provide

12 leadership in making national and regional contribu13 tions to the solution of immediate and long-range

14 transportation problems;

15 ‘‘(4) the recipient’s establishment of a surface

16 transportation program encompassing several modes

17 of transportation;

18 ‘‘(5) the recipient’s demonstrated commitment

19 of at least $200,000 in regularly budgeted institu20 tional amounts each year to support ongoing trans21 portation research and education programs;

22 ‘‘(6) the recipient’s demonstrated ability to dis23 seminate results of transportation research and edu24 cation programs through a statewide or region-wide

25 continuing education program; and
135

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(7) the strategic plan the recipient proposes to

2 carry out under the grant.

3 ‘‘(d) OBJECTIVES.—Each university transportation

4 center shall conduct—

5 ‘‘(1) basic and applied research, the products of

6 which are judged by peers or other experts in the

7 field to advance the body of knowledge in transpor8 tation;

9 ‘‘(2) an education program that includes multi10 disciplinary course work and participation in re11 search; and

12 ‘‘(3) an ongoing program of technology transfer

13 that makes research results available to potential

14 users in a form that can be implemented, utilized or

15 otherwise applied.

16 ‘‘(e) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—Before making a

17 grant under this section, the Secretary may require the

18 recipient to make an agreement with the Secretary to en19 sure that the recipient will maintain total expenditures

20 from all other sources to establish and operate a university

21 transportation center and related research activities at a

22 level at least equal to the average level of those expendi23 tures in its 2 fiscal years prior to award of a grant under

24 this section.
136

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(f) FEDERAL SHARE.—A grant under this section

2 is for 50 percent of the cost of establishing and operating

3 the university transportation center and related research

4 activities the recipient carries out. The non-Federal share

5 may include funds provided to a recipient under section

6 5307 or 5311 of this title.

7 ‘‘(g) PROGRAM COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall

8 provide for coordinating research, education, training, and

9 technology transfer activities that grant recipients carry

10 out under this section, the dissemination of the results of

11 the research, and the establishment and operation of a

12 clearinghouse. At least annually, the Secretary shall re13 view and evaluate programs the grant recipients carry out.

14 The Secretary may use not more than one percent of

15 amounts made available from Government sources to carry

16 out this subsection.

17 ‘‘(h) AMOUNTS AVAILABLE FOR TECHNOLOGY

18 TRANSFER ACTIVITIES.—At least 5 percent of the

19 amounts made available to carry out this section in a fiscal

20 year are available to carry out technology transfer activi21 ties.

22 ‘‘(i) LIMITATION ON AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—

23 Funds made available to carry out this program remain

24 available for obligation for a period of 2 years after the
137

•S 1234 IS

1 last day of the fiscal year for which such funds are author2 ized.’’.

3 SEC. 702. BUREAU OF TRANSPORTATION STATISTICS.

4 (a) Section 111(b)(4) is amended by striking the sec5 ond sentence.

6 (b) Section 111(c)(1) is amended—

7 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in

8 subparagraph (J);

9 (2) by striking ‘‘system.’’ in subparagraph (K)

10 and inserting ‘‘system; and’’; and

11 (3) by adding at the end the following:

12 ‘‘(L) transportation-related variables influ13 encing global competitiveness.’’.

14 (c) Section 111(c)(2) is amended—

15 (1) by striking ‘‘national transportation sys16 tem’’ in the first sentence and inserting ‘‘nation’s

17 transportation systems’’;

18 (2) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting

19 the following:

20 ‘‘(A) be coordinated with efforts to meas21 ure outputs and outcomes of the Department of

22 Transportation and the nation’s transportation

23 systems under the Government Performance

24 and Results Act;’’; and
138

•S 1234 IS

1 (3) by inserting a comma and ‘‘made relevant

2 to the States and metropolitan planning organiza3 tions,’’ after ‘‘accuracy’’ in subparagraph (C).

4 (d) Section 111(c)(3) is amended by adding at the

5 end the following: ‘‘The Bureau shall review and report

6 to the Secretary of Transportation on the sources and reli7 ability of the statistics proposed by the modal administra8 tions to measure outputs and outcomes as required by the

9 Government Performance and Results Act, and shall un10 dertake such other reviews of the sources and reliability

11 of other data collected by the modal administrations as

12 shall be requested by the Secretary.’’.

13 (e) Section 111(c) is amended by adding at the end

14 the following:

15 ‘‘(7) SUPPORTING TRANSPORTATION DECISION

16 MAKING.—Ensuring that the statistics compiled

17 under paragraph (1) of this subsection are relevant

18 for transportation decisions by Federal, State, and

19 local governments, transportation-related associa20 tions, private business, and consumers.’’.

21 (f) Section 111 is amended—

22 (1) by redesignating subsections (d), (e) and (f)

23 as subsections (h), (i) and (j), respectively;

24 (2) by striking subsection (g); and
139

•S 1234 IS

1 (3) by inserting after subsection (c) the follow2 ing:

3 ‘‘(d) INTERMODAL TRANSPORTATION DATA BASE.—

4 The Director shall establish and maintain an Intermodal

5 Transportation Data Base, in consultation with the As6 sistant Secretaries and operating Administrations of the

7 Department. This data base shall be suitable for analyses

8 conducted by the Federal Government, the States, and

9 metropolitan planning organizations. The data base shall

10 include but not be limited to—

11 ‘‘(1) information on the volumes and patterns

12 of movement of goods, including local, interregional,

13 and international movements, by all modes of trans14 portation and intermodal combinations, and by rel15 evant classification;

16 ‘‘(2) information on the volumes and patterns

17 of movement of people, including local, interregional,

18 and international movements, by all modes of trans19 portation and intermodal combinations, and by rel20 evant classification; and

21 ‘‘(3) information on the location and

22 connectivity of transportation facilities and services

23 and a national accounting of expenditures and cap24 ital stocks on each mode of transportation and inter25 modal combinations.
140

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(e) NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION LIBRARY.—The

2 Director shall establish and maintain the National Trans3 portation Library, containing a collection of statistical and

4 other information needed for transportation decision mak5 ing at the Federal, State, and local levels. The Bureau

6 shall facilitate and promote access to the Library, with

7 the goal of improving the ability of the transportation

8 community to share information and the Bureau to make

9 statistics readily accessible under paragraph (c)(5) of this

10 section. The Bureau shall work with other transportation

11 libraries and other transportation information providers,

12 both public and private, to achieve this goal.

13 ‘‘(f) NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION ATLAS DATA

14 BASE.—The Director shall develop and maintain geo-spa15 tial data bases depicting transportation networks; flows of

16 people, goods, vehicles, and craft over those networks; and

17 social, economic, and environmental conditions affecting

18 or affected by those networks. These data bases shall be

19 able to support intermodal network analysis.

20 ‘‘(g) RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT GRANTS.—The

21 Secretary may make grants to, or enter into cooperative

22 agreements or contracts with, public and nonprofit private

23 entities (including, but not limited to, State Departments

24 of Transportation, metropolitan planning organizations,

25 Transportation Research Centers, and universities) for—
141

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(1) the investigation of the subjects listed in

2 subsection (c)(1) of this section and for research and

3 development of new methods of data collection, man4 agement, integration, dissemination, interpretation,

5 and analysis;

6 ‘‘(2) development of electronic clearinghouses of

7 transportation data and related information, as part

8 of the National Transportation Library under sub9 section (e) of this section; and

10 ‘‘(3) development and improvement of methods

11 for sharing geographic data, in support of the Na12 tional Transportation Atlas Data Base under sub13 section (f) and the National Spatial Data Infrastruc14 ture.’’.

15 (g) Section 111(i), as redesignated, is amended to

16 read as follows:

17 ‘‘(i) PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN DISCLOSURES.—

18 ‘‘(1) An officer or employee of the Bureau may

19 not—

20 ‘‘(A) make any publication in which the

21 data furnished by a person under paragraph

22 (c)(2) can be identified;

23 ‘‘(B) use the information furnished under

24 the provisions of paragraph (c)(2) of this sec25 tion for a non-statistical purpose; or
142

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(C) permit anyone other than the individuals

2 authorized by the Director to examine individual re3 ports furnished under paragraph (c)(2) of this sec4 tion.

5 ‘‘(2) No department, bureau, agency, officer, or

6 employee of the United States except the Director of

7 the Bureau of Transportation Statistics in carrying

8 out the purpose of this section, shall require, for any

9 reason, copies of reports which have been filed under

10 paragraph (c)(2) with the Bureau of Transportation

11 Statistics or retained by any individual respondent.

12 Copies of such reports which have been so retained

13 or filed with the Bureau or any of its employees,

14 contractors, or agents shall be immune from legal

15 process, and shall not, without the consent of the in16 dividual concerned, be admitted as evidence or used

17 for any purpose in any action, suit, or other judicial

18 or administrative proceeding. This paragraph shall

19 only apply to individually identifiable data.

20 ‘‘(3) In a case in which the Bureau is author21 ized by statute to collect data or information for

22 nonstatistical purposes, the Director shall clearly

23 distinguish the collection of such data or information

24 by rule and on the collection instrument to inform
143

•S 1234 IS

1 a respondent requested or required to supply the

2 data or information of the nonstatistical purposes.’’.

3 (h) Section 111(j), as redesignated, is amended by

4 striking ‘‘On or before January 1, 1994, and annually

5 thereafter, the’’ and inserting ‘‘The’’.

6 (i) Section 111 is amended by adding at the end the

7 following:

8 ‘‘(k) DATA PRODUCT SALES PROCEEDS.—Notwith9 standing section 3302 of title 31, United States Code,

10 funds received by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics

11 from the sale of data products may be credited to the

12 Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Ac13 count) for the purpose of reimbursing the Bureau for such

14 expenses.

15 ‘‘(l)(1) FUNDING.—There are authorized to be appro16 priated out of the Highway Trust Fund (other than the

17 Mass Transit Account), $31,000,000 for each of fiscal

18 years 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003 to carry

19 out this section, provided that amounts for activities under

20 subsection (g) of this section may not exceed $500,000

21 per year. Amounts made available under this subsection

22 shall remain available for a period of 3 years.

23 ‘‘(2) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—Funds authorized by

24 this subsection shall be available for obligation in the same
144

•S 1234 IS

1 manner as if such funds were apportioned under chapter

2 1 of title 23, United States Code.’’.

3 (j) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 5503 is

4 amended by striking subsection (d) and redesignating sub5 sections (e), (f), and (g) as subsections (d), (e), and (f),

6 respectively.

7 SEC. 703. RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM.

8 (a) Section 307 of title 23, United States Code, is

9 amended to read as follows:

10 ‘‘§ 307 Research and planning

11 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS; GENERAL AUTHORITY; AND COL12 LABORATIVE AGREEMENTS.—

13 ‘‘(1) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

14 ‘‘(A) Results of research, technology trans15 fer, studies, and activities have demonstrated

16 that continued and increased efforts to provide

17 for technical innovation must be a cornerstone

18 in the foundation as the transportation commu19 nity moves into the next century.

20 ‘‘(B) A strong Federal transportation re21 search and technology program is recognized as

22 essential to ensure that innovation is developed

23 and incorporated into the multi-billion dollar in24 frastructure program.
145

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(C) Technology advancement is essential

2 to support the Nation’s infrastructure needs

3 and, in turn, its ability to continue to partici4 pate successfully in a global marketplace and

5 economy.

6 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY.—

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

8 engage in research, development, and tech9 nology transfer activities with respect to motor

10 carrier transportation and all phases of highway

11 planning and development (including construc12 tion, operation, modernization, development, de13 sign, maintenance, safety, financing, and traffic

14 conditions) and the effect thereon of State laws

15 and may test, develop, or assist in testing and

16 developing any material, invention, patented ar17 ticle, or process.

18 ‘‘(B) COOPERATION, GRANTS, AND CON19 TRACTS.—The Secretary may carry out this

20 section either independently or in cooperation

21 with other Federal departments, agencies, and

22 instrumentalities or by making grants to, or en23 tering into contracts, cooperative agreements,

24 and other transactions with, the National Acad25 emy of Sciences, the American Association of
146

•S 1234 IS

1 State Highway and Transportation Officials, or

2 any State agency, authority, association, insti3 tution, corporation (profit or nonprofit), organi4 zation, or person.

5 ‘‘(C) TECHNICAL INNOVATION.—The Sec6 retary shall develop and administer programs to

7 facilitate application of the products of research

8 and technical innovations that will improve the

9 safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of the high10 way system.

11 ‘‘(D) FUNDS.—

12 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except where spe13 cifically noted otherwise in other sections

14 of chapter 3, the funds necessary to carry

15 out this subsection shall be taken by the

16 Secretary out of administrative funds de17 ducted pursuant to section 104(a) of this

18 title and such funds as may be deposited

19 by any cooperating organization or person

20 in a special account of the Treasury of the

21 United States established for such pur22 poses, and such funds shall remain avail23 able for obligation for a period of 3 years

24 after the last day of the fiscal year for

25 which the funds are authorized.
147

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) USE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary

2 shall use funds available to carry out this

3 section to develop, administer, commu4 nicate, and achieve the use of products of

5 the research, development, and technology

6 transfer programs, and to otherwise inter7 act with partners and users in the plan8 ning and dissemination of results.

9 ‘‘(3) COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH AND DEVEL10 OPMENT.—

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of

12 encouraging innovative solutions to surface

13 transportation problems and stimulating the

14 marketing of new technology by private indus15 try, the Secretary is authorized to undertake,

16 on a cost-shared basis, collaborative research

17 and development with non-Federal entities, in18 cluding State and local governments, foreign

19 governments, colleges and universities, corpora20 tions, institutions, partnerships, sole proprietor21 ships, and trade associations that are incor22 porated or established under the laws of any

23 State.

24 ‘‘(B) AGREEMENTS.—In carrying out this

25 paragraph, the Secretary may enter into cooper-
148

•S 1234 IS

1 ative research and development agreements, as

2 such term is defined under section 12 of the

3 Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of

4 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3710a).

5 ‘‘(C) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal

6 share payable on account of activities carried

7 out under a cooperative research and develop8 ment agreement entered into under this para9 graph shall not exceed 50 percent of the total

10 cost of such activities; except that, if there is

11 substantial public interest or benefit, the Sec12 retary may approve a higher Federal share. All

13 costs directly incurred by the non-Federal part14 ners, including personnel, travel, and hardware

15 development costs, shall be treated as part of

16 the non-Federal share of the cost of such activi17 ties for purposes of the preceding sentence.

18 ‘‘(D) UTILIZATION OF TECHNOLOGY.—The

19 research, development, or utilization of any

20 technology pursuant to a cooperative research

21 and development agreement entered into under

22 this paragraph, including the terms under

23 which the technology may be licensed and the

24 resulting royalties may be distributed, shall be
149

•S 1234 IS

1 subject to the Stevenson-Wydler Technology In2 novation Act of 1980.

3 ‘‘(E) FUNDS.—The funds necessary to

4 carry out this paragraph shall be taken by the

5 Secretary out of administrative funds deducted

6 pursuant to section 104(a) of this title and such

7 funds as may be deposited by any cooperating

8 organization or person in a special account of

9 the Treasury of the United States established

10 for such purposes.

11 ‘‘(4) WAIVER OF ADVERTISING REQUIRE12 MENTS.—The provisions of section 3709 of the Re13 vised Statutes (41 U.S.C. 5) shall not be applicable

14 to contracts or agreements entered into under this

15 chapter.

16 ‘‘(b) MANDATORY CONTENTS OF PROGRAM.—The

17 Secretary shall include in the surface transportation re18 search, development, and technology transfer programs

19 under this subsection and as specified elsewhere in this

20 title—

21 ‘‘(1) a coordinated long-term program of re22 search for the development, use, and dissemination

23 of performance indicators to measure the perform24 ance of the surface transportation system of the

25 United States, including indicators for productivity,
150

•S 1234 IS

1 efficiency, energy use, air quality, congestion, safety,

2 maintenance, and other factors which reflect the

3 overall performance of such system.

4 ‘‘(2) a program to strengthen and expand sur5 face transportation infrastructure research, develop6 ment, and technology transfer, including, as a mini7 mum, the following elements:

8 ‘‘(A) Methods and materials for improving

9 the durability of surface transportation infra10 structure facilities and extending the life of

11 bridge structures, including new and innovative

12 technologies to reduce corrosion.

13 ‘‘(B) Expansion of the Department of

14 Transportation’s inspection and mobile non15 destructive examination capabilities, including

16 consideration of the use of high energy field ra17 diography for more thorough and more frequent

18 inspection of bridge structures as well as added

19 support to State, local, and tribal highway de20 partments.

21 ‘‘(C) A research and development program

22 directed toward the reduction of costs associ23 ated with the construction of highways and

24 mass transit systems.
151

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(D) A surface transportation research

2 program to develop nondestructive evaluation

3 equipment for use with existing infrastructure

4 facilities and for next generation infrastructure

5 facilities that utilize advanced materials.

6 ‘‘(E) Information technology including ap7 propriate computer programs to collect and

8 analyze data on the status of the existing infra9 structure facilities for enhancing management,

10 growth, and capacity; and dynamic simulation

11 models of surface transportation systems for

12 predicting capacity, safety, and infrastructure

13 durability problems, for evaluating planned re14 search projects, and for testing the strengths

15 and weaknesses of proposed revisions in surface

16 transportation operations programs.

17 ‘‘(F) New innovative technologies to en18 hance and facilitate field construction and reha19 bilitation techniques for minimizing disruption

20 during repair and maintenance of existing

21 structures.

22 ‘‘(G) Initiatives to improve the Nation’s

23 ability to respond to emergencies and natural

24 disasters, and to enhance national defense mo25 bility.
152

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(c) As used in this chapter the term ‘safety’ in2 cludes, but is not limited to, highway safety systems, re3 search, and development relating to vehicle, highway, and

4 driver characteristics, accident investigations, communica5 tions, emergency medical care, and transportation of the

6 injured.’’.

7 SEC. 704. NATIONAL TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT INITIA8 TIVES.

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 3 of title 23, United

10 States Code, is amended—

11 (1) by striking section 321; and

12 (2) by amending section 326 to read as follows:

13 ‘‘§ 326. National technology deployment initiatives

14 program

15 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall develop

16 and administer a National Technology Deployment Initia17 tives program for the purpose of significantly expanding

18 the adoption of innovative technologies by the surface

19 transportation community.

20 ‘‘(b) DEPLOYMENT GOALS.—The Secretary shall es21 tablish a limited number of goals for the program carried

22 out under this section. Each of the goals and the program

23 developed to achieve the goals shall be designed to provide

24 tangible benefits in the areas of transportation system effi25 ciency, safety, reliability, service life, environmental pro-
153

•S 1234 IS

1 tection, and sustainability. For each of these goals, the

2 Secretary, in cooperation with representatives of the trans3 portation community such as the States, local government,

4 the private sector, and academia, shall access domestic

5 and international technology to develop strategies and ini6 tiatives to achieve the goal, including technical assistance

7 in deploying technology, and mechanisms for sharing in8 formation among program participants. Goals to be ad9 dressed may include:

10 ‘‘(1) Reduced delay and improved safety within

11 construction and maintenance work areas.

12 ‘‘(2) Extended life of the current infrastructure.

13 ‘‘(3) Increased system durability and life, in14 cluding applications of high performance materials.

15 ‘‘(4) Improved safety of driving at night and

16 other periods of reduced visibility.

17 ‘‘(5) Support and enhancement of the environ18 ment with use of innovative technologies.

19 ‘‘(6) Support of community-oriented transpor20 tation and sustainable development.

21 ‘‘(7) Minimized transportation system closures,

22 constraints, and delay caused by snow and ice.

23 ‘‘(c) FUNDING.—There are authorized to be appro24 priated, out of the Highway Trust Fund (other than the

25 Mass Transit Account), $56,000,000 for each of fiscal
154

•S 1234 IS

1 years 1998, 1999, and 2000; and $84,000,000 for each

2 of fiscal years 2001, 2002, and 2003 to carry out this

3 section. Where appropriate to achieve the goals outlined

4 above, the Secretary may further allocate such funds to

5 States for their use.

6 ‘‘(d) LEVERAGING OF RESOURCES.—The Secretary

7 shall give preference to projects that leverage Federal

8 funds against significant resources from other sources,

9 public or private.

10 ‘‘(e) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—Funds authorized by

11 this subsection shall be available for obligation in the same

12 manner as if such funds were apportioned under chapter

13 1 of this title; except that the Federal share of the cost

14 of any activity under this section shall be determined by

15 the Secretary and such funds shall remain available for

16 obligation for a period of 3 years after the last day of

17 the fiscal year for which the funds are authorized. After

18 providing notice and an opportunity for comment, the Sec19 retary may waive, in whole or in part, application of any

20 provision of this title, if the Secretary determines that

21 such waiver is not contrary to the public interest and will

22 advance the technology deployment nationwide. Any waiv23 er under this section shall be published in the Federal

24 Register, together with reasons for such waiver.’’.
155

•S 1234 IS

1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis for

2 chapter 3 is amended by—

3 (1) striking the item relating to section 321;

4 and

5 (2) striking the item relating to section 326 and

6 inserting the following:

‘‘326. National technology deployment initiatives program.’’.

7 Subtitle B—Intelligent

8 Transportation Systems Act of 1997

9 SEC. 751. SHORT TITLE AND FINDINGS.

10 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This subtitle may be cited as the

11 ‘‘Intelligent Transportation Systems Act of 1997’’.

12 (b) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that the research

13 and tests conducted under the Intelligent Transportation

14 Systems Act of 1991 demonstrated the potential benefit

15 and readiness of Intelligent Transportation Systems to en16 hance the safety and efficiency of surface transportation

17 operations in a variety of ways.

18 (c) PURPOSE.— The purpose of this subtitle is to pro19 vide for the accelerated deployment of proven technologies

20 and concepts, while also increasing the Federal commit21 ment to improving surface transportation safety through

22 aggressive, long-range research, development, testing, and

23 promotion of crash avoidance technologies and systems in

24 cooperation with industry.
156

•S 1234 IS

1 SEC. 752. DEFINITIONS; CONFORMING AMENDMENT.

2 (a) For the purposes of this subtitle, the following

3 definitions apply:

4 (1) ADVANCED RURAL TRANSPORTATION SYS5 TEMS.—The term ‘‘Advanced Rural Transportation

6 Systems’’ means the construction, or acquisition,

7 and operation of ITS predominantly outside of met8 ropolitan areas, and including public lands such as

9 National Parks, monuments, and recreation areas,

10 for the purposes of providing—

11 (A) traveler safety and security advisories

12 and warnings;

13 (B) emergency ‘‘Mayday’’ services to notify

14 public safety and emergency response organiza15 tions of travelers in need of emergency services;

16 (C) tourism and traveler information serv17 ices;

18 (D) public mobility services to improve the

19 efficiency and accessibility of rural transit serv20 ice;

21 (E) enhanced rural transit fleet operations

22 and management;

23 (F) improved highway operations and

24 maintenance through the rapid detection of se25 vere weather conditions, hazardous road and

26 bridge conditions, and imminent danger to con-
157

•S 1234 IS

1 struction and maintenance crews from errant

2 vehicles in work zones; and

3 (G) Commercial Vehicle Operations (CVO)

4 user services.

5 (2) CVISN.—The term ‘‘Commercial Vehicle

6 Information Systems and Networks’’ means the in7 formation systems and communications networks

8 that support CVO.

9 (3) CVO.—The term ‘‘Commercial Vehicle Op10 erations’’ means motor carrier operations and motor

11 vehicle regulatory activities associated with the com12 mercial movement of goods, including hazardous ma13 terials, and passengers. Public sector CVO activities

14 include the issuance of operating credentials, motor

15 vehicle and fuel tax administration, and roadside

16 safety and border crossing inspection and regulatory

17 compliance operations.

18 (4) INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION INFRA19 STRUCTURE.—The term ‘‘Intelligent Transportation

20 Infrastructure’’ means the initial construction or ac21 quisition of fully integrated public sector ITS com22 ponents as defined by the Secretary, including traf23 fic signal control systems, freeway management sys24 tems, incident management systems, transit manage25 ment systems, regional multi-modal traveler infor-
158

•S 1234 IS

1 mation systems, emergency management services,

2 electronic toll collection systems, electronic fare pay3 ment systems, ITS-based railroad grade crossing

4 safety systems, roadway weather information and

5 prediction systems, advanced rural transportation

6 systems, and commercial vehicle information systems

7 and networks.

8 (5) INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION SYS9 TEMS.—The term ‘‘intelligent transportation sys10 tems’’ means the development or application of elec11 tronics, communications, or information processing

12 (including advanced traffic management systems,

13 commercial vehicle operations, advanced traveler in14 formation systems, commercial and advanced vehicle

15 control systems, advanced public transportation sys16 tems, satellite vehicle tracking systems, and ad17 vanced vehicle communications systems) used singly

18 or in combination to improve the efficiency and safe19 ty of surface transportation systems.

20 (6) ITS COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEMS.—The

21 term ‘‘ITS Collision Avoidance Systems’’ means an

22 intelligent transportation system that assists vehicle

23 operators to avoid collisions that would otherwise

24 occur.
159

•S 1234 IS

1 (7) NATIONAL ARCHITECTURE.—The term

2 ‘‘National Architecture’’ means the common frame3 work for interoperability adopted by the Secretary,

4 and which defines the functions associated with ITS

5 user services, the physical entities or subsystems

6 within which such functions reside, the data inter7 faces and information flows between physical sub8 systems, and the communications requirements asso9 ciated with information flows.

10 (8) NATIONAL ITS PROGRAM PLAN.—The term

11 ‘‘National ITS Program Plan’’ means the March

12 1995 First Edition of the National ITS Program

13 Plan jointly developed by the U.S. Department of

14 Transportation and the Intelligent Transportation

15 Society of America, and subsequent revisions issued

16 by the Secretary pursuant to section 755(a)(1).

17 (9) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the mean18 ing such term has under section 101 of title 23,

19 United States Code.

20 (b) NATIONAL HIGHWAY SYSTEM.—The undesig21 nated paragraph in section 101(a) of title 23, United

22 States Code, relating to the National Highway System is

23 amended by inserting after ‘‘title’’ the following: ‘‘and the

24 Intelligent Transportation Infrastructure associated with

25 such system.’’.
160

•S 1234 IS

1 SEC. 753. SCOPE OF PROGRAM.

2 (a) SCOPE.—Subject to the provisions of this subtitle,

3 the Secretary shall conduct an ongoing program to re4 search, develop, and operationally test intelligent transpor5 tation systems and advance Nation-wide deployment of

6 such systems as a component of the Nation’s surface

7 transportation systems.

8 (b) GOALS.—The goals of the program to be carried

9 out under this subtitle shall include, but not be limited

10 to:

11 (1) the widespread planning, implementation

12 and operation of integrated, intermodal, interoper13 able intelligent transportation infrastructure, in con14 junction with corresponding private sector systems

15 and products, to enhance the capacity, efficiency,

16 and safety of surface transportation, using the au17 thorities provided under sections 103, 119, 133,

18 134, 135, 149, and 402 of title 23, and sections

19 31102, 5307, and 5309 of title 49, United States

20 Code;

21 (2) the protection and enhancement of the nat22 ural environment and communities affected by sur23 face transportation, with special emphasis on assist24 ing the efforts of the States to attain air quality

25 goals established pursuant to the Clean Air Act,
161

•S 1234 IS

1 while addressing the transportation demands of an

2 expanding economy;

3 (3) the enhancement of safe operation of the

4 Nation’s surface transportation systems with a par5 ticular emphasis on aspects of intelligent transpor6 tation systems that will decrease the number and se7 verity of collisions and identification of aspects of

8 such systems that may degrade safety, and on in-ve9 hicle systems that bring about a significant reduc10 tion in the deaths and injuries by helping prevent

11 collisions that would otherwise occur;

12 (4) the enhancement of surface transportation

13 operational and transactional efficiencies to allow ex14 isting facilities to be used to meet a significant por15 tion of future transportation needs, and to reduce

16 regulatory, financial, and other transaction costs to

17 public agencies and system users;

18 (5) research, development, investigation, docu19 mentation, and promotion of intelligent transpor20 tation systems and the public sector organizational

21 capabilities needed to perform or manage the plan22 ning, implementation, and operation of intelligent

23 transportation infrastructure in the United States,

24 using authorities provided under section 307 of title

25 23, United States Code, and sections 111, 112, 301,
162

•S 1234 IS

1 30168, 31106, 5312, 5337, and 20108 of title 49,

2 United States Code;

3 (6) the enhancement of the economic efficiency

4 of surface transportation systems to improve Ameri5 ca’s competitive position in the global economy;

6 (7) the enhancement of public accessibility to

7 activities, goods, and services, through the preserva8 tion, improvement and expansion of surface trans9 portation system capabilities, operational efficiency,

10 and intermodal connections;

11 (8) the development of a technology base and

12 necessary standards and protocols for intelligent

13 transportation systems; and

14 (9) the improvement of the Nation’s ability to

15 respond to emergencies and natural disasters, and

16 the enhancement of national defense mobility.

17 SEC. 754. GENERAL AUTHORITIES AND REQUIREMENTS.

18 (a) COOPERATION.—In carrying out the program

19 under this subtitle, the Secretary shall foster enhanced op20 erations and management of the Nation’s surface trans21 portation systems, strive to achieve the widespread deploy22 ment of intelligent transportation systems, and continue

23 to advance emerging technologies, in cooperation with

24 State and local governments and the United States private

25 sector. As appropriate, in carrying out the program under
163

•S 1234 IS

1 this subtitle, the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary

2 of Commerce, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Adminis3 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Direc4 tor of the National Science Foundation, and the heads of

5 other interested Federal departments and agencies and

6 shall maximize the involvement of the United States pri7 vate sector, colleges and universities, including Histori8 cally Black Colleges and Universities and other Minority

9 Institutions of Higher Education, and State and local gov10 ernments in all aspects of the program, including design,

11 conduct (including operations and maintenance), evalua12 tion, and financial or in-kind participation.

13 (b) STANDARDS.—The Secretary shall develop, imple14 ment, and maintain a National Architecture and support15 ing standards and protocols to promote the widespread use

16 and evaluation of intelligent transportation systems tech17 nology as a component of the Nation’s surface transpor18 tation systems. To the extent practicable, such standards

19 and protocols shall promote interoperability among intel20 ligent transportation systems technologies implemented

21 throughout the States. In carrying out this subsection, the

22 Secretary may use the services of such existing standards23 setting organizations as the Secretary determines appro24 priate. The Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of

25 Commerce, the Secretary of Defense, and the Federal
164

•S 1234 IS

1 Communications Commission, and take all actions the

2 Secretary deems necessary to secure the necessary spec3 trum for the near-term establishment of a dedicated short4 range vehicle to wayside wireless standard.

5 (c) EVALUATION.—The Secretary shall prescribe

6 guidelines and requirements for the independent evalua7 tion of field and related operational tests carried out pur8 suant to section 756, including provisions to ensure the

9 objectivity and independence of the evaluator needed to

10 avoid any real or apparent conflict of interest or potential

11 influence on the outcome by parties to such tests or any

12 other formal evaluation conducted under this subtitle. Any

13 survey, questionnaire, or interview which the Secretary

14 considers necessary to carry out the evaluation of such

15 tests or program assessment activities under this subtitle

16 shall not be subject to the requirements of the Paperwork

17 Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501–3520).

18 (d) INFORMATION CLEARINGHOUSE.—

19 (1) CLEARINGHOUSE.—The Secretary shall es20 tablish and maintain a repository for technical and

21 safety data collected as a result of federally spon22 sored projects carried out pursuant to this subtitle

23 and shall make, upon request, such information (ex24 cept for proprietary information and data) readily
165

•S 1234 IS

1 available to all users of the repository at an appro2 priate cost.

3 (2) DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY.—The Sec4 retary may delegate the responsibility of the Sec5 retary under this subsection, with continuing over6 sight by the Secretary, to an appropriate entity not

7 within the Department of Transportation. If the

8 Secretary delegates such responsibility, the entity to

9 which such responsibility is delegated shall be eligi10 ble for Federal assistance under this subtitle.

11 (e) ADVISORY COMMITTEES.—The Secretary may

12 utilize one or more advisory committees in carrying out

13 this subtitle. Any advisory committee so utilized shall be

14 subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act. Funding

15 provided for any such committee shall be available from

16 moneys appropriated for advisory committees as specified

17 in relevant appropriations acts and from funds allocated

18 for research, development, and implementation activities

19 in connection with the intelligent transportation systems

20 program under this subtitle.

21 (f) AUTHORITY TO USE FUNDS.—Each State and eli22 gible local entity is authorized to use funds provided under

23 this subtitle or under section 1030 of the National Eco24 nomic Crossroads Transportation Efficiency Act of 1997,

25 sections 103, 119, 133, 149, and 402, of title 23, and sec-
166

•S 1234 IS

1 tions 31102, 5307, 5309, 5310, and 5311 of title 49,

2 United States Code, in accordance with the provisions of

3 each of these sections, for implementation, modernization,

4 and operational purposes in connection with intelligent

5 transportation infrastructure and systems.

6 (g) CONFORMITY WITH STANDARDS.—The Secretary

7 shall ensure that the implementation of intelligent trans8 portation systems using funds authorized under this sub9 title conform to the National Architecture and ITS stand10 ards and protocols, developed under subsection (b), except

11 for projects using funds authorized for specific research

12 objectives in the National ITS Program Plan under sec13 tion 755 of this subtitle.

14 (h) LIFE-CYCLE COST ANALYSIS.—The Secretary

15 shall require an analysis of the life-cycle costs of each

16 project using Federal funds referenced in subsection (f)

17 of this section, and those authorized in section 757 of this

18 subtitle, for operations and maintenance of ITS elements,

19 where the total initial capital costs of the ITS elements

20 exceeds $3 million.

21 (i) PROCUREMENT METHODS.—To meet the need for

22 effective implementation of ITS projects, the Secretary

23 shall develop appropriate technical assistance and guid24 ance to assist State and local agencies in evaluating and

25 selecting appropriate methods of procurement for ITS
167

•S 1234 IS

1 projects, including innovative and nontraditional methods

2 of procurement.

3 SEC. 755. NATIONAL ITS PROGRAM PLAN, IMPLEMENTA4 TION, AND REPORT TO CONGRESS.

5 (a) NATIONAL ITS PROGRAM PLAN.—

6 (1) UPDATES.—The Secretary shall maintain

7 and update the National ITS Program Plan as nec8 essary.

9 (2) SCOPE.—The plan shall—

10 (A) specify the goals, objectives, and mile11 stones for the deployment of intelligent trans12 portation infrastructure in the context of major

13 metropolitan areas, smaller metropolitan and

14 rural areas, and commercial vehicle information

15 systems and networks, and how specific pro16 grams and projects relate to the goals, objec17 tives, and milestones, including consideration of

18 the 5-, 10-, and 20-year timeframes for the

19 goals and objectives;

20 (B) establish a course of action necessary

21 to achieve the program’s goals and objectives;

22 (C) provide for the evolutionary develop23 ment of standards and protocols to promote

24 and ensure interoperability in the implementa-
168

•S 1234 IS

1 tion of intelligent transportation systems tech2 nologies; and

3 (D) establish a cooperative process with

4 State and local governments for determining

5 desired surface transportation system perform6 ance levels and development of plans for na7 tional incorporation of specific ITS capabilities

8 into surface transportation systems.

9 (b) DEMONSTRATION AND EVALUATION OF INTEL10 LIGENT VEHICLE SYSTEMS.—The Secretary shall conduct

11 research and development activities for the purpose of

12 demonstrating integrated intelligent vehicle systems. Such

13 research shall include state-of-the-art preproduction sys14 tems and shall integrate collision avoidance, in-vehicle in15 formation, and other safety related systems. Development

16 work shall incorporate human factors research findings to

17 improve situational awareness of drivers and ensure suc18 cess of the man-machine relationship. This program shall

19 build on the technologies developed as part of the NHTSA

20 Crash Avoidance and FHWA Automated Highway System

21 programs and shall be conducted in cooperation with pri22 vate industry, educational institutions, and other inter23 ested parties.

24 (c) IMPLEMENTATION REPORTS.—
169

•S 1234 IS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year

2 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and bi3 ennially thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to

4 Congress a report on implementation of the National

5 ITS Program Plan under subsection (a) of this sec6 tion.

7 (2) SCOPE OF IMPLEMENTATION REPORTS.—In

8 preparing reports under this subsection, the Sec9 retary shall—

10 (A) summarize the status of intelligent

11 transportation infrastructure deployment

12 progress;

13 (B) analyze the possible and actual accom14 plishments of ITS projects in achieving conges15 tion, safety, environmental, and energy con16 servation goals and objectives;

17 (C) assess nontechnical problems and con18 straints identified, including the inability to se19 cure suitable spectrum allocations to implement

20 a national or international dedicated short

21 range vehicle to wayside communication stand22 ard; and

23 (D) include, if appropriate, any rec24 ommendations of the Secretary for legislation
170

•S 1234 IS

1 or modification to the National ITS Program

2 Plan developed under subsection (a).

3 SEC. 756. TECHNICAL, TRAINING, PLANNING, RESEARCH

4 AND OPERATIONAL TESTING PROJECT AS5 SISTANCE.

6 (a) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, TRAINING, AND INFOR7 MATION.—The Secretary may provide planning and tech8 nical assistance, training, and information to State and

9 local governments seeking to implement, operate, main10 tain, and evaluate ITS technologies and services.

11 (b) PLANNING ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary may

12 make available financial assistance under this section to

13 support adequate consideration of transportation system

14 management and operations, including intelligent trans15 portation systems and technologies, within metropolitan

16 and statewide transportation processes. Such financial as17 sistance shall be made available at such time, in such

18 amounts and subject to such conditions as the Secretary

19 may determine. The Secretary shall develop appropriate

20 technical assistance to support the consideration of oper21 ations and management issues within metropolitan and

22 statewide transportation planning.

23 (c) ELIGIBILITY OF CERTAIN ENTITIES.—Any com24 mercial vehicle regulatory agency and any interagency

25 traffic, transportation, or incident management entity, in-
171

•S 1234 IS

1 cluding independent public authorities or agencies, con2 tracted by a State or local transportation agency for the

3 planning, system development, evaluation, implementa4 tion, or operation of intelligent transportation infrastruc5 ture, including commercial vehicle information systems

6 and networks, within a designated area or along a specific

7 corridor are eligible to receive Federal assistance under

8 this subtitle.

9 (d) RESEARCH AND OPERATIONAL TESTING

10 PROJECTS.—The Secretary may provide funding to Fed11 eral agencies and make grants to non-Federal entities, in12 cluding State and local governments, universities, includ13 ing Historically Black Colleges and Universities and other

14 Minority Institutions of Higher Education, and other per15 sons, for research and operational tests relating to intel16 ligent transportation systems. In deciding which projects

17 to fund under this subsection, the Secretary shall—

18 (1) give the highest priority to those projects

19 that will—

20 (A) contribute to the goals and objectives

21 specified in the National ITS Program Plan de22 veloped under section 755 of this subtitle;

23 (B) minimize the relative percentage and

24 amount of Federal contributions under this

25 subtitle to total project costs;
172

•S 1234 IS

1 (C) validate and accelerate the establish2 ment and widespread conformance with the Na3 tional Architecture and related standards and

4 protocols;

5 (D) enhance traffic safety through accel6 erating the deployment of ITS collision avoid7 ance products through the combined efforts of

8 the Federal Government and industry;

9 (E) demonstrate innovative arrangements

10 for multi-agency and/or private sector participa11 tion in the cooperative financing of the deploy12 ment and/or operation of intelligent transpor13 tation systems; and

14 (F) validate the effectiveness of integrated,

15 intelligent transportation systems and infra16 structure in enhancing the safety and efficiency

17 of surface transportation within metropolitan

18 and rural areas;

19 (2) seek to fund operational tests that advance

20 the current state of knowledge in direct support of

21 national ITS research and technology objectives as

22 defined in the National ITS Program Plan under

23 section 755 of this subtitle; and

24 (3) require that operational tests utilizing Fed25 eral funds under this subtitle have a written evalua-
173

•S 1234 IS

1 tion of the intelligent transportation systems tech2 nologies investigated and of the results of the inves3 tigation which is consistent with the guidelines de4 veloped under section 754(c) of this subtitle.

5 SEC. 757. APPLICATIONS OF TECHNOLOGY.

6 (a) INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUC7 TURE DEPLOYMENT INCENTIVES PROGRAM.—The Sec8 retary shall conduct a program to promote the deployment

9 of regionally integrated, intermodal intelligent transpor10 tation systems and, through financial and technical assist11 ance under this subtitle, shall assist in the development

12 and implementation of such systems, leveraging to the

13 maximum extent funding from other sources. In metro14 politan areas, funding provided under this subtitle shall

15 primarily support activities which integrate existing intel16 ligent transportation infrastructure elements or those im17 plemented with other sources of public or private funding.

18 For commercial vehicle projects and projects outside met19 ropolitan areas, funding provided under this subtitle may

20 also be used for installation of intelligent transportation

21 infrastructure elements.

22 (b) PRIORITIES.—In providing funding for projects

23 under this section, the Secretary shall allocate not less

24 than 25 percent of the funds made available to carry out

25 this section to eligible State or local entities for the imple-
174

•S 1234 IS

1 mentation of commercial vehicle information systems and

2 networks, and international border crossing improvements

3 (in accordance with the requirements of this section and

4 section 1030 of the National Economic Crossroads Trans5 portation Efficiency Act of 1997), in support of public sec6 tor CVO activities nationwide, and not less than 10 per7 cent for other intelligent transportation infrastructure de8 ployment activities outside of metropolitan areas. In ac9 cordance with the National ITS Program Plan under sec10 tion 755 of this subtitle, the Secretary shall provide incen11 tives for the deployment of integrated applications of

12 intermodal intelligent transportation infrastructure and

13 system technologies so as to—

14 (1) stimulate sufficient deployment to validate

15 and accelerate the establishment of national ITS

16 standards and protocols;

17 (2) realize the benefits of regionally integrated,

18 intermodal deployment of intelligent transportation

19 infrastructure and commercial vehicle operations, in20 cluding electronic border crossing applications; and

21 (3) motivate innovative approaches to over22 coming non-technical constraints or impediments to

23 deployment.

24 (c) PROJECT SELECTION.—To be selected for fund25 ing under this section, a project shall—
175

•S 1234 IS

1 (1) contribute to national deployment goals and

2 objectives outlined in the National ITS Program

3 Plan under section 755 of this subtitle;

4 (2) demonstrate a strong commitment to co5 operation among agencies, jurisdictions, and the pri6 vate sector, as evidenced by signed Memorandums of

7 Understanding that clearly define the responsibilities

8 and relation of all parties to a partnership arrange9 ment, including institutional relationships and finan10 cial agreements needed to support deployment, and

11 commitment to the criteria provided in paragraphs

12 (3) through (7) of this subsection;

13 (3) demonstrate commitment to a comprehen14 sive plan of fully integrated ITS deployment in ac15 cordance with the national ITS architecture and es16 tablished ITS standards and protocols;

17 (4) be part of approved plans and programs de18 veloped under applicable statewide and metropolitan

19 transportation planning processes and applicable

20 State air quality implementation plans at the time

21 Federal funds are sought;

22 (5) be instrumental in catalyzing corresponding

23 public or private ITS investments and that minimize

24 the relative percentage and amount of Federal con25 tributions under this section to total project costs;
176

•S 1234 IS

1 (6) include a sound financial approach to ensur2 ing continued, long-term operations and mainte3 nance without continued reliance on Federal funding

4 under this subtitle, along with documented evidence

5 of fiscal capacity and commitment from anticipated

6 public and private sources; and

7 (7) demonstrate technical capacity for effective

8 operations and maintenance or commitment to ac9 quiring necessary skills.

10 (d) FUNDING RESTRICTIONS AND LIMITATIONS.—

11 Funding eligibility under this section for intelligent trans12 portation infrastructure projects in metropolitan areas

13 shall be limited to items necessary to integrate intelligent

14 transportation system elements either deployed or to be

15 deployed by various implementing public and private agen16 cies and organizations. Annual awards shall be limited to

17 $15,000,000 per metropolitan area, $2,000,000 per rural

18 project, and $5,000,000 per CVISN project, provided that

19 no more than $35,000,000 shall be awarded annually

20 within any State.

21 SEC. 758. FUNDING.

22 (a) INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUC23 TURE DEPLOYMENT INCENTIVES PROGRAM.—There is

24 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for carry25 ing out section 757 of this subtitle, out of the Highway
177

•S 1234 IS

1 Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Account),

2 $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1998, 1999, 2000,

3 2001, 2002, and 2003. In addition to amounts made avail4 able by subsection (b) of this section, any amounts author5 ized by this subsection and not allocated by the Secretary

6 for carrying out section 757 of this subtitle may be used

7 by the Secretary for carrying out other activities author8 ized under this subtitle.

9 (b) ITS RESEARCH AND PROGRAM SUPPORT ACTIVI10 TIES.—There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec11 retary for carrying out multi-year research and technology

12 development initiatives under this subtitle (other than sec13 tion 757), out of the Highway Trust Fund (other than

14 the Mass Transit Account), $96,000,000 for each of fiscal

15 years 1998, 1999, and 2000, and $130,000,000 for each

16 of fiscal years 2001, 2002, and 2003.

17 (c) FEDERAL SHARE PAYABLE.—

18 (1) For activities funded under subsection (a)

19 of this section, the Federal share payable from the

20 sums authorized under subsection (a) shall not ex21 ceed 50 percent of the costs thereof, and the total

22 Federal share payable from all eligible sources (in23 cluding subsection (a)) shall not exceed 80 percent

24 of the costs thereof.
178

•S 1234 IS

1 (2) For activities funded under subsection (b)

2 of this section, unless the Secretary determines oth3 erwise, the Federal share payable on account of such

4 activities shall not exceed 80 percent of the costs

5 thereof.

6 (3) For long range activities undertaken in

7 partnership with private entities for the purposes of

8 section 755(b) of this subtitle, the Federal share

9 payable on account of such activities shall not exceed

10 50 percent of the costs thereof.

11 (4) The Secretary shall seek maximum partici12 pation in the funding of such activities under this

13 subtitle from other public and private sources, and

14 shall minimize the use of funds provided under this

15 subtitle for the construction or long-term acquisition

16 of buildings and grounds.

17 (d) APPLICABILITY OF TITLE 23.—Funds authorized

18 by this section shall be available for obligation in the same

19 manner as if such funds were apportioned under chapter

20 1 of title 23, United States Code; except that the Federal

21 share of the cost of any activity under this section shall

22 be determined in accordance with this section, and such

23 funds shall remain available for obligation for a period of

24 3 years after the last day of the fiscal year for which the

25 funds are authorized.
179

•S 1234 IS

1 TITLE VIII—BOATING SAFETY

2 SEC. 801. SHORT TITLE.

3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sportfishing and Boat4 ing Improvement Act of 1997’’.

5 SEC. 802. AMENDMENT OF 1950 ACT.

6 Whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal is ex7 pressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal of, a sec8 tion or other provision of the 1950 Act, the reference shall

9 be considered to be made to a section or other provision

10 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide that the United

11 States shall aid the States in fish restoration and manage12 ment projects, and for other purposes,’’ approved August

13 9, 1950 (16 U.S.C. 777 et seq.).

14 SEC. 803. OUTREACH AND COMMUNICATIONS PROGRAMS.

15 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the 1950 Act (16

16 U.S.C. 777a) is amended—

17 (1) by indenting the left margin of so much of

18 the text as precedes ‘‘(a)’’ by 2 ems;

19 (2) by inserting ‘‘For purposes of this Act—’’

20 after the section caption;

21 (3) by striking ‘‘For the purpose of this Act

22 the’’ in the first paragraph and inserting ‘‘(1) the’’;

23 (4) by indenting the left margin of so much of

24 the text as follows ‘‘include—’’ by 4 ems;
180

•S 1234 IS

1 (5) by striking ‘‘(a)’’, ‘‘(b)’’, ‘‘(c)’’, and ‘‘(d)’’

2 and inserting ‘‘(A)’’, ‘‘(B)’’, ‘‘(C)’’, and ‘‘(D)’’, re3 spectively;

4 (6) by striking ‘‘department.’’ and inserting

5 ‘‘department;’’; and

6 (7) by adding at the end thereof the following:

7 ‘‘(2) the term ‘outreach and communications

8 program’ means a program to improve communica9 tions with anglers, boaters, and the general public

10 regarding angling and boating opportunities, to re11 duce barriers to participation in these activities, to

12 advance adoption of sound fishing and boating prac13 tices, to promote conservation and the responsible

14 use of the nation’s aquatic resources, and to further

15 safety in fishing and boating; and

16 ‘‘(3) the term ‘aquatic resource education pro17 gram’ means a program designed to enhance the

18 public’s understanding of aquatic resources and

19 sport-fishing, and to promote the development of re20 sponsible attitudes and ethics toward the aquatic en21 vironment.’’.

22 (b) FUNDING FOR OUTREACH AND COMMUNICATIONS

23 PROGRAM.—Section 4 of the 1950 Act (16 U.S.C. 777c)

24 is amended—
181

•S 1234 IS

1 (1) by redesignating subsections (c), (d), and

2 (e) as subsections (d), (e), and (f);

3 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the follow4 ing:

5 ‘‘(c) NATIONAL OUTREACH AND COMMUNICATIONS

6 FUND.—

7 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established on

8 the books of the Treasury a fund to be known as the

9 ‘National Outreach and Communications Fund’.

10 ‘‘(2) CREDITS.—There shall be credited to the

11 Fund—

12 ‘‘(A) out of the balance of each such an13 nual appropriation remaining after the distribu14 tion and use under subsections (a) and (b), re15 spectively, the sum of—

16 ‘‘(i) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 1998;

17 ‘‘(ii) $6,000,000 for fiscal year 1999;

18 ‘‘(iii) $7,000,000 for fiscal year 2000;

19 ‘‘(iv) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2001;

20 and

21 ‘‘(v) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2002;

22 and

23 ‘‘(B) amounts allocated to it under sub24 section (d).
182

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(3) CARRYFORWARD.—Amounts credited to

2 the fund under paragraph (2) shall remain available

3 for 2 fiscal years after the fiscal year in which cred4 ited. Amounts credited to the fund under that para5 graph that are unobligated by the Secretary of the

6 Interior more than 2 years after the fiscal year in

7 which credited shall be available to the Secretary

8 under subsection (e).’’;

9 (4) by inserting a comma and ‘‘for an outreach

10 and communications program’’ after ‘‘Act’’ in sub11 section (d), as so redesignated;

12 (5) by striking ‘‘subsections (a) and (b),’’ in

13 subsection (d), as so redesignated, ‘‘subsections (a),

14 (b), and (c),’’;

15 (6) by adding at the end of subsection (d), as

16 so redesignated, the following: ‘‘Of the sum available

17 to the Secretary of the Interior under this subsection

18 for any fiscal year, not more than $2,500,000 is au19 thorized to be allocated to the National Outreach

20 and Communications Fund. No funds available to

21 the Secretary under this subsection may be used to

22 replace funding traditionally provided through gen23 eral appropriations, nor for any purposes except

24 those purposes authorized by this Act. The Secretary

25 shall publish a detailed accounting of the projects,
183

•S 1234 IS

1 programs, and activities funded under this sub2 section annually in the Federal Register.’’; and

3 (7) by striking ‘‘subsections (a), (b), and (c),’’

4 in subsection (e), as so redesignated, and inserting

5 ‘‘subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d),’’.

6 (c) INCREASE IN STATE ALLOCATION.—Section 8 of

7 the 1950 Act (16 U.S.C. 777g) is amended—

(1) by striking ‘‘121 8 ⁄2 percentum’’ each place it

9 appears in subsection (b) and inserting ‘‘15 per10 cent’’;

11 (2) by striking ‘‘10 percentum’’ in subsection

12 (c) and inserting ‘‘15 percent’’;

13 (3) by inserting ‘‘and communications’’ in sub14 section (c) after ‘‘outreach’’; and

15 (4) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub16 section (f); and by inserting after subsection (c) the

17 following:

18 ‘‘(d) NATIONAL OUTREACH AND COMMUNICATIONS

19 PROGRAM.—

20 ‘‘(1) IMPLEMENTATION.—Within 1 year after

21 the date of enactment of the Sportfishing and Boat22 ing Improvement Act of 1997, the Secretary of the

23 Interior shall develop and implement, in cooperation

24 and consultation with the Sport Fishing and Boat-
184

•S 1234 IS

1 ing Partnership Council, a national plan for out2 reach and communications.

3 ‘‘(2) CONTENT.—The plan shall provide—

4 ‘‘(A) guidance, including guidance on the

5 development of an administrative process and

6 funding priorities, for outreach and communica7 tions programs; and

8 ‘‘(B) for the establishment of a national

9 program.

10 ‘‘(3) SECRETARY MAY MATCH OR FUND PRO11 GRAMS.—Under the plan, the Secretary may obligate

12 amounts from the National Outreach and Commu13 nications Fund under section 4(c) of this Act—

14 ‘‘(A) to make grants to any State or pri15 vate entity to pay all or any portion of the cost

16 of carrying out any outreach or communications

17 program under the plan; or

18 ‘‘(B) to fund contracts with States or pri19 vate entities to carry out such a program.

20 ‘‘(4) REVIEW.—The plan shall be reviewed peri21 odically, but not less frequently than once every 3

22 years.

23 ‘‘(e) STATE OUTREACH AND COMMUNICATIONS PRO24 GRAM.—Within 12 months after the completion of the na25 tional plan under subsection (d)(1), a State shall develop
185

•S 1234 IS

1 a plan for an outreach and communications program and

2 submit it to the Secretary. In developing the plan, a State

3 shall—

4 ‘‘(1) review the national plan developed under

5 subsection (d);

6 ‘‘(2) consult with anglers, boaters, the

7 sportfishing and boating industries, and the general

8 public; and

9 ‘‘(3) establish priorities for the State outreach

10 and communications program proposed for imple11 mentation.’’.

12 SEC. 804. CLEAN VESSEL ACT FUNDING.

13 Section 4(b) of the 1950 Act (16 U.S.C. 777c(b)) is

14 amended to read as follows:

15 ‘‘(b) USE OF BALANCE AFTER DISTRIBUTION.—

16 ‘‘(1) FISCAL YEAR 1998.—For fiscal year 1998,

17 of the balance remaining after making the distribu18 tion under subsection (a), an amount equal to

19 $51,000,000 shall be used as follows:

20 ‘‘(A) $31,000,000 for fiscal year 1998

21 shall be transferred to the Secretary of Trans22 portation and shall be expended for State rec23 reational boating safety programs under section

24 13106 of title 46, United States Code;
186

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘(B) $10,000,000 shall be available for

2 each fiscal year to the Secretary of the Interior

3 for 3 years for obligation for qualified projects

4 under section 5604(c) of the Clean Vessel Act

5 of 1992 (33 U.S.C. 1322 note); and

6 ‘‘(C) $10,000,000 shall be available for

7 each fiscal year to the Secretary of the Interior

8 for 3 years for obligation for qualified projects

9 under section (5)(d) of the Sportfishing and

10 Boating Improvement Act of 1997.

11 ‘‘(2) FISCAL YEARS 1999–2003.—For each of fis12 cal years 1999 through 2003, the balance of each

13 annual appropriation remaining after making the

14 distribution under subsection (a), an amount equal

15 to $84,000,000, reduced by 82 percent of the

16 amount appropriated for that fiscal year from the

17 Boat Safety Account of the Aquatic Resources Trust

18 Fund established by section 9504 of the Internal

19 Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 9504) to carry

20 out the purposes of section 13106(a) of title 46,

21 United States Code, shall be used as follows:

22 ‘‘(A) $10,000,000 shall be available for

23 each fiscal year to the Secretary of the Interior

24 for 3 years for obligation for qualified projects
187

•S 1234 IS

1 under section 5604(c) of the Clean Vessel Act

2 of 1992 (33 U.S.C. 1322 note);

3 ‘‘(B) $10,000,000 shall be available for

4 each fiscal year to the Secretary of the Interior

5 for 3 years for obligation for qualified projects

6 under section (5)(d) of the Sportfishing and

7 Boating Improvement Act of 1997; and

8 ‘‘(C) the balance shall be transferred for

9 each such fiscal year to the Secretary of Trans10 portation and shall be expended for State rec11 reational boating safety programs under section

12 13106 of title 46, United States Code.

13 ‘‘(3) Amounts available under subparagraphs

14 (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) and paragraph (2)

15 that are unobligated by the Secretary of the Interior

16 after 3 years shall be transferred to the Secretary of

17 Transportation and shall be expended for State rec18 reational boating safety programs under section

19 13106(a) of title 46, United States Code.’’.

20 SEC. 805. BOATING INFRASTRUCTURE.

21 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to pro22 vide funds to States for the development and maintenance

23 of public facilities for transient nontrailerable recreational

24 vessels.
188

•S 1234 IS

1 (b) SURVEY.—Section 8 of the 1950 Act (16 U.S.C.

2 777g), as amended by section 803, is amended by adding

3 at the end thereof the following:

4 ‘‘(g) SURVEYS.—

5 ‘‘(1) NATIONAL FRAMEWORK.—Within 6

6 months after the date of enactment of the

7 Sportfishing and Boating Improvement Act of 1997,

8 the Secretary, in consultation with the States, shall

9 adopt a national framework for a public boat access

10 needs assessment which may be used by States to

11 conduct surveys to determine the adequacy, number,

12 location, and quality of facilities providing access to

13 recreational waters for all sizes of recreational boats.

14 ‘‘(2) STATE SURVEYS.—Within 18 months after

15 such date of enactment, each State that agrees to

16 conduct a public boat access needs survey following

17 the recommended national framework shall report its

18 findings to the Secretary for use in the development

19 of a comprehensive national assessment of rec20 reational boat access needs and facilities.

21 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (2) does not

22 apply to a State if, within 18 months after such date

23 of enactment, the Secretary certifies that the State

24 has developed and is implementing a plan that en25 sures there are and will be public boat access ade-
189

•S 1234 IS

1 quate to meet the needs of recreational boaters on

2 its waters.

3 ‘‘(4) FUNDING.—A State that conducts a public

4 boat access needs survey under paragraph (2) may

5 fund the costs of conducting that assessment out of

6 amounts allocated to it as funding dedicated to mo7 torboat access to recreational waters under sub8 section (b)(1) of this section.’’.

9 (c) PLAN.—Within 6 months after submitting a sur10 vey to the Secretary under section 8(g) of the Act entitled

11 ‘‘An Act to provide that the United States shall aid the

12 States in fish restoration and management projects, and

13 for other purposes,’’ approved August 9, 1950 (16 U.S.C.

14 777g(g)), as added by subsection (b) of this section, a

15 State may develop and submit to the Secretary a plan for

16 the construction, renovation, and maintenance of public

17 facilities, and access to those facilities, for transient

18 nontrailerable recreational vessels to meet the needs of

19 nontrailerable recreational vessels operating on navigable

20 waters in the State.

21 (d) GRANT PROGRAM.—

22 (1) MATCHING GRANTS.—The Secretary of the

23 Interior shall obligate amounts made available under

24 section 4(b)(1)(C) of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to

25 provide that the United States shall aid the States
190

•S 1234 IS

1 in fish restoration and management projects, and for

2 other purposes,’’ approved August 9, 1950 (16

3 U.S.C. 777c(b)(1)(C)) to make grants to any State

4 to pay not more than 75 percent of the cost to a

5 State of constructing, renovating, or maintaining

6 public facilities for transient nontrailerable rec7 reational vessels.

8 (2) PRIORITIES.—In awarding grants under

9 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give priority to

10 projects that—

11 (A) consist of the construction, renovation,

12 or maintenance of public facilities for transient

13 nontrailerable recreational vessels in accordance

14 with a plan submitted by a State under sub15 section (c);

16 (B) provide for public/private partnership

17 efforts to develop, maintain, and operate facili18 ties for transient nontrailerable recreational

19 vessels; and

20 (C) propose innovative ways to increase the

21 availability of facilities for transient

22 nontrailerable recreational vessels.

23 (e) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the

24 term—
191

•S 1234 IS

1 (1) ‘‘nontrailerable recreational vessel’’ means a

2 recreational vessel 26 feet in length or longer—

3 (A) operated primarily for pleasure; or

4 (B) leased, rented, or chartered to another

5 for the latter’s pleasure;

6 (2) ‘‘public facilities for transient nontrailerable

7 recreational vessels’’ includes mooring buoys, day8 docks, navigational aids, seasonal slips, or similar

9 structures located on navigable waters, that are

10 available to the general public and designed for tem11 porary use by nontrailerable recreational vessels; and

12 (4) ‘‘State’’ means each of the several States of

13 the United States, the District of Columbia, the

14 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American

15 Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth

16 of the Northern Mariana Islands.

17 (f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect

18 on October 1, 1997.

19 SEC. 806. BOAT SAFETY FUNDS.

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 13106 of title 46, United

21 States Code, is amended—

22 (1) by striking the first sentence of subsection

23 (a)(1) and inserting the following: ‘‘Subject to para24 graph (2) and subsection (c), the Secretary shall ex25 pend in each fiscal year for State recreational boat-
192

•S 1234 IS

1 ing safety programs, under contracts with States

2 under this chapter, an amount equal to the sum of

3 (A) the amount appropriated from the Boat Safety

4 Account for that fiscal year and (B) the amount

5 transferred to the Secretary under section 4(b)(1) of

6 the Act of August 9, 1950 (16 U.S.C. 777c(b)(1)).’’;

7 and

8 (2) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the

9 following:

10 ‘‘(c) Of the amount transferred for each fiscal year

11 to the Secretary of Transportation under section

12 4(b)(1)(A) of the Act of August 9, 1950 (16 U.S.C.

13 777c(b)), $5,000,000 is available to the Secretary for pay14 ment of expenses of the Coast Guard for personnel and

15 activities directly related to coordinating and carrying out

16 the national recreational boating safety program under

17 this title. Amounts made available by this subsection shall

18 remain available until expended. The Secretary shall pub19 lish annually in the Federal Register a detailed accounting

20 of the projects, programs, and activities funded under this

21 subsection.’’.

22 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

23 (1) The caption for section 13106 of title 46,

24 United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
193

•S 1234 IS

1 ‘‘§ 13106. Authorization of appropriations’’.

2 (2) The chapter analysis for chapter 131 of title

3 46, United States Code, is amended by striking the

4 item relating to section 13106 and inserting the fol5 lowing:

‘‘13106. Authorization of appropriations.’’.

6 SEC. 807. FUNDS FOR RECREATIONAL BOATING SAFETY.

7 (a) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS TO INSULAR AREAS.—

8 Section 13103 of title 46, United States Code, is amend9 ed—

10 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1) before ‘‘The Secretary’’ in

11 subsection (a);

12 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), and

13 (3) of subsection (a) as subparagraphs (A), (B), and

14 (C), respectively;

15 (3) by adding at the end of subsection (a) the

16 following:

17 ‘‘(2) The amount allocated to each of the insular

18 areas under this subsection shall not exceed one-half of

19 one percent of the total amount allocated under paragraph

20 (1).’’;

21 (4) by striking ‘‘year.’’ in subsection (b) and in22 serting the following: ‘‘year, except that, in the case

23 of the insular areas, the requirement for local

24 matching funds is waived for amounts under

25 $200,000.’’; and
194

•S 1234 IS

1 (5) by adding at the end thereof the following:

2 ‘‘(d) For purposes of this section, the term ‘insular

3 areas’ means American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mari4 ana Islands, and the Virgin Islands.’’.

5 (b) AVAILABILITY OF ALLOCATIONS.—Section

6 13104(a) of such title is amended—

7 (1) by striking ‘‘3 years’’ in paragraph (1) and

8 inserting ‘‘2 years’’; and

9 (2) by striking ‘‘3-year’’ in paragraph (2) and

10 inserting ‘‘2-year’’.

Æ