H. R. 4348—146 
interests acquired for the construction, operation, or mitigation 
of a project (as defined in section 101(a) of title 23, United States 
Code), including the locations of the roadway, bridges, interchanges, 
culverts, drainage, clear zone, traffic control signage, landscaping, 
and any rest areas with direct access to a controlled access highway. 
SEC. 1317. CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION FOR PROJECTS OF LIMITED FED-
ERAL ASSISTANCE. 
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary shall— 
(1) designate as an action categorically excluded from the 
requirements relating to environmental assessments or environ-
mental impact statements under section 1508.4 of title 40, 
Code of Federal Regulations, and section 771.117(c) of title 
23, Code of Federal Regulations, any project— 
(A) that receives less than $5,000,000 of Federal funds; 
or 
(B) with a total estimated cost of not more than 
$30,000,000 and Federal funds comprising less than 15 
percent of the total estimated project cost; and 
(2) not later than 150 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, promulgate regulations to carry out paragraph 
(1). 
SEC. 1318. PROGRAMMATIC AGREEMENTS AND ADDITIONAL CATEGOR-
ICAL EXCLUSIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall— 
(1) survey the use by the Department of categorical exclu-
sions in transportation projects since 2005; 
(2) publish a review of the survey that includes a descrip-
tion of— 
(A) the types of actions categorically excluded; and 
(B) any requests previously received by the Secretary 
for new categorical exclusions; and 
(3) solicit requests from State departments of transpor-
tation, transit authorities, metropolitan planning organizations, 
or other government agencies for new categorical exclusions. 
(b) NEW CATEGORICAL EXCLUSIONS.—Not later than 120 days 
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall publish 
a notice of proposed rulemaking to propose new categorical exclu-
sions received by the Secretary under subsection (a), to the extent 
that the categorical exclusions meet the criteria for a categorical 
exclusion under section 1508.4 of title 40, Code of Federal Regula-
tions, and section 771.117(a) of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations 
(as those regulations are in effect on the date of the notice). 
(c) ADDITIONAL ACTIONS.—The Secretary shall issue a proposed 
rulemaking to move the following types of actions from subsection 
(d) of section 771.117 of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations 
(as in effect on the date of enactment of this Act), to subsection 
(c) of that section, to the extent that such movement complies 
with the criteria for a categorical exclusion under section 1508.4 
of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date 
of enactment of this Act): 
(1) Modernization of a highway by resurfacing, restoration, 
rehabilitation, reconstruction, adding shoulders, or adding 
auxiliary lanes (including parking, weaving, turning, and 
climbing).
H. R. 4348—147 
(2) Highway safety or traffic operations improvement 
projects, including the installation of ramp metering control 
devices and lighting. 
(3) Bridge rehabilitation, reconstruction, or replacement 
or the construction of grade separation to replace existing at- 
grade railroad crossings. 
(d) PROGRAMMATIC AGREEMENTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall seek opportunities 
to enter into programmatic agreements with the States that 
establish efficient administrative procedures for carrying out 
environmental and other required project reviews. 
(2) INCLUSIONS.—Programmatic agreements authorized 
under paragraph (1) may include agreements that allow a State 
to determine on behalf of the Federal Highway Administration 
whether a project is categorically excluded from the preparation 
of an environmental assessment or environmental impact state-
ment under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 
(3) DETERMINATIONS.—An agreement described in para-
graph (2) may include determinations by the Secretary of the 
types of projects categorically excluded (consistent with section 
1508.4 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations) in the State 
in addition to the types listed in subsections (c) and (d) of 
section 771.117 of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations (as 
in effect on the date of enactment of this Act). 
SEC. 1319. ACCELERATED DECISIONMAKING IN ENVIRONMENTAL 
REVIEWS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In preparing a final environmental impact 
statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), if the lead agency modifies the statement 
in response to comments that are minor and are confined to factual 
corrections or explanations of why the comments do not warrant 
additional agency response, the lead agency may write on errata 
sheets attached to the statement instead of rewriting the draft 
statement, subject to the condition that the errata sheets— 
(1) cite the sources, authorities, or reasons that support 
the position of the agency; and 
(2) if appropriate, indicate the circumstances that would 
trigger agency reappraisal or further response. 
(b) INCORPORATION.—To the maximum extent practicable, the 
lead agency shall expeditiously develop a single document that 
consists of a final environmental impact statement and a record 
of decision, unless— 
(1) the final environmental impact statement makes 
substantial changes to the proposed action that are relevant 
to environmental or safety concerns; or 
(2) there are significant new circumstances or information 
relevant to environmental concerns and that bear on the pro-
posed action or the impacts of the proposed action. 
SEC. 1320. MEMORANDA OF AGENCY AGREEMENTS FOR EARLY 
COORDINATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—It is the sense of Congress that— 
(1) the Secretary and other Federal agencies with relevant 
jurisdiction in the environmental review process should 
cooperate with each other and other agencies on environmental 
review and project delivery activities at the earliest practicable
H. R. 4348—148 
time to avoid delays and duplication of effort later in the 
process, head off potential conflicts, and ensure that planning 
and project development decisions reflect environmental values; 
and 
(2) such cooperation should include the development of 
policies and the designation of staff that advise planning agen-
cies or project sponsors of studies or other information 
foreseeably required for later Federal action and early consulta-
tion with appropriate State and local agencies and Indian 
tribes. 
(b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—If requested at any time by a 
State or local planning agency, the Secretary and other Federal 
agencies with relevant jurisdiction in the environmental review 
process, shall, to the extent practicable and appropriate, as deter-
mined by the agencies, provide technical assistance to the State 
or local planning agency on accomplishing the early coordination 
activities described in subsection (d). 
(c) MEMORANDUM OF AGENCY AGREEMENT.—If requested at any 
time by a State or local planning agency, the lead agency, in 
consultation with other Federal agencies with relevant jurisdiction 
in the environmental review process, may establish memoranda 
of agreement with the project sponsor, State, and local governments 
and other appropriate entities to accomplish the early coordination 
activities described in subsection (d). 
(d) EARLY
COORDINATION
ACTIVITIES.—Early coordination 
activities shall include, to the maximum extent practicable, the 
following: 
(1) Technical assistance on identifying potential impacts 
and mitigation issues in an integrated fashion. 
(2) The potential appropriateness of using planning prod-
ucts and decisions in later environmental reviews. 
(3) The identification and elimination from detailed study 
in the environmental review process of the issues that are 
not significant or that have been covered by prior environmental 
reviews. 
(4) The identification of other environmental review and 
consultation requirements so that the lead and cooperating 
agencies may prepare, as appropriate, other required analyses 
and studies concurrently with planning activities. 
(5) The identification by agencies with jurisdiction over 
any permits related to the project of any and all relevant 
information that will reasonably be required for the project. 
(6) The reduction of duplication between requirements 
under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 
4321 et seq.) and State and local planning and environmental 
review requirements, unless the agencies are specifically barred 
from doing so by applicable law. 
(7) Timelines for the completion of agency actions during 
the planning and environmental review processes. 
(8) Other appropriate factors. 
SEC. 1321. ENVIRONMENTAL PROCEDURES INITIATIVE. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—For grant programs under which funds 
are distributed by formula by the Department, the Secretary shall 
establish an initiative to review and develop consistent procedures 
for environmental permitting and procurement requirements that
H. R. 4348—149 
apply to a project carried out under title 23, United States Code, 
or chapter 53 of title 49, United States Code. 
(b) REPORT.—The Secretary shall publish the results of the 
initiative described in subsection (a) in an electronically accessible 
format. 
SEC. 1322. REVIEW OF STATE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS AND 
APPROVALS 
FOR 
THE 
PURPOSE 
OF 
ELIMINATING 
DUPLICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS. 
For environmental reviews and approvals carried out on 
projects funded under title 23, United States Code, the Comptroller 
General of the United States shall— 
(1) review State laws and procedures for conducting 
environmental reviews with regard to such projects and identify 
the States that have environmental laws that provide environ-
mental protections and opportunities for public involvement 
that are equivalent to those provided by Federal environmental 
laws; 
(2) determine the frequency and cost of environmental 
reviews carried out at the Federal level that are duplicative 
of State reviews that provide equivalent environmental protec-
tions and opportunities for public involvement; and 
(3) not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, submit to the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate a 
report that describes the results of the review and determina-
tion made under this section. 
SEC. 1323. REVIEW OF FEDERAL PROJECT AND PROGRAM DELIVERY. 
(a) COMPLETION TIME ASSESSMENTS AND REPORTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—For projects funded under title 23, United 
States Code, the Secretary shall compare— 
(A)(i) the completion times of categorical exclusions, 
environmental assessments, and environmental impact 
statements initiated after calendar year 2005; to 
(ii) the completion times of categorical exclusions, 
environmental assessments, and environmental impact 
statements initiated during a period prior to calendar year 
2005; and 
(B)(i) the completion times of categorical exclusions, 
environmental assessments, and environmental impact 
statements initiated during the period beginning on 
January 1, 2005, and ending on the date of enactment 
of this Act; to 
(ii) the completion times of categorical exclusions, 
environmental assessments, and environmental impact 
statements initiated after the date of enactment of this 
Act. 
(2) REPORT.—The Secretary shall submit to the Committee 
on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works of the Senate— 
(A) not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, a report that— 
(i) describes the results of the review conducted 
under paragraph (1)(A); and
H. R. 4348—150 
(ii) identifies any change in the timing for comple-
tions, including the reasons for any such change and 
the reasons for delays in excess of 5 years; and 
(B) not later than 5 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, a report that— 
(i) describes the results of the review conducted 
under paragraph (1)(B); and 
(ii) identifies any change in the timing for comple-
tions, including the reasons for any such change and 
the reasons for delays in excess of 5 years. 
(b) ADDITIONAL REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Com-
mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the Committee on Environment and Public Works 
of the Senate a report on the types and justification for the addi-
tional categorical exclusions granted under the authority provided 
under sections 1316 and 1317. 
(c) GAO REPORT.—The Comptroller General of the United 
States shall— 
(1) assess the reforms carried out under this subtitle 
(including the amendments made by this subtitle); and 
(2) not later than 5 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, submit to the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate a 
report that describes the results of the assessment. 
(d) INSPECTOR GENERAL REPORT.—The Inspector General of 
the Department of Transportation shall— 
(1) assess the reforms carried out under this subtitle 
(including the amendments made by this subtitle); and 
(2) submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infra-
structure of the House of Representatives and the Committee 
on Environment and Public Works of the Senate— 
(A) not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, an initial report of the findings of the Inspector 
General; and 
(B) not later than 4 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, a final report of the findings. 
Subtitle D—Highway Safety 
SEC. 1401. JASON’S LAW. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—It is the sense of Congress that it is a national 
priority to address projects under this section for the shortage 
of long-term parking for commercial motor vehicles on the National 
Highway System to improve the safety of motorized and non-
motorized users and for commercial motor vehicle operators. 
(b) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.—Eligible projects under this section 
are those that— 
(1) serve the National Highway System; and 
(2) may include the following: 
(A) Constructing safety rest areas (as defined in section 
120(c) of title 23, United States Code) that include parking 
for commercial motor vehicles.
H. R. 4348—151 
(B) Constructing commercial motor vehicle parking 
facilities adjacent to commercial truck stops and travel 
plazas. 
(C) Opening existing facilities to commercial motor 
vehicle parking, including inspection and weigh stations 
and park-and-ride facilities. 
(D) Promoting the availability of publicly or privately 
provided commercial motor vehicle parking on the National 
Highway System using intelligent transportation systems 
and other means. 
(E) Constructing turnouts along the National Highway 
System for commercial motor vehicles. 
(F) Making capital improvements to public commercial 
motor vehicle parking facilities currently closed on a sea-
sonal basis to allow the facilities to remain open year- 
round. 
(G) Improving the geometric design of interchanges 
on the National Highway System to improve access to 
commercial motor vehicle parking facilities. 
(c) SURVEY AND COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with 
relevant State motor carrier safety personnel, shall conduct 
a survey of each State— 
(A) to evaluate the capability of the State to provide 
adequate parking and rest facilities for commercial motor 
vehicles engaged in interstate transportation; 
(B) to assess the volume of commercial motor vehicle 
traffic in the State; and 
(C) to develop a system of metrics to measure the 
adequacy of commercial motor vehicle parking facilities 
in the State. 
(2) RESULTS.—The results of the survey under paragraph 
(1) shall be made available to the public on the website of 
the Department of Transportation. 
(3) PERIODIC
UPDATES.—The Secretary shall periodically 
update the survey under this subsection. 
(d) ELECTRIC VEHICLE AND NATURAL GAS VEHICLE INFRASTRUC-
TURE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in paragraph (2), a 
State may establish electric vehicle charging stations or natural 
gas vehicle refueling stations for the use of battery-powered 
or natural gas-fueled trucks or other motor vehicles at any 
parking facility funded or authorized under this Act or title 
23, United States Code. 
(2) EXCEPTION.—Electric vehicle battery charging stations 
or natural gas vehicle refueling stations may not be established 
or supported under paragraph (1) if commercial establishments 
serving motor vehicle users are prohibited by section 111 of 
title 23, United States Code. 
(3) FUNDS.—Charging or refueling stations described in 
paragraph (1) shall be eligible for the same funds as are avail-
able for the parking facilities in which the stations are located. 
(e) TREATMENT
OF
PROJECTS.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, projects funded through the authority provided 
under this section shall be treated as projects on a Federal-aid 
highway under chapter 1 of title 23, United States Code.
H. R. 4348—152 
SEC. 1402. OPEN CONTAINER REQUIREMENTS. 
Section 154(c) of title 23, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(2) FISCAL YEAR 2012 AND THEREAFTER.— 
‘‘(A) RESERVATION OF FUNDS.—On October 1, 2011, and 
each October 1 thereafter, if a State has not enacted or 
is not enforcing an open container law described in sub-
section (b), the Secretary shall reserve an amount equal 
to 2.5 percent of the funds to be apportioned to the State 
on that date under each of paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 
104(b) until the State certifies to the Secretary the means 
by which the State will use those reserved funds in accord-
ance with subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) 
and paragraph (3). 
‘‘(B) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—As soon as practicable after 
the date of receipt of a certification from a State under 
subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(i) transfer the reserved funds identified by the 
State for use as described in subparagraphs (A) and 
(B) of paragraph (1) to the apportionment of the State 
under section 402; and 
‘‘(ii) release the reserved funds identified by the 
State as described in paragraph (3).’’; 
(2) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(3) USE FOR HIGHWAY SAFETY IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—A State may elect to use all or 
a portion of the funds transferred under paragraph (2) 
for activities eligible under section 148. 
‘‘(B) STATE DEPARTMENTS OF TRANSPORTATION.—If the 
State makes an election under subparagraph (A), the funds 
shall be transferred to the department of transportation 
of the State, which shall be responsible for the administra-
tion of the funds.’’; and 
(3) by striking paragraph (5) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(5) DERIVATION
OF
AMOUNT
TO
BE
TRANSFERRED.—The 
amount to be transferred under paragraph (2) may be derived 
from the following: 
‘‘(A) The apportionment of the State under section 
104(b)(l). 
‘‘(B) The apportionment of the State under section 
104(b)(2).’’. 
SEC. 1403. MINIMUM PENALTIES FOR REPEAT OFFENDERS FOR 
DRIVING WHILE INTOXICATED OR DRIVING UNDER THE 
INFLUENCE. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 164(a) of title 23, United States Code, 
is amended— 
(1) by striking paragraph (3); 
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (4) and (5) as paragraphs 
(3) and (4), respectively; and 
(3) in paragraph (4) (as so redesignated) by striking 
subparagraph (A) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(A) receive— 
‘‘(i) a suspension of all driving privileges for not 
less than 1 year; or 
‘‘(ii) a suspension of unlimited driving privileges 
for 1 year, allowing for the reinstatement of limited
H. R. 4348—153 
driving privileges subject to restrictions and limited 
exemptions as established by State law, if an ignition 
interlock device is installed for not less than 1 year 
on each of the motor vehicles owned or operated, or 
both, by the individual;’’. 
(b) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—Section 164(b) of title 23, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(2) FISCAL YEAR 2012 AND THEREAFTER.— 
‘‘(A) RESERVATION OF FUNDS.—On October 1, 2011, and 
each October 1 thereafter, if a State has not enacted or 
is not enforcing a repeat intoxicated driver law, the Sec-
retary shall reserve an amount equal to 2.5 percent of 
the funds to be apportioned to the State on that date 
under each of paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 104(b) 
until the State certifies to the Secretary the means by 
which the States will use those reserved funds among 
the uses authorized under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of 
paragraph (1), and paragraph (3). 
‘‘(B) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—As soon as practicable after 
the date of receipt of a certification from a State under 
subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(i) transfer the reserved funds identified by the 
State for use as described in subparagraphs (A) and 
(B) of paragraph (1) to the apportionment of the State 
under section 402; and 
‘‘(ii) release the reserved funds identified by the 
State as described in paragraph (3).’’; 
(2) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(3) USE FOR HIGHWAY SAFETY IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—A State may elect to use all or 
a portion of the funds transferred under paragraph (2) 
for activities eligible under section 148. 
‘‘(B) STATE DEPARTMENTS OF TRANSPORTATION.—If the 
State makes an election under subparagraph (A), the funds 
shall be transferred to the department of transportation 
of the State, which shall be responsible for the administra-
tion of the funds.’’; and 
(3) by striking paragraph (5) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(5) DERIVATION
OF
AMOUNT
TO
BE
TRANSFERRED.—The 
amount to be transferred under paragraph (2) may be derived 
from the following: 
‘‘(A) The apportionment of the State under section 
104(b)(1). 
‘‘(B) The apportionment of the State under section 
104(b)(2).’’. 
SEC. 1404. ADJUSTMENTS TO PENALTY PROVISIONS. 
(a) VEHICLE WEIGHT LIMITATIONS.—Section 127(a)(1) of title 
23, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘No funds shall 
be apportioned in any fiscal year under section 104(b)(1) of this 
title to any State which’’ and inserting ‘‘The Secretary shall withhold 
50 percent of the apportionment of a State under section 104(b)(1) 
in any fiscal year in which the State’’. 
(b) CONTROL OF JUNKYARDS.—Section 136 of title 23, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) in subsection (b), in the first sentence—
H. R. 4348—154 
(A) by striking ‘‘10 per centum’’ and inserting ‘‘7 per-
cent’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘section 104 of this title’’ and inserting 
‘‘paragraphs (1) through (5) of section 104(b)’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(n) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the terms ‘pri-
mary system’ and ‘Federal-aid primary system’ mean any highway 
that is on the National Highway System, which includes the Inter-
state Highway System.’’. 
(c) ENFORCEMENT OF VEHICLE SIZE AND WEIGHT LAWS.—Section 
141(b)(2) of title 23, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘10 per centum’’ and inserting ‘‘7 percent’’; 
and 
(2) by striking ‘‘section 104 of this title’’ and inserting 
‘‘paragraphs (1) through (5) of section 104(b)’’. 
(d) PROOF OF PAYMENT OF THE HEAVY VEHICLE USE TAX.— 
Section 141(c) of title 23, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘section 104(b)(4)’’ each place it appears 
and inserting ‘‘section 104(b)(1)’’; and 
(2) in the first sentence by striking ‘‘25 per centum’’ and 
inserting ‘‘8 percent’’. 
(e) USE OF SAFETY BELTS.—Section 153(h) of title 23, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking paragraph (1); 
(2) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (1); 
(3) in paragraph (1) (as so redesignated)— 
(A) by striking the paragraph heading and inserting 
‘‘PRIOR TO FISCAL YEAR 2012’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘and before October 1, 2011,’’ after 
‘‘September 30, 1994,’’; and 
(4) by inserting after paragraph (1) (as so redesignated) 
the following: 
‘‘(2) FISCAL YEAR 2012 AND THEREAFTER.—If, at any time 
in a fiscal year beginning after September 30, 2011, a State 
does not have in effect a law described in subsection (a)(2), 
the Secretary shall transfer an amount equal to 2 percent 
of the funds apportioned to the State for the succeeding fiscal 
year under each of paragraphs (1) through (3) of section 104(b) 
to the apportionment of the State under section 402.’’. 
(f) NATIONAL MINIMUM DRINKING AGE.—Section 158(a)(1) of 
title 23, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and inserting the following: 
‘‘(A) FISCAL YEARS BEFORE 2012.—The Secretary’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(B) FISCAL
YEAR
2012
AND
THEREAFTER.—For fiscal 
year 2012 and each fiscal year thereafter, the amount 
to be withheld under this section shall be an amount equal 
to 8 percent of the amount apportioned to the noncompliant 
State, as described in subparagraph (A), under paragraphs 
(1) and (2) of section 104(b).’’. 
(g) DRUG OFFENDERS.—Section 159 of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) by striking paragraph (1); 
(B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (1);
H. R. 4348—155 
(C) in paragraph (1) (as so redesignated) by striking 
‘‘(including any amounts withheld under paragraph (1))’’; 
and 
(D) by inserting after paragraph (1) (as so redesig-
nated) the following: 
‘‘(2) FISCAL
YEAR
2012
AND
THEREAFTER.—The Secretary 
shall withhold an amount equal to 8 percent of the amount 
required to be apportioned to any State under each of para-
graphs (1) and (2) of section 104(b) on the first day of each 
fiscal year beginning after September 30, 2011, if the State 
fails to meet the requirements of paragraph (3) on the first 
day of the fiscal year.’’; and 
(2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(b) EFFECT OF NONCOMPLIANCE.—No funds withheld under 
this section from apportionments to any State shall be available 
for apportionment to that State.’’. 
(h) ZERO TOLERANCE BLOOD ALCOHOL CONCENTRATION
FOR 
MINORS.—Section 161(a) of title 23, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) by striking paragraph (1); 
(2) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (1); 
(3) in paragraph (1) (as so redesignated)— 
(A) by striking the paragraph heading and inserting 
‘‘PRIOR TO FISCAL YEAR 2012’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘through fiscal year 2011’’ after ‘‘each 
fiscal year thereafter’’; and 
(4) by inserting after paragraph (1) (as so redesignated) 
the following: 
‘‘(2) FISCAL
YEAR
2012
AND
THEREAFTER.—The Secretary 
shall withhold an amount equal to 8 percent of the amount 
required to be apportioned to any State under each of para-
graphs (1) and (2) of section 104(b) on October 1, 2011, and 
on October 1 of each fiscal year thereafter, if the State does 
not meet the requirement of paragraph (3) on that date.’’. 
(i) OPERATION OF MOTOR VEHICLES BY INTOXICATED PERSONS.— 
Section 163(e) of title 23, United States Code, is amended by 
striking paragraphs (1) and (2) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(1) FISCAL YEARS 2007 THROUGH 2011.—On October 1, 2006, 
and October 1 of each fiscal year thereafter through fiscal 
year 2011, if a State has not enacted or is not enforcing a 
law described in subsection (a), the Secretary shall withhold 
an amount equal to 8 percent of the amounts to be apportioned 
to the State on that date under each of paragraphs (1), (3), 
and (4) of section 104(b). 
‘‘(2) FISCAL YEAR 2012 AND THEREAFTER.—On October 1, 
2011, and October 1 of each fiscal year thereafter, if a State 
has not enacted or is not enforcing a law described in subsection 
(a), the Secretary shall withhold an amount equal to 6 percent 
of the amounts to be apportioned to the State on that date 
under each of paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 104(b).’’. 
(j) COMMERCIAL DRIVER’S LICENSE.—Section 31314 of title 49, 
United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (d); and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (b) the following: 
‘‘(c) PENALTIES IMPOSED
IN FISCAL YEAR 2012 AND THERE-
AFTER.—Effective beginning on October 1, 2011—
H. R. 4348—156 
‘‘(1) the penalty for the first instance of noncompliance 
by a State under this section shall be not more than an amount 
equal to 4 percent of funds required to be apportioned to the 
noncompliant State under paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 
104(b) of title 23; and 
‘‘(2) the penalty for subsequent instances of noncompliance 
shall be not more than an amount equal to 8 percent of funds 
required to be apportioned to the noncompliant State under 
paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 104(b) of title 23.’’. 
SEC. 1405. HIGHWAY WORKER SAFETY. 
Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary shall modify section 630.1108(a) of title 23, 
Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of enactment 
of this Act), to ensure that— 
(1) at a minimum, positive protective measures are used 
to separate workers on highway construction projects from 
motorized traffic in all work zones conducted under traffic 
in areas that offer workers no means of escape (such as tunnels 
and bridges), unless an engineering study determines other-
wise; 
(2) temporary longitudinal traffic barriers are used to pro-
tect workers on highway construction projects in long-duration 
stationary work zones when the project design speed is antici-
pated to be high and the nature of the work requires workers 
to be within 1 lane-width from the edge of a live travel lane, 
unless— 
(A) an analysis by the project sponsor determines 
otherwise; or 
(B) the project is outside of an urbanized area and 
the annual average daily traffic load of the applicable road 
is less than 100 vehicles per hour; and 
(3) when positive protective devices are necessary for high-
way construction projects, those devices are paid for on a unit- 
pay basis, unless doing so would create a conflict with innova-
tive contracting approaches, such as design-build or some 
performance-based contracts under which the contractor is paid 
to assume a certain risk allocation and payment is generally 
made on a lump-sum basis. 
Subtitle E—Miscellaneous 
SEC. 1501. REAL-TIME RIDESHARING. 
Paragraph (3) of section 101(a) of title 23, United States Code 
(as redesignated by section 1103(a)(2)), is amended by striking 
‘‘and designating existing facilities for use for preferential parking 
for carpools’’ and inserting ‘‘designating existing facilities for use 
for preferential parking for carpools, and real-time ridesharing 
projects, such as projects where drivers, using an electronic transfer 
of funds, recover costs directly associated with the trip provided 
through the use of location technology to quantify those direct 
costs, subject to the condition that the cost recovered does not 
exceed the cost of the trip provided’’.
H. R. 4348—157 
SEC. 1502. PROGRAM EFFICIENCIES. 
The first sentence of section 102(b) of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ‘‘made available for such engineering’’ 
and inserting ‘‘reimbursed for the preliminary engineering’’. 
SEC. 1503. PROJECT APPROVAL AND OVERSIGHT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 106 of title 23, United States Code, 
is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(2) by inserting ‘‘recipient’’ before ‘‘for-
malizing’’; 
(2) in subsection (c)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)— 
(i) in the heading, by striking ‘‘NON-INTERSTATE’’; 
(ii) by striking ‘‘but not on the Interstate System’’; 
and inserting ‘‘, including projects on the Interstate 
System’’; and 
(iii) by striking ‘‘of projects’’ and all that follows 
through the period at the end and inserting ‘‘with 
respect to the projects unless the Secretary determines 
that the assumption is not appropriate.’’; and 
(B) by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(4) LIMITATION ON INTERSTATE PROJECTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall not assign any 
responsibilities to a State for projects the Secretary deter-
mines to be in a high risk category, as defined under 
subparagraph (B). 
‘‘(B) HIGH RISK CATEGORIES.—The Secretary may define 
the high risk categories under this subparagraph on a 
national basis, a State-by-State basis, or a national and 
State-by-State basis, as determined to be appropriate by 
the Secretary.’’; 
(3) in subsection (e)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)(A)— 
(i) in the matter preceding clause (i)— 
(I) by striking ‘‘concept’’ and inserting ‘‘plan-
ning’’; and 
(II) 
by 
striking 
‘‘multidisciplined’’ 
and 
inserting ‘‘multidisciplinary’’; and 
(ii) by striking clause (i) and inserting the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(i) providing the needed functions safely, reliably, 
and at the lowest overall lifecycle cost;’’; 
(B) in paragraph (2)— 
(i) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) by 
striking ‘‘or other cost-reduction analysis’’; 
(ii) in subparagraph (A)— 
(I) by striking ‘‘Federal-aid system’’ and 
inserting ‘‘National Highway System receiving 
Federal assistance’’; and 
(II) by striking ‘‘$25,000,000’’ and inserting 
‘‘$50,000,000’’; and 
(iii) in subparagraph (B)— 
(I) by inserting ‘‘on the National Highway 
System receiving Federal assistance’’ after ‘‘a 
bridge project’’; and
H. R. 4348—158 
(II) by striking ‘‘$20,000,000’’ and inserting 
‘‘$40,000,000’’; and 
(C) by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(4) REQUIREMENTS.— 
‘‘(A) VALUE ENGINEERING PROGRAM.—The State shall 
develop and carry out a value engineering program that— 
‘‘(i) establishes and documents value engineering 
program policies and procedures; 
‘‘(ii) ensures that the required value engineering 
analysis is conducted before completing the final design 
of a project; 
‘‘(iii) ensures that the value engineering analysis 
that is conducted, and the recommendations developed 
and implemented for each project, are documented in 
a final value engineering report; and 
‘‘(iv) monitors, evaluates, and annually submits 
to the Secretary a report that describes the results 
of the value analyses that are conducted and the rec-
ommendations implemented for each of the projects 
described in paragraph (2) that are completed in the 
State. 
‘‘(B) BRIDGE PROJECTS.—The value engineering anal-
ysis for a bridge project under paragraph (2) shall— 
‘‘(i) include bridge superstructure and substructure 
requirements based on construction material; and 
‘‘(ii) be evaluated by the State— 
‘‘(I) on engineering and economic bases, taking 
into consideration acceptable designs for bridges; 
and 
‘‘(II) using an analysis of lifecycle costs and 
duration of project construction. 
‘‘(5) DESIGN-BUILD
PROJECTS.—A requirement to provide 
a value engineering analysis under this subsection shall not 
apply to a project delivered using the design-build method 
of construction.’’; 
(4) in subsection (h)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)(B) by inserting ‘‘, including a 
phasing plan when applicable’’ after ‘‘financial plan’’; and 
(B) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(3) FINANCIAL PLAN.—A financial plan— 
‘‘(A) shall be based on detailed estimates of the cost 
to complete the project; 
‘‘(B) shall provide for the annual submission of updates 
to the Secretary that are based on reasonable assumptions, 
as determined by the Secretary, of future increases in 
the cost to complete the project; 
‘‘(C) may include a phasing plan that identifies 
fundable incremental improvements or phases that will 
address the purpose and the need of the project in the 
short term in the event there are insufficient financial 
resources to complete the entire project. If a phasing plan 
is adopted for a project pursuant to this section, the project 
shall be deemed to satisfy the fiscal constraint require-
ments in the statewide and metropolitan planning require-
ments in sections 134 and 135; and
H. R. 4348—159 
‘‘(D) shall assess the appropriateness of a public-private 
partnership to deliver the project.’’; and 
(5) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(j) USE OF ADVANCED MODELING TECHNOLOGIES.— 
‘‘(1) DEFINITION OF ADVANCED MODELING TECHNOLOGY.— 
In this subsection, the term ‘advanced modeling technology’ 
means an available or developing technology, including 3- 
dimensional digital modeling, that can— 
‘‘(A) accelerate and improve the environmental review 
process; 
‘‘(B) increase effective public participation; 
‘‘(C) enhance the detail and accuracy of project designs; 
‘‘(D) increase safety; 
‘‘(E) accelerate construction, and reduce construction 
costs; or 
‘‘(F) otherwise expedite project delivery with respect 
to transportation projects that receive Federal funding. 
‘‘(2) PROGRAM.—With respect to transportation projects that 
receive Federal funding, the Secretary shall encourage the use 
of advanced modeling technologies during environmental, plan-
ning, financial management, design, simulation, and construc-
tion processes of the projects. 
‘‘(3) ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out paragraph (2), the Sec-
retary shall— 
‘‘(A) compile information relating to advanced modeling 
technologies, including industry best practices with respect 
to the use of the technologies; 
‘‘(B) disseminate to States information relating to 
advanced modeling technologies, including industry best 
practices with respect to the use of the technologies; and 
‘‘(C) promote the use of advanced modeling tech-
nologies. 
‘‘(4) COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.—The Secretary shall develop 
and publish on the public website of the Department of 
Transportation a detailed and comprehensive plan for the 
implementation of paragraph (2).’’. 
(b) REVIEW OF OVERSIGHT PROGRAM.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall review the oversight 
program established under section 106(g) of title 23, United 
States Code, to determine the efficacy of the program in moni-
toring the effective and efficient use of funds authorized to 
carry out title 23, United States Code. 
(2) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR REVIEW.—At a minimum, 
the review under paragraph (1) shall assess the capability 
of the program to— 
(A) identify projects funded under title 23, United 
States Code, for which there are cost or schedule overruns; 
and 
(B) evaluate the extent of such overruns. 
(3) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 2 years after 
the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit 
to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Environment 
and Public Works of the Senate a report on the results of 
the review conducted under paragraph (1), which shall include
H. R. 4348—160 
recommendations for legislative changes to improve the over-
sight program established under section 106(g) of title 23, 
United States Code. 
(c) TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY.— 
(1) DATA COLLECTION.—The Secretary shall compile and 
make available on the public website of the Department of 
Transportation the annual expenditure data for funds made 
available under title 23 and chapter 53 of title 49, United 
States Code. 
(2) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out paragraph (1), the Sec-
retary shall ensure that the data made available on the public 
website of the Department of Transportation— 
(A) is organized by project and State; 
(B) to the maximum extent practicable, is updated 
regularly to reflect the current status of obligations, 
expenditures, and Federal-aid projects; and 
(C) can be searched and downloaded by users of the 
website. 
(3) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary shall annually 
submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Environ-
ment and Public Works and the Committee on Banking, 
Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate a report containing 
a summary of the data described in paragraph (1) for the 
1-year period ending on the date on which the report is sub-
mitted. 
SEC. 1504. STANDARDS. 
Section 109 of title 23, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(r) PAVEMENT MARKINGS.—The Secretary shall not approve 
any pavement markings project that includes the use of glass beads 
containing more than 200 parts per million of arsenic or lead, 
as determined in accordance with Environmental Protection Agency 
testing methods 3052, 6010B, or 6010C.’’. 
SEC. 1505. JUSTIFICATION REPORTS FOR ACCESS POINTS ON THE 
INTERSTATE SYSTEM. 
Section 111 of title 23, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(e) JUSTIFICATION REPORTS.—If the Secretary requests or 
requires a justification report for a project that would add a point 
of access to, or exit from, the Interstate System, the Secretary 
may permit a State transportation department to approve the 
report.’’. 
SEC. 1506. CONSTRUCTION. 
Section 114(b) of title 23, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) in subsection (b)— 
(A) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(1) LIMITATION ON CONVICT LABOR.—Convict labor shall 
not be used in construction of Federal-aid highways or portions 
of Federal-aid highways unless the labor is performed by con-
victs who are on parole, supervised release, or probation.’’; 
and 
(B) in paragraph (3) by inserting ‘‘in existence during 
that period’’ after ‘‘located on a Federal-aid system’’; and
H. R. 4348—161 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(d) VETERANS EMPLOYMENT.—– 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), a recipient 
of Federal financial assistance under this chapter shall, to 
the extent practicable, encourage contractors working on a high-
way project funded using the assistance to make a best faith 
effort in the hiring or referral of laborers on any project for 
the construction of a highway to veterans (as defined in section 
2108 of title 5) who have the requisite skills and abilities 
to perform the construction work required under the contract. 
‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATION.—This subsection shall not— 
‘‘(A) apply to projects subject to section 140(d); or 
‘‘(B) be administered or enforced in any manner that 
would require an employer to give a preference to any 
veteran over any equally qualified applicant who is a 
member of any racial or ethnic minority, a female, or 
any equally qualified former employee.’’. 
SEC. 1507. MAINTENANCE. 
Section 116 of title 23, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsections (a) through (d) as sub-
sections (b) through (e), respectively; 
(2) by inserting before subsection (b) (as so redesignated) 
the following: 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following definitions 
apply: 
‘‘(1) PREVENTIVE
MAINTENANCE.—The term ‘preventive 
maintenance’ includes pavement preservation programs and 
activities. 
‘‘(2) PAVEMENT PRESERVATION PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES.— 
The term ‘pavement preservation programs and activities’ 
means programs and activities employing a network level, long- 
term strategy that enhances pavement performance by using 
an integrated, cost-effective set of practices that extend pave-
ment life, improve safety, and meet road user expectations.’’; 
(3) in subsection (b) (as so redesignated)— 
(A) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘or other direct 
recipient’’ before ‘‘to maintain’’; and 
(B) by striking the second sentence; 
(4) by striking subsection (c) (as so redesignated) and 
inserting the following: 
‘‘(c) AGREEMENT.—In any State in which the State transpor-
tation department or other direct recipient is without legal authority 
to maintain a project described in subsection (b), the transportation 
department or direct recipient shall enter into a formal agreement 
with the appropriate officials of the county or municipality in which 
the project is located to provide for the maintenance of the project.’’; 
and 
(5) in the first sentence of subsection (d) (as so redesig-
nated) by inserting ‘‘or other direct recipient’’ after ‘‘State 
transportation department’’. 
SEC. 1508. FEDERAL SHARE PAYABLE. 
Section 120 of title 23, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) in the first sentence of subsection (c)(1)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘maintaining minimum levels of 
retroreflectivity of highway signs or pavement markings,’’ 
after ‘‘traffic control signalization,’’;
H. R. 4348—162 
(B) by inserting ‘‘shoulder and centerline rumble strips 
and stripes,’’ after ‘‘pavement marking,’’; and 
(C) by striking ‘‘Federal-aid systems’’ and inserting 
‘‘Federal-aid programs’’; 
(2) by striking subsection (e) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(e) EMERGENCY RELIEF.—The Federal share payable for any 
repair or reconstruction provided for by funds made available under 
section 125 for any project on a Federal-aid highway, including 
the Interstate System, shall not exceed the Federal share payable 
on a project on the system as provided in subsections (a) and 
(b), except that— 
‘‘(1) the Federal share payable for eligible emergency 
repairs to minimize damage, protect facilities, or restore essen-
tial traffic accomplished within 180 days after the actual occur-
rence of the natural disaster or catastrophic failure may amount 
to 100 percent of the cost of the repairs; 
‘‘(2) the Federal share payable for any repair or reconstruc-
tion of Federal land transportation facilities, Federal land 
access transportation facilities, and tribal transportation facili-
ties may amount to 100 percent of the cost of the repair or 
reconstruction; 
‘‘(3) the Secretary shall extend the time period in paragraph 
(1) taking into consideration any delay in the ability of the 
State to access damaged facilities to evaluate damage and 
the cost of repair; and 
‘‘(4) the Federal share payable for eligible permanent 
repairs to restore damaged facilities to predisaster condition 
may amount to 90 percent of the cost of the repairs if the 
eligible expenses incurred by the State due to natural disasters 
or catastrophic failures in a Federal fiscal year exceeds the 
annual apportionment of the State under section 104 for the 
fiscal year in which the disasters or failures occurred.’’; 
(3) by striking subsection (g) and redesignating subsections 
(h) through (l) as subsections (g) through (k), respectively; 
(4) in subsection (i)(1)(A) (as redesignated by paragraph 
(3)) by striking ‘‘and the Appalachian development highway 
system program under section 14501 of title 40’’; and 
(5) by striking subsections (j) and (k) (as redesignated 
by paragraph (3)) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(j) USE OF FEDERAL AGENCY FUNDS.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, any Federal funds other than those made 
available under this title and title 49 may be used to pay the 
non-Federal share of the cost of any transportation project that 
is within, adjacent to, or provides access to Federal land, the Federal 
share of which is funded under this title or chapter 53 of title 
49. 
‘‘(k) USE
OF FEDERAL LAND
AND TRIBAL TRANSPORTATION 
FUNDS.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the funds 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out the tribal transportation 
program under section 202 and the Federal lands transportation 
program under section 203 may be used to pay the non-Federal 
share of the cost of any project that is funded under this title 
or chapter 53 of title 49 and that provides access to or within 
Federal or tribal land.’’.
H. R. 4348—163 
SEC. 1509. TRANSFERABILITY OF FEDERAL-AID HIGHWAY FUNDS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 126 of title 23, United States Code, 
is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘§ 126. Transferability of Federal-aid highway funds 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
subject to subsection (b), a State may transfer from an apportion-
ment under section 104(b) not to exceed 50 percent of the amount 
apportioned for the fiscal year to any other apportionment of the 
State under that section. 
‘‘(b) APPLICATION TO CERTAIN SET-ASIDES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Funds that are subject to sections 104(d) 
and 133(d) shall not be transferred under this section. 
‘‘(2) FUNDS TRANSFERRED BY STATES.—Funds transferred 
by a State under this section of the funding reserved for the 
State under section 213 for a fiscal year may only come from 
the portion of those funds that are available for obligation 
in any area of the State under section 213(c)(1)(B).’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chapter 1 of 
title 23, United States Code, is amended by striking the item 
relating to section 126 and inserting the following: 
‘‘126. Transferability of Federal-aid highway funds.’’. 
SEC. 1510. IDLE REDUCTION TECHNOLOGY. 
Section 127(a)(12) of title 23, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘400’’ and inserting 
‘‘550’’; and 
(2) in subparagraph (C)(ii), by striking ‘‘400-pound’’ and 
inserting ‘‘550-pound’’. 
SEC. 1511. SPECIAL PERMITS DURING PERIODS OF NATIONAL EMER-
GENCY. 
Section 127 of title 23, United States Code, is amended by 
inserting at the end the following: 
‘‘(i) SPECIAL PERMITS DURING PERIODS
OF NATIONAL EMER-
GENCY.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision of 
this section, a State may issue special permits during an emer-
gency to overweight vehicles and loads that can easily be 
dismantled or divided if— 
‘‘(A) the President has declared the emergency to be 
a major disaster under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et 
seq.); 
‘‘(B) the permits are issued in accordance with State 
law; and 
‘‘(C) the permits are issued exclusively to vehicles and 
loads that are delivering relief supplies. 
‘‘(2) EXPIRATION.—A permit issued under paragraph (1) 
shall expire not later than 120 days after the date of the 
declaration of emergency under subparagraph (A) of that para-
graph.’’. 
SEC. 1512. TOLLING. 
(a) AMENDMENT TO TOLLING PROVISION.—Section 129(a) of title 
23, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(a) BASIC PROGRAM.—
H. R. 4348—164 
‘‘(1) AUTHORIZATION FOR FEDERAL PARTICIPATION.—Subject 
to the provisions of this section, Federal participation shall 
be permitted on the same basis and in the same manner as 
construction of toll-free highways is permitted under this 
chapter in the— 
‘‘(A) initial construction of a toll highway, bridge, or 
tunnel or approach to the highway, bridge, or tunnel; 
‘‘(B) initial construction of 1 or more lanes or other 
improvements that increase capacity of a highway, bridge, 
or tunnel (other than a highway on the Interstate System) 
and conversion of that highway, bridge, or tunnel to a 
tolled facility, if the number of toll-free lanes, excluding 
auxiliary lanes, after the construction is not less than 
the number of toll-free lanes, excluding auxiliary lanes, 
before the construction; 
‘‘(C) initial construction of 1 or more lanes or other 
improvements that increase the capacity of a highway, 
bridge, or tunnel on the Interstate System and conversion 
of that highway, bridge, or tunnel to a tolled facility, if 
the number of toll-free non-HOV lanes, excluding auxiliary 
lanes, after such construction is not less than the number 
of toll-free non-HOV lanes, excluding auxiliary lanes, before 
such construction; 
‘‘(D) reconstruction, resurfacing, restoration, rehabilita-
tion, or replacement of a toll highway, bridge, or tunnel 
or approach to the highway, bridge, or tunnel; 
‘‘(E) reconstruction or replacement of a toll-free bridge 
or tunnel and conversion of the bridge or tunnel to a 
toll facility; 
‘‘(F) reconstruction of a toll-free Federal-aid highway 
(other than a highway on the Interstate System) and 
conversion of the highway to a toll facility; 
‘‘(G) reconstruction, restoration, or rehabilitation of a 
highway on the Interstate System if the number of toll- 
free non-HOV lanes, excluding auxiliary lanes, after 
reconstruction, restoration, or rehabilitation is not less than 
the number of toll-free non-HOV lanes, excluding auxiliary 
lanes, before reconstruction, restoration, or rehabilitation; 
‘‘(H) conversion of a high occupancy vehicle lane on 
a highway, bridge, or tunnel to a toll facility; and 
‘‘(I) preliminary studies to determine the feasibility 
of a toll facility for which Federal participation is author-
ized under this paragraph. 
‘‘(2) 
OWNERSHIP.—Each 
highway, 
bridge, 
tunnel, 
or 
approach to the highway, bridge, or tunnel constructed under 
this subsection shall— 
‘‘(A) be publicly owned; or 
‘‘(B) be privately owned if the public authority with 
jurisdiction over the highway, bridge, tunnel, or approach 
has entered into a contract with 1 or more private persons 
to design, finance, construct, and operate the facility and 
the public authority will be responsible for complying with 
all applicable requirements of this title with respect to 
the facility. 
‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS ON USE OF REVENUES.—
H. R. 4348—165 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A public authority with jurisdiction 
over a toll facility shall use all toll revenues received from 
operation of the toll facility only for— 
‘‘(i) debt service with respect to the projects on 
or for which the tolls are authorized, including funding 
of reasonable reserves and debt service on refinancing; 
‘‘(ii) a reasonable return on investment of any pri-
vate person financing the project, as determined by 
the State or interstate compact of States concerned; 
‘‘(iii) any costs necessary for the improvement and 
proper operation and maintenance of the toll facility, 
including reconstruction, resurfacing, restoration, and 
rehabilitation; 
‘‘(iv) if the toll facility is subject to a public-private 
partnership agreement, payments that the party 
holding the right to toll revenues owes to the other 
party under the public-private partnership agreement; 
and 
‘‘(v) if the public authority certifies annually that 
the tolled facility is being adequately maintained, any 
other purpose for which Federal funds may be obligated 
by a State under this title. 
‘‘(B) ANNUAL AUDIT.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A public authority with jurisdic-
tion over a toll facility shall conduct or have an inde-
pendent auditor conduct an annual audit of toll facility 
records to verify adequate maintenance and compliance 
with subparagraph (A), and report the results of the 
audits to the Secretary. 
‘‘(ii) RECORDS.—On reasonable notice, the public 
authority shall make all records of the public authority 
pertaining to the toll facility available for audit by 
the Secretary. 
‘‘(C) NONCOMPLIANCE.—If the Secretary concludes that 
a public authority has not complied with the limitations 
on the use of revenues described in subparagraph (A), 
the Secretary may require the public authority to dis-
continue collecting tolls until an agreement with the Sec-
retary is reached to achieve compliance with the limitation 
on the use of revenues described in subparagraph (A). 
‘‘(4) LIMITATIONS
ON
CONVERSION
OF
HIGH
OCCUPANCY 
VEHICLE FACILITIES ON INTERSTATE SYSTEM.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A public authority with jurisdiction 
over a high occupancy vehicle facility on the Interstate 
System may undertake reconstruction, restoration, or 
rehabilitation under paragraph (1)(G) on the facility, and 
may levy tolls on vehicles, excluding high occupancy 
vehicles, using the reconstructed, restored, or rehabilitated 
facility, if the public authority— 
‘‘(i) in the case of a high occupancy vehicle facility 
that affects a metropolitan area, submits to the Sec-
retary a written assurance that the metropolitan plan-
ning organization designated under section 5203 of 
title 49 for the area has been consulted concerning 
the placement and amount of tolls on the converted 
facility;
H. R. 4348—166 
‘‘(ii) develops, manages, and maintains a system 
that will automatically collect the toll; and 
‘‘(iii) establishes policies and procedures— 
‘‘(I) to manage the demand to use the facility 
by varying the toll amount that is charged; and 
‘‘(II) to enforce sanctions for violations of use 
of the facility. 
‘‘(B) EXEMPTION FROM TOLLS.—In levying tolls on a 
facility under subparagraph (A), a public authority may 
designate classes of vehicles that are exempt from the 
tolls or charge different toll rates for different classes of 
vehicles. 
‘‘(5) SPECIAL RULE FOR FUNDING.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a toll facility under 
the jurisdiction of a public authority of a State (other 
than the State transportation department), on request of 
the State transportation department and subject to such 
terms and conditions as the department and public 
authority may agree, the Secretary, working through the 
State department of transportation, shall reimburse the 
public authority for the Federal share of the costs of 
construction of the project carried out on the toll facility 
under this subsection in the same manner and to the 
same extent as the department would be reimbursed if 
the project was being carried out by the department. 
‘‘(B) SOURCE.—The reimbursement of funds under this 
paragraph shall be from sums apportioned to the State 
under this chapter and available for obligations on projects 
on the Federal-aid system in the State on which the project 
is being carried out. 
‘‘(6) LIMITATION ON FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share 
payable for a project described in paragraph (1) shall be a 
percentage determined by the State, but not to exceed 80 per-
cent. 
‘‘(7) MODIFICATIONS.—If a public authority (including a 
State transportation department) with jurisdiction over a toll 
facility subject to an agreement under this section or section 
119(e), as in effect on the day before the effective date of 
title I of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act 
of 1991 (105 Stat. 1915), requests modification of the agreement, 
the Secretary shall modify the agreement to allow the continu-
ation of tolls in accordance with paragraph (3) without repay-
ment of Federal funds. 
‘‘(8) LOANS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.— 
‘‘(i) LOANS.—Using amounts made available under 
this title, a State may loan to a public or private 
entity constructing or proposing to construct under 
this section a toll facility or non-toll facility with a 
dedicated revenue source an amount equal to all or 
part of the Federal share of the cost of the project 
if the project has a revenue source specifically dedi-
cated to the project. 
‘‘(ii) DEDICATED
REVENUE
SOURCES.—Dedicated 
revenue sources for non-toll facilities include excise 
taxes, sales taxes, motor vehicle use fees, tax on real
H. R. 4348—167 
property, tax increment financing, and such other dedi-
cated revenue sources as the Secretary determines 
appropriate. 
‘‘(B) COMPLIANCE WITH FEDERAL LAWS.—As a condition 
of receiving a loan under this paragraph, the public or 
private entity that receives the loan shall ensure that the 
project will be carried out in accordance with this title 
and any other applicable Federal law, including any 
applicable provision of a Federal environmental law. 
‘‘(C) SUBORDINATION OF DEBT.—The amount of any loan 
received for a project under this paragraph may be subordi-
nated to any other debt financing for the project. 
‘‘(D) OBLIGATION
OF
FUNDS
LOANED.—Funds loaned 
under this paragraph may only be obligated for projects 
under this paragraph. 
‘‘(E) REPAYMENT.—The repayment of a loan made 
under this paragraph shall commence not later than 5 
years after date on which the facility that is the subject 
of the loan is open to traffic. 
‘‘(F) TERM OF LOAN.—The term of a loan made under 
this paragraph shall not exceed 30 years from the date 
on which the loan funds are obligated. 
‘‘(G) INTEREST.—A loan made under this paragraph 
shall bear interest at or below market interest rates, as 
determined by the State, to make the project that is the 
subject of the loan feasible. 
‘‘(H) REUSE
OF
FUNDS.—Amounts repaid to a State 
from a loan made under this paragraph may be obligated— 
‘‘(i) for any purpose for which the loan funds were 
available under this title; and 
‘‘(ii) for the purchase of insurance or for use as 
a capital reserve for other forms of credit enhancement 
for project debt in order to improve credit market 
access or to lower interest rates for projects eligible 
for assistance under this title. 
‘‘(I) GUIDELINES.—The Secretary shall establish proce-
dures and guidelines for making loans under this para-
graph. 
‘‘(9) STATE LAW PERMITTING TOLLING.—If a State does not 
have a highway, bridge, or tunnel toll facility as of the date 
of enactment of the MAP–21, before commencing any activity 
authorized under this section, the State shall have in effect 
a law that permits tolling on a highway, bridge, or tunnel. 
‘‘(10) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the following defini-
tions apply: 
‘‘(A) HIGH OCCUPANCY VEHICLE; HOV.—The term ‘high 
occupancy vehicle’ or ‘HOV’ means a vehicle with not fewer 
than 2 occupants. 
‘‘(B) INITIAL CONSTRUCTION.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘initial construction’ 
means the construction of a highway, bridge, tunnel, 
or other facility at any time before it is open to traffic. 
‘‘(ii) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘initial construction’ 
does not include any improvement to a highway, 
bridge, tunnel, or other facility after it is open to 
traffic.
H. R. 4348—168 
‘‘(C) PUBLIC AUTHORITY.—The term ‘public authority’ 
means a State, interstate compact of States, or public entity 
designated by a State. 
‘‘(D) TOLL FACILITY.—The term ‘toll facility’ means a 
toll highway, bridge, or tunnel or approach to the highway, 
bridge, or tunnel constructed under this subsection.’’. 
(b) ELECTRONIC TOLL COLLECTION INTEROPERABILITY REQUIRE-
MENTS.—Not later than 4 years after the date of enactment of 
this Act, all toll facilities on the Federal-aid highways shall imple-
ment technologies or business practices that provide for the inter-
operability of electronic toll collection programs. 
SEC. 1513. MISCELLANEOUS PARKING AMENDMENTS. 
(a) FRINGE AND CORRIDOR PARKING FACILITIES.—Section 137 
of title 23, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) in subsection (f)(1)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘104(b)(4)’’ and inserting ‘‘104(b)(1)’’; 
and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘including the addition of electric 
vehicle charging stations or natural gas vehicle refueling 
stations,’’ after ‘‘new facilities,’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(g) FUNDING.—The addition of electric vehicle charging stations 
or natural gas vehicle refueling stations to new or previously funded 
parking facilities shall be eligible for funding under this section.’’. 
(b) PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION.—Section 142(a)(1) of title 23, 
United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘, which may include 
electric vehicle charging stations or natural gas vehicle refueling 
stations,’’ after ‘‘parking facilities’’. 
(c) FOREST DEVELOPMENT ROADS AND TRAILS.—Section 205(d) 
of title 23, United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘, which 
may include electric vehicle charging stations or natural gas vehicle 
refueling stations,’’ after ‘‘parking areas’’. 
SEC. 1514. HOV FACILITIES. 
Section 166 of title 23, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) in subsection (b)(5)— 
(A) in subparagraph (A) by striking ‘‘2009’’ and 
inserting ‘‘2017’’; 
(B) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘2009’’ and 
inserting ‘‘2017’’; and 
(C) in subparagraph (C)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’ and inserting 
‘‘this paragraph’’; and 
(ii) by inserting ‘‘or equal to’’ after ‘‘less than’’; 
(2) in subsection (c) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting 
the following: 
‘‘(3) TOLL REVENUE.—Toll revenue collected under this sec-
tion is subject to the requirements of section 129(a)(3).’’; and 
(3) in subsection (d)(1)— 
(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘in a fiscal year shall certify’’ and 
inserting ‘‘shall submit to the Secretary a report dem-
onstrating that the facility is not already degraded, 
and that the presence of the vehicles will not cause 
the facility to become degraded, and certify’’; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘in the fiscal year’’;
H. R. 4348—169 
(B) in subparagraph (A) by inserting ‘‘and submitting 
to the Secretary annual reports of those impacts’’ after 
‘‘adjacent highways’’; 
(C) in subparagraph (C) by striking ‘‘if the presence 
of the vehicles has degraded the operation of the facility’’ 
and inserting ‘‘whenever the operation of the facility is 
degraded’’; and 
(D) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(D) MAINTENANCE OF OPERATING PERFORMANCE.—Not 
later than 180 days after the date on which a facility 
is degraded pursuant to the standard specified in para-
graph (2), the State agency with jurisdiction over the 
facility shall bring the facility into compliance with the 
minimum average operating speed performance standard 
through changes to operation of the facility, including— 
‘‘(i) increasing the occupancy requirement for HOV 
lanes; 
‘‘(ii) varying the toll charged to vehicles allowed 
under subsection (b) to reduce demand; 
‘‘(iii) discontinuing allowing non-HOV vehicles to 
use HOV lanes under subsection (b); or 
‘‘(iv) increasing the available capacity of the HOV 
facility. 
‘‘(E) COMPLIANCE.—If the State fails to bring a facility 
into compliance under subparagraph (D), the Secretary 
shall subject the State to appropriate program sanctions 
under section 1.36 of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations 
(or successor regulations), until the performance is no 
longer degraded.’’. 
SEC. 1515. FUNDING FLEXIBILITY FOR TRANSPORTATION EMER-
GENCIES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 1 of title 23, United States Code 
(as amended by section 1311(a)), is amended by adding at the 
end the following: 
‘‘§ 170. Funding flexibility for transportation emergencies 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
a State may use up to 100 percent of any covered funds of the 
State to repair or replace a transportation facility that has suffered 
serious damage as a result of a natural disaster or catastrophic 
failure from an external cause. 
‘‘(b) DECLARATION OF EMERGENCY.—Funds may be used under 
this section only for a disaster or emergency declared by the Presi-
dent pursuant to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer-
gency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.). 
‘‘(c) REPAYMENT.—Funds used under subsection (a) shall be 
repaid to the program from which the funds were taken in the 
event that such repairs or replacement are subsequently covered 
by a supplemental appropriation of funds. 
‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following definitions 
apply: 
‘‘(1) COVERED FUNDS.—The term ‘covered funds’ means any 
amounts apportioned to a State under section 104(b), other 
than amounts suballocated to metropolitan areas and other 
areas of the State under section 133(d), but including any 
such amounts required to be set aside for a purpose other
H. R. 4348—170 
than the repair or replacement of a transportation facility under 
this section. 
‘‘(2) TRANSPORTATION FACILITY.—The term ‘transportation 
facility’ means any facility eligible for assistance under section 
125.’’. 
(b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis 
for chapter 1 of title 23, United States Code (as amended by 
section 1311(b)), is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘170. Funding flexibility for transportation emergencies.’’. 
SEC. 1516. DEFENSE ACCESS ROAD PROGRAM ENHANCEMENTS TO 
ADDRESS TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE IN THE 
VICINITY OF MILITARY INSTALLATIONS. 
The second sentence of section 210(a)(2) of title 23, United 
States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Transportation,’’ before ‘‘shall determine’’. 
SEC. 1517. MAPPING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 306 of title 23, United States Code, 
is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting ‘‘shall’’; 
(2) in subsection (b) in the second sentence by striking 
‘‘State and’’ and inserting ‘‘State government and’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(c) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Secretary shall develop a process 
for the oversight and monitoring, on an annual basis, of the compli-
ance of each State with the guidance issued under subsection (b).’’. 
(b) SURVEY.—Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary shall conduct a survey of all States 
to determine what percentage of projects carried out under title 
23, United States Code, in each State utilize private sector sources 
for surveying and mapping services. 
SEC. 1518. BUY AMERICA PROVISIONS. 
Section 313 of title 23, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(g) APPLICATION TO HIGHWAY PROGRAMS.—The requirements 
under this section shall apply to all contracts eligible for assistance 
under this chapter for a project carried out within the scope of 
the applicable finding, determination, or decision under the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
seq.), regardless of the funding source of such contracts, if at least 
1 contract for the project is funded with amounts made available 
to carry out this title.’’. 
SEC. 1519. CONSOLIDATION OF PROGRAMS; REPEAL OF OBSOLETE 
PROVISIONS. 
(a) CONSOLIDATION OF PROGRAMS.—From administrative funds 
made available under section 104(a) of title 23, United States Code, 
not less than $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2013 and 2014 
shall be made available— 
(1) to carry out safety-related activities, including— 
(A) to carry out the operation lifesaver program— 
(i) to provide public information and education pro-
grams to help prevent and reduce motor vehicle 
accidents, injuries, and fatalities; and 
(ii) to improve driver performance at railway-high-
way crossings; and
H. R. 4348—171 
(B) to provide work zone safety grants in accordance 
with subsections (a) and (b) of section 1409 of the 
SAFETEA–LU (23 U.S.C. 401 note; 119 Stat. 1232); and 
(2) to operate authorized safety-related clearinghouses, 
including— 
(A) the national work zone safety information clearing-
house authorized by section 358(b)(2) of the National High-
way System Designation Act of 1995 (23 U.S.C. 401 note; 
109 Stat. 625); and 
(B) a public road safety clearinghouse in accordance 
with section 1411(a) of the SAFETEA–LU (23 U.S.C. 402 
note; 119 Stat. 1234). 
(b) REPEALS.— 
(1) TITLE 23.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Sections 105, 110, 117, 124, 151, 
155, 157, 160, 212, 216, 303, and 309 of title 23, United 
States Code, are repealed. 
(B) SET ASIDES.—Section 118 of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended— 
(i) by striking subsection (c); and 
(ii) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as 
subsections (c) and (d), respectively. 
(2) SAFETEA–LU.—Sections 1302, 1305, 1306, 1803, 1804, 
1907, and 1958 of SAFETEA–LU (Public Law 109–59) are 
repealed. 
(3) ADDITIONAL.—Section 1132 of the Energy Independence 
and Security Act of 2007 (Public Law 110–140; 121 Stat. 1763) 
is repealed. 
(c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 
(1) TITLE ANALYSIS.— 
(A) CHAPTER 1.—The analysis for chapter 1 of title 
23, United States Code, is amended by striking the items 
relating to sections 105, 110, 117, 124, 151, 155, 157, 
and 160. 
(B) CHAPTER 2.—The analysis for chapter 2 of title 
23, United States Code, is amended by striking the items 
relating to sections 212 and 216. 
(C) CHAPTER 3.—The analysis for chapter 3 of title 
23, United States Code, is amended by striking the items 
relating to sections 303 and 309. 
(2) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents contained 
in section 1(b) of SAFETEA–LU (Public Law 109–59; 119 Stat. 
1144) is amended by striking the items relating to sections 
1302, 1305, 1306, 1803, 1804, 1907, and 1958. 
(3) SECTION 104.—Section 104(e) of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ‘‘, 105,’’. 
(4) SECTION 109.—Section 109(q) of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ‘‘in accordance with section 303 
or’’. 
(5) SECTION 118.—Section 118(b) of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended— 
(A) by striking paragraph (1) and all that follows 
through the heading of paragraph (2); and 
(B) by striking ‘‘(other than for Interstate construc-
tion)’’. 
(6) SECTION 130.—Section 130 of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended—
H. R. 4348—172 
(A) in subsection (e) by striking ‘‘section 104(b)(5)’’ 
and inserting ‘‘section 104(b)(3)’’; 
(B) in subsection (f)(1) by inserting ‘‘as in effect on 
the day before the date of enactment of the MAP–21’’ 
after ‘‘section 104(b)(3)(A)’’; and 
(C) in subsection (l) by striking paragraphs (3) and 
(4). 
(7) SECTION 131.—Section 131(m) of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Subject to approval by the Sec-
retary in accordance with the program of projects approval 
process of section 105, a State’’ and inserting ‘‘A State’’. 
(8) SECTION 133.—Paragraph (13) of section 133(b) of title 
23, United States Code (as amended by section 1108(a)(3)), 
is amended by striking ‘‘under section 303.’’ 
(9) SECTION 142.—Section 142 of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended— 
(A) in subsection (a)— 
(i) in paragraph (1)— 
(I) by striking ‘‘motor vehicles (other than 
rail)’’ and inserting ‘‘buses’’; 
(II) by striking ‘‘(hereafter in this section 
referred to as ‘buses’)’’; 
(III) by striking ‘‘Federal-aid systems’’ and 
inserting ‘‘Federal-aid highways’’; and 
(IV) by striking ‘‘Federal-aid system’’ and 
inserting ‘‘Federal-aid highway’’; and 
(ii) in paragraph (2)— 
(I) by striking ‘‘as a project on the the surface 
transportation program for’’; and 
(II) 
by 
striking 
‘‘section 
104(b)(3)’’ 
and 
inserting ‘‘section 104(b)(2)’’; 
(B) in subsection (b) by striking ‘‘104(b)(4)’’ and 
inserting ‘‘104(b)(1)’’; 
(C) in subsection (c)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘system’’ in each place it appears 
and inserting ‘‘highway’’; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘highway facilities’’ and inserting 
‘‘highways eligible under the program that is the source 
of the funds’’; 
(D) in subsection (e)(2) by striking ‘‘Notwithstanding 
section 209(f)(1) of the Highway Revenue Act of 1956, the 
Highway Trust Fund shall be available for making expendi-
tures to meet obligations resulting from projects authorized 
by subsection (a)(2) of this section and such projects’’ and 
inserting ‘‘Projects authorized by subsection (a)(2)’’; and 
(E) in subsection (f) by striking ‘‘exits’’ and inserting 
‘‘exists’’. 
(10) SECTION 145.—Section 145(b) of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ‘‘section 117 of this title,’’. 
(11) SECTION 218.—Section 218 of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended— 
(A) in subsection (a)— 
(i) by striking the first two sentences; 
(ii) in the third sentence— 
(I) by striking ‘‘, in addition to such funds,’’; 
and 
(II) by striking ‘‘such highway or’’;
H. R. 4348—173 
(iii) by striking the fourth sentence and fifth sen-
tences; 
(B) by striking subsection (b); and 
(C) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (b). 
(12) SECTION 610.—Section 610(d)(1)(B) of title 23, United 
States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘under section 105’’. 
SEC. 1520. DENALI COMMISSION. 
The Denali Commission Act of 1998 (42 U.S.C. 3121 note) 
is amended— 
(1) in section 305, by striking subsection (c) and inserting 
the following: 
‘‘(c) GIFTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in paragraph (2), 
the Commission, on behalf of the United States, may accept 
use, and dispose of gifts or donations of services, property, 
or money for purposes of carrying out this Act. 
‘‘(2) CONDITIONAL.—With respect to conditional gifts— 
‘‘(A)(i) the Commission, on behalf of the United States, 
may accept conditional gifts for purposes of carrying out 
this Act, if approved by the Federal Cochairperson; and 
‘‘(ii) the principal of and income from any such condi-
tional gift shall be held, invested, reinvested, and used 
in accordance with the condition applicable to the gift; 
but 
‘‘(B) no gift shall be accepted that is conditioned on 
any expenditure not to be funded from the gift or from 
the income generated by the gift unless the expenditure 
has been approved by Act of Congress.’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 311. TRANSFER OF FUNDS FROM OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (c), for purposes of 
this Act, the Commission may accept transfers of funds from other 
Federal agencies. 
‘‘(b) TRANSFERS.—Any Federal agency authorized to carry out 
an activity that is within the authority of the Commission may 
transfer to the Commission any appropriated funds for the activity. 
‘‘(c) TREATMENT.—Any funds transferred to the Commission 
under this subsection— 
‘‘(1) shall remain available until expended; and 
‘‘(2) may, to the extent necessary to carry out this Act, 
be transferred to, and merged with, the amounts made available 
by appropriations Acts for the Commission by the Federal 
Cochairperson.’’. 
SEC. 1521. UNIFORM RELOCATION ASSISTANCE AND REAL PROPERTY 
ACQUISITION POLICIES ACT OF 1970 AMENDMENTS. 
(a) MOVING AND RELATED EXPENSES.—Section 202 of the Uni-
form Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies 
Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4622) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(4) by striking ‘‘$10,000’’ and inserting 
‘‘$25,000, as adjusted by regulation, in accordance with section 
213(d)’’; and 
(2) in the second sentence of subsection (c) by striking 
‘‘$20,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$40,000, as adjusted by regulation, 
in accordance with section 213(d)’’.
H. R. 4348—174 
(b) REPLACEMENT HOUSING FOR HOMEOWNERS.—The first sen-
tence of section 203(a)(1) of the Uniform Relocation Assistance 
and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 
4623(a)(1)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘$22,500’’ and inserting ‘‘$31,000, as 
adjusted by regulation, in accordance with 213(d),’’; and 
(2) by striking ‘‘one hundred and eighty days prior to’’ 
and inserting ‘‘90 days before’’. 
(c) REPLACEMENT
HOUSING
FOR
TENANTS
AND
CERTAIN 
OTHERS.—Section 204 of the Uniform Relocation Assistance and 
Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4624) 
is amended— 
(1) in the second sentence of subsection (a) by striking 
‘‘$5,250’’ and inserting ‘‘$7,200, as adjusted by regulation, in 
accordance with section 213(d)’’; and 
(2) in the second sentence of subsection (b) by striking 
‘‘, except’’ and all that follows through the end of the subsection 
and inserting a period. 
(d) DUTIES
OF LEAD AGENCY.—Section 213 of the Uniform 
Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act 
of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4633) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(B) in paragraph (3) by striking the period at the 
end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(4) that each Federal agency that has programs or projects 
requiring the acquisition of real property or causing a displace-
ment from real property subject to the provisions of this Act 
shall provide to the lead agency an annual summary report 
the describes the activities conducted by the Federal agency.’’; 
and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(d) ADJUSTMENT OF PAYMENTS.—The head of the lead agency 
may adjust, by regulation, the amounts of relocation payments 
provided under sections 202(a)(4), 202(c), 203(a), and 204(a) if the 
head of the lead agency determines that cost of living, inflation, 
or other factors indicate that the payments should be adjusted 
to meet the policy objectives of this Act.’’. 
(e) AGENCY COORDINATION.—Title II of the Uniform Relocation 
Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 is 
amended by inserting after section 213 (42 U.S.C. 4633) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘SEC. 214. AGENCY COORDINATION. 
‘‘(a) AGENCY CAPACITY.—Each Federal agency responsible for 
funding or carrying out relocation and acquisition activities shall 
have adequately trained personnel and such other resources as 
are necessary to manage and oversee the relocation and acquisition 
program of the Federal agency in accordance with this Act. 
‘‘(b) INTERAGENCY AGREEMENTS.—Not later than 1 year after 
the date of enactment of this section, each Federal agency respon-
sible for funding relocation and acquisition activities (other than 
the agency serving as the lead agency) shall enter into a memo-
randum of understanding with the lead agency that— 
‘‘(1) provides for periodic training of the personnel of the 
Federal agency, which in the case of a Federal agency that
H. R. 4348—175 
provides Federal financial assistance, may include personnel 
of any displacing agency that receives Federal financial assist-
ance; 
‘‘(2) addresses ways in which the lead agency may provide 
assistance and coordination to the Federal agency relating to 
compliance with the Act on a program or project basis; and 
‘‘(3) addresses the funding of the training, assistance, and 
coordination activities provided by the lead agency, in accord-
ance with subsection (c). 
‘‘(c) INTERAGENCY PAYMENTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For the fiscal year that begins 1 year 
after the date of enactment of this section, and each fiscal 
year thereafter, each Federal agency responsible for funding 
relocation and acquisition activities (other than the agency 
serving as the lead agency) shall transfer to the lead agency 
for the fiscal year, such funds as are necessary, but not less 
than $35,000, to support the training, assistance, and coordina-
tion activities of the lead agency described in subsection (b). 
‘‘(2) INCLUDED COSTS.—The cost to a Federal agency of 
providing the funds described in paragraph (1) shall be included 
as part of the cost of 1 or more programs or projects undertaken 
by the Federal agency or with Federal financial assistance 
that result in the displacement of persons or the acquisition 
of real property.’’. 
(f) COOPERATION WITH FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Section 308 of title 
23, United States Code, is amended by striking subsection (a) 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘(a) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may perform, by contract 
or otherwise, authorized engineering or other services in connec-
tion with the survey, construction, maintenance, or improve-
ment of highways for other Federal agencies, cooperating for-
eign countries, and State cooperating agencies. 
‘‘(2) INCLUSIONS.—Services authorized under paragraph (1) 
may include activities authorized under section 214 of the Uni-
form Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Poli-
cies Act of 1970. 
‘‘(3) REIMBURSEMENT.—Reimbursement for services carried 
out under this subsection (including depreciation on engineering 
and road-building equipment) shall be credited to the applicable 
appropriation.’’. 
(g) EFFECTIVE DATES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
amendments made by this section shall take effect on the 
date of enactment of this Act. 
(2) EXCEPTION.—The amendments made by subsections (a) 
through (c) shall take effect 2 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act. 
SEC. 1522. EXTENSION OF PUBLIC TRANSIT VEHICLE EXEMPTION 
FROM AXLE WEIGHT RESTRICTIONS. 
Section 1023(h) of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Effi-
ciency Act of 1991 (23 U.S.C. 127 note; Public Law 102–240) is 
amended— 
(1) in the heading of paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘TEMPORARY 
EXEMPTION’’ and inserting ‘‘EXEMPTION’’; 
(2) in paragraph (1)—
H. R. 4348—176 
(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) by 
striking ‘‘, for the period beginning on October 6, 1992, 
and ending on October 1, 2009,’’; 
(B) in subparagraph (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end; 
(C) in subparagraph (B) by striking the period at the 
end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 
(D) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(C) any motor home (as defined in section 571.3 of 
title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or successor regula-
tion)).’’; and 
(3) in paragraph (2)(A) by striking ‘‘For the period begin-
ning on the date of enactment of this subparagraph and ending 
on September 30, 2009, a’’ and inserting ‘‘A’’. 
SEC. 1523. USE OF DEBRIS FROM DEMOLISHED BRIDGES AND OVER-
PASSES. 
Section 1805(a) of the SAFETEA–LU (23 U.S.C. 144 note; 119 
Stat. 1459) is amended by striking ‘‘highway bridge replacement 
and rehabilitation program under section 144’’ and inserting 
‘‘national highway performance program under section 119’’. 
SEC. 1524. USE OF YOUTH SERVICE AND CONSERVATION CORPS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall encourage the States 
and regional transportation planning agencies to enter into con-
tracts and cooperative agreements with qualified youth service or 
conservation corps, as defined in sections 122(a)(2) of Public Law 
101–610 (42 U.S.C. 12572(a)(2)) and 106(c)(3) of Public Law 103– 
82 (42 U.S.C. 12656(c)(3)) to perform appropriate projects eligible 
under sections 162, 206, 213, and 217 of title 23, United States 
Code, and under section 1404 of the SAFETEA–LU (119 Stat. 
1228). 
(b) REQUIREMENTS.—Under any contract or cooperative agree-
ment entered into with a qualified youth service or conservation 
corps under this section, the Secretary shall— 
(1) set the amount of a living allowance or rate of pay 
for each participant in such corps at— 
(A) such amount or rate as required under State law 
in a State with such requirements; or 
(B) for corps in States not described in subparagraph 
(A), at such amount or rate as determined by the Secretary, 
not to exceed the maximum living allowance authorized 
by section 140 of Public Law 101–610 (42 U.S.C. 12594); 
and 
(2) not subject such corps to the requirements of section 
112 of title 23, United States Code. 
SEC. 1525. STATE AUTONOMY FOR CULVERT PIPE SELECTION. 
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary shall modify section 635.411 of title 23, Code 
of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of enactment of 
this Act), to ensure that States shall have the autonomy to deter-
mine culvert and storm sewer material types to be included in 
the construction of a project on a Federal-aid highway. 
SEC. 1526. EVACUATION ROUTES. 
Each State shall give adequate consideration to the needs of 
evacuation routes in the State, including such routes serving or 
adjacent to facilities operated by the Armed Forces, when allocating
H. R. 4348—177 
funds apportioned to the State under title 23, United States Code, 
for the construction of Federal-aid highways. 
SEC. 1527. CONSOLIDATION OF GRANTS. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the term ‘‘recipient’’ means— 
(1) a State, local, or tribal government, including— 
(A) a territory of the United States; 
(B) a transit agency; 
(C) a port authority; 
(D) a metropolitan planning organization; or 
(E) any other political subdivision of a State or local 
government; 
(2) a multistate or multijurisdictional group, if each 
member of the group is an entity described in paragraph (1); 
and 
(3) a public-private partnership, if both parties are engaged 
in building the project. 
(b) CONSOLIDATION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—A recipient that receives multiple grant 
awards from the Department to support 1 multimodal project 
may request that the Secretary designate 1 modal administra-
tion in the Department to be the lead administering authority 
for the overall project. 
(2) NEW STARTS.—Any project that includes funds awarded 
under section 5309 of title 49, United States Code, shall be 
exempt from consolidation under this section unless the grant 
recipient requests the Federal Transit Administration to be 
the lead administering authority. 
(3) REVIEW.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after the 
date on which a request under paragraph (1) is made, 
the Secretary shall review the request and approve or 
deny the designation of a single modal administration as 
the lead administering authority and point of contact for 
the Department. 
(B) NOTIFICATION.— 
(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall notify the 
requestor of the decision of the Secretary under 
subparagraph (A) in such form and at such time as 
the Secretary and the requestor agree. 
(ii) DENIAL.—If a request is denied, the Secretary 
shall provide the requestor with a detailed explanation 
of the reasoning of the Secretary with the notification 
under clause (i). 
(c) DUTIES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—A modal administration designated as 
a lead administering authority under this section shall— 
(A) be responsible for leading and coordinating the 
integrated project management team, which shall consist 
of all of the other modal administrations in the Department 
relating to the multimodal project; and 
(B) to the extent feasible during the first 30 days 
of carrying out the multimodal project, identify overlapping 
or duplicative regulatory requirements that exist for the 
project and propose a single, streamlined approach to 
meeting all of the applicable regulatory requirements 
through the activities described in subsection (d).
H. R. 4348—178 
(2) ADMINISTRATION.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall transfer all 
amounts that have been awarded for the multimodal project 
to the modal administration designated as the lead admin-
istering authority. 
(B) OPTION.— 
(i) IN GENERAL.—Participation under this section 
shall be optional for recipients, and no recipient shall 
be required to participate. 
(ii) SECRETARIAL
DUTIES.—The Secretary is not 
required to identify every recipient that may be eligible 
to participate under this section. 
(d) COOPERATION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and modal administrations 
with relevant jurisdiction over a multimodal project should 
cooperate on project review and delivery activities at the ear-
liest practicable time. 
(2) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the cooperation under 
paragraph (1) are— 
(A) to avoid delays and duplication of effort later in 
the process; 
(B) to prevent potential conflicts; and 
(C) to ensure that planning and project development 
decisions are made in a streamlined manner and consistent 
with applicable law. 
(e) APPLICABILITY.—Nothing in this section shall— 
(1) supersede, amend, or modify the National Environ-
mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) or any 
other Federal environmental law; or 
(2) affect the responsibility of any Federal officer to comply 
with or enforce any law described in paragraph (1). 
SEC. 1528. APPALACHIAN DEVELOPMENT HIGHWAY SYSTEM. 
(a) SENSE
OF
THE SENATE.—It is the Sense of the Senate 
that the timely completion of the Appalachian development highway 
system is a transportation priority in the national interest. 
(b) MODIFIED FEDERAL SHARE FOR PROJECTS ON ADHS.—For 
fiscal years 2012 through 2021, the Federal share payable for the 
cost of constructing highways and access roads on the Appalachian 
development highway system under section 14501 of title 40, United 
States Code, with funds made available to a State for fiscal year 
2012 or a previous fiscal year for the Appalachian development 
highway system program, or with funds made available for fiscal 
year 2012 or a previous fiscal year for a specific project, route, 
or corridor on that system, shall be 100 percent. 
(c) FEDERAL SHARE FOR OTHER FUNDS USED ON ADHS.—For 
fiscal years 2012 through 2021, the Federal share payable for the 
cost of constructing highways and access roads on the Appalachian 
development highway system under section 14501 of title 40, United 
States Code, with Federal funds apportioned to a State for a pro-
gram other than the Appalachian development highway system 
program shall be 100 percent. 
(d) COMPLETION PLAN.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), not later than 
1 year after the date of enactment of the MAP–21, each State 
represented on the Appalachian Regional Commission shall 
establish a plan for the completion of the designated corridors
H. R. 4348—179 
of the Appalachian development highway system within the 
State, including annual performance targets, with a target 
completion date. 
(2) SIGNIFICANT UNCOMPLETED MILES.—If the percentage 
of remaining Appalachian development highway system needs 
for a State, according to the latest cost to complete estimate 
for the Appalachian development highway system, is greater 
than 15 percent of the total cost to complete estimate for 
the entire Appalachian development highway system, the State 
shall not establish a plan under paragraph (1) that would 
result in a reduction of obligated funds for the Appalachian 
development highway system within the State for any subse-
quent fiscal year. 
SEC. 1529. ENGINEERING JUDGMENT. 
Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary shall issue guidance to State transportation 
departments clarifying that the standards, guidance, and options 
for design and application of traffic control devices provided in 
the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices should not be 
considered a substitute for engineering judgment. 
SEC. 1530. TRANSPORTATION TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT PRO-
GRAMS. 
To encourage the development of careers in the transportation 
field, the Secretary of Education and the Secretary of Labor are 
encouraged to use funds for training and employment education 
programs— 
(1) to develop programs for transportation-related careers 
and trades; and 
(2) to work with the Secretary to carry out programs devel-
oped under paragraph (1). 
SEC. 1531. NOTICE OF CERTAIN GRANT AWARDS. 
(a) DEFINITION OF COVERED GRANT AWARD.—In this section, 
the term ‘‘covered grant award’’ means a grant award— 
(1) made— 
(A) by the Department; and 
(B) with funds made available under this Act; and 
(2) in an amount equal to or greater than $500,000. 
(b) NOTICE.—Except to the extent otherwise expressly provided 
in another provision of law, at least 3 business days before a 
covered grant award is announced, the Secretary shall provide 
to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 
of Representatives and the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works of the Senate written notice of the covered grant award. 
SEC. 1532. BUDGET JUSTIFICATION. 
The Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Transportation 
and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate a budget 
justification for each agency of the Department concurrently with 
the annual budget submission of the President to Congress under 
section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code.
H. R. 4348—180 
SEC. 1533. PROHIBITION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR AUTOMATED TRAFFIC 
ENFORCEMENT. 
(a) 
DEFINITION
OF
AUTOMATED
TRAFFIC
ENFORCEMENT 
SYSTEM.—In this section, the term ‘‘automated traffic enforcement 
system’’ means any camera that captures an image of a vehicle 
for the purposes of traffic law enforcement. 
(b) USE OF FUNDS.—Except as provided in subsection (c), for 
fiscal years 2013 and 2014, funds apportioned to a State under 
section 104(b)(3) of title 23, United States Code, may not be used 
for any program to purchase, operate, or maintain an automated 
traffic enforcement system. 
(c) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (b) shall not apply to automated 
traffic enforcement systems used to improve safety in school zones. 
SEC. 1534. PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS. 
(a) BEST PRACTICES.—The Secretary shall compile, and make 
available to the public on the website of the Department, best 
practices on how States, public transportation agencies, and other 
public officials can work with the private sector in the development, 
financing, construction, and operation of transportation facilities. 
(b) CONTENTS.—The best practices compiled under subsection 
(a) shall include polices and techniques to ensure that the interests 
of the traveling public and State and local governments are pro-
tected in any agreement entered into with the private sector for 
the development, financing, construction, and operation of transpor-
tation facilities. 
(c) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary, on request, may 
provide technical assistance to States, public transportation agen-
cies, and other public officials regarding proposed public-private 
partnership agreements for the development, financing, construc-
tion, and operation of transportation facilities, including assistance 
in analyzing whether the use of a public-private partnership agree-
ment would provide value compared with traditional public delivery 
methods. 
(d) STANDARD TRANSACTION CONTRACTS.— 
(1) DEVELOPMENT.—Not later than 18 months after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall develop 
standard public-private partnership transaction model contracts 
for the most popular types of public-private partnerships for 
the development, financing, construction, and operation of 
transportation facilities. 
(2) USE.—The Secretary shall encourage States, public 
transportation agencies, and other public officials to use the 
model contracts as a base template when developing their own 
public-private partnership agreements for the development, 
financing, construction, and operation of transportation facili-
ties. 
SEC. 1535. REPORT ON HIGHWAY TRUST FUND EXPENDITURES. 
(a) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 150 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall submit to Congress a report describing the activities 
funded from the Highway Trust Fund during each of fiscal years 
2009 through 2011, including for purposes other than construction 
and maintenance of highways and bridges. 
(b) UPDATES.—Not later than 5 years after the date on which 
the report is submitted under subsection (a) and every 5 years
H. R. 4348—181 
thereafter, the Comptroller General of the United States shall 
submit to Congress a report that updates the information provided 
in the report under that subsection for the applicable 5-year period. 
(c) INCLUSIONS.—A report submitted under subsection (a) or 
(b) shall include information similar to the information included 
in the report of the Government Accountability Office numbered 
‘‘GAO–09–729R’’ and entitled ‘‘Highway Trust Fund Expenditures 
on Purposes Other Than Construction and Maintenance of High-
ways and Bridges During Fiscal Years 2004–2008’’. 
SEC. 1536. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON HARBOR MAINTENANCE. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 
(1) there are 926 coastal, Great Lakes, and inland harbors 
maintained by the Corps of Engineers; 
(2) according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics— 
(A) in 2009, the ports and waterways of the United 
States handled more than 2,200,000,000 short tons of 
imports, exports, and domestic shipments; and 
(B) in 2010, United States ports were responsible for 
more than $1,400,000,000,000 in waterborne imports and 
exports; 
(3) according to the Congressional Research Service, full 
channel dimensions are, on average, available approximately 
1⁄3 of the time at the 59 harbors of the United States with 
the highest use rates; 
(4) in 1986, Congress created the Harbor Maintenance 
Trust Fund to provide funds for the operation and maintenance 
of the navigation channels of the United States; 
(5) in fiscal year 2012, the Harbor Maintenance Trust 
Fund 
is 
expected 
to 
grow 
from 
$6,280,000,000 
to 
$7,011,000,000, an increase of approximately 13 percent; 
(6) despite growth of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund, 
expenditures from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund have 
not been sufficiently spent; and 
(7) inadequate investment in dredging needs is restricting 
access to the ports of the United States for domestic shipping, 
imports, and exports and therefore threatening the economic 
competitiveness of the United States. 
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Congress that— 
(1) the Administration should request full use of the Harbor 
Maintenance Trust Fund for operating and maintaining the 
navigation channels of the United States; 
(2) the amounts in the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund 
should be fully expended to operate and maintain the naviga-
tion channels of the United States; and 
(3) Congress should ensure that other programs, projects, 
and activities of the Civil Works Program of the Corps of 
Engineers, especially those programs, projects, and activities 
relating to inland navigation and flood control, are not adversely 
impacted. 
SEC. 1537. ESTIMATE OF HARBOR MAINTENANCE NEEDS. 
For fiscal year 2014 and each fiscal year thereafter, the Presi-
dent’s budget request submitted pursuant to section 1105 of title 
31, United States Code, shall include—
H. R. 4348—182 
(1) an estimate of the nationwide average availability, 
expressed as a percentage, of the authorized depth and author-
ized width of all navigation channels authorized to be main-
tained using appropriations from the Harbor Maintenance 
Trust Fund that would result from harbor maintenance activi-
ties to be funded by the budget request; and 
(2) an estimate of the average annual amount of appropria-
tions from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund that would 
be required to increase that average availability to 95 percent 
over a 3-year period. 
SEC. 1538. ASIAN CARP. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) HYDROLOGICAL
SEPARATION.—The term ‘‘hydrological 
separation’’ means a physical separation on the Chicago Area 
Waterway System that— 
(A) would disconnect the Mississippi River watershed 
from the Lake Michigan watershed; and 
(B) shall be designed to be adequate in scope to prevent 
the transfer of all aquatic species between each of those 
bodies of water. 
(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 
of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers. 
(b) EXPEDITED STUDY AND REPORT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall— 
(A) expedite completion of the report for the study 
authorized by section 3061(d) of the Water Resources 
Development Act of 2007 (Public Law 110–114; 121 Stat. 
1121); and 
(B) if the Secretary determines a project is justified 
in the completed report, proceed directly to project 
preconstruction engineering and design. 
(2) FOCUS.—In expediting the completion of the study and 
report under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall focus on— 
(A) the prevention of the spread of aquatic nuisance 
species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River 
Basins, such as through the permanent hydrological sepa-
ration of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basins; 
and 
(B) the watersheds of the following rivers and tribu-
taries associated with the Chicago Area Waterway System: 
(i) The Illinois River, at and in the vicinity of 
Chicago, Illinois. 
(ii) The Chicago River, Calumet River, North Shore 
Channel, Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, and Cal- 
Sag Channel in the State of Illinois. 
(iii) The Grand Calumet River and Little Calumet 
River in the States of Illinois and Indiana. 
(3) EFFICIENT USE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary shall ensure 
the efficient use of funds to maximize the timely completion 
of the study and report under paragraph (1). 
(4) DEADLINE.—The Secretary shall complete the report 
under paragraph (1) by not later than 18 months after the 
date of enactment of this Act. 
(5) INTERIM
REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to
H. R. 4348—183 
the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representa-
tives and Senate, the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works of the Senate, and the Committee on Transportation 
and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives a report 
describing— 
(A) interim milestones that will be met prior to final 
completion of the study and report under paragraph (1); 
and 
(B) funding necessary for completion of the study and 
report under paragraph (1), including funding necessary 
for completion of each interim milestone identified under 
subparagraph (A). 
SEC. 1539. REST AREAS. 
(a) AGREEMENTS RELATING TO USE OF AND ACCESS TO RIGHTS- 
OF-WAY—INTERSTATE SYSTEM.—Section 111 of title 23, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a) in the second sentence by striking 
the period and inserting ‘‘and will not change the boundary 
of any right-of-way on the Interstate System to accommodate 
construction of, or afford access to, an automotive service station 
or other commercial establishment.’’; 
(2) by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as subsections 
(c) and (d), respectively; and 
(3) by inserting after subsection (a) the following: 
‘‘(b) REST AREAS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), the Sec-
retary shall permit a State to acquire, construct, operate, and 
maintain a rest area along a highway on the Interstate System 
in such State. 
‘‘(2) LIMITED ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary shall permit lim-
ited commercial activities within a rest area under paragraph 
(1), if the activities are available only to customers using the 
rest area and are limited to— 
‘‘(A) commercial advertising and media displays if such 
advertising and displays are— 
‘‘(i) exhibited solely within any facility constructed 
in the rest area; and 
‘‘(ii) not legible from the main traveled way; 
‘‘(B) items designed to promote tourism in the State, 
limited to books, DVDs, and other media; 
‘‘(C) tickets for events or attractions in the State of 
a historical or tourism-related nature; 
‘‘(D) travel-related information, including maps, travel 
booklets, and hotel coupon booklets; and 
‘‘(E) lottery machines, provided that the priority 
afforded to blind vendors under subsection (c) applies to 
this subparagraph. 
‘‘(3) PRIVATE OPERATORS.—A State may permit a private 
party to operate such commercial activities. 
‘‘(4) LIMITATION ON USE OF REVENUES.—A State shall use 
any revenues received from the commercial activities in a rest 
area under this section to cover the costs of acquiring, con-
structing, operating, and maintaining rest areas in the State.’’. 
(b) CONTROL OF OUTDOOR ADVERTISING.—Section 131(i) of title 
23, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
H. R. 4348—184 
‘‘A State may permit the installation of signs that acknowledge 
the sponsorship of rest areas within such rest areas or along the 
main traveled way of the system, provided that such signs shall 
not affect the safe and efficient utilization of the Interstate System 
and the primary system. The Secretary shall establish criteria 
for the installation of such signs on the main traveled way, including 
criteria pertaining to the placement of rest area sponsorship 
acknowledgment signs in relation to the placement of advance guide 
signs for rest areas.’’. 
Subtitle F—Gulf Coast Restoration 
SEC. 1601. SHORT TITLE. 
This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Resources and Ecosystems 
Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of 
the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012’’. 
SEC. 1602. GULF COAST RESTORATION TRUST FUND. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the Treasury of 
the United States a trust fund to be known as the ‘‘Gulf Coast 
Restoration Trust Fund’’ (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Trust 
Fund’’), consisting of such amounts as are deposited in the Trust 
Fund under this Act or any other provision of law. 
(b) TRANSFERS.—The Secretary of the Treasury shall deposit 
in the Trust Fund an amount equal to 80 percent of all administra-
tive and civil penalties paid by responsible parties after the date 
of enactment of this Act in connection with the explosion on, and 
sinking of, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon 
pursuant to a court order, negotiated settlement, or other 
instrument in accordance with section 311 of the Federal Water 
Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321). 
(c) EXPENDITURES.—Amounts in the Trust Fund, including 
interest earned on advances to the Trust Fund and proceeds from 
investment under subsection (d), shall— 
(1) be available for expenditure, without further appropria-
tion, solely for the purpose and eligible activities of this subtitle 
and the amendments made by this subtitle; and 
(2) remain available until expended, without fiscal year 
limitation. 
(d) INVESTMENT.—Amounts in the Trust Fund shall be invested 
in accordance with section 9702 of title 31, United States Code, 
and any interest on, and proceeds from, any such investment shall 
be available for expenditure in accordance with this subtitle and 
the amendments made by this subtitle. 
(e) ADMINISTRATION.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act, after providing notice and an opportunity 
for public comment, the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation 
with the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce, 
shall establish such procedures as the Secretary determines to 
be necessary to deposit amounts in, and expend amounts from, 
the Trust Fund pursuant to this subtitle, including— 
(1) procedures to assess whether the programs and activi-
ties carried out under this subtitle and the amendments made 
by this subtitle achieve compliance with applicable require-
ments, including procedures by which the Secretary of the 
Treasury may determine whether an expenditure by a Gulf
H. R. 4348—185 
Coast State or coastal political subdivision (as those terms 
are defined in section 311 of the Federal Water Pollution Con-
trol Act (33 U.S.C. 1321)) pursuant to such a program or 
activity achieves compliance; 
(2) auditing requirements to ensure that amounts in the 
Trust Fund are expended as intended; and 
(3) procedures for identification and allocation of funds 
available to the Secretary under other provisions of law that 
may be necessary to pay the administrative expenses directly 
attributable to the management of the Trust Fund. 
(f) SUNSET.—The authority for the Trust Fund shall terminate 
on the date all funds in the Trust Fund have been expended. 
SEC. 1603. GULF COAST NATURAL RESOURCES RESTORATION AND 
ECONOMIC RECOVERY. 
Section 311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1321) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) in paragraph (25)(B), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(B) in paragraph (26)(D), by striking the period at 
the end and inserting a semicolon; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(27) the term ‘best available science’ means science that— 
‘‘(A) maximizes the quality, objectivity, and integrity 
of information, including statistical information; 
‘‘(B) uses peer-reviewed and publicly available data; 
and 
‘‘(C) clearly documents and communicates risks and 
uncertainties in the scientific basis for such projects; 
‘‘(28) the term ‘Chairperson’ means the Chairperson of the 
Council; 
‘‘(29) the term ‘coastal political subdivision’ means any 
local political jurisdiction that is immediately below the State 
level of government, including a county, parish, or borough, 
with a coastline that is contiguous with any portion of the 
United States Gulf of Mexico; 
‘‘(30) the term ‘Comprehensive Plan’ means the comprehen-
sive plan developed by the Council pursuant to subsection 
(t); 
‘‘(31) the term ‘Council’ means the Gulf Coast Ecosystem 
Restoration Council established pursuant to subsection (t); 
‘‘(32) the term ‘Deepwater Horizon oil spill’ means the 
blowout and explosion of the mobile offshore drilling unit Deep-
water Horizon that occurred on April 20, 2010, and resulting 
hydrocarbon releases into the environment; 
‘‘(33) the term ‘Gulf Coast region’ means— 
‘‘(A) in the Gulf Coast States, the coastal zones (as 
that term is defined in section 304 of the Coastal Zone 
Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1453)), except that, 
in this section, the term ‘coastal zones’ includes land within 
the coastal zones that is held in trust by, or the use 
of which is by law subject solely to the discretion of, the 
Federal Government or officers or agents of the Federal 
Government)) that border the Gulf of Mexico; 
‘‘(B) any adjacent land, water, and watersheds, that 
are within 25 miles of the coastal zones described in 
subparagraph (A) of the Gulf Coast States; and
H. R. 4348—186 
‘‘(C) all Federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico; 
‘‘(34) the term ‘Gulf Coast State’ means any of the States 
of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas; and 
‘‘(35) the term ‘Trust Fund’ means the Gulf Coast Restora-
tion Trust Fund established pursuant to section 1602 of the 
Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportuni-
ties, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 
2012.’’; 
(2) in subsection (s), by inserting ‘‘except as provided in 
subsection (t)’’ before the period at the end; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(t) GULF COAST RESTORATION AND RECOVERY.— 
‘‘(1) STATE ALLOCATION AND EXPENDITURES.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Of the total amounts made available 
in any fiscal year from the Trust Fund, 35 percent shall 
be available, in accordance with the requirements of this 
section, to the Gulf Coast States in equal shares for 
expenditure for ecological and economic restoration of the 
Gulf Coast region in accordance with this subsection. 
‘‘(B) USE OF FUNDS.— 
‘‘(i) ELIGIBLE
ACTIVITIES
IN
THE
GULF
COAST 
REGION.—Subject to clause (iii), amounts provided to 
the Gulf Coast States under this subsection may only 
be used to carry out 1 or more of the following activities 
in the Gulf Coast region: 
‘‘(I) Restoration and protection of the natural 
resources, ecosystems, fisheries, marine and wild-
life habitats, beaches, and coastal wetlands of the 
Gulf Coast region. 
‘‘(II) Mitigation of damage to fish, wildlife, and 
natural resources. 
‘‘(III) Implementation of a federally approved 
marine, coastal, or comprehensive conservation 
management plan, including fisheries monitoring. 
‘‘(IV) Workforce development and job creation. 
‘‘(V) Improvements to or on State parks located 
in coastal areas affected by the Deepwater Horizon 
oil spill. 
‘‘(VI) Infrastructure projects benefitting the 
economy or ecological resources, including port 
infrastructure. 
‘‘(VII) Coastal flood protection and related 
infrastructure. 
‘‘(VIII) Planning assistance. 
‘‘(IX) Administrative costs of complying with 
this subsection. 
‘‘(ii) ACTIVITIES TO PROMOTE TOURISM AND SEAFOOD 
IN THE GULF COAST REGION.—Amounts provided to the 
Gulf Coast States under this subsection may be used 
to carry out 1 or more of the following activities: 
‘‘(I) Promotion of tourism in the Gulf Coast 
Region, including recreational fishing. 
‘‘(II) Promotion of the consumption of seafood 
harvested from the Gulf Coast Region. 
‘‘(iii) LIMITATION.— 
‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Of the amounts received by 
a Gulf Coast State under this subsection, not more
H. R. 4348—187 
than 3 percent may be used for administrative 
costs eligible under clause (i)(IX). 
‘‘(II) CLAIMS
FOR
COMPENSATION.—Activities 
funded under this subsection may not be included 
in any claim for compensation paid out by the 
Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund after the date of 
enactment of this subsection. 
‘‘(C) COASTAL POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS.— 
‘‘(i) DISTRIBUTION.—In the case of a State where 
the coastal zone includes the entire State— 
‘‘(I) 75 percent of funding shall be provided 
directly to the 8 disproportionately affected coun-
ties impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill; 
and 
‘‘(II) 25 percent shall be provided directly to 
nondisproportionately impacted counties within 
the State. 
‘‘(ii) NONDISPROPORTIONATELY
IMPACTED
COUN-
TIES.—The total amounts made available to coastal 
political subdivisions in the State of Florida under 
clause (i)(II) shall be distributed according to the fol-
lowing weighted formula: 
‘‘(I) 34 percent based on the weighted average 
of the population of the county. 
‘‘(II) 33 percent based on the weighted average 
of the county per capita sales tax collections esti-
mated for fiscal year 2012. 
‘‘(III) 33 percent based on the inverse propor-
tion of the weighted average distance from the 
Deepwater Horizon oil rig to each of the nearest 
and farthest points of the shoreline. 
‘‘(D) LOUISIANA.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Of the total amounts made avail-
able to the State of Louisiana under this paragraph: 
‘‘(I) 70 percent shall be provided directly to 
the State in accordance with this subsection. 
‘‘(II) 30 percent shall be provided directly to 
parishes in the coastal zone (as defined in section 
304 of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 
(16 U.S.C. 1453)) of the State of Louisiana 
according to the following weighted formula: 
‘‘(aa) 40 percent based on the weighted 
average of miles of the parish shoreline oiled. 
‘‘(bb) 40 percent based on the weighted 
average of the population of the parish. 
‘‘(cc) 20 percent based on the weighted 
average of the land mass of the parish. 
‘‘(ii) CONDITIONS.— 
‘‘(I) LAND
USE
PLAN.—As a condition of 
receiving amounts allocated under this paragraph, 
the chief executive of the eligible parish shall cer-
tify to the Governor of the State that the parish 
has completed a comprehensive land use plan. 
‘‘(II) OTHER CONDITIONS.—A coastal political 
subdivision receiving funding under this paragraph 
shall meet all of the conditions in subparagraph 
(E).
H. R. 4348—188 
‘‘(E) CONDITIONS.—As a condition of receiving amounts 
from the Trust Fund, a Gulf Coast State, including the 
entities described in subparagraph (F), or a coastal political 
subdivision shall— 
‘‘(i) agree to meet such conditions, including audit 
requirements, as the Secretary of the Treasury deter-
mines necessary to ensure that amounts disbursed 
from the Trust Fund will be used in accordance with 
this subsection; 
‘‘(ii) certify in such form and in such manner as 
the Secretary of the Treasury determines necessary 
that the project or program for which the Gulf Coast 
State or coastal political subdivision is requesting 
amounts— 
‘‘(I) is designed to restore and protect the nat-
ural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, marine and 
wildlife habitats, beaches, coastal wetlands, or 
economy of the Gulf Coast; 
‘‘(II) carries out 1 or more of the activities 
described in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph 
(B); 
‘‘(III) was selected based on meaningful input 
from the public, including broad-based participa-
tion from individuals, businesses, and nonprofit 
organizations; and 
‘‘(IV) in the case of a natural resource protec-
tion or restoration project, is based on the best 
available science; 
‘‘(iii) certify that the project or program and the 
awarding of a contract for the expenditure of amounts 
received under this paragraph are consistent with the 
standard procurement rules and regulations governing 
a comparable project or program in that State, 
including all applicable competitive bidding and audit 
requirements; and 
‘‘(iv) develop and submit a multiyear implementa-
tion plan for the use of such amounts, which may 
include milestones, projected completion of each 
activity, and a mechanism to evaluate the success of 
each activity in helping to restore and protect the 
Gulf Coast region impacted by the Deepwater Horizon 
oil spill. 
‘‘(F) APPROVAL
BY
STATE
ENTITY, TASK
FORCE, OR 
AGENCY.—The following Gulf Coast State entities, task 
forces, or agencies shall carry out the duties of a Gulf 
Coast State pursuant to this paragraph: 
‘‘(i) ALABAMA.— 
‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—In the State of Alabama, 
the Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council, which 
shall be comprised of only the following: 
‘‘(aa) The Governor of Alabama, who shall 
also serve as Chairperson and preside over 
the meetings of the Alabama Gulf Coast 
Recovery Council. 
‘‘(bb) The Director of the Alabama State 
Port Authority, who shall also serve as Vice 
Chairperson and preside over the meetings
H. R. 4348—189 
of the Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council 
in the absence of the Chairperson. 
‘‘(cc) The Chairman of the Baldwin County 
Commission. 
‘‘(dd) The President of the Mobile County 
Commission. 
‘‘(ee) The Mayor of the city of Bayou La 
Batre. 
‘‘(ff) The Mayor of the town of Dauphin 
Island. 
‘‘(gg) The Mayor of the city of Fairhope. 
‘‘(hh) The Mayor of the city of Gulf Shores. 
‘‘(ii) The Mayor of the city of Mobile. 
‘‘(jj) The Mayor of the city of Orange 
Beach. 
‘‘(II) VOTE.—Each member of the Alabama 
Gulf Coast Recovery Council shall be entitled to 
1 vote. 
‘‘(III) MAJORITY
VOTE.—All decisions of the 
Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council shall be 
made by majority vote. 
‘‘(IV) 
LIMITATION
ON
ADMINISTRATIVE 
EXPENSES.—Administrative duties for the Alabama 
Gulf Coast Recovery Council may only be per-
formed by public officials and employees that are 
subject to the ethics laws of the State of Alabama. 
‘‘(ii) LOUISIANA.—In the State of Louisiana, the 
Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority of Lou-
isiana. 
‘‘(iii) MISSISSIPPI.—In the State of Mississippi, the 
Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality. 
‘‘(iv) TEXAS.—In the State of Texas, the Office of 
the Governor or an appointee of the Office of the Gov-
ernor. 
‘‘(G) COMPLIANCE
WITH
ELIGIBLE
ACTIVITIES.—If the 
Secretary of the Treasury determines that an expenditure 
by a Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision of 
amounts made available under this subsection does not 
meet one of the activities described in clauses (i) and (ii) 
of subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall make no additional 
amounts from the Trust Fund available to that Gulf Coast 
State or coastal political subdivision until such time as 
an amount equal to the amount expended for the unauthor-
ized use— 
‘‘(i) has been deposited by the Gulf Coast State 
or coastal political subdivision in the Trust Fund; or 
‘‘(ii) has been authorized by the Secretary of the 
Treasury for expenditure by the Gulf Coast State or 
coastal political subdivision for a project or program 
that meets the requirements of this subsection. 
‘‘(H) COMPLIANCE WITH CONDITIONS.—If the Secretary 
of the Treasury determines that a Gulf Coast State or 
coastal political subdivision does not meet the requirements 
of this paragraph, including the conditions of subparagraph 
(E), where applicable, the Secretary of the Treasury shall 
make no amounts from the Trust Fund available to that
H. R. 4348—190 
Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision until all 
conditions of this paragraph are met. 
‘‘(I) PUBLIC INPUT.—In meeting any condition of this 
paragraph, a Gulf Coast State may use an appropriate 
procedure for public consultation in that Gulf Coast State, 
including consulting with one or more established task 
forces or other entities, to develop recommendations for 
proposed projects and programs that would restore and 
protect the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, marine 
and wildlife habitats, beaches, coastal wetlands, and 
economy of the Gulf Coast. 
‘‘(J) PREVIOUSLY APPROVED PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS.— 
A Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision shall 
be considered to have met the conditions of subparagraph 
(E) for a specific project or program if, before the date 
of enactment of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustain-
ability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of 
the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012— 
‘‘(i) the Gulf Coast State or coastal political sub-
division has established conditions for carrying out 
projects and programs that are substantively the same 
as the conditions described in subparagraph (E); and 
‘‘(ii) the applicable project or program carries out 
1 or more of the activities described in clauses (i) 
and (ii) of subparagraph (B). 
‘‘(K) LOCAL
PREFERENCE.—In awarding contracts to 
carry out a project or program under this paragraph, a 
Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision may give 
a preference to individuals and companies that reside in, 
are headquartered in, or are principally engaged in busi-
ness in the State of project execution. 
‘‘(L) UNUSED FUNDS.—Funds allocated to a State or 
coastal political subdivision under this paragraph shall 
remain in the Trust Fund until such time as the State 
or coastal political subdivision develops and submits a plan 
identifying uses for those funds in accordance with subpara-
graph (E)(iv). 
‘‘(M) JUDICIAL
REVIEW.—If the Secretary of the 
Treasury determines that a Gulf Coast State or coastal 
political subdivision does not meet the requirements of 
this paragraph, including the conditions of subparagraph 
(E), the Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision 
may obtain expedited judicial review within 90 days after 
that decision in a district court of the United States, of 
appropriate jurisdiction and venue, that is located within 
the State seeking the review. 
‘‘(N) COST-SHARING.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A Gulf Coast State or coastal 
political subdivision may use, in whole or in part, 
amounts made available under this paragraph to that 
Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision to sat-
isfy the non-Federal share of the cost of any project 
or program authorized by Federal law that is an 
eligible activity described in clauses (i) and (ii) of 
subparagraph (B). 
‘‘(ii) EFFECT ON OTHER FUNDS.—The use of funds 
made available from the Trust Fund to satisfy the
H. R. 4348—191 
non-Federal share of the cost of a project or program 
that meets the requirements of clause (i) shall not 
affect the priority in which other Federal funds are 
allocated or awarded. 
‘‘(2) COUNCIL ESTABLISHMENT AND ALLOCATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Of the total amount made available 
in any fiscal year from the Trust Fund, 30 percent shall 
be disbursed to the Council to carry out the Comprehensive 
Plan. 
‘‘(B) COUNCIL EXPENDITURES.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with this para-
graph, the Council shall expend funds made available 
from the Trust Fund to undertake projects and pro-
grams, using the best available science, that would 
restore and protect the natural resources, ecosystems, 
fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats, beaches, coastal 
wetlands, and economy of the Gulf Coast. 
‘‘(ii) ALLOCATION AND EXPENDITURE PROCEDURES.— 
The Secretary of the Treasury shall develop such condi-
tions, including audit requirements, as the Secretary 
of the Treasury determines necessary to ensure that 
amounts disbursed from the Trust Fund to the Council 
to implement the Comprehensive Plan will be used 
in accordance with this paragraph. 
‘‘(iii) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Of the amounts 
received by the Council under this paragraph, not more 
than 3 percent may be used for administrative 
expenses, including staff. 
‘‘(C) GULF COAST ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION COUNCIL.— 
‘‘(i) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established as an 
independent entity in the Federal Government a 
council to be known as the ‘Gulf Coast Ecosystem 
Restoration Council’. 
‘‘(ii) MEMBERSHIP.—The Council shall consist of 
the following members, or in the case of a Federal 
agency, a designee at the level of the Assistant Sec-
retary or the equivalent: 
‘‘(I) The Secretary of the Interior. 
‘‘(II) The Secretary of the Army. 
‘‘(III) The Secretary of Commerce. 
‘‘(IV) The Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency. 
‘‘(V) The Secretary of Agriculture. 
‘‘(VI) The head of the department in which 
the Coast Guard is operating. 
‘‘(VII) The Governor of the State of Alabama. 
‘‘(VIII) The Governor of the State of Florida. 
‘‘(IX) The Governor of the State of Louisiana. 
‘‘(X) The Governor of the State of Mississippi. 
‘‘(XI) The Governor of the State of Texas. 
‘‘(iii) ALTERNATE.—A Governor appointed to the 
Council by the President may designate an alternate 
to represent the Governor on the Council and vote 
on behalf of the Governor. 
‘‘(iv) CHAIRPERSON.—From among the Federal 
agency members of the Council, the representatives 
of States on the Council shall select, and the President
H. R. 4348—192 
shall appoint, 1 Federal member to serve as Chair-
person of the Council. 
‘‘(v) 
PRESIDENTIAL
APPOINTMENT.—All 
Council 
members shall be appointed by the President. 
‘‘(vi) COUNCIL ACTIONS.— 
‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The following actions by the 
Council shall require the affirmative vote of the 
Chairperson and a majority of the State members 
to be effective: 
‘‘(aa) Approval of a Comprehensive Plan 
and future revisions to a Comprehensive Plan. 
‘‘(bb) Approval of State plans pursuant to 
paragraph (3)(B)(iv). 
‘‘(cc) Approval of reports to Congress 
pursuant to clause (vii)(VII). 
‘‘(dd) Approval of transfers pursuant to 
subparagraph (E)(ii)(I). 
‘‘(ee) Other significant actions determined 
by the Council. 
‘‘(II) QUORUM.—A majority of State members 
shall be required to be present for the Council 
to take any significant action. 
‘‘(III) 
AFFIRMATIVE
VOTE
REQUIREMENT 
CONSIDERED
MET.—For approval of State plans 
pursuant to paragraph (3)(B)(iv), the certification 
by a State member of the Council that the plan 
satisfies all requirements of clauses (i) and (ii) 
of paragraph (3)(B), when joined by an affirmative 
vote of the Federal Chairperson of the Council, 
shall be considered to satisfy the requirements 
for affirmative votes under subclause (I). 
‘‘(IV) 
PUBLIC
TRANSPARENCY.—Appropriate 
actions of the Council, including significant actions 
and associated deliberations, shall be made avail-
able to the public via electronic means prior to 
any vote. 
‘‘(vii) DUTIES
OF
COUNCIL.—The Council shall— 
‘‘(I) develop the Comprehensive Plan and 
future revisions to the Comprehensive Plan; 
‘‘(II) identify as soon as practicable the projects 
that— 
‘‘(aa) have been authorized prior to the 
date of enactment of this subsection but not 
yet commenced; and 
‘‘(bb) 
if 
implemented 
quickly, 
would 
restore and protect the natural resources, eco-
systems, fisheries, marine and wildlife habi-
tats, beaches, barrier islands, dunes, and 
coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast region; 
‘‘(III) establish such other 1 or more advisory 
committees as may be necessary to assist the 
Council, including a scientific advisory committee 
and a committee to advise the Council on public 
policy issues; 
‘‘(IV) collect and consider scientific and other 
research associated with restoration of the Gulf 
Coast ecosystem, including research, observation,
H. R. 4348—193 
and monitoring carried out pursuant to sections 
1604 and 1605 of the Resources and Ecosystems 
Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived 
Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012; 
‘‘(V) develop standard terms to include in con-
tracts for projects and programs awarded pursuant 
to the Comprehensive Plan that provide a pref-
erence to individuals and companies that reside 
in, are headquartered in, or are principally 
engaged in business in a Gulf Coast State; 
‘‘(VI) prepare an integrated financial plan and 
recommendations for coordinated budget requests 
for the amounts proposed to be expended by the 
Federal agencies represented on the Council for 
projects and programs in the Gulf Coast States; 
and 
‘‘(VII) submit to Congress an annual report 
that— 
‘‘(aa) summarizes the policies, strategies, 
plans, and activities for addressing the res-
toration and protection of the Gulf Coast 
region; 
‘‘(bb) describes the projects and programs 
being implemented to restore and protect the 
Gulf Coast region, including— 
‘‘(AA) a list of each project and pro-
gram; 
‘‘(BB) an identification of the funding 
provided to projects and programs identi-
fied in subitem (AA); 
‘‘(CC) 
an 
identification 
of 
each 
recipient for funding identified in subitem 
(BB); and 
‘‘(DD) a description of the length of 
time and funding needed to complete the 
objectives of each project and program 
identified in subitem (AA); 
‘‘(cc) makes such recommendations to Con-
gress for modifications of existing laws as the 
Council determines necessary to implement 
the Comprehensive Plan; 
‘‘(dd) 
reports 
on 
the 
progress 
on 
implementation of each project or program— 
‘‘(AA) after 3 years of ongoing activity 
of the project or program, if applicable; 
and 
‘‘(BB) on completion of the project or 
program; 
‘‘(ee) includes the information required to 
be submitted under section 1605(c)(4) of the 
Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, 
Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies 
of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012; and 
‘‘(ff) submits the reports required under 
item (dd) to— 
‘‘(AA) the Committee on Science, 
Space, and Technology, the Committee on
H. R. 4348—194 
Natural Resources, the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure, and 
the Committee on Appropriations of the 
House of Representatives; and 
‘‘(BB) the Committee on Environment 
and Public Works, the Committee on Com-
merce, Science, and Transportation, the 
Committee 
on 
Energy 
and 
Natural 
Resources, and the Committee on Appro-
priations of the Senate. 
‘‘(viii) APPLICATION
OF
FEDERAL
ADVISORY
COM-
MITTEE ACT.—The Council, or any other advisory com-
mittee established under this subparagraph, shall not 
be considered an advisory committee under the Federal 
Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.). 
‘‘(ix) SUNSET.—The authority for the Council, and 
any other advisory committee established under this 
subparagraph, shall terminate on the date all funds 
in the Trust Fund have been expended. 
‘‘(D) COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.— 
‘‘(i) PROPOSED PLAN.— 
‘‘(I) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of enactment of the Resources and 
Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, 
and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States 
Act of 2012, the Chairperson, on behalf of the 
Council and after appropriate public input, review, 
and comment, shall publish a proposed plan to 
restore and protect the natural resources, eco-
systems, fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats, 
beaches, and coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast 
region. 
‘‘(II) 
INCLUSIONS.—The 
proposed 
plan 
described in subclause (I) shall include and incor-
porate the findings and information prepared by 
the President’s Gulf Coast Restoration Task Force. 
‘‘(ii) PUBLICATION.— 
‘‘(I) INITIAL PLAN.—Not later than 1 year after 
the date of enactment of the Resources and Eco-
systems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and 
Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act 
of 2012 and after notice and opportunity for public 
comment, the Chairperson, on behalf of the Council 
and after approval by the Council, shall publish 
in the Federal Register the initial Comprehensive 
Plan to restore and protect the natural resources, 
ecosystems, fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats, 
beaches, and coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast 
region. 
‘‘(II) COOPERATION WITH GULF COAST RESTORA-
TION TASK FORCE.—The Council shall develop the 
initial Comprehensive Plan in close coordination 
with the President’s Gulf Coast Restoration Task 
Force. 
‘‘(III) CONSIDERATIONS.—In developing the ini-
tial Comprehensive Plan and subsequent updates, 
the Council shall consider all relevant findings,
H. R. 4348—195 
reports, or research prepared or funded under sec-
tion 1604 or 1605 of the Resources and Ecosystems 
Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived 
Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012. 
‘‘(IV) CONTENTS.—The initial Comprehensive 
Plan shall include— 
‘‘(aa) such provisions as are necessary to 
fully incorporate in the Comprehensive Plan 
the strategy, projects, and programs rec-
ommended by the President’s Gulf Coast Res-
toration Task Force; 
‘‘(bb) a list of any project or program 
authorized prior to the date of enactment of 
this subsection but not yet commenced, the 
completion of which would further the pur-
poses and goals of this subsection and of the 
Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, 
Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies 
of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012; 
‘‘(cc) a description of the manner in which 
amounts from the Trust Fund projected to be 
made available to the Council for the suc-
ceeding 10 years will be allocated; and 
‘‘(dd) subject to available funding in 
accordance with clause (iii), a prioritized list 
of specific projects and programs to be funded 
and carried out during the 3-year period imme-
diately following the date of publication of the 
initial Comprehensive Plan, including a table 
that illustrates the distribution of projects and 
programs by the Gulf Coast State. 
‘‘(V) 
PLAN
UPDATES.—The 
Council 
shall 
update— 
‘‘(aa) the Comprehensive Plan every 5 
years in a manner comparable to the manner 
established in this subparagraph for each 5- 
year period for which amounts are expected 
to be made available to the Gulf Coast States 
from the Trust Fund; and 
‘‘(bb) the 3-year list of projects and pro-
grams 
described 
in 
subclause 
(IV)(dd) 
annually. 
‘‘(iii) RESTORATION PRIORITIES.—Except for projects 
and programs described in clause (ii)(IV)(bb), in 
selecting projects and programs to include on the 3- 
year list described in clause (ii)(IV)(dd), based on the 
best available science, the Council shall give highest 
priority to projects that address 1 or more of the fol-
lowing criteria: 
‘‘(I) Projects that are projected to make the 
greatest contribution to restoring and protecting 
the 
natural 
resources, 
ecosystems, 
fisheries, 
marine and wildlife habitats, beaches, and coastal 
wetlands of the Gulf Coast region, without regard 
to geographic location within the Gulf Coast 
region.
H. R. 4348—196 
‘‘(II) Large-scale projects and programs that 
are 
projected 
to 
substantially 
contribute 
to 
restoring and protecting the natural resources, eco-
systems, fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats, 
beaches, and coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast 
ecosystem. 
‘‘(III) Projects contained in existing Gulf Coast 
State comprehensive plans for the restoration and 
protection of natural resources, ecosystems, fish-
eries, marine and wildlife habitats, beaches, and 
coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast region. 
‘‘(IV) Projects that restore long-term resiliency 
of the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, 
marine and wildlife habitats, beaches, and coastal 
wetlands most impacted by the Deepwater Horizon 
oil spill. 
‘‘(E) IMPLEMENTATION.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Council, acting through the 
Federal agencies represented on the Council and Gulf 
Coast States, shall expend funds made available from 
the Trust Fund to carry out projects and programs 
adopted in the Comprehensive Plan. 
‘‘(ii) ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILITY.— 
‘‘(I) IN
GENERAL.—Primary authority and 
responsibility for each project and program 
included in the Comprehensive Plan shall be 
assigned by the Council to a Gulf Coast State 
represented on the Council or a Federal agency. 
‘‘(II) TRANSFER OF AMOUNTS.—Amounts nec-
essary to carry out each project or program 
included in the Comprehensive Plan shall be trans-
ferred by the Secretary of the Treasury from the 
Trust Fund to that Federal agency or Gulf Coast 
State as the project or program is implemented, 
subject to such conditions as the Secretary of the 
Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of 
the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce, estab-
lished pursuant to section 1602 of the Resources 
and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportuni-
ties, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast 
States Act of 2012. 
‘‘(III) LIMITATION ON TRANSFERS.— 
‘‘(aa) GRANTS TO NONGOVERNMENTAL ENTI-
TIES.—In the case of funds transferred to a 
Federal or State agency under subclause (II), 
the agency shall not make 1 or more grants 
or cooperative agreements to a nongovern-
mental entity if the total amount provided 
to the entity would equal or exceed 10 percent 
of the total amount provided to the agency 
for that particular project or program, unless 
the 1 or more grants have been reported in 
accordance with item (bb). 
‘‘(bb) REPORTING OF GRANTEES.—At least 
30 days prior to making a grant or entering 
into a cooperative agreement described in item 
(aa), the name of each grantee, including the
H. R. 4348—197 
amount and purpose of each grant or coopera-
tive agreement, shall be published in the Fed-
eral Register and delivered to the congres-
sional committees listed in subparagraph 
(C)(vii)(VII)(ff). 
‘‘(cc) ANNUAL REPORTING OF GRANTEES.— 
Annually, the name of each grantee, including 
the amount and purposes of each grant or 
cooperative agreement, shall be published in 
the Federal Register and delivered to Congress 
as part of the report submitted pursuant to 
subparagraph (C)(vii)(VII). 
‘‘(IV) PROJECT AND PROGRAM LIMITATION.—The 
Council, a Federal agency, or a State may not 
carry out a project or program funded under this 
paragraph outside of the Gulf Coast region. 
‘‘(F) COORDINATION.—The Council and the Federal 
members of the Council may develop memoranda of under-
standing establishing integrated funding and implementa-
tion plans among the member agencies and authorities. 
‘‘(3) OIL SPILL RESTORATION IMPACT ALLOCATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.— 
‘‘(i) DISBURSEMENT.—Of the total amount made 
available from the Trust Fund, 30 percent shall be 
disbursed pursuant to the formula in clause (ii) to 
the Gulf Coast States on the approval of the plan 
described in subparagraph (B)(i). 
‘‘(ii) FORMULA.—Subject to subparagraph (B), for 
each Gulf Coast State, the amount disbursed under 
this paragraph shall be based on a formula established 
by the Council by regulation that is based on a 
weighted average of the following criteria: 
‘‘(I) 40 percent based on the proportionate 
number of miles of shoreline in each Gulf Coast 
State that experienced oiling on or before April 
10, 2011, compared to the total number of miles 
of shoreline that experienced oiling as a result 
of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. 
‘‘(II) 40 percent based on the inverse propor-
tion of the average distance from the mobile off-
shore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon at the time 
of the explosion to the nearest and farthest point 
of the shoreline that experienced oiling of each 
Gulf Coast State. 
‘‘(III) 20 percent based on the average popu-
lation in the 2010 decennial census of coastal coun-
ties bordering the Gulf of Mexico within each Gulf 
Coast State. 
‘‘(iii) MINIMUM
ALLOCATION.—The amount dis-
bursed to a Gulf Coast State for each fiscal year under 
clause (ii) shall be at least 5 percent of the total 
amounts made available under this paragraph. 
‘‘(B) DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—The Council shall disburse 
amounts to the respective Gulf Coast States in accord-
ance with the formula developed under subparagraph 
(A) for projects, programs, and activities that will
H. R. 4348—198 
improve the ecosystems or economy of the Gulf Coast 
region, subject to the condition that each Gulf Coast 
State submits a plan for the expenditure of amounts 
disbursed under this paragraph that meets the fol-
lowing criteria: 
‘‘(I) All projects, programs, and activities 
included in the plan are eligible activities pursuant 
to clauses (i) and (ii) of paragraph (1)(B). 
‘‘(II) The projects, programs, and activities 
included in the plan contribute to the overall eco-
nomic and ecological recovery of the Gulf Coast. 
‘‘(III) The plan takes into consideration the 
Comprehensive Plan and is consistent with the 
goals and objectives of the Plan, as described in 
paragraph (2)(B)(i). 
‘‘(ii) FUNDING.— 
‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub-
clause (II), the plan described in clause (i) may 
use not more than 25 percent of the funding made 
available for infrastructure projects eligible under 
subclauses (VI) and (VII) of paragraph (1)(B)(i). 
‘‘(II) EXCEPTION.—The plan described in clause 
(i) may propose to use more than 25 percent of 
the funding made available for infrastructure 
projects eligible under subclauses (VI) and (VII) 
of paragraph (1)(B)(i) if the plan certifies that— 
‘‘(aa) ecosystem restoration needs in the 
State will be addressed by the projects in the 
proposed plan; and 
‘‘(bb) additional investment in infrastruc-
ture is required to mitigate the impacts of 
the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill to the eco-
system or economy. 
‘‘(iii) DEVELOPMENT.—The plan described in clause 
(i) shall be developed by— 
‘‘(I) in the State of Alabama, the Alabama 
Gulf Coast Recovery Council established under 
paragraph (1)(F)(i); 
‘‘(II) in the State of Florida, a consortia of 
local political subdivisions that includes at a min-
imum 1 representative of each affected county; 
‘‘(III) in the State of Louisiana, the Coastal 
Protection and Restoration Authority of Louisiana; 
‘‘(IV) in the State of Mississippi, the Office 
of the Governor or an appointee of the Office of 
the Governor; and 
‘‘(V) in the State of Texas, the Office of the 
Governor or an appointee of the Office of the Gov-
ernor. 
‘‘(iv) APPROVAL.—Not later than 60 days after the 
date on which a plan is submitted under clause (i), 
the Council shall approve or disapprove the plan based 
on the conditions of clause (i). 
‘‘(C) DISAPPROVAL.—If the Council disapproves a plan 
pursuant to subparagraph (B)(iv), the Council shall— 
‘‘(i) provide the reasons for disapproval in writing; 
and
H. R. 4348—199 
‘‘(ii) consult with the State to address any identi-
fied deficiencies with the State plan. 
‘‘(D) FAILURE TO SUBMIT ADEQUATE PLAN.—If a State 
fails to submit an adequate plan under this paragraph, 
any funds made available under this paragraph shall 
remain in the Trust Fund until such date as a plan is 
submitted and approved pursuant to this paragraph. 
‘‘(E) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—If the Council fails to approve 
or take action within 60 days on a plan, as described 
in subparagraph (B)(iv), the State may obtain expedited 
judicial review within 90 days of that decision in a district 
court of the United States, of appropriate jurisdiction and 
venue, that is located within the State seeking the review. 
‘‘(F) COST-SHARING.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A Gulf Coast State or coastal 
political subdivision may use, in whole or in part, 
amounts made available to that Gulf Coast State or 
coastal political subdivision under this paragraph to 
satisfy the non-Federal share of any project or program 
that— 
‘‘(I) is authorized by other Federal law; and 
‘‘(II) is an eligible activity described in clause 
(i) or (ii) of paragraph (1)(B). 
‘‘(ii) EFFECT ON OTHER FUNDS.—The use of funds 
made available from the Trust Fund under this para-
graph to satisfy the non-Federal share of the cost of 
a project or program described in clause (i) shall not 
affect the priority in which other Federal funds are 
allocated or awarded. 
‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION OF INTEREST TRANSFERS.—Of the total 
amount made available for any fiscal year from the Trust 
Fund that is equal to the interest earned by the Trust Fund 
and proceeds from investments made by the Trust Fund in 
the preceding fiscal year— 
‘‘(A) 50 percent shall be divided equally between— 
‘‘(i) the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Science, 
Observation, Monitoring, and Technology program 
authorized in section 1604 of the Resources and Eco-
systems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and 
Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 
2012; and 
‘‘(ii) the centers of excellence research grants 
authorized in section 1605 of that Act; and 
‘‘(B) 50 percent shall be made available to the Gulf 
Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council to carry out the Com-
prehensive Plan pursuant to paragraph (2).’’. 
SEC. 
1604. 
GULF 
COAST 
ECOSYSTEM 
RESTORATION 
SCIENCE, 
OBSERVATION, MONITORING, AND TECHNOLOGY PRO-
GRAM. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the 
Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration. 
(2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Gulf 
States Marine Fisheries Commission.
H. R. 4348—200 
(3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director 
of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. 
(4) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means the Gulf Coast 
Ecosystem Restoration Science, Observation, Monitoring, and 
Technology program established under this section. 
(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Administrator, in consultation 
with the Director, shall establish the Gulf Coast Ecosystem 
Restoration Science, Observation, Monitoring, and Technology 
program to carry out research, observation, and monitoring 
to support, to the maximum extent practicable, the long-term 
sustainability of the ecosystem, fish stocks, fish habitat, and 
the recreational, commercial, and charter fishing industry in 
the Gulf of Mexico. 
(2) EXPENDITURE OF FUNDS.—For each fiscal year, amounts 
made available to carry out this subsection may be expended 
for, with respect to the Gulf of Mexico— 
(A) marine and estuarine research; 
(B) marine and estuarine ecosystem monitoring and 
ocean observation; 
(C) data collection and stock assessments; 
(D) pilot programs for— 
(i) fishery independent data; and 
(ii) reduction of exploitation of spawning aggrega-
tions; and 
(E) cooperative research. 
(3) COOPERATION WITH THE COMMISSION.—For each fiscal 
year, amounts made available to carry out this subsection may 
be transferred to the Commission to establish a fisheries moni-
toring and research program, with respect to the Gulf of Mexico. 
(4) CONSULTATION.—The Administrator and the Director 
shall consult with the Regional Gulf of Mexico Fishery Manage-
ment Council and the Commission in carrying out the program. 
(c) SPECIES INCLUDED.—The research, monitoring, assessment, 
and programs eligible for amounts made available under the pro-
gram shall include all marine, estuarine, aquaculture, and fish 
species in State and Federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico. 
(d) RESEARCH PRIORITIES.—In distributing funding under this 
subsection, priority shall be given to integrated, long-term projects 
that— 
(1) build on, or are coordinated with, related research activi-
ties; and 
(2) address current or anticipated marine ecosystem, 
fishery, or wildlife management information needs. 
(e) DUPLICATION.—In carrying out this section, the Adminis-
trator, in consultation with the Director, shall seek to avoid duplica-
tion of other research and monitoring activities. 
(f) COORDINATION WITH OTHER PROGRAMS.—The Administrator, 
in consultation with the Director, shall develop a plan for the 
coordination of projects and activities between the program and 
other existing Federal and State science and technology programs 
in the States of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and 
Texas, as well as between the centers of excellence. 
(g) LIMITATION ON EXPENDITURES.—
H. R. 4348—201 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not more than 3 percent of funds pro-
vided in subsection (h) shall be used for administrative 
expenses. 
(2) NOAA.—The funds provided in subsection (h) may not 
be used— 
(A) for any existing or planned research led by the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, unless 
agreed to in writing by the grant recipient; 
(B) to implement existing regulations or initiate new 
regulations promulgated or proposed by the National Oce-
anic and Atmospheric Administration; or 
(C) to develop or approve a new limited access privilege 
program (as that term is used in section 303A of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 
Act (16 U.S.C. 1853a)) for any fishery under the jurisdiction 
of the South Atlantic, Mid-Atlantic, New England, or Gulf 
of Mexico Fishery Management Councils. 
(h) FUNDING.—Of the total amount made available for each 
fiscal year for the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund established 
under section 1602, 2.5 percent shall be available to carry out 
the program. 
(i) SUNSET.—The program shall cease operations when all funds 
in the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund established under section 
1602 have been expended. 
SEC. 1605. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE RESEARCH GRANTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Of the total amount made available for each 
fiscal year from the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund established 
under section 1602, 2.5 percent shall be made available to the 
Gulf Coast States (as defined in section 311(a) of the Federal 
Water Pollution Control Act (as added by section 1603 of the 
Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, 
and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012)), 
in equal shares, exclusively for grants in accordance with subsection 
(c) to establish centers of excellence to conduct research only on 
the Gulf Coast Region (as defined in section 311 of the Federal 
Water Pollution Control Act (33. U.S.C. 1321)). 
(b) APPROVAL BY STATE ENTITY, TASK FORCE, OR AGENCY.— 
The duties of a Gulf Coast State under this section shall be carried 
out by the applicable Gulf Coast State entities, task forces, or 
agencies listed in section 311(t)(1)(F) of the Federal Water Pollution 
Control Act (as added by section 1603 of the Resources and Eco-
systems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Econo-
mies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012), and for the State 
of Florida, a consortium of public and private research institutions 
within the State, which shall include the Florida Department of 
Environmental Protection and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Con-
servation Commission, for that Gulf Coast State. 
(c) GRANTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—A Gulf Coast State shall use the amounts 
made available to carry out this section to award competitive 
grants to nongovernmental entities and consortia in the Gulf 
Coast region (including public and private institutions of higher 
education) for the establishment of centers of excellence as 
described in subsection (d). 
(2) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant under 
this subsection, an entity or consortium described in paragraph
H. R. 4348—202 
(1) shall submit to a Gulf Coast State an application at such 
time, in such manner, and containing such information as 
the Gulf Coast State determines to be appropriate. 
(3) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this subsection, 
a Gulf Coast State shall give priority to entities and consortia 
that demonstrate the ability to establish the broadest cross- 
section of participants with interest and expertise in any dis-
cipline described in subsection (d) on which the proposal of 
the center of excellence will be focused. 
(4) REPORTING.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Each Gulf Coast State shall provide 
annually to the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council 
established under section 311(t)(2)(C) of the Federal Water 
Pollution Control Act (as added by section 1603 of the 
Resources 
and 
Ecosystems 
Sustainability, 
Tourist 
Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast 
States Act of 2012) information regarding all grants, 
including the amount, discipline or disciplines, and recipi-
ents of the grants, and in the case of any grant awarded 
to a consortium, the membership of the consortium. 
(B) INCLUSION.—The Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration 
Council shall include the information received under 
subparagraph (A) in the annual report to Congress of the 
Council required under section 311(t)(2)(C)(vii)(VII) of the 
Federal Water Pollution Control Act (as added by section 
1603 of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, 
Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf 
Coast States Act of 2012). 
(d) DISCIPLINES.—Each center of excellence shall focus on 
science, technology, and monitoring in at least 1 of the following 
disciplines: 
(1) Coastal and deltaic sustainability, restoration and 
protection, including solutions and technology that allow citi-
zens to live in a safe and sustainable manner in a coastal 
delta in the Gulf Coast Region. 
(2) Coastal fisheries and wildlife ecosystem research and 
monitoring in the Gulf Coast Region. 
(3) Offshore energy development, including research and 
technology to improve the sustainable and safe development 
of energy resources in the Gulf of Mexico. 
(4) Sustainable and resilient growth, economic and commer-
cial development in the Gulf Coast Region. 
(5) Comprehensive observation, monitoring, and mapping 
of the Gulf of Mexico. 
SEC. 1606. EFFECT. 
(a) DEFINITION OF DEEPWATER HORIZON OIL SPILL.—In this 
section, the term ‘‘Deepwater Horizon oil spill’’ has the meaning 
given the term in section 311(a) of the Federal Water Pollution 
Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(a)). 
(b) EFFECT AND APPLICATION.—Nothing in this subtitle or any 
amendment made by this subtitle— 
(1) supersedes or otherwise affects any other provision 
of Federal law, including, in particular, laws providing recovery 
for injury to natural resources under the Oil Pollution Act 
of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) and laws for the protection 
of public health and the environment; or
H. R. 4348—203 
(2) applies to any fine collected under section 311 of the 
Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321) for any 
incident other than the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. 
(c) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds made available under this subtitle 
may be used only for eligible activities specifically authorized by 
this subtitle and the amendments made by this subtitle. 
SEC. 1607. RESTORATION AND PROTECTION ACTIVITY LIMITATIONS. 
(a) WILLING SELLER.—Funds made available under this subtitle 
may only be used to acquire land or interests in land by purchase, 
exchange, or donation from a willing seller. 
(b) ACQUISITION OF FEDERAL LAND.—None of the funds made 
available under this subtitle may be used to acquire land in fee 
title by the Federal Government unless— 
(1) the land is acquired by exchange or donation; or 
(2) the acquisition is necessary for the restoration and 
protection of the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, 
marine and wildlife habitats, beaches, and coastal wetlands 
of the Gulf Coast region and has the concurrence of the Gov-
ernor of the State in which the acquisition will take place. 
SEC. 1608. INSPECTOR GENERAL. 
The Office of the Inspector General of the Department of the 
Treasury shall have authority to conduct, supervise, and coordinate 
audits and investigations of projects, programs, and activities 
funded under this subtitle and the amendments made by this 
subtitle. 
TITLE II—AMERICA FAST FORWARD 
FINANCING INNOVATION 
SEC. 2001. SHORT TITLE. 
This title may be cited as the ‘‘America Fast Forward Financing 
Innovation Act of 2012’’. 
SEC. 
2002. 
TRANSPORTATION 
INFRASTRUCTURE 
FINANCE 
AND 
INNOVATION ACT OF 1998 AMENDMENTS. 
Sections 601 through 609 of title 23, United States Code, are 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘§ 601. Generally applicable provisions 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this chapter, the following definitions 
apply: 
‘‘(1) CONTINGENT
COMMITMENT.—The term ‘contingent 
commitment’ means a commitment to obligate an amount from 
future available budget authority that is— 
‘‘(A) contingent on those funds being made available 
in law at a future date; and 
‘‘(B) not an obligation of the Federal Government. 
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE PROJECT COSTS.—The term ‘eligible project 
costs’ means amounts substantially all of which are paid by, 
or for the account of, an obligor in connection with a project, 
including the cost of— 
‘‘(A) development phase activities, including planning, 
feasibility analysis, revenue forecasting, environmental
H. R. 4348—204 
review, permitting, preliminary engineering and design 
work, and other preconstruction activities; 
‘‘(B) 
construction, 
reconstruction, 
rehabilitation, 
replacement, and acquisition of real property (including 
land relating to the project and improvements to land), 
environmental mitigation, construction contingencies, and 
acquisition of equipment; and 
‘‘(C) capitalized interest necessary to meet market 
requirements, reasonably required reserve funds, capital 
issuance expenses, and other carrying costs during 
construction. 
‘‘(3) FEDERAL
CREDIT
INSTRUMENT.—The term ‘Federal 
credit instrument’ means a secured loan, loan guarantee, or 
line of credit authorized to be made available under this chapter 
with respect to a project. 
‘‘(4) INVESTMENT-GRADE
RATING.—The term ‘investment- 
grade rating’ means a rating of BBB minus, Baa3, bbb minus, 
BBB (low), or higher assigned by a rating agency to project 
obligations. 
‘‘(5) LENDER.—The term ‘lender’ means any non-Federal 
qualified institutional buyer (as defined in section 230.144A(a) 
of title 17, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regula-
tion), known as Rule 144A(a) of the Securities and Exchange 
Commission and issued under the Securities Act of 1933 (15 
U.S.C. 77a et seq.)), including— 
‘‘(A) a qualified retirement plan (as defined in section 
4974(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) that is 
a qualified institutional buyer; and 
‘‘(B) a governmental plan (as defined in section 414(d) 
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) that is a qualified 
institutional buyer. 
‘‘(6) LETTER
OF
INTEREST.—The term ‘letter of interest’ 
means a letter submitted by a potential applicant prior to 
an application for credit assistance in a format prescribed by 
the Secretary on the website of the TIFIA program that— 
‘‘(A) describes the project and the location, purpose, 
and cost of the project; 
‘‘(B) outlines the proposed financial plan, including 
the requested credit assistance and the proposed obligor; 
‘‘(C) provides a status of environmental review; and 
‘‘(D) provides information regarding satisfaction of 
other eligibility requirements of the TIFIA program. 
‘‘(7) LINE OF CREDIT.—The term ‘line of credit’ means an 
agreement entered into by the Secretary with an obligor under 
section 604 to provide a direct loan at a future date upon 
the occurrence of certain events. 
‘‘(8) LIMITED
BUYDOWN.—The term ‘limited buydown’ 
means, 
subject 
to 
the 
conditions 
described 
in 
section 
603(b)(4)(C), a buydown of the interest rate by the obligor 
if the interest rate has increased between— 
‘‘(A)(i) the date on which a project application accept-
able to the Secretary is submitted; or 
‘‘(ii) the date on which the Secretary entered into a 
master credit agreement; and 
‘‘(B) the date on which the Secretary executes the 
Federal credit instrument.
H. R. 4348—205 
‘‘(9) LOAN GUARANTEE.—The term ‘loan guarantee’ means 
any guarantee or other pledge by the Secretary to pay all 
or part of the principal of and interest on a loan or other 
debt obligation issued by an obligor and funded by a lender. 
‘‘(10) MASTER CREDIT AGREEMENT.—The term ‘master credit 
agreement’ means an agreement to extend credit assistance 
for a program of projects secured by a common security pledge 
(which shall receive an investment grade rating from a rating 
agency), or for a single project covered under section 602(b)(2) 
that would— 
‘‘(A) make contingent commitments of 1 or more 
secured loans or other Federal credit instruments at future 
dates, subject to the availability of future funds being made 
available to carry out this chapter; 
‘‘(B) establish the maximum amounts and general 
terms and conditions of the secured loans or other Federal 
credit instruments; 
‘‘(C) identify the 1 or more dedicated non-Federal rev-
enue sources that will secure the repayment of the secured 
loans or secured Federal credit instruments; 
‘‘(D) provide for the obligation of funds for the secured 
loans or secured Federal credit instruments after all 
requirements have been met for the projects subject to 
the master credit agreement, including— 
‘‘(i) completion of an environmental impact state-
ment or similar analysis required under the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
seq.); 
‘‘(ii) compliance with such other requirements as 
are specified in section 602(c); and 
‘‘(iii) the availability of funds to carry out this 
chapter; and 
‘‘(E) require that contingent commitments result in 
a financial close and obligation of credit assistance not 
later than 3 years after the date of entry into the master 
credit agreement, or release of the commitment, unless 
otherwise extended by the Secretary. 
‘‘(11) OBLIGOR.—The term ‘obligor’ means a party that— 
‘‘(A) is primarily liable for payment of the principal 
of or interest on a Federal credit instrument; and 
‘‘(B) may be a corporation, partnership, joint venture, 
trust, or governmental entity, agency, or instrumentality. 
‘‘(12) PROJECT.—The term ‘project’ means— 
‘‘(A) any surface transportation project eligible for Fed-
eral assistance under this title or chapter 53 of title 49; 
‘‘(B) a project for an international bridge or tunnel 
for which an international entity authorized under Federal 
or State law is responsible; 
‘‘(C) a project for intercity passenger bus or rail facili-
ties and vehicles, including facilities and vehicles owned 
by the National Railroad Passenger Corporation and 
components of magnetic levitation transportation systems; 
and 
‘‘(D) a project that— 
‘‘(i) is a project— 
‘‘(I) for a public freight rail facility or a private 
facility providing public benefit for highway users
H. R. 4348—206 
by way of direct freight interchange between high-
way and rail carriers; 
‘‘(II) for an intermodal freight transfer facility; 
‘‘(III) for a means of access to a facility 
described in subclause (I) or (II); 
‘‘(IV) for a service improvement for a facility 
described in subclause (I) or (II) (including a cap-
ital investment for an intelligent transportation 
system); or 
‘‘(V) that comprises a series of projects 
described in subclauses (I) through (IV) with the 
common objective of improving the flow of goods; 
‘‘(ii) may involve the combining of private and 
public sector funds, including investment of public 
funds in private sector facility improvements; 
‘‘(iii) if located within the boundaries of a port 
terminal, includes only such surface transportation 
infrastructure modifications as are necessary to facili-
tate direct intermodal interchange, transfer, and access 
into and out of the port; and 
‘‘(iv) is composed of related highway, surface 
transportation, transit, rail, or intermodal capital 
improvement projects eligible for assistance under this 
section in order to meet the eligible project cost 
threshold under section 602, by grouping related 
projects together for that purpose, subject to the condi-
tion that the credit assistance for the projects is 
secured by a common pledge. 
‘‘(13) PROJECT OBLIGATION.—The term ‘project obligation’ 
means any note, bond, debenture, or other debt obligation 
issued by an obligor in connection with the financing of a 
project, other than a Federal credit instrument. 
‘‘(14) RATING
AGENCY.—The term ‘rating agency’ means 
a credit rating agency registered with the Securities and 
Exchange Commission as a nationally recognized statistical 
rating organization (as that term is defined in section 3(a) 
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a))). 
‘‘(15) RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT.—The term ‘rural 
infrastructure project’ means a surface transportation infra-
structure project located in any area other than a city with 
a population of more than 250,000 inhabitants within the city 
limits. 
‘‘(16) SECURED LOAN.—The term ‘secured loan’ means a 
direct loan or other debt obligation issued by an obligor and 
funded by the Secretary in connection with the financing of 
a project under section 603. 
‘‘(17) STATE.—The term ‘State’ has the meaning given the 
term in section 101. 
‘‘(18) SUBSIDY AMOUNT.—The term ‘subsidy amount’ means 
the amount of budget authority sufficient to cover the estimated 
long-term cost to the Federal Government of a Federal credit 
instrument— 
‘‘(A) calculated on a net present value basis; and 
‘‘(B) excluding administrative costs and any incidental 
effects on governmental receipts or outlays in accordance 
with the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 
661 et seq.).
H. R. 4348—207 
‘‘(19) SUBSTANTIAL
COMPLETION.—The term ‘substantial 
completion’ means— 
‘‘(A) the opening of a project to vehicular or passenger 
traffic; or 
‘‘(B) a comparable event, as determined by the Sec-
retary and specified in the credit agreement. 
‘‘(20) TIFIA PROGRAM.—The term ‘TIFIA program’ means 
the transportation infrastructure finance and innovation pro-
gram of the Department. 
‘‘(b) TREATMENT OF CHAPTER.—For purposes of this title, this 
chapter shall be treated as being part of chapter 1. 
‘‘§ 602. Determination of eligibility and project selection 
‘‘(a) ELIGIBILITY.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—A project shall be eligible to receive 
credit assistance under this chapter if— 
‘‘(A) the entity proposing to carry out the project sub-
mits a letter of interest prior to submission of a formal 
application for the project; and 
‘‘(B) the project meets the criteria described in this 
subsection. 
‘‘(2) CREDITWORTHINESS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible for assistance under 
this chapter, a project shall satisfy applicable creditworthi-
ness standards, which, at a minimum, shall include— 
‘‘(i) a rate covenant, if applicable; 
‘‘(ii) adequate coverage requirements to ensure 
repayment; 
‘‘(iii) an investment grade rating from at least 
2 rating agencies on debt senior to the Federal credit 
instrument; and 
‘‘(iv) a rating from at least 2 rating agencies on 
the Federal credit instrument, subject to the condition 
that, with respect to clause (iii), if the total amount 
of the senior debt and the Federal credit instrument 
is less than $75,000,000, 1 rating agency opinion for 
each of the senior debt and Federal credit instrument 
shall be sufficient. 
‘‘(B) SENIOR
DEBT.—Notwithstanding subparagraph 
(A), in a case in which the Federal credit instrument is 
the senior debt, the Federal credit instrument shall be 
required to receive an investment grade rating from at 
least 2 rating agencies, unless the credit instrument is 
for an amount less than $75,000,000, in which case 1 
rating agency opinion shall be sufficient. 
‘‘(3) INCLUSION IN TRANSPORTATION PLANS AND PROGRAMS.— 
A project shall satisfy the applicable planning and programming 
requirements of sections 134 and 135 at such time as an agree-
ment to make available a Federal credit instrument is entered 
into under this chapter. 
‘‘(4) APPLICATION.—A State, local government, public 
authority, public-private partnership, or any other legal entity 
undertaking the project and authorized by the Secretary shall 
submit a project application that is acceptable to the Secretary. 
‘‘(5) ELIGIBLE PROJECT COSTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subparagraph 
(B), to be eligible for assistance under this chapter, a
H. R. 4348—208 
project shall have eligible project costs that are reasonably 
anticipated to equal or exceed the lesser of— 
‘‘(i)(I) $50,000,000; or 
‘‘(II) in the case of a rural infrastructure project, 
$25,000,000; and 
‘‘(ii) 331⁄3 percent of the amount of Federal highway 
assistance funds apportioned for the most recently com-
pleted fiscal year to the State in which the project 
is located. 
‘‘(B) INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM PROJECTS.— 
In the case of a project principally involving the installation 
of an intelligent transportation system, eligible project costs 
shall be reasonably anticipated to equal or exceed 
$15,000,000. 
‘‘(6) DEDICATED REVENUE SOURCES.—The applicable Federal 
credit instrument shall be repayable, in whole or in part, from— 
‘‘(A) tolls; 
‘‘(B) user fees; 
‘‘(C) payments owing to the obligor under a public- 
private partnership; or 
‘‘(D) other dedicated revenue sources that also secure 
or fund the project obligations. 
‘‘(7) PUBLIC SPONSORSHIP OF PRIVATE ENTITIES.—In the case 
of a project that is undertaken by an entity that is not a 
State or local government or an agency or instrumentality 
of a State or local government, the project that the entity 
is undertaking shall be publicly sponsored as provided in para-
graph (3). 
‘‘(8) APPLICATIONS
WHERE
OBLIGOR
WILL
BE
IDENTIFIED 
LATER.—A State, local government, agency or instrumentality 
of a State or local government, or public authority may submit 
to the Secretary an application under paragraph (4), under 
which a private party to a public-private partnership will be— 
‘‘(A) the obligor; and 
‘‘(B) identified later through completion of a procure-
ment and selection of the private party. 
‘‘(9) BENEFICIAL EFFECTS.—The Secretary shall determine 
that financial assistance for the project under this chapter 
will— 
‘‘(A) foster, if appropriate, partnerships that attract 
public and private investment for the project; 
‘‘(B) enable the project to proceed at an earlier date 
than the project would otherwise be able to proceed or 
reduce the lifecycle costs (including debt service costs) of 
the project; and 
‘‘(C) reduce the contribution of Federal grant assistance 
for the project. 
‘‘(10) PROJECT
READINESS.—To be eligible for assistance 
under this chapter, the applicant shall demonstrate a reason-
able expectation that the contracting process for construction 
of the project can commence by not later than 90 days after 
the date on which a Federal credit instrument is obligated 
for the project under this chapter. 
‘‘(b) SELECTION AMONG ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.— 
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish a 
rolling application process under which projects that are eligible 
to receive credit assistance under subsection (a) shall receive
H. R. 4348—209 
credit assistance on terms acceptable to the Secretary, if ade-
quate funds are available to cover the subsidy costs associated 
with the Federal credit instrument. 
‘‘(2) ADEQUATE FUNDING NOT AVAILABLE.—If the Secretary 
fully obligates funding to eligible projects in a fiscal year, 
and adequate funding is not available to fund a credit 
instrument, a project sponsor of an eligible project may elect 
to enter into a master credit agreement and wait until the 
earlier of— 
‘‘(A) the following fiscal year; and 
‘‘(B) the fiscal year during which additional funds are 
available to receive credit assistance. 
‘‘(3) PRELIMINARY RATING OPINION LETTER.—The Secretary 
shall require each project applicant to provide a preliminary 
rating opinion letter from at least 1 rating agency— 
‘‘(A) indicating that the senior obligations of the project, 
which may be the Federal credit instrument, have the 
potential to achieve an investment-grade rating; and 
‘‘(B) including a preliminary rating opinion on the Fed-
eral credit instrument. 
‘‘(c) FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the requirements of this 
title for highway projects, the requirements of chapter 53 of 
title 49 for transit projects, and the requirements of section 
5333(a) of title 49 for rail projects, the following provisions 
of law shall apply to funds made available under this chapter 
and projects assisted with those funds: 
‘‘(A) Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 
2000d et seq.). 
‘‘(B) The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 
‘‘(C) The Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Prop-
erty Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4601 et 
seq.). 
‘‘(2) NEPA.—No funding shall be obligated for a project 
that has not received an environmental categorical exclusion, 
a finding of no significant impact, or a record of decision under 
the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 
et seq.). 
‘‘(d) APPLICATION PROCESSING PROCEDURES.— 
‘‘(1) NOTICE OF COMPLETE APPLICATION.—Not later than 
30 days after the date of receipt of an application under this 
section, the Secretary shall provide to the applicant a written 
notice to inform the applicant whether— 
‘‘(A) the application is complete; or 
‘‘(B) additional information or materials are needed 
to complete the application. 
‘‘(2) APPROVAL OR DENIAL OF APPLICATION.—Not later than 
60 days after the date of issuance of the written notice under 
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide to the applicant 
a written notice informing the applicant whether the Secretary 
has approved or disapproved the application. 
‘‘(e) DEVELOPMENT PHASE ACTIVITIES.—Any credit instrument 
secured under this chapter may be used to finance up to 100 
percent of the cost of development phase activities as described 
in section 601(a)(1)(A).
H. R. 4348—210 
‘‘§ 603. Secured loans 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 
‘‘(1) AGREEMENTS.—Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), the 
Secretary may enter into agreements with 1 or more obligors 
to make secured loans, the proceeds of which shall be used— 
‘‘(A) to finance eligible project costs of any project 
selected under section 602; 
‘‘(B) to refinance interim construction financing of 
eligible project costs of any project selected under section 
602; 
‘‘(C) to refinance existing Federal credit instruments 
for rural infrastructure projects; or 
‘‘(D) to refinance long-term project obligations or Fed-
eral credit instruments, if the refinancing provides addi-
tional funding capacity for the completion, enhancement, 
or expansion of any project that— 
‘‘(i) is selected under section 602; or 
‘‘(ii) otherwise meets the requirements of section 
602. 
‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON REFINANCING OF INTERIM CONSTRUCTION 
FINANCING.—A loan under paragraph (1) shall not refinance 
interim construction financing under paragraph (1)(B) later 
than 1 year after the date of substantial completion of the 
project. 
‘‘(3) RISK ASSESSMENT.—Before entering into an agreement 
under this subsection, the Secretary, in consultation with the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget, shall deter-
mine an appropriate capital reserve subsidy amount for each 
secured loan, taking into account each rating letter provided 
by an agency under section 602(b)(3)(B). 
‘‘(b) TERMS AND LIMITATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A secured loan under this section with 
respect to a project shall be on such terms and conditions 
and contain such covenants, representations, warranties, and 
requirements (including requirements for audits) as the Sec-
retary determines to be appropriate. 
‘‘(2) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of a secured loan 
under this section shall not exceed the lesser of 49 percent 
of the reasonably anticipated eligible project costs or if the 
secured loan does not receive an investment grade rating, the 
amount of the senior project obligations. 
‘‘(3) PAYMENT.—A secured loan under this section— 
‘‘(A) shall— 
‘‘(i) be payable, in whole or in part, from— 
‘‘(I) tolls; 
‘‘(II) user fees; 
‘‘(III) payments owing to the obligor under 
a public-private partnership; or 
‘‘(IV) other dedicated revenue sources that also 
secure the senior project obligations; and 
‘‘(ii) include a rate covenant, coverage requirement, 
or similar security feature supporting the project 
obligations; and 
‘‘(B) may have a lien on revenues described in subpara-
graph (A), subject to any lien securing project obligations. 
‘‘(4) INTEREST RATE.—
H. R. 4348—211 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Except as provided in subpara-
graphs (B) and (C), the interest rate on a secured loan 
under this section shall be not less than the yield on 
United States Treasury securities of a similar maturity 
to the maturity of the secured loan on the date of execution 
of the loan agreement. 
‘‘(B) RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—The interest rate of a loan 
offered to a rural infrastructure project under this 
chapter shall be at 1⁄2 of the Treasury Rate in effect 
on the date of execution of the loan agreement. 
‘‘(ii) APPLICATION.—The rate described in clause 
(i) shall only apply to any portion of a loan the subsidy 
cost of which is funded by amounts set aside for rural 
infrastructure projects under section 608(a)(3)(A). 
‘‘(C) LIMITED
BUYDOWNS.—The interest rate of a 
secured loan under this section may not be lowered by 
more than the lower of— 
‘‘(i) 11⁄2 percentage points (150 basis points); or 
‘‘(ii) the amount of the increase in the interest 
rate. 
‘‘(5) MATURITY
DATE.—The final maturity date of the 
secured loan shall be the lesser of— 
‘‘(A) 35 years after the date of substantial completion 
of the project; and 
‘‘(B) if the useful life of the capital asset being financed 
is of a lesser period, the useful life of the asset. 
‘‘(6) NONSUBORDINATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subparagraph 
(B), the secured loan shall not be subordinated to the 
claims of any holder of project obligations in the event 
of bankruptcy, insolvency, or liquidation of the obligor. 
‘‘(B) PREEXISTING INDENTURE.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall waive the 
requirement under subparagraph (A) for a public 
agency borrower that is financing ongoing capital pro-
grams and has outstanding senior bonds under a pre-
existing indenture, if— 
‘‘(I) the secured loan is rated in the A category 
or higher; 
‘‘(II) the secured loan is secured and payable 
from pledged revenues not affected by project 
performance, such as a tax-backed revenue pledge 
or a system-backed pledge of project revenues; and 
‘‘(III) the TIFIA program share of eligible 
project costs is 33 percent or less. 
‘‘(ii) LIMITATION.—If the Secretary waives the non-
subordination requirement under this subparagraph— 
‘‘(I) the maximum credit subsidy to be paid 
by the Federal Government shall be not more than 
10 percent of the principal amount of the secured 
loan; and 
‘‘(II) the obligor shall be responsible for paying 
the remainder of the subsidy cost, if any. 
‘‘(7) FEES.—The Secretary may establish fees at a level 
sufficient to cover all or a portion of the costs to the Federal 
Government of making a secured loan under this section.
H. R. 4348—212 
‘‘(8) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The proceeds of a secured loan 
under this chapter may be used for any non-Federal share 
of project costs required under this title or chapter 53 of title 
49, if the loan is repayable from non-Federal funds. 
‘‘(9) MAXIMUM FEDERAL INVOLVEMENT.—The total Federal 
assistance provided on a project receiving a loan under this 
chapter shall not exceed 80 percent of the total project cost. 
‘‘(c) REPAYMENT.— 
‘‘(1) SCHEDULE.—The Secretary shall establish a repayment 
schedule for each secured loan under this section based on— 
‘‘(A) the projected cash flow from project revenues and 
other repayment sources; and 
‘‘(B) the useful life of the project. 
‘‘(2) COMMENCEMENT.—Scheduled loan repayments of prin-
cipal or interest on a secured loan under this section shall 
commence not later than 5 years after the date of substantial 
completion of the project. 
‘‘(3) DEFERRED PAYMENTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If, at any time after the date of 
substantial completion of the project, the project is unable 
to generate sufficient revenues to pay the scheduled loan 
repayments of principal and interest on the secured loan, 
the Secretary may, subject to subparagraph (C), allow the 
obligor to add unpaid principal and interest to the out-
standing balance of the secured loan. 
‘‘(B) INTEREST.—Any payment deferred under subpara-
graph (A) shall— 
‘‘(i) continue to accrue interest in accordance with 
subsection (b)(4) until fully repaid; and 
‘‘(ii) be scheduled to be amortized over the 
remaining term of the loan. 
‘‘(C) CRITERIA.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—Any payment deferral under 
subparagraph (A) shall be contingent on the project 
meeting criteria established by the Secretary. 
‘‘(ii) REPAYMENT STANDARDS.—The criteria estab-
lished pursuant to clause (i) shall include standards 
for reasonable assurance of repayment. 
‘‘(4) PREPAYMENT.— 
‘‘(A) USE OF EXCESS REVENUES.—Any excess revenues 
that remain after satisfying scheduled debt service require-
ments on the project obligations and secured loan and 
all deposit requirements under the terms of any trust 
agreement, bond resolution, or similar agreement securing 
project obligations may be applied annually to prepay the 
secured loan without penalty. 
‘‘(B) USE OF PROCEEDS OF REFINANCING.—The secured 
loan may be prepaid at any time without penalty from 
the proceeds of refinancing from non-Federal funding 
sources. 
‘‘(d) SALE OF SECURED LOANS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), as soon as 
practicable after substantial completion of a project and after 
notifying the obligor, the Secretary may sell to another entity 
or reoffer into the capital markets a secured loan for the project 
if the Secretary determines that the sale or reoffering can 
be made on favorable terms.
H. R. 4348—213 
‘‘(2) CONSENT OF OBLIGOR.—In making a sale or reoffering 
under paragraph (1), the Secretary may not change the original 
terms and conditions of the secured loan without the written 
consent of the obligor. 
‘‘(e) LOAN GUARANTEES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may provide a loan guar-
antee to a lender in lieu of making a secured loan under 
this section if the Secretary determines that the budgetary 
cost of the loan guarantee is substantially the same as that 
of a secured loan. 
‘‘(2) TERMS.—The terms of a loan guarantee under para-
graph (1) shall be consistent with the terms required under 
this section for a secured loan, except that the rate on the 
guaranteed loan and any prepayment features shall be nego-
tiated between the obligor and the lender, with the consent 
of the Secretary. 
‘‘§ 604. Lines of credit 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 
‘‘(1) AGREEMENTS.—Subject to paragraphs (2) through (4), 
the Secretary may enter into agreements to make available 
to 1 or more obligors lines of credit in the form of direct 
loans to be made by the Secretary at future dates on the 
occurrence of certain events for any project selected under 
section 602. 
‘‘(2) USE OF PROCEEDS.—The proceeds of a line of credit 
made available under this section shall be available to pay 
debt service on project obligations issued to finance eligible 
project costs, extraordinary repair and replacement costs, oper-
ation and maintenance expenses, and costs associated with 
unexpected Federal or State environmental restrictions. 
‘‘(3) RISK ASSESSMENT.—Before entering into an agreement 
under this subsection, the Secretary, in consultation with the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget and each 
rating agency providing a preliminary rating opinion letter 
under section 602(b)(3), shall determine an appropriate capital 
reserve subsidy amount for each line of credit, taking into 
account the rating opinion letter. 
‘‘(4) 
INVESTMENT-GRADE
RATING
REQUIREMENT.—The 
funding of a line of credit under this section shall be contingent 
on the senior obligations of the project receiving an investment- 
grade rating from 2 rating agencies. 
‘‘(b) TERMS AND LIMITATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A line of credit under this section with 
respect to a project shall be on such terms and conditions 
and contain such covenants, representations, warranties, and 
requirements (including requirements for audits) as the Sec-
retary determines to be appropriate. 
‘‘(2) MAXIMUM AMOUNTS.—The total amount of a line of 
credit under this section shall not exceed 33 percent of the 
reasonably anticipated eligible project costs. 
‘‘(3) DRAWS.—Any draw on a line of credit under this section 
shall— 
‘‘(A) represent a direct loan; and 
‘‘(B) be made only if net revenues from the project 
(including capitalized interest, but not including reasonably
H. R. 4348—214 
required financing reserves) are insufficient to pay the 
costs specified in subsection (a)(2). 
‘‘(4) INTEREST RATE.—Except as provided in subparagraphs 
(B) and (C) of section 603(b)(4), the interest rate on a direct 
loan resulting from a draw on the line of credit shall be not 
less than the yield on 30-year United States Treasury securities, 
as of the date of execution of the line of credit agreement. 
‘‘(5) SECURITY.—A line of credit issued under this section— 
‘‘(A) shall— 
‘‘(i) be payable, in whole or in part, from— 
‘‘(I) tolls; 
‘‘(II) user fees; 
‘‘(III) payments owing to the obligor under 
a public-private partnership; or 
‘‘(IV) other dedicated revenue sources that also 
secure the senior project obligations; and 
‘‘(ii) include a rate covenant, coverage requirement, 
or similar security feature supporting the project 
obligations; and 
‘‘(B) may have a lien on revenues described in subpara-
graph (A), subject to any lien securing project obligations. 
‘‘(6) PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY.—The full amount of a line 
of credit under this section, to the extent not drawn upon, 
shall be available during the 10-year period beginning on the 
date of substantial completion of the project. 
‘‘(7) RIGHTS OF THIRD-PARTY CREDITORS.— 
‘‘(A) AGAINST
FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT.—A third-party 
creditor of the obligor shall not have any right against 
the Federal Government with respect to any draw on a 
line of credit under this section. 
‘‘(B) ASSIGNMENT.—An obligor may assign a line of 
credit under this section to— 
‘‘(i) 1 or more lenders; or 
‘‘(ii) a trustee on the behalf of such a lender. 
‘‘(8) NONSUBORDINATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subparagraph 
(B), a direct loan under this section shall not be subordi-
nated to the claims of any holder of project obligations 
in the event of bankruptcy, insolvency, or liquidation of 
the obligor. 
‘‘(B) PRE-EXISTING INDENTURE.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall waive the 
requirement of subparagraph (A) for a public agency 
borrower that is financing ongoing capital programs 
and has outstanding senior bonds under a preexisting 
indenture, if— 
‘‘(I) the line of credit is rated in the A category 
or higher; 
‘‘(II) the TIFIA program loan resulting from 
a draw on the line of credit is payable from pledged 
revenues not affected by project performance, such 
as a tax-backed revenue pledge or a system-backed 
pledge of project revenues; and 
‘‘(III) the TIFIA program share of eligible 
project costs is 33 percent or less. 
‘‘(ii) LIMITATION.—If the Secretary waives the non-
subordination requirement under this subparagraph—
H. R. 4348—215 
‘‘(I) the maximum credit subsidy to be paid 
by the Federal Government shall be not more than 
10 percent of the principal amount of the secured 
loan; and 
‘‘(II) the obligor shall be responsible for paying 
the remainder of the subsidy cost. 
‘‘(9) FEES.—The Secretary may establish fees at a level 
sufficient to cover all or a portion of the costs to the Federal 
Government of providing a line of credit under this section. 
‘‘(10) RELATIONSHIP
TO
OTHER
CREDIT
INSTRUMENTS.—A 
project that receives a line of credit under this section also 
shall not receive a secured loan or loan guarantee under section 
603 in an amount that, combined with the amount of the 
line of credit, exceeds 49 percent of eligible project costs. 
‘‘(c) REPAYMENT.— 
‘‘(1) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—The Secretary shall establish 
repayment terms and conditions for each direct loan under 
this section based on— 
‘‘(A) the projected cash flow from project revenues and 
other repayment sources; and 
‘‘(B) the useful life of the asset being financed. 
‘‘(2) TIMING.—All repayments of principal or interest on 
a direct loan under this section shall be scheduled— 
‘‘(A) to commence not later than 5 years after the 
end of the period of availability specified in subsection 
(b)(6); and 
‘‘(B) to conclude, with full repayment of principal and 
interest, by the date that is 25 years after the end of 
the period of availability specified in subsection (b)(6). 
‘‘§ 605. Program administration 
‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary shall establish a uniform 
system to service the Federal credit instruments made available 
under this chapter. 
‘‘(b) FEES.—The Secretary may collect and spend fees, contin-
gent on authority being provided in appropriations Acts, at a level 
that is sufficient to cover— 
‘‘(1) the costs of services of expert firms retained pursuant 
to subsection (d); and 
‘‘(2) all or a portion of the costs to the Federal Government 
of servicing the Federal credit instruments. 
‘‘(c) SERVICER.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may appoint a financial 
entity to assist the Secretary in servicing the Federal credit 
instruments. 
‘‘(2) DUTIES.—A servicer appointed under paragraph (1) 
shall act as the agent for the Secretary. 
‘‘(3) FEE.—A servicer appointed under paragraph (1) shall 
receive a servicing fee, subject to approval by the Secretary. 
‘‘(d) ASSISTANCE FROM EXPERT FIRMS.—The Secretary may 
retain the services of expert firms, including counsel, in the field 
of municipal and project finance to assist in the underwriting and 
servicing of Federal credit instruments. 
‘‘(e) EXPEDITED PROCESSING.—The Secretary shall implement 
procedures and measures to economize the time and cost involved 
in obtaining approval and the issuance of credit assistance under 
this chapter.
H. R. 4348—216 
‘‘§ 606. State and local permits 
‘‘The provision of credit assistance under this chapter with 
respect to a project shall not— 
‘‘(1) relieve any recipient of the assistance of any obligation 
to obtain any required State or local permit or approval with 
respect to the project; 
‘‘(2) limit the right of any unit of State or local government 
to approve or regulate any rate of return on private equity 
invested in the project; or 
‘‘(3) otherwise supersede any State or local law (including 
any regulation) applicable to the construction or operation of 
the project. 
‘‘§ 607. Regulations 
‘‘The Secretary may promulgate such regulations as the Sec-
retary determines to be appropriate to carry out this chapter. 
‘‘§ 608. Funding 
‘‘(a) FUNDING.— 
‘‘(1) SPENDING AND BORROWING AUTHORITY.—Spending and 
borrowing authority for a fiscal year to enter into Federal 
credit instruments shall be promptly apportioned to the Sec-
retary on a fiscal-year basis. 
‘‘(2) REESTIMATES.—If the subsidy cost of a Federal credit 
instrument is reestimated, the cost increase or decrease of 
the reestimate shall be borne by, or benefit, the general fund 
of the Treasury, consistent with section 504(f) the Congressional 
Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 661c(f)). 
‘‘(3) RURAL SET-ASIDE.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Of the total amount of funds made 
available to carry out this chapter for each fiscal year, 
not more than 10 percent shall be set aside for rural 
infrastructure projects. 
‘‘(B) REOBLIGATION.—Any amounts set aside under 
subparagraph (A) that remain unobligated by June 1 of 
the fiscal year for which the amounts were set aside shall 
be available for obligation by the Secretary on projects 
other than rural infrastructure projects. 
‘‘(4) REDISTRIBUTION OF AUTHORIZED FUNDING.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Beginning in fiscal year 2014, on 
April 1 of each fiscal year, if the cumulative unobligated 
and uncommitted balance of funding available exceeds 75 
percent of the amount made available to carry out this 
chapter for that fiscal year, the Secretary shall distribute 
to the States the amount of funds and associated obligation 
authority in excess of that amount. 
‘‘(B) DISTRIBUTION.—The amounts and obligation 
authority distributed under this paragraph shall be distrib-
uted, in the same manner as obligation authority is distrib-
uted to the States for the fiscal year, based on the propor-
tion that— 
‘‘(i) the relative share of each State of obligation 
authority for the fiscal year; bears to 
‘‘(ii) the total amount of obligation authority 
distributed to all States for the fiscal year.
H. R. 4348—217 
‘‘(C) PURPOSE.—Funds distributed under subparagraph 
(B) shall be available for any purpose described in section 
133(b). 
‘‘(5) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts made available to carry out 
this chapter shall remain available until expended. 
‘‘(6) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Of the amounts made avail-
able to carry out this chapter, the Secretary may use not 
more than 0.50 percent for each fiscal year for the administra-
tion of this chapter. 
‘‘(b) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision of 
law, execution of a term sheet by the Secretary of a Federal 
credit instrument that uses amounts made available under 
this chapter shall impose on the United States a contractual 
obligation to fund the Federal credit investment. 
‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts made available to carry out 
this chapter for a fiscal year shall be available for obligation 
on October 1 of the fiscal year. 
‘‘§ 609. Reports to Congress 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—On June 1, 2012, and every 2 years there-
after, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report summarizing 
the financial performance of the projects that are receiving, or 
have received, assistance under this chapter (other than section 
610), including a recommendation as to whether the objectives 
of this chapter (other than section 610) are best served by— 
‘‘(1) continuing the program under the authority of the 
Secretary; 
‘‘(2) establishing a Federal corporation or federally spon-
sored enterprise to administer the program; or 
‘‘(3) phasing out the program and relying on the capital 
markets to fund the types of infrastructure investments assisted 
by this chapter (other than section 610) without Federal partici-
pation. 
‘‘(b) APPLICATION PROCESS REPORT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than December 1, 2012, and 
annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Com-
mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works of the Senate a report that includes a list of all of 
the letters of interest and applications received from project 
sponsors for assistance under this chapter (other than section 
610) during the preceding fiscal year. 
‘‘(2) INCLUSIONS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each report under paragraph (1) 
shall include, at a minimum, a description of, with respect 
to each letter of interest and application included in the 
report— 
‘‘(i) the date on which the letter of interest or 
application was received; 
‘‘(ii) the date on which a notification was provided 
to the project sponsor regarding whether the applica-
tion was complete or incomplete; 
‘‘(iii) the date on which a revised and completed 
application was submitted (if applicable);