I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5641 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to provide grants and develop value 
capture policy. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 16, 2020 
Mr. DESAULNIER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
A BILL 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to provide grants 
and develop value capture policy. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Incentivizing Value 
Capture for Greener Transportation Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) In 2018, greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) 
rose sharply by 3.4 percent, the second-largest an-
nual gain in more than 20 years, and GHG emis-
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sions have grown by approximately 1.5 percent every 
year over the last decade. 
(2) Greenhouse gas emissions from the trans-
portation sector, including cars and trucks, are the 
largest source of GHG emissions in the United 
States with the transportation sector emitting 
1,900,000,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) annu-
ally. 
(3) Annual vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in the 
United States have nearly tripled since 1971, rising 
to 3,210,000,000,000 in 2018. 
(4) Consequently, in 2018, Americans lost an 
average of 97 hours a year due to congestion, cost-
ing them nearly $87,000,000,000. 
(5) Residents in communities located near high- 
capacity transit are twice as likely not to own a car 
as residents who live elsewhere, and they own half 
as many cars per household. 
(6) Increasing transit ridership and improving 
our transit systems in urban, suburban, and exurban 
areas, using innovative solutions such as land value 
capture, will help reduce VMT, congestion, GHG 
emissions, and reliance on fossil fuels and vehicles. 
By reducing such factors, the United States can help 
curb the effects of climate change. 
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SEC. 3. VALUE CAPTURE POLICY AND PLANNING PRO-
GRAM. 
Chapter 53 of title 49, United States Code, is amend-
ed by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 5341. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND VALUE CAPTURE 
POLICY. 
‘‘(a) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND POLICY DEVEL-
OPMENT.— 
‘‘(1) TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE
GRANTS.—The 
Secretary may make a grant available to a State or 
local government if the Secretary determines that 
such grant will assist recipients under this section 
to— 
‘‘(A) develop more State and local value 
capture mechanisms for long-term funding that 
promote mobility, public transportation, and af-
fordable transit-oriented development; 
‘‘(B) improve public transportation and 
mobility; and 
‘‘(C) develop strategic partnerships that 
create greater self-help capacity that leads to 
greater long term and robust investments in 
public transportation, mobility, inclusive eco-
nomic development, and affordable transit-ori-
ented development. 
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‘‘(2) PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS AND MAIN-
TENANCE OF EFFORT.— 
‘‘(A) PERFORMANCE
BENCHMARKS.—To 
be eligible for a grant under this section, the 
grantee shall include in its application an expla-
nation of how the grant funds will demonstrably 
increase transit capacity and ridership and re-
duce carbon dioxide emissions, vehicle miles 
traveled, and congestion. 
‘‘(B) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL AND POSSIBLE RE-
DUCTION.—In addition to the eligibility re-
quirements of subparagraph (A), a grantee 
also needs to include in its application a 
certification to maintain the same funding 
level as the aggregate expenditures at or 
above the average level of expenditures in 
the 2 fiscal years prior to the date of en-
actment of this section. If a State or local 
government that receives a grant under 
this section reduces its combined fiscal ef-
fort for value capture initiatives and pro-
grams or the aggregate expenditures with-
in the State or local government to support 
value capture, public transportation, or af-
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fordable transit-oriented development pro-
grams for any fiscal year that a State or 
local government receives a grant author-
ized under this section relative to the pre-
vious fiscal year, the Secretary, except as 
provided in clause (ii), shall reduce support 
for such State or local government under 
this section by the same amount as the de-
cline in State or local effort for such fiscal 
year. 
‘‘(ii) WAIVER.—The Secretary may 
waive the requirements of this subpara-
graph if— 
‘‘(I) the Secretary determines 
that a waiver would be appropriate 
due to a precipitous decline in the fi-
nancial resources of a State or local 
government as a result of unforeseen 
economic hardship or a natural dis-
aster that has necessitated across-the- 
board reductions in State or local 
services, including value capture, pub-
lic 
transportation, 
and 
affordable 
transit-oriented 
development 
pro-
grams; or 
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‘‘(II) due to the circumstances of 
a State or local government requiring 
reductions in specific programs, if the 
State or local government presents to 
the Secretary a justification and dem-
onstration why other programs could 
not be reduced and how value capture, 
public transportation, and affordable 
transit-oriented development programs 
in the State will not be disproportion-
ately harmed by such State or local 
action. 
‘‘(3) DAVIS-BACON.—The Secretary shall en-
sure that laborers and mechanics employed by con-
tractors and subcontractors in construction work fi-
nanced by a grant made under this section will be 
paid wages not less than those prevailing on similar 
construction in the locality, as determined by the 
Secretary of Labor under subchapter IV of chapter 
31 of title 40 (commonly known as the ‘Davis-Bacon 
Act’). 
‘‘(4) ENFORCEMENT.—The Secretary may re-
voke grant funds provided under this section if a 
grantee fails to implement the maintenance of effort 
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under paragraph (2)(B) and Davis-Bacon provisions 
referred to paragraph (3). 
‘‘(5) EVALUATION.—Not later than 3 years 
after receiving a grant under this section, the grant-
ee shall assess the effectiveness of the use of the 
funds by evaluating whether the funds created a de-
monstrable increase in transit capacity and ridership 
and a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions, vehicle 
miles traveled, and congestion. 
‘‘(6) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary, 
through a competitive bid process, may enter into 
contracts, cooperative agreements, and other agree-
ments with national nonprofit organizations and uni-
versities that have the appropriate demonstrated ca-
pacity to provide value capture-related technical as-
sistance under this subsection, including guidance on 
implementing foreign value capture models within 
the United States. 
‘‘(7) SUPPLEMENT
NOT
SUPPLANT.—Grant 
funds received under this section shall be used to 
supplement and not supplant other Federal, State, 
and local public funds expended on public value cap-
ture and affordable transit-oriented development 
programs in the State or local government. 
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‘‘(8) 
VALUE
CAPTURE
POLICY
REQUIRE-
MENTS.— 
‘‘(A) VALUE CAPTURE POLICY.—Not later 
than October 1 of the fiscal year that begins 2 
years after the date of enactment of this sec-
tion, the Secretary, in collaboration with State 
departments of transportation, metropolitan 
planning organizations, and regional council of 
governments, shall establish voluntary and con-
sensus-based value capture standards, policies, 
and best practices for State and local value cap-
ture mechanisms that promote greater invest-
ments in public transportation and affordable 
transit-oriented development. 
‘‘(B) REPORT.—Not later than 15 months 
after the date of enactment of this section, the 
Secretary shall make available to the public a 
report cataloging examples of State and local 
laws and policies that provide for value capture 
and value sharing that promote greater invest-
ment in public transportation and affordable 
transit-oriented development. 
‘‘(C) BEST PRACTICES.—Based on the re-
port required under subparagraph (B), the Sec-
retary shall identify and disseminate examples 
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of best practices where States and local govern-
ments have adopted value capture and value 
sharing mechanisms that have successfully pro-
vided for greater investment in public transpor-
tation and affordable transit-oriented develop-
ment. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘value capture’ means capturing 
a portion of the incremental economic value created 
by government investments, activities, and policies 
that may generate alternative revenue streams, as-
sets, or other financial value for which could assist 
in funding those investments and activities; 
‘‘(2) the term ‘transit-oriented development’ 
means a mix of commercial, residential, office, and 
entertainment centered around or located near a 
public transportation station that promotes afford-
able housing and commercial space; 
‘‘(3) the term ‘affordable housing’ means hous-
ing, the cost of which does not exceed 30 percent of 
the income of a family; and 
‘‘(4) the term ‘affordable commercial space’ 
means commercial space dedicated to either protect 
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or promote small and disadvantage businesses pro-
vided below market rent value.’’. 
Æ 
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