I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3744 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish a program to provide 
grants to eligible recipients for eligible operating support costs of public 
transportation and associated capital improvements, and for other pur-
poses. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 8, 2021 
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia (for himself, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. GARCI´A of Illi-
nois, Mr. HUFFMAN, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mr. ESPAILLAT, and Mr. CARSON) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure 
A BILL 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish a pro-
gram to provide grants to eligible recipients for eligible 
operating support costs of public transportation and as-
sociated capital improvements, and for other purposes. 
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 ‘‘Stronger Communities 
through Better Transit Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. HIGH QUALITY TRANSIT OPERATING SUPPORT PRO-
GRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 53 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended by inserting after section 5307 
the following: 
‘‘§ 5308. High quality transit operating support pro-
gram 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation 
shall establish a program under which the Secretary may 
make grants to eligible recipients for eligible operating 
support costs of public transportation and associated cap-
ital improvements. 
‘‘(b) ALLOCATION
OF
FUNDING.—The Secretary 
shall allocate funding as follows: 
‘‘(1) 75 percent through the formula under sec-
tion 5336. 
‘‘(2) 23.75 percent through the formula under 
section 5311(c)(3). 
‘‘(3) 1.25 percent to Indian Tribes through the 
formula under section 5311(j). 
‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Eligible recipients may use 
funding provided under this section for eligible oper-
ating support costs of public transportation and as-
sociated capital improvements that make substantial 
improvements to transit service as measured by a 
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comparison to the number of revenue hours of serv-
ice provided by the recipient during the covered pe-
riod, including— 
‘‘(A) operating projects that decrease 
headways; 
‘‘(B) operating projects that expand service 
area, hours, or days; 
‘‘(C) operating projects for new or in-
creased frequent non-fixed guideway service or 
frequent fixed guideway service; 
‘‘(D) service planning, including planning 
to address changing demographics, changing 
travel movement, network redesign (including 
the implementation of a plan that results in a 
net increase in service hours across a region, 
subregion, or study area), and accommodating 
essential service trips (including service trips 
for employment, healthcare facilities, child care, 
education and workforce training, food sources, 
banking and other financial institutions, and 
other retail shopping establishments); 
‘‘(E) measuring access to work and essen-
tial services, particularly for non-drivers, includ-
ing data acquisition and acquiring outside sup-
port for conducting the analysis; and 
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‘‘(F) associated capital improvements re-
lated to projects described in subparagraphs 
(A) through (E). 
‘‘(2) COVERED YEAR FOR REVENUE HOURS.— 
‘‘(A) COVERED PERIOD DEFINED.—In this 
subsection, the term ‘covered period’ means— 
‘‘(i) for the period beginning on the 
date of enactment of this section and end-
ing on the last day of the fiscal year 3 fis-
cal years thereafter, fiscal year 2019; and 
‘‘(ii) for the period beginning on the 
first day of the fourth fiscal year after the 
date of enactment of this section and con-
tinuing through the last day of the fol-
lowing fiscal year, the fiscal year preceding 
the fourth fiscal year. 
‘‘(B) EXCEPTION
FOR
EMERGENCY.—In 
any fiscal year, the Secretary may change the 
comparison year under paragraph (1) in the 
case of an emergency. 
‘‘(3) PRIORITIZATION.—Recipients of a grant 
under this section shall balance needs to decrease 
headways on low-frequency routes with needs for in-
creased capacity on high-frequency routes when allo-
cating operating costs and public transportation 
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projects described in subparagraphs (A) through (C) 
of paragraph (1). 
‘‘(4) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the 
requirements of paragraph (3) if an eligible recipient 
certifies that all of the service provided by such re-
cipient meets the baseline frequency and access 
measurement for access to jobs and essential serv-
ices (as determined under subsection (k)) that is sat-
isfactory to the Secretary. 
‘‘(d) LIMITATION.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—A recipient of a grant 
under this section may not use more than 10 per-
cent of such grant for projects described in subpara-
graphs (D) through (F) of subsection (c)(1). 
‘‘(2) INCREASE OF LIMITATION.—The Secretary 
may increase the limitation in paragraph (1) to not 
more than 20 percent if a recipient can demonstrate 
that such an increase will result in substantial serv-
ice improvements in a given fiscal year. 
‘‘(e) REQUIREMENT.—A preponderance of a grant re-
ceived by a recipient under this section in a fiscal year 
shall be used for projects that primarily serve underserved 
communities or areas of persistent poverty. 
‘‘(f) FEDERAL SHARE.— 
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‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Federal share of a 
project or program carried out using a grant award-
ed under this section shall be not greater than 50 
percent. 
‘‘(2) INCREASED FEDERAL SHARE FOR CERTAIN 
AREAS.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Fed-
eral share of a project or program carried out in an 
area of persistent poverty or an underserved commu-
nity using a grant awarded under this section shall 
be not greater than 80 percent. 
‘‘(3) FEDERAL SHARE FOR INDIAN TRIBES.— 
Notwithstanding paragraph (1), for Indian Tribes 
receiving funding allocated under subsection (b)(3), 
the Federal share of a project or program carried 
out using a grant awarded under this section shall 
be 100 percent. 
‘‘(4) IN
KIND
MATCH.—Of the non-Federal 
share required under this subsection, 25 percent 
may be derived from amounts (other than amounts 
received from the Federal Transit Administration) 
expended for associated capital improvements related 
to a project or program carried out using a grant 
awarded under this section. 
‘‘(g) PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY.—An amount appor-
tioned under this section may be obligated by the recipient 
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for 2 years after the fiscal year in which the amount is 
apportioned. Not later than 30 days after the end of the 
2-year period, an amount that is not obligated at the end 
of that period shall be added to the amount that may be 
apportioned under this section in the following fiscal year. 
‘‘(h) CONDITIONS.—As a condition of receiving a 
grant under this section, an eligible recipient shall— 
‘‘(1) in the case of a recipient in an urbanized 
area— 
‘‘(A) agree to report to the Federal Transit 
Administration, for inclusion in the National 
Transit Database— 
‘‘(i) service frequency and revenue ve-
hicle hours, including revenue vehicle hours 
and unlinked passenger trips originating 
and terminating in areas of persistent pov-
erty and underserved communities, to-
gether with such other specific data as the 
Secretary shall find necessary and appro-
priate; and 
‘‘(ii) the number of jobs and essential 
services accessible by transit, and improve-
ment in such access, including specific re-
porting on access by transit for areas of 
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persistent poverty and underserved com-
munities; and 
‘‘(B) demonstrate that such recipient has 
surveyed, within the past year and at least 
every 2 years thereafter, current transit riders 
as well as non-riding residents of areas of per-
sistent poverty and underserved communities 
regarding transit service improvements, using 
means designed to maximize participation from 
both riders and non-riders, and has published 
the survey in an online format; 
‘‘(2) in the case of a recipient that is a federally 
recognized tribe or Alaska Native village— 
‘‘(A) agree to report to the Federal Transit 
Administration, for inclusion in the National 
Transit Database, revenue vehicle hours and 
unlinked passenger trips, together with such 
other specific data as the Secretary shall find 
necessary and appropriate; and 
‘‘(B) demonstrate that such recipient has 
surveyed, within the past year and at least 
every 2 years thereafter, current transit riders 
as well as non-riding residents of the tribe’s or 
village’s service area regarding transit service 
improvements, using means designed to maxi-
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mize participation from both riders and non-rid-
ers, and has published the survey in an online 
format; and 
‘‘(3) in the case of a recipient that is a State 
or other possession receiving assistance under sec-
tion 5311— 
‘‘(A) agree to report to the Federal Transit 
Administration, for inclusion in the National 
Transit Database, revenue vehicle hours for 
each subrecipient receiving assistance under 
this section, including revenue vehicle hours and 
unlinked passenger trips originating and termi-
nating in areas of persistent poverty and under-
served communities, together with such other 
specific data as the Secretary shall find nec-
essary and appropriate; 
‘‘(B) provide an annually updated report to 
the Secretary identifying those underserved 
communities and areas of persistent poverty in 
the non-urbanized areas of the State or posses-
sion that do not have any reported public tran-
sit services, or in which either the availability or 
utilization of rural public transit is in the bot-
tom quintile as compared to all rural public 
transit services in the United States, using such 
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measurements as shall be identified by the Sec-
retary, together with annually updated progress 
toward achieving the State’s or possession’s 
strategy for establishing high-quality transit 
service in these unserved and underserved com-
munities and areas of persistent poverty; and 
‘‘(C) demonstrate that every subrecipient 
of the State or posession has surveyed, within 
the past year and at least every 2 years there-
after, current transit riders as well as non- 
riding residents of areas of persistent poverty 
and underserved communities within the sub-
recipient’s service area regarding transit service 
improvements, using means designed to maxi-
mize participation from both riders and non-rid-
ers, and has published the survey in an online 
format. 
‘‘(i) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue 
such regulations as are necessary to carry out the program 
established under subsection (a), including defining the 
terms ‘frequent service’, ‘preponderance of a grant’, ‘pri-
marily serve’, and ‘access to jobs and essential service’ for 
purposes of this Act, including by taking into account any 
necessary difference in the definition of such terms re-
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quired for urbanized areas, rural areas located near ur-
banized areas, and remote rural areas. 
‘‘(j) PROHIBITION ON PRIVATIZATION.—Any eligible 
project carried out using a grant under this section shall 
be operated and maintained by employees of an existing 
public transportation provider in the service area. 
‘‘(k) ACCESS MEASUREMENT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the pro-
gram under this section, the Secretary shall set up 
a multimodal access measurement interface that is 
open to any public agency through the program 
under section 5505 of title 49, United States Code, 
to aid transit agencies in determining and reporting 
on access to jobs and essential services. 
‘‘(2) INTERIM DATA.—Until the access meas-
urement interface under paragraph (1) is estab-
lished, an eligible recipient may use other data 
sources to determine and report on access to jobs 
and essential services. 
‘‘(l) GAO REPORT.—Not later than 4 years after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 
of the United States shall submit to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 
Urban Affairs of the Senate a report that reviews the out-
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comes of the program established under subsection (a), in-
cluding new service produced and improvements in access 
to work and essential services, particularly for areas of 
persistent poverty and underserved communities. 
‘‘(m) PREVAILING WAGE.—The Secretary shall en-
sure that any labor associated with eligible operating costs 
or a public transportation project carried out using a 
grant made under this section will be paid wages not less 
than those prevailing on similar projects in the locality, 
as determined by the Secretary of Labor under subchapter 
IV of chapter 31 of title 40. The Secretary shall make 
a grant under this section only after being assured that 
required labor standards will be maintained. 
‘‘(n) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days 
after the beginning of each fiscal year, recipients of 
funds under this section shall certify to the Sec-
retary that such recipients will, with funding pledged 
by all sources, maintain effort with regard to transit 
service. As part of this certification, the transit 
agency shall submit to the Secretary a statement 
identifying the amount of funds from all sources 
(other than funds provided under this section and 
related non-Federal match) expended on transit op-
erations during the prior fiscal year, and the amount 
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expected to be expended on transit operations from 
all sources during the current fiscal year. 
‘‘(2) FAILURE TO MAINTAIN EFFORT.—If a re-
cipient of funds under this section is unable to main-
tain the level of effort certified pursuant to para-
graph (1) for any fiscal year, the amount such re-
cipient would have received under this section in the 
following fiscal year shall be reduced by one-third. 
‘‘(o) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec-
tion shall be construed to prevent an eligible recipient 
from increasing service through the use of any other Fed-
eral or non-Federal funds. 
‘‘(p) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$20,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 
2026. 
‘‘(q) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) AREAS
OF
PERSISTENT
POVERTY.—The 
term ‘area of persistent poverty’ means— 
‘‘(A) a county that has consistently had 
greater than or equal to 20 percent of the pop-
ulation of such county living in poverty during 
the most recent 30-year period for which data 
is available, as measured by the 1990 and 2000 
decennial censuses; or 
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‘‘(B) a census tract with a poverty rate of 
at least 20 percent as measured by the 2014 
through 2018 5-year data series available from 
the American Community Survey of the Bureau 
of the Census. 
‘‘(2) ASSOCIATED
CAPITAL
IMPROVEMENTS.— 
The term ‘associated capital improvements’ means 
capital projects described in subparagraphs (B) 
through (G) of section 5302(a)(1) of title 49, United 
States Code. 
‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE RECIPIENT.—The term ‘eligible 
recipient’ means a recipient or subrecipient of funds 
under section 5307 or 5311 of title 49, United 
States Code. 
‘‘(4) UNDERSERVED
COMMUNITY.—The term 
‘underserved community’ means— 
‘‘(A) a census tract or block numbering 
area in which the median income does not ex-
ceed 80 percent of the area median income; 
‘‘(B) families with income not greater than 
100 percent of the area median income that re-
side in minority census tracts; 
‘‘(C) families with income not greater than 
100 percent of the area median income that re-
side in areas affected by disasters, as deter-
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mined by the Administrator of the Federal 
Transit Administration; 
‘‘(D) a census tract that has a minority 
population of at least 30 percent or a median 
income of less than 100 percent of the area me-
dian income; 
‘‘(E) a community that has low access to 
jobs and essential services, as determined by 
the Secretary; or 
‘‘(F) a census block or group of geographi-
cally contiguous census blocks in which the pop-
ulation of any racial or ethnic minority individ-
uals, individually or in combination, comprises 
30 percent or more of the population of persons 
in the census block or group of geographically 
contiguous census blocks.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap-
ter 53 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by in-
serting after the item relating to section 5307 the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘5308. High quality transit operating support program.’’. 
(c) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
gress that capital funding for transit should be increased. 
Æ 
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