I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 3429
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to make grants for security
improvements to over-the-road bus operations, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
DECEMBER 6, 2001
Mr. YOUNG of Alaska (for himself, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. PETRI, and Mr. BOR-
SKI, Mr. LATOURETTE, Mr. EHLERS, Mr. GRAVES, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE
JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mr. MASCARA, Mr. HOLDEN, Mr. RA-
HALL, Mr. HONDA, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr.
COSTELLO, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. FILNER, and Ms. MILLENDER-MCDON-
ALD) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Transportation and Infrastructure
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to make grants
for security improvements to over-the-road bus oper-
ations, 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 ‘‘Over-the-Road Bus
Security and Safety Act of 2001’’.
SEC. 2. EMERGENCY OVER-THE-ROAD BUS SECURITY AS-
SISTANCE.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation
may make grants to private operators of over-the-road
buses for system-wide security improvements to their oper-
ations, including the reimbursement of extraordinary secu-
rity-related costs determined by the Secretary to have been
incurred by such operators since September 11, 2001, and
including—
(1) constructing and modifying garages, facili-
ties, or over-the-road buses to assure their security;
(2) acquiring, upgrading, installing, or oper-
ating equipment, software, or accessorial services for
collection, storage, or exchange of passenger and
driver information through ticketing systems or oth-
erwise, and information links with government agen-
cies;
(3) training employees in recognizing and re-
sponding to terrorist threats, evacuation procedures,
passenger screening procedures, and baggage inspec-
tion;
(4) hiring and training security officers or ‘‘bus
marshals’’;
(5) installing cameras and video surveillance
equipment on over-the-road buses and at garages
and over-the-road bus facilities;
(6) creating a program for employee identifica-
tion or background investigation;
(7) establishing an emergency communications
system linked to police and emergency personnel;
and
(8) implementing and operating passenger
screening programs at terminals and on over-the-
road buses.
(b) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the cost
for which any grant is made under this Act shall be 90
percent.
(c) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.—Section 5333
of title 49, United States Code, shall apply to a grant
made under this Act in the same manner and to the same
extent as to a grant made under chapter 53 of such title.
SEC. 3. PLAN REQUIREMENT.
The Secretary may not make a grant under this Act
to a private operator of over-the-road buses until the oper-
ator has first submitted to the Secretary—
(1) a plan of the operator for making security
improvements described in section 2 and the Sec-
retary has approved the plan; and
(2) such additional information as the Secretary
may require to ensure accountability for the obliga-
tion and expenditure of amounts made available to
the operator under the grant.
SEC. 4. OVER-THE-ROAD BUS DEFINED.
In this Act, the term ‘‘over-the-road bus’’ means a
bus characterized by an elevated passenger deck located
over a baggage compartment.
SEC. 5. FUNDING.
(a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is
authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Trans-
portation to carry out this Act $200,000,000 for fiscal
year 2002. Such sums shall remain available until ex-
pended.
(b) IMPOSITION AND COLLECTION OF PASSENGER
FEES.—The Secretary shall impose and collect from pas-
sengers of private operators of over-the-road buses in fis-
cal years 2002, 2003, and 2004 a fee to pay the cost of
carrying out this Act. Such fee shall be $0.25 for each
bus trip of a passenger of a private operator of an over-
the-road bus if the cost of the trip is more than $5. Sub-
ject to subsection (c) and notwithstanding section 9701
of title 31, United States Code, and the procedural re-
quirements of section 553 of title 5, United States Code,
the Secretary shall impose the fee through the publication
of notice of such fee in the Federal Register, and begin
collection of the fee within 60 days of the date of enact-
ment of this Act, or as soon as possible thereafter.
(c) REQUIREMENT FOR APPROPRIATION BEFORE IM-
POSITION OR COLLECTION OF FEES.—The Secretary shall
not impose or collect a fee under this section before the
date on which all or any portion of the amounts authorized
by subsection (a) are appropriated to carry out this Act.
(d) FEES PAYABLE TO SECRETARY.—All fees im-
posed and amounts collected under this section are pay-
able to the Secretary.
(e) RECEIPTS CREDITED TO ACCOUNT.—Notwith-
standing section 3302 of title 31, United States Code, all
fees collected under this section—
(1) shall be credited to a separate account es-
tablished in the Treasury;
(2) shall be available immediately, without fur-
ther appropriation, for expenditure but only for
making grants under section 2 in fiscal years 2003
and 2004; and
(3) shall remain available until expended.
(f) FEES COLLECTED BY BUS OPERATORS.—A fee
imposed under this section shall be collected by the private
operators of over-the-road buses and shall be remitted by
such operators to the Secretary on the last day of each
calendar month. The amount to be remitted shall be for
the calendar month preceding the calendar month in which
the remittance is made.
(g) INFORMATION.—The Secretary may require the
provision of such information as the Secretary decides is
necessary to verify that fees have been collected and remit-
ted at the proper times and in the proper amounts.
(h) REFUNDS.—The Secretary may refund to a pri-
vate operator of an over-the-road bus any fee paid by such
operator by mistake or any amount paid by such operator
in excess of that required.
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