I 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6458 
To establish a national maximum speed limit of 60 miles per hour on high-
ways, and 65 miles per hour on portions of the National Highway 
System located outside of an urbanized area. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 10, 2008 
Ms. SPEIER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Transportation and Infrastructure 
A BILL 
To establish a national maximum speed limit of 60 miles 
per hour on highways, and 65 miles per hour on portions 
of the National Highway System located outside of an 
urbanized area. 
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 referred to as the ‘‘Gasoline Savings 
and Speed Limit Reduction Act of 2008’’. 
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SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL MAXIMUM SPEED 
LIMITS. 
(a) NATIONAL MAXIMUM SPEED LIMITS.—Chapter 1 
of title 23, United States Code, is amended by inserting 
after section 149 the following: 
‘‘§ 150. National maximum speed limits 
‘‘(a) SPEED LIMIT REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary 
shall not approve a project under section 106 in any State 
which has— 
‘‘(1) a maximum speed limit on any highway 
within its jurisdiction in excess of 60 miles per hour, 
other than a highway on the National Highway Sys-
tem located outside of an urbanized area; 
‘‘(2) a maximum speed limit on any highway 
within its jurisdiction on the National Highway Sys-
tem located outside of an urbanized area in excess 
of 65 miles per hour; 
‘‘(3) failed to meet the requirements of sub-
section (b); or 
‘‘(4) a speed limit on any portion of a public 
highway within its jurisdiction which is not uni-
formly applicable to all types of motor vehicles using 
such portion of highway, if on July 1, 2008, such 
portion of highway had a speed limit which was uni-
formly applicable to all types of motor vehicles using 
it, except that— 
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‘‘(A) a lower speed limit may be estab-
lished for any vehicle operating under a special 
permit because of the weight or dimension of 
such vehicle, including any load thereon; and 
‘‘(B) this paragraph shall not apply to any 
portion of a highway during such time that the 
condition of the highway, weather, an accident, 
or other condition creates a temporary hazard 
to the safety of traffic. 
‘‘(b) CERTIFICATION.— 
‘‘(1) 
CERTIFICATION
REQUIREMENT.—Each 
State shall certify to the Secretary before January 
1 of each year, beginning in 2009, that it is enforc-
ing all speed limits on public highways in accordance 
with this section. 
‘‘(2) DATA REQUIREMENTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall sub-
mit to the Secretary such data as the Secretary 
determines by rule is necessary to support the 
certification of the State under this subsection, 
including data required under subparagraph 
(B). 
‘‘(B) DATA
ON
SPEED
LIMIT
VIOLA-
TIONS.— 
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‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall 
submit to the Secretary data on the per-
centage of motor vehicles exceeding the 
speed limit on maximum speed limit high-
ways, including data on— 
‘‘(I) citations; and 
‘‘(II) travel speed, including the 
posted speed limit and design charac-
teristics of roads from which travel 
speed data are gathered. 
‘‘(ii) 
ESTABLISHMENT
OF
CRI-
TERIA.—The Secretary shall establish cri-
teria for data submitted under this sub-
paragraph, including criteria which take 
into account the variability of speedometer 
readings and criteria based on the speeds 
of all vehicles or a representative sample 
thereof. 
‘‘(C) DATA
COLLECTION.—The Secretary 
shall issue regulations which ensure that— 
‘‘(i) the monitoring programs con-
ducted by the States to collect data for 
purposes of this subsection are uniform; 
‘‘(ii) devices and equipment for such 
programs are placed at locations on max-
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imum speed limit highways on a scientif-
ically random basis which takes into ac-
count the relative risk, as determined by 
the Secretary, of motor vehicle accidents 
occurring considering the classes of such 
highways and the speeds at which vehicles 
travel on such classes of highways; and 
‘‘(iii) the data submitted under this 
subsection will be in such form as the Sec-
retary determines is necessary to carry out 
this section. 
‘‘(c) PENALTY FOR UNDERENFORCEMENT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), if the data submitted by a State pursuant 
to subsection (b) at the end of a fiscal year show 
that the percentage of motor vehicles exceeding the 
speed limit on maximum speed limit highways in the 
State is greater than the maximum percentage es-
tablished for such fiscal year under this paragraph, 
the Secretary shall transfer a percentage of the ag-
gregate amount of Federal-aid highway funds appor-
tioned to the State under sections 104(b)(1) and 
104(b)(3) for the fiscal year ending 2 years later to 
one or more State safety projects, as follows: 
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‘‘(A) 2009.—For the fiscal year ending 
September 30, 2009, if the percentage of motor 
vehicles exceeding the speed limit on maximum 
speed highways in the State is greater than 70 
percent, the Secretary shall transfer up to 5 
percent of the aggregate amount of Federal-aid 
highway funds apportioned to the State under 
sections 104(b)(1) and 104(b)(3) for the fiscal 
year ending September 30, 2011, to one or 
more State safety projects. 
‘‘(B) 2010.—For the fiscal year ending 
September 30, 2010, if the percentage of motor 
vehicles exceeding the speed limit on maximum 
speed highways in the State is greater than 60 
percent,the Secretary shall transfer up to 5 per-
cent of the aggregate amount of Federal-aid 
highway funds apportioned to the State under 
sections 104(b)(1) and 104(b)(3) for the fiscal 
year ending September 30, 2012, to one or 
more State safety projects. 
‘‘(C) 2011.—For the fiscal year ending 
September 30, 2011, if the percentage of motor 
vehicles exceeding the speed limit on maximum 
speed highways in the State is greater than 50 
percent, the Secretary shall transfer up to 5 
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percent of the aggregate amount of Federal-aid 
highway funds apportioned to the State under 
sections 104(b)(1) and 104(b)(3) for the fiscal 
year ending September 30, 2013, to one or 
more State safety projects. 
‘‘(D) 2012.—For the fiscal year ending 
September 30, 2012, if the percentage of motor 
vehicles exceeding the speed limit on maximum 
speed highways in the State is greater than 40 
percent, the Secretary shall transfer up to 10 
percent of the aggregate amount of Federal-aid 
highway funds apportioned to the State under 
sections 104(b)(1) and 104(b)(3) for the fiscal 
year ending September 30, 2014, to one or 
more State safety projects. 
‘‘(E) 2013.—For the fiscal year ending 
September 30, 2013, if the percentage of motor 
vehicles exceeding the speed limit on maximum 
speed highways in the State is greater than 30 
percent, the Secretary shall transfer up to 10 
percent of the aggregate amount of Federal-aid 
highway funds apportioned to the State under 
sections 104(b)(1) and 104(b)(3) for the fiscal 
year ending September 30, 2015, to one or 
more State safety projects. 
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‘‘(F) SUBSEQUENT
YEARS.—In a fiscal 
year following the fiscal year ending September 
30, 2013, if the percentage of motor vehicles 
exceeding the speed limit on maximum speed 
highways in the State is greater than 30 per-
cent, the Secretary shall transfer up to 10 per-
cent of the aggregate amount of Federal-aid 
highway funds apportioned to the State under 
sections 104(b)(1) and 104(b)(3) for the fiscal 
year ending 2 years later, to one or more State 
safety projects. 
‘‘(2) HARDSHIP EXEMPTION.—Notwithstanding 
paragraph (1), if the Secretary determines, in ac-
cordance with criteria established by the Secretary, 
that a transfer of funds under paragraph (1) would 
result in hardship to a State in the fiscal year in 
which the transfer would apply, the Secretary shall 
defer the transfer until the subsequent fiscal year. 
‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) MOTOR VEHICLE.—The term ‘motor vehi-
cle’ means any vehicle driven or drawn by mechan-
ical power manufactured primarily for use on public 
highways, except any vehicle operated exclusively on 
a rail or rails. 
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