I
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4746
To establish a program to preserve, rehabilitate, and improve certain railroad
tracks and bridges using funds collected through the diesel fuel tax,
and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 26, 2000
Mr. BACHUS (for himself, Mr. CLEMENT, Mr. BOEHLERT, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr.
FRANKS of New Jersey, Mr. KLECZKA, Mr. FOLEY, Mr. DOOLEY of Cali-
fornia, Mr. SWEENEY, Mr. MCHUGH, Mr. SCARBOROUGH, and Mr. FIL-
NER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee
on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within
the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To establish a program to preserve, rehabilitate, and improve
certain railroad tracks and bridges using funds collected
through the diesel fuel tax, 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 ‘‘Emergency Rural and
Small Railroad Preservation Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that—
(1) a well-developed system of transportation
and infrastructure is critical to the economic well
being, health, and welfare of the United States;
(2) a national emergency exists that threatens
the survival of essential rail transportation infra-
structure, especially infrastructure serving rural
areas of the country;
(3) a failure to address the growing crisis will
result in rail line abandonments which will add to
highway costs and congestion, thus increasing high-
way traffic that will lead to a degradation of safety,
increase environmental damage, and further eco-
nomically disadvantage rural areas of the country;
(4) traditional funding techniques are unable to
keep pace with the rail infrastructure investment
needs in rural areas, including the requirement to
upgrade track and bridges, to ensure safety, and to
accommodate 286,000 pound freight cars;
(5) the requirement that railroads pay a 4.3-
cent diesel fuel excise tax into the general fund of
the Treasury, while similar taxes on competing
modes of transportation improve the infrastructures
for those competing modes, is inequitable; and
(6) a temporary Federal program utilizing the
proceeds of the 4.3-cent railroad fuel tax to address
the national emergency and preserve freight rail
service is in the national interest as long as the 4.3-
cent diesel tax on railroads is in existence.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Transpor-
tation shall establish a program to preserve, rehabilitate,
and improve rail tracks and bridges of Class II and III
freight railroads to ensure that such railroads can be oper-
ated safely and can accommodate 286,000 pound rail cars.
(b) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—
(1) ELIGIBLE
RECIPIENTS.—The Secretary
shall allocate funds made available to carry out this
section to entities making applications to the Sec-
retary for such funds, including State and local gov-
ernments, government-sponsored authorities and cor-
porations, and Class II and III railroads.
(2) CRITERIA.—In allocating funds made avail-
able to carry out this section, the Secretary shall
give priority to applications that—
(A) propose the rehabilitation or improve-
ment of track and bridges to a condition suffi-
cient to accommodate 286,000 pound rail cars
at speeds of at least 25 mph; or
(B) are designated by a State Department
of Transportation as—
(i) preserving an essential link in the
State’s transportation network;
(ii) providing a cost efficient alter-
native to a highway connection or highway
project; or
(iii) enhancing safety.
(3) EQUITABLE
DISTRIBUTION.—In allocating
funds to carry out this section, the Secretary shall
ensure the equitable distribution of funds to a diver-
sity of geographic regions.
(c) USE OF FUNDS.—
(1) TYPES
OF
PROJECTS.—Funds available
under this section may be used only for capital reha-
bilitation and improvement projects to Class II and
III rail freight lines to—
(A) upgrade track and bridges to accom-
modate 286,000 pound freight cars; or
(B) promote essential service and enhance
safety.
(2) TYPES OF FUNDING.—The Secretary may
make direct grants for the purposes stated in para-
graph (1), and may make grants to supplement di-
rect loans and loan guarantees under title V of the
Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act
of 1976 (45 U.S.C. 821 et seq.) to provide for such
benefits as a holiday on early payments, lowering
rates of interest, or paying credit risk premiums or
premium risk subsidy amounts in whole or in part.
(d) RAILROAD TRUST FUND.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter A of chapter 98
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to
trust fund code) is amended by adding at the end
the following section:
‘‘SEC. 9511. RAILROAD TRUST FUND.
‘‘(a) CREATION OF TRUST FUND.—There is estab-
lished in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund
to be known as the ‘Railroad Trust Fund’, consisting of
any amount appropriated or credited to the Trust Fund
as provided in this section or section 9602(b).
‘‘(b) TRANSFERS TO TRUST FUND.—There are here-
by appropriated to the Railroad Trust Fund amounts
equivalent to the taxes received in the Treasury under
clause (ii) of section 4041(a)(1)(C) (relating to rate of tax
on trains).
‘‘(c) EXPENDITURES.—Amounts in the Railroad
Trust Fund shall be available, as provided by appropria-
tion Acts, for making expenditures under the Emergency
Rural and Small Railroad Preservation Act, as in effect
on the date of the enactment of this section.’’.
(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec-
tions for subchapter A of chapter 98 of such Code
is amended by adding at the end the following new
item:
‘‘Sec. 9511. Railroad Trust Fund.’’.
(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made
by this subsection shall apply to amounts received
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(e) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary shall give pri-
ority to projects that are economically viable, and shall
require a non-Federal matching contribution of at least
10 percent. The Secretary shall make grants available no
later than 90 days following the availability of appropria-
tions for each fiscal year.
(f) STUDY.—Section 22301(d) of title 49, United
States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘, and of projects
carried out with assistance under the Emergency Rural
and Small Railroad Preservation Act,’’ after ‘‘under this
section’’.
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