Title: Missed Opportunities in Transportation Act of 2017
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works

Summary:
Missed Opportunities in Transportation Act of 2017
This bill requires the Department of Transportation (DOT) to report to Congress on missed opportunities in each competitive or discretionary grant program administered by DOT in the preceding fiscal year. The report must detail the 10 applications, proposals, or requests that were not funded or awarded but showed the greatest potential to improve transportation in the United States.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4355 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4355

  To amend title 49, United States Code, to require reporting by the 
   Department of Transportation on requests for funding projects or 
                   programs, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 9, 2017

Mr. Lewis of Georgia introduced the following bill; which was referred 
         to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 49, United States Code, to require reporting by the 
   Department of Transportation on requests for funding projects or 
                   programs, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Missed Opportunities in 
Transportation Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) the United States relies on an integrated, multimodal 
        system of transportation to facilitate the movement of people 
        and goods across the Nation;
            (2) the United States has a history of investing in 
        forward-thinking ideas to improve transportation;
            (3) Congress has a duty to do all it can to improve 
        transportation in the United States;
            (4) both Congress and the States have failed to meet the 
        needs of the American people in recent years;
            (5) inflation-adjusted public spending on transportation 
        infrastructure has declined over the past decade;
            (6) Americans are suffering from the consequences of that 
        inaction;
            (7) investment in transportation and infrastructure is 
        vital to national security and prosperity;
            (8) failure to invest adequately in United States 
        infrastructure will continue to impede economic growth and harm 
        the health and competitiveness of the United States economy;
            (9) proposals to improve transportation in the United 
        States exceed available funds;
            (10) the American people deserve to be informed about and 
        consider possible solutions for the gridlock and disrepair they 
        experience every day; and
            (11) Congress must have good information about potential 
        projects for transportation modernization in order to make 
        reasonable judgments about funding levels for transportation 
        projects and research.

SEC. 3. ANNUAL REPORTING ON MISSED OPPORTUNITIES.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 3 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 312. Annual reporting on missed opportunities
    ``(a) In General.--Not later than December 31 of each year, the 
Secretary of Transportation shall submit to Congress a report on missed 
opportunities for each competitive or discretionary grant program 
administered by the Department of Transportation in the preceding 
fiscal year.
    ``(b) Contents.--For each grant program described in subsection 
(a), the report shall detail the 10 individual applications, proposals, 
or requests for funding that--
            ``(1) were not funded or awarded, completely or partially; 
        but
            ``(2) showed the greatest potential to improve 
        transportation in the United States, according to the selection 
        criteria and established goals of that grant program.
    ``(c) Reporting Date Flexibility.--If a law requires an annual 
report to Congress with respect to a grant program described in 
subsection (a), the report on missed opportunities required under this 
section for that program may--
            ``(1) be included in that annual report; and
            ``(2) be submitted on or before the date that annual report 
        is due.
    ``(d) Public Transparency.--Upon submission of a report on missed 
opportunities to Congress under this section, the Secretary shall make 
the report available to the public on an internet website of the 
Department of Transportation in a manner that is user friendly and able 
to be searched and downloaded by users of the website.
    ``(e) Trade Secrets and Confidential Information.--Nothing in this 
section authorizes the Secretary to disclose any information that is a 
trade secret or confidential information subject to section 552(b)(4) 
of title 5 or section 1905 of title 18.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 3 of title 49, 
United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
section 311 the following:

``312. Annual reporting on missed opportunities.''.
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