Title: Crossroads of America Act of 2019
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works

Summary:
Crossroads of America Act of 2019
This bill establishes a pilot program to award grants for freight and highway projects of national or regional significance.
The Department of Transportation must give priority to entities that provide the greatest non-federal share of the cost of a project relative to other applications under the pilot program and allot specified percentages of grant funds for small projects and rural projects.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2285 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2285

  To amend title 23, United States Code, to authorize a pilot program 
within the nationally significant freight and highway projects program 
 to increase State infrastructure investments, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 25, 2019

   Mr. Braun introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 23, United States Code, to authorize a pilot program 
within the nationally significant freight and highway projects program 
 to increase State infrastructure investments, 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 ``Crossroads of America Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. STATE INCENTIVES PILOT PROGRAM.

    Section 117 of title 23, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in subsection (d)(1), in the matter preceding 
        subparagraph (A), by striking ``subsection (e)'' and inserting 
        ``subsections (e) and (o)'';
            (2) in subsection (g), in the matter preceding paragraph 
        (1), by striking ``subsection (e)'' and inserting ``subsections 
        (e) and (o)'';
            (3) in subsection (j)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``The Federal'' 
                and inserting ``Except for a grant under subsection 
                (o), the Federal''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``Federal 
                assistance other'' and inserting ``Except for a grant 
                under subsection (o), Federal assistance other''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(o) State Incentives Pilot Program.--
            ``(1) Establishment.--There is established a pilot program 
        to award grants to eligible applicants for projects eligible 
        for grants under this section (referred to in this subsection 
        as the `pilot program').
            ``(2) Priority.--In awarding grants under the pilot 
        program, the Secretary shall give priority to an application 
        that offers a greater non-Federal share of the cost of a 
        project relative to other applications under the pilot program.
            ``(3) Federal share.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Notwithstanding any other 
                provision of law, the Federal share of the cost of a 
                project assisted with a grant under the pilot program 
                may not exceed 50 percent.
                    ``(B) No federal involvement.--
                            ``(i) In general.--For grants awarded under 
                        the pilot program, except as provided in clause 
                        (ii), an eligible applicant may not use Federal 
                        assistance to satisfy the non-Federal share of 
                        the cost under subparagraph (A).
                            ``(ii) Exception.--An eligible applicant 
                        may use funds from a secured loan (as defined 
                        in section 601(a)) to satisfy the non-Federal 
                        share of the cost under subparagraph (A) if the 
                        loan is repayable from non-Federal funds.
            ``(4) Reservation.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Of the amounts made available to 
                provide grants under this section, the Secretary shall 
                reserve for each fiscal year $150,000,000 to provide 
                grants under the pilot program.
                    ``(B) Unutilized amounts.--In any fiscal year 
                during which applications under this subsection are 
                insufficient to effect an award or allocation of the 
                entire amount reserved under subparagraph (A), the 
                Secretary shall use the unutilized amounts to provide 
                other grants under this section.
            ``(5) Set-asides.--
                    ``(A) Small projects.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Of the amounts reserved 
                        under paragraph (4)(A), the Secretary shall 
                        reserve for each fiscal year not less than 10 
                        percent for projects eligible for a grant under 
                        subsection (e).
                            ``(ii) Requirement.--For a grant awarded 
                        from the amount reserved under clause (i)--
                                    ``(I) the requirements of 
                                subsection (e) shall apply; and
                                    ``(II) the requirements of 
                                subsection (g) shall not apply.
                    ``(B) Rural projects.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Of the amounts reserved 
                        under paragraph (4)(A), the Secretary shall 
                        reserve for each fiscal year not less than 25 
                        percent for projects eligible for a grant under 
                        subsection (i).
                            ``(ii) Requirement.--For a grant awarded 
                        from the amount reserved under clause (i), the 
                        requirements of subsection (i) shall apply.
            ``(6) Report to congress.--Not later than 2 years after the 
        date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall 
        submit to the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the 
        Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
        of the House of Representatives a report that describes the 
        administration of the pilot program, including--
                    ``(A) the number, types, and locations of eligible 
                applicants that have applied for grants under the pilot 
                program;
                    ``(B) the number, types, and locations of grant 
                recipients under the pilot program;
                    ``(C) an assessment of whether implementation of 
                the pilot program has incentivized eligible applicants 
                to offer a greater non-Federal share for grants under 
                the pilot program; and
                    ``(D) any recommendations for modifications to the 
                pilot program.''.
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