Norman Y. Mineta Research and Special Programs Improvement Act

Bill: 108-s-2952
Sponsor: Sen. McCain, John [R-AZ]
Introduced: 2004-10-08 in the Senate
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works
Subjects: Administrative procedure
Advice and consent of the Senate
Agriculture and Food
Business records
Commerce
Common carriers
Congress
Congressional reporting requirements
Decision making
Department of Transportation
Economic impact statements
Economics and Public Finance
Education
Employee training
Energy
Environmental Protection
Executive reorganization
Federal employees
Federal mandates
Federal officials
Federal preemption
Federal-local relations
Federal-state relations
Food industry
Food safety
Foreign Trade and International Finance
Fuel consumption
Government Operations and Politics
Government paperwork
Government statistics
Harbors
Higher education
Inspectors general
Intermodal transportation
Labor and Employment
Law
Legislation
Local laws
Marine terminals
Meat inspection
Packaging
Pipelines
Poultry
Presidential appointments
Quality of life
Railroad equipment
Railroad freight operations
Railroad safety
Research and development
Research centers
Salaries
Science, Technology, Communications
State employees
State laws
Technological innovations
Traffic engineering
Transportation of hazardous substances
Transportation planning
Transportation research
Transportation safety

Summary:
action_date: 2004-10-08
text: 
Norman Y. Mineta Research and Special Programs Improvement Act - Amends Federal transportation law to establish, and replace the Research and Special Programs Administration (RSPA) with, the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA), which shall be headed by an Administrator appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.
 
Establishes in RITA an Office of Intermodalism.
 
Transfers the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) to RITA.
 
Establishes the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) in the Department of Transportation (DOT), headed by an Administrator with professional experience in pipeline safety, hazardous materials safety, or other transportation safety, appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. 
 
Requires the Director of the Office of Intermodalism to develop a plan to improve the national intermodal transportation system.
 
Revises sanitary food transportation requirements to direct the Secretary of Transportation to establish procedures for transportation safety inspections in order to identify suspected incidents of contamination or adulteration of food, meat, and poultry products and to train DOT personnel in the appropriate use of the procedures. Requires the Secretary of Transportation to notify the Secretaries of HHS and of Agriculture of instances of potential food contamination or adulteration of a food identified during transportation safety inspections.
 
Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to direct the Secretary of HHS to require shippers, motor vehicle or rail vehicle carriers, receivers, and other persons engaged in the transportation of food to use sanitary transportation practices prescribed by the Secretary of HHS to avoid the adulteration of food.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2004-10-08
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2004-10-08
text: Introduced in Senate