Transit to Trails Act

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1461 To establish a program to award grants to entities that provide transportation connectors from critically underserved urban communities and rural com- munities to green spaces. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 29, 2021 Mr. BOOKER (for himself, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. MARKEY, Ms. SMITH, Mr. PADILLA, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. WYDEN, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, and Ms. ROSEN) intro- duced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Com- mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation A BILL To establish a program to award grants to entities that provide transportation connectors from critically under- served urban communities and rural communities to green spaces. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Transit to Trails Act’’. 4 SEC. 2. TRANSIT TO TRAILS GRANT PROGRAM. 5 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 6 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1461 IS (1) COMMUNITY OF COLOR.—The term ‘‘com- 1 munity of color’’ means a geographically distinct 2 area in which the population of any of the following 3 categories of individuals is higher than the average 4 population of that category for the State in which 5 the community is located: 6 (A) Black. 7 (B) African American. 8 (C) Asian. 9 (D) Pacific Islander. 10 (E) Other non-White race. 11 (F) Hispanic. 12 (G) Latino. 13 (2) CRITICALLY UNDERSERVED COMMUNITY.— 14 The term ‘‘critically underserved community’’ 15 means— 16 (A) a community that can demonstrate to 17 the Secretary that the community has inad- 18 equate, insufficient, or no park space or recre- 19 ation facilities, including by demonstrating— 20 (i) quality concerns relating to the 21 available park space or recreation facilities; 22 (ii) the presence of recreational facili- 23 ties that do not serve the needs of the com- 24 munity; or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1461 IS (iii) the inequitable distribution of 1 park space for high-need populations, 2 based on income, age, or other measures of 3 vulnerability and need; 4 (B) a community in which at least 50 per- 5 cent of the population is not located within 1⁄2 6 mile of park space; 7 (C) an environmental justice community; 8 and 9 (D) any other community that the Sec- 10 retary determines to be appropriate. 11 (3) DISPROPORTIONATE BURDEN OF ADVERSE 12 HUMAN HEALTH OR ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS.— 13 The term ‘‘disproportionate burden of adverse 14 human health or environmental effects’’ means a sit- 15 uation where there exists higher or more adverse 16 human health or environmental effects on commu- 17 nities of color, low-income communities, and Tribal 18 and Indigenous communities. 19 (4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti- 20 ty’’ means— 21 (A) a State; 22 (B) a political subdivision of a State (in- 23 cluding a city or a county) that represents or 24 otherwise serves an urban area or a rural area; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1461 IS (C) a special purpose district (including a 1 park district); 2 (D) an Indian Tribe (as defined in section 3 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu- 4 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304)) that 5 represents or otherwise serves an urban area or 6 a rural area; or 7 (E) a metropolitan planning organization 8 (as defined in section 134(b) of title 23, United 9 States Code). 10 (5) ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE COMMUNITY.— 11 The term ‘‘environmental justice community’’ means 12 a community with significant representation of com- 13 munities of color, low-income communities, or Tribal 14 and Indigenous communities that experience, or is at 15 risk of experiencing, a disproportionate burden of 16 adverse human health or environmental effects. 17 (6) LOW-INCOME COMMUNITY.—The term ‘‘low- 18 income community’’ means any census block group 19 in which 30 percent or more of the population are 20 individuals with an annual household income equal 21 to, or less than, the greater of— 22 (A) an amount equal to 80 percent of the 23 median income of the area in which the house- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1461 IS hold is located, as reported by the Department 1 of Housing and Urban Development; and 2 (B) 200 percent of the Federal poverty 3 line. 4 (7) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means 5 the Transit to Trails Grant Program established 6 under subsection (b)(1). 7 (8) RURAL AREA.—The term ‘‘rural area’’ 8 means a community that is not an urban area. 9 (9) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 10 the Secretary of Transportation. 11 (10) TRANSPORTATION CONNECTOR.— 12 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘transpor- 13 tation connector’’ means a system that— 14 (i) connects 2 zip codes or commu- 15 nities within a 175-mile radius of a des- 16 ignated service area; and 17 (ii) offers rides available to the public. 18 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘transpor- 19 tation connector’’ includes microtransits, bus 20 lines, bus rails, light rail, rapid transits, or per- 21 sonal rapid transits. 22 (11) URBAN AREA.—The term ‘‘urban area’’ 23 means a community that— 24 (A) is densely developed; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1461 IS (B) has residential, commercial, and other 1 nonresidential areas; and 2 (C)(i) is an urbanized area with a popu- 3 lation of 50,000 or more; or 4 (ii) is an urban cluster with a population 5 of— 6 (I) not less than 2,500; and 7 (II) not more than 50,000. 8 (b) GRANT PROGRAM.— 9 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es- 10 tablish a grant program, to be known as the ‘‘Tran- 11 sit to Trails Grant Program’’, under which the Sec- 12 retary shall award grants to eligible entities for— 13 (A) projects that develop transportation 14 connectors or routes in or serving, and related 15 culturally and linguistically appropriate edu- 16 cation materials for, critically underserved com- 17 munities to increase access and mobility to Fed- 18 eral or non-Federal public land, inland and 19 coastal waters, parkland, or monuments; or 20 (B) projects that facilitate transportation 21 improvements to enhance access to Federal or 22 non-Federal public land and recreational oppor- 23 tunities in critically underserved communities. 24 (2) ADMINISTRATION.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1461 IS (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ad- 1 minister the program to assist eligible entities 2 in the development of transportation connectors 3 or routes in or serving, and related culturally 4 and linguistically appropriate education mate- 5 rials for, critically underserved communities and 6 Federal or non-Federal public land, inland and 7 coastal waters, parkland, and monuments. 8 (B) JOINT PARTNERSHIPS.—The Secretary 9 shall encourage joint partnership projects under 10 the program, if available, among multiple agen- 11 cies, including school districts, nonprofit organi- 12 zations, metropolitan planning organizations, 13 regional transportation authorities, transit 14 agencies, and State and local governmental 15 agencies (including park and recreation agen- 16 cies and authorities) to enhance investment of 17 public sources. 18 (C) ANNUAL GRANT PROJECT PROPOSAL 19 SOLICITATION, REVIEW, AND APPROVAL.— 20 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 21 shall— 22 (I) annually solicit the submis- 23 sion of project proposals for grants 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1461 IS from eligible entities under the pro- 1 gram; and 2 (II) review each project proposal 3 submitted under subclause (I) on a 4 timeline established by the Secretary. 5 (ii) REQUIRED ELEMENTS FOR 6 PROJECT PROPOSAL.—A project proposal 7 submitted under clause (i)(I) shall in- 8 clude— 9 (I) a statement of the purposes 10 of the project; 11 (II) the name of the entity or in- 12 dividual with overall responsibility for 13 the project; 14 (III) a description of the quali- 15 fications of the entity or individuals 16 identified under subclause (II); 17 (IV) a description of— 18 (aa) staffing and stake- 19 holder engagement for the 20 project; 21 (bb) the logistics of the 22 project; and 23 (cc) anticipated outcomes of 24 the project; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1461 IS (V) a proposed budget for the 1 funds and time required to complete 2 the project; 3 (VI) information regarding the 4 source and amount of matching fund- 5 ing available for the project; 6 (VII) information that dem- 7 onstrates the clear potential of the 8 project to contribute to increased ac- 9 cess to parkland for critically under- 10 served communities; and 11 (VIII) any other information that 12 the Secretary considers to be nec- 13 essary for evaluating the eligibility of 14 the project for funding under the pro- 15 gram. 16 (iii) CONSULTATION; APPROVAL OR 17 DISAPPROVAL.—The Secretary shall, with 18 respect to each project proposal submitted 19 under this subparagraph, as appropriate— 20 (I) consult with the government 21 of each State in which the proposed 22 project is to be conducted; 23 (II) after taking into consider- 24 ation any comments resulting from 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1461 IS the consultation under subclause (I), 1 approve or disapprove the proposal; 2 and 3 (III) provide written notification 4 of the approval or disapproval to— 5 (aa) the individual or entity 6 that submitted the proposal; and 7 (bb) each State consulted 8 under subclause (I). 9 (D) PRIORITY.—To the extent practicable, 10 in determining whether to approve project pro- 11 posals under the program, the Secretary shall 12 prioritize projects that— 13 (i) are designed to increase access and 14 mobility to local or neighborhood Federal 15 or non-Federal public land, inland and 16 coastal waters, parkland, monuments, or 17 recreational opportunities; 18 (ii) use low- or zero-emission vehicles; 19 (iii) provide free or discounted rates 20 for low-income riders of transportation 21 connectors; 22 (iv) provide opportunities for youth 23 engagement; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:43 Jun 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1461 IS (v) give employment preference to in- 1 dividuals living in the community in which 2 the project is carried out; 3 (vi) are carried out in— 4 (I) a community of color; 5 (II) a low-income community; 6 (III) a Tribal or Indigenous com- 7 munity; or 8 (IV) a rural community; 9 (vii) would capitalize on existing es- 10 tablished public-private partnerships; and 11 (viii) comply with applicable provi- 12 sions of the Americans with Disabilities 13 Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.). 14 (3) TRANSPORTATION PLANNING PROCE- 15 DURES.— 16 (A) PROCEDURES.—In consultation with 17 the head of each appropriate Federal land man- 18 agement agency, the Secretary shall develop, by 19 rule, transportation planning procedures for 20 projects conducted under the program that are 21 consistent with metropolitan and statewide 22 planning processes. 23 (B) REQUIREMENTS.—All projects carried 24 out under the program shall be developed in co- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1461 IS operation with States and metropolitan plan- 1 ning organizations. 2 (4) ADA COMPLIANCE.—The Secretary shall 3 ensure that all new transportation connectors and 4 routes developed under the program are accessible to 5 people with disabilities in accordance with accessi- 6 bility specifications for transportation vehicles under 7 the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 8 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.). 9 (5) STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT.—In carrying 10 out the program, the Secretary shall— 11 (A) meaningfully engage with relevant 12 stakeholders, particularly— 13 (i) impacted community members; 14 (ii) transportation partners; 15 (iii) existing potential passengers of 16 the transportation connectors; 17 (iv) Indian Tribes and Tribal rep- 18 resentatives; and 19 (v) faith-based and community-based 20 organizations; and 21 (B) ensure that the input of the stake- 22 holders described in subparagraph (A) is cen- 23 tral to the determination of new transportation 24 connectors and routes. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 13 •S 1461 IS (6) NON-FEDERAL CONTRIBUTIONS.— 1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Federal share of 2 the cost of an eligible project provided a grant 3 under the program shall not exceed 80 percent. 4 (B) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Fed- 5 eral share of the cost of an eligible project pro- 6 vided a grant under the program may be in the 7 form of in-kind contributions. 8 (7) ELIGIBLE USES.—Grant funds provided 9 under the program may be used— 10 (A) to develop transportation connectors or 11 routes in or serving, and related culturally and 12 linguistically appropriate education materials 13 for, critically underserved communities to in- 14 crease access and mobility to Federal and non- 15 Federal public land, inland and coastal waters, 16 parkland, and monuments; and 17 (B) to create or significantly enhance ac- 18 cess to Federal or non-Federal public land and 19 recreational opportunities in an urban area or 20 a rural area. 21 (8) GRANT AMOUNT.—A grant provided under 22 the program shall be— 23 (A) not less than $25,000; and 24 (B) not more than $500,000. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:24 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1461.IS S1461 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 14 •S 1461 IS (9) TECHN [Text truncated for display. 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