ASAP Act of 2021

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3317 To amend chapter 53 of title 49, United States Code, to provide competitive grants to assist State and local governmental authorities in addressing accessibility needs of legacy rail fixed guideway public transportation systems. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 18, 2021 Ms. NEWMAN (for herself and Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infra- structure A BILL To amend chapter 53 of title 49, United States Code, to provide competitive grants to assist State and local gov- ernmental authorities in addressing accessibility needs of legacy rail fixed guideway public transportation sys- tems. 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 ‘‘All Station Accessi- 4 bility Program Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘ASAP Act of 2021’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:54 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3317.IH H3317 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 3317 IH SEC. 2. COMPETITIVE GRANTS FOR ACCESSIBILITY UP- 1 GRADES TO LEGACY RAIL FIXED GUIDEWAY 2 PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS. 3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 53 of title 49, United 4 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 5315 5 the following: 6 ‘‘§ 5316. Accessibility grants for legacy rail fixed 7 guideway public transportation systems 8 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 9 ‘‘(1) the term ‘center for independent living’ 10 has the meaning given the term in section 702 of the 11 Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796a); 12 ‘‘(2) the term ‘disability’ has the meaning given 13 the term in section 3 of the Americans with Disabil- 14 ities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102); 15 ‘‘(3) the term ‘eligible entity’ means a State or 16 local governmental authority; 17 ‘‘(4) the term ‘legacy rail fixed guideway public 18 transportation system’— 19 ‘‘(A) means a rail fixed guideway public 20 transportation system that was in operation be- 21 fore July 26, 1990; and 22 ‘‘(B) includes a commuter rail system that 23 uses stations or facilities for passenger use con- 24 structed before the date described in subpara- 25 graph (A); and 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:54 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3317.IH H3317 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 3317 IH ‘‘(5) the term ‘protection and advocacy system’ 1 means such a system established in accordance with 2 section 143 of the Developmental Disabilities Assist- 3 ance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 4 15043). 5 ‘‘(b) GRANTS.—The Secretary may make grants 6 under this section to assist eligible entities in financing 7 capital projects to upgrade the accessibility of legacy rail 8 fixed guideway public transportation systems for persons 9 with disabilities, including those who use wheelchairs, by 10 increasing the number of existing (as of the date of enact- 11 ment of the ASAP Act) stations or facilities for passenger 12 use that meet (including exceeding) the new construction 13 standards of title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act 14 of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12131 et seq.). 15 ‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE COSTS.— 16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 17 an eligible entity may use a grant awarded under 18 this section— 19 ‘‘(A) for a project to repair, improve, or re- 20 locate infrastructure of stations or facilities for 21 passenger use, including load-bearing members 22 that are an essential part of the structural 23 frame; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:54 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3317.IH H3317 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 3317 IH ‘‘(B) to develop or modify a plan for pur- 1 suing public transportation accessibility 2 projects, including— 3 ‘‘(i) assessments of accessibility or as- 4 sessments of planned modifications to sta- 5 tions or facilities for passenger use, per- 6 formed by the protection and advocacy sys- 7 tem for persons with disabilities in the ap- 8 plicable State, a center for independent liv- 9 ing, or a similar nonprofit organization fo- 10 cused on ensuring people with disabilities 11 are able to live in and participate in their 12 communities; or 13 ‘‘(ii) coordination by the recipient 14 with such protection and advocacy system, 15 center for independent living, or similar 16 nonprofit organization; or 17 ‘‘(C) to carry out other projects that meet 18 (including exceeding) the new construction 19 standards of title II of the Americans with Dis- 20 abilities Act of 1990. 21 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—Eligible costs for a project 22 funded with a grant awarded under this section shall 23 be limited to the costs associated with carrying out 24 the purpose authorized under subsection (b). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:54 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3317.IH H3317 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 3317 IH ‘‘(d) ELIGIBLE STATIONS OR FACILITIES FOR PAS- 1 SENGER USE.—An eligible entity— 2 ‘‘(1) may not use a grant awarded under this 3 section to upgrade a station or facility for passenger 4 use that is accessible to and usable by individuals 5 with disabilities, including individuals who use 6 wheelchairs, consistent with current (as of the date 7 of the upgrade) new construction standards under 8 title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 9 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12131 et seq.); and 10 ‘‘(2) may use the grant to upgrade a station or 11 facility for passenger use that is not accessible and 12 usable as described in paragraph (1), even if the re- 13 lated service, program, or activity, when viewed in 14 its entirely, is readily accessible and usable as so de- 15 scribed. 16 ‘‘(e) ACCESSIBILITY COMMITMENT.—An eligible enti- 17 ty that receives a grant under this section shall adopt a 18 plan under which the entity commits to pursuing public 19 transportation accessibility projects that— 20 ‘‘(1) enhance the customer experience and 21 maximize accessibility of rolling stock and stations 22 or facilities for passenger use for individuals with 23 disabilities, including— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:54 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3317.IH H3317 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 3317 IH ‘‘(A) accessibility for individuals with phys- 1 ical disabilities, including those who use wheel- 2 chairs; 3 ‘‘(B) accessibility for individuals with sen- 4 sory disabilities; and 5 ‘‘(C) accessibility for individuals with intel- 6 lectual or developmental disabilities; 7 ‘‘(2) improve the operations of, provide effi- 8 ciencies of service to, and enhance the public trans- 9 portation system for individuals with disabilities; and 10 ‘‘(3) address equity of service to all riders re- 11 gardless of income, age, race, or ability, taking into 12 account historical and current service gaps for low- 13 income riders, older individuals, riders from commu- 14 nities of color, and riders with disabilities. 15 ‘‘(f) COORDINATION WITH DISABILITY ADVOCACY 16 ENTITIES.—In administering grants under this section, 17 the Secretary shall encourage— 18 ‘‘(1) coordination between recipients and dis- 19 ability advocacy entities such as the protection and 20 advocacy system for persons with disabilities in the 21 applicable State, a center for independent living, or 22 a similar nonprofit organization focused on ensuring 23 people with disabilities are able to live in and partici- 24 pate in their communities; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:54 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3317.IH H3317 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 3317 IH ‘‘(2) assessments of accessibility or assessments 1 of planned modifications to stations or facilities for 2 passenger use, performed by such an advocacy enti- 3 ty, to the extent merited by the scope of the capital 4 project of the recipient proposed to be assisted under 5 this section. 6 ‘‘(g) GOVERNMENT SHARE OF COSTS.—A grant for 7 a project under this section shall be for 90 percent of the 8 net project cost of the project. The recipient may provide 9 additional local matching amounts.’’. 10 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 11 5338 of title 49, United States Code, is amended— 12 (1) by redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as 13 subsections (h) and (i), respectively; and 14 (2) by inserting after subsection (f) the fol- 15 lowing: 16 ‘‘(g) ACCESSIBILITY GRANTS FOR LEGACY RAIL 17 FIXED GUIDEWAY PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS.— 18 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out sec- 19 tion 5316, $1,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2022 and each 20 fiscal year thereafter.’’. 21 (c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 22 The table of sections for chapter 53 of title 49, United 23 States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relat- 24 ing to section 5315 the following: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:54 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3317.IH H3317 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 3317 IH ‘‘5316. Accessibility grants for legacy rail fixed guideway public transportation systems.’’. Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:54 Jun 23, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H3317.IH H3317 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS