BUSREGS21 Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 5462 To direct the Secretary of Transportation to take actions to address issues affecting motorcoach and school bus operators, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES DECEMBER 17, 2019 Mr. PERRY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure A BILL To direct the Secretary of Transportation to take actions to address issues affecting motorcoach and school bus operators, and for other purposes. 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Buses United for Safety, Regulatory Reform, and En- 5 hanced Growth for the 21st Century Act’’ or the 6 ‘‘BUSREGS21 Act’’. 7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 8 this Act is as follows: 9 Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 5462 IH Sec. 2. FMCSA reform. Sec. 3. FAST Act reform. Sec. 4. Rules exemptions and rescission for motor carriers of passengers. Sec. 5. Beyond compliance. Sec. 6. Corrective action plans regarding motor carriers of passengers. Sec. 7. Civil penalties. Sec. 8. Modernization of Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. Sec. 9. Rulemakings impacting motor carriers of passengers. Sec. 10. GAO study assessing effects of current oversight and regulations. Sec. 11. Pilot program on inspections. Sec. 12. Requirements for NHTSA. Sec. 13. Requirements for FTA. SEC. 2. FMCSA REFORM. 1 (a) MISSION STATEMENT.—Section 113(b) of title 2 49, United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘while 3 fostering new and expanding passenger service through in- 4 dustry collaboration, encouraging new entrant applicants 5 by expediting operating authorizations, and identifying 6 passenger carrier drivers as a profession’’ before ‘‘in 7 motor carrier transportation.’’. 8 (b) REQUIREMENTS FOR REGISTRATION OF MOTOR 9 CARRIERS.—Section 13901 of title 49, United States 10 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 11 ‘‘(d) OPERATING AUTHORITY TO TRANSPORT PAS- 12 SENGERS.— 13 ‘‘(1) APPLICATIONS.—If a person submits to 14 the Secretary under this section an application for 15 motor carrier operating authority to transport pas- 16 sengers, the Secretary, not later than 14 days after 17 the date of the submission, shall— 18 ‘‘(A) approve the application; or 19 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 5462 IH ‘‘(B) provide to the applicant, in writing, a 1 specific valid reason for withholding approval of 2 the application. 3 ‘‘(2) SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION.—If an ap- 4 plicant that receives written notice under paragraph 5 (1)(B) submits to the Secretary information that 6 satisfies the reason of the Secretary for withholding 7 approval of the application, the Secretary shall ap- 8 prove the application not later than 5 days after the 9 date of receipt of the information. 10 ‘‘(e) GUIDANCE FOR NEW ENTRANTS.— 11 ‘‘(1) ISSUANCE.—The Secretary shall ensure 12 that a new entrant that submits an application for 13 such operating authority is made aware of the re- 14 sources available to new entrants for safe and com- 15 pliant operations, including the criteria for safety 16 audits of such new entrant. 17 ‘‘(2) REGISTRATION FEES.—The Secretary may 18 not increase registration fees for new entrant appli- 19 cations described in paragraph (1) in excess of 20 $350.’’. 21 SEC. 3. FAST ACT REFORM. 22 (a) CARRIER SAFETY FITNESS DETERMINATIONS.— 23 (1) NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULEMAKING.—Be- 24 fore the date on which the Inspector General of the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 5462 IH Department of Transportation makes the certifi- 1 cation under section 5223(a) of the FAST Act (49 2 U.S.C. 31100 note; 129 Stat. 1541), the Secretary 3 of Transportation may not issue a notice of proposed 4 rulemaking to modify the carrier safety fitness 5 standards and methodologies in effect for motor car- 6 riers of passengers on the date of enactment of this 7 Act. 8 (2) LIMITATIONS ON USE OF CARRIER SAFETY 9 FITNESS DETERMINATIONS.—The following require- 10 ments shall apply with respect to a carrier safety fit- 11 ness determination made by the Secretary, using 12 procedures in effect on the date of enactment of this 13 Act, in connection with a motor carrier engaged in 14 providing transportation of passengers: 15 (A) The Secretary may not use the carrier 16 safety fitness determination to instruct a ces- 17 sation of operations or revocation. 18 (B) The Secretary may determine the 19 motor carrier to be ‘‘unfit’’ or ‘‘unsatisfactory’’ 20 to operate only upon— 21 (i) completion of a compliance review 22 or comprehensive safety investigation; and 23 (ii) consideration of a corrective ac- 24 tion plan, if submitted. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 5462 IH (C) The Secretary shall continue to assign 1 ‘‘satisfactory’’ and ‘‘conditional’’ ratings as ap- 2 propriate. 3 (D) Any assigned rating shall include the 4 date on which the rating was assigned. 5 (b) AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION DEVELOPED 6 UNDER CSA PROGRAM.— 7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 5223 of the FAST 8 Act (49 U.S.C. 31100 note; 129 Stat. 1541) is 9 amended— 10 (A) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘or the 11 commercial motor vehicle driver’’ and inserting 12 ‘‘, the commercial motor vehicle driver, or the 13 motor carrier of passengers (including any pri- 14 vate school bus operator)’’; and 15 (B) in subsection (d)— 16 (i) in paragraph (1)— 17 (I) in subparagraph (A) by strik- 18 ing the semicolon at the end and in- 19 serting ‘‘; and’’; and 20 (II) in subparagraph (B)— 21 (aa) by striking ‘‘and a com- 22 mercial motor vehicle driver’’ and 23 inserting ‘‘, a commercial motor 24 vehicle driver, and a motor car- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 5462 IH rier of passengers (including any 1 private school bus carrier)’’; 2 (bb) by striking ‘‘or driver, 3 respectively; and’’ and inserting 4 ‘‘or driver, as appropriate.’’; and 5 (cc) by striking subpara- 6 graph (C); 7 (ii) by striking paragraph (2); and 8 (iii) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 9 paragraph (2). 10 (2) APPLICABILITY.—The amendments made 11 by paragraph (1) shall apply to the availability of in- 12 formation beginning 1 day after the date of enact- 13 ment of this Act. 14 SEC. 4. RULES EXEMPTIONS AND RESCISSION FOR MOTOR 15 CARRIERS OF PASSENGERS. 16 (a) OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA.— 17 (1) FINDING.—Congress finds that obstructive 18 sleep apnea is adequately addressed under the cur- 19 rent medical standards for commercial motor vehicle 20 drivers. 21 (2) EXEMPTION.—The Secretary of Transpor- 22 tation shall exempt commercial motor vehicle drivers 23 of motor carriers of passengers and private school 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 5462 IH bus carriers from any requirements resulting from 1 rulemaking pertaining to obstructive sleep apnea. 2 (b) SPEED LIMITERS.— 3 (1) FINDING.—Congress favors collecting and 4 disseminating statistical information to the motor 5 carrier industry in lieu of imposing requirements re- 6 lating to the installation of speed limiting devices. 7 (2) EXEMPTION.—The Secretary shall exempt 8 motor carriers of passengers and private school bus 9 carriers from any requirements resulting from the 10 advance notice of proposed rulemaking of the Na- 11 tional Highway Traffic Safety Administration and 12 the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration re- 13 lating to ‘‘Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; 14 Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations; Parts 15 and Accessories Necessary for Safe Operation; Speed 16 Limiting Devices’’ (81 Fed. Reg. 61941 (September 17 7, 2016)). 18 (c) LEVELS OF FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY.—Sec- 19 tion 31138 of title 49, United States Code, is amended— 20 (1) in subsection (a)— 21 (A) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘The Sec- 22 retary of Transportation shall prescribe regula- 23 tions to require minimum levels of financial re- 24 sponsibility sufficient to satisfy liability 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 5462 IH amounts established by the Secretary covering 1 public liability and property damage for the 2 transportation of passengers for compensation 3 by motor vehicle’’ and inserting ‘‘A person shall 4 have at least the level of financial responsibility 5 described in subsection (b) when operating a 6 motor vehicle for the transportation of pas- 7 sengers for compensation’’; and 8 (B) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘The Sec- 9 retary may prescribe regulations to require min- 10 imum levels of financial responsibility sufficient 11 to satisfy liability amounts established by the 12 Secretary covering public liability and property 13 damage for the transportation of passengers for 14 commercial purposes, but not for compensation, 15 by motor vehicle’’ and inserting ‘‘A person shall 16 have at least the level of financial responsibility 17 described in subsection (b) when operating a 18 motor vehicle for commercial purposes, but not 19 for compensation,’’; 20 (2) in subsection (b)— 21 (A) by inserting ‘‘minimum’’ before ‘‘level 22 of financial’’; 23 (B) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘be at 24 least’’ and inserting ‘‘be’’; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 5462 IH (C) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘at 1 least’’; 2 (3) in subsection (c)(1)— 3 (A) in subparagraph (A) by striking ‘‘in- 4 surance’’ and inserting ‘‘Insurance’’; 5 (B) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘a’’ 6 and inserting ‘‘A’’; and 7 (C) in subparagraph (C) by striking ‘‘a 8 surety’’ and inserting ‘‘A surety’’; and 9 (4) by adding at the end the following: 10 ‘‘(f) PROHIBITION OF AUTHORITY.—The Secretary 11 may not increase the minimum level of financial responsi- 12 bility established under subsection (b) by regulation or any 13 other authority available to the Secretary.’’. 14 (d) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.—A require- 15 ment under this section to withdraw and rescind a rule- 16 making proposal shall apply without regard to any provi- 17 sion of statute or regulation that establishes a requirement 18 to issue a rulemaking proposal on the issue. 19 SEC. 5. BEYOND COMPLIANCE. 20 Section 5222(a) of the FAST Act (49 U.S.C. 31100 21 note; 129 Stat. 1540) is amended in the matter preceding 22 paragraph (1) by inserting ‘‘(other than a motor carrier 23 of passengers)’’ after ‘‘motor carrier’’. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 5462 IH SEC. 6. CORRECTIVE ACTION PLANS REGARDING MOTOR 1 CARRIERS OF PASSENGERS. 2 Section 31144 of title 49, United States Code, is 3 amended by adding at the end the following: 4 ‘‘(j) CORRECTIVE ACTION PLANS SUBMITTED BY 5 MOTOR CARRIERS OF PASSENGERS.— 6 ‘‘(1) REVIEW OF PLANS.—Not later than 30 7 days after the date of receipt of a corrective action 8 plan submitted by a motor carrier of passengers 9 that, on the basis of a safety fitness determination, 10 has received a rating of unsatisfactory, conditional, 11 or unfit, the Secretary shall accept or deny the plan. 12 ‘‘(2) REVISIONS.— 13 ‘‘(A) NOTICE OF DEFICIENCIES.—If the 14 Secretary denies a corrective action plan of a 15 motor carrier of passengers, the Secretary 16 shall— 17 ‘‘(i) advise the motor carrier of the 18 specific deficiencies of the plan; and 19 ‘‘(ii) allow up to 14 days for the 20 motor carrier to submit a revised plan. 21 ‘‘(B) REVIEW OF REVISED PLANS.—Not 22 later than 30 days after the date of receipt of 23 the revised corrective action plan, the Secretary 24 shall accept or deny the revised plan. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 5462 IH ‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS ON SUSPENSIONS AND REV- 1 OCATIONS.— 2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 3 not suspend or revoke the authority of a motor 4 carrier of passengers to conduct operations dur- 5 ing the 14 day period that a motor carrier may 6 submit a revised plan under paragraph (2)(A) 7 or during the period that such revised plan is 8 being reviewed under paragraph (2)(B). 9 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraph (A) 10 shall not apply with respect to a motor carrier 11 of passengers if the Secretary determines the 12 motor carrier to be an imminent hazard to pub- 13 lic safety. 14 ‘‘(4) CONSIDERATION OF CORRECTIVE AC- 15 TIONS.—If a motor carrier of passengers implements 16 a corrective action during a compliance review or 17 safety audit, the Secretary shall note the action in 18 the compliance review and consider such action be- 19 fore a safety fitness determination action is con- 20 cluded.’’. 21 SEC. 7. CIVIL PENALTIES. 22 (a) ADDITIONAL PENALTY CONSIDERATIONS.—Sec- 23 tion 521(b)(2)(D) of title 49, United States Code, is 24 amended by inserting ‘‘scope of severity and willfulness, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Dec 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5462.IH H5462 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 5462 IH ability to pay, size of fleet,’’ before ‘‘and such other mat- 1 ters as justice and public safety may require’’. 2 (b) PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENT RELATING TO IN- 3 STALLMENT PLANS.—Section 521(b) of title 49, United 4 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol- 5 lowing: 6 ‘‘(16) PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENT RELATING TO 7 INSTALLMENT PLANS.—A motor carrier of passengers, by 8 contesting or appealing a notice of a violation issued by 9 the Secretary under this subsection, does not waive any 10 right relating to installment plans before the Secretary has 11 issued an order affirming, modifying, or vacating the no- 12 tice of violation.’’. 13 SEC. 8. MODERNIZATION OF FEDERAL MOTOR CARRIER 14 SAFETY REGULATIONS. 15 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE.— 16 The [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]