Freedom to Move Act

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2848 To direct the Secretary of Transportation to carry out a grant program to support efforts to provide fare-free transit service, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 25, 2023 Ms. PRESSLEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure A BILL To direct the Secretary of Transportation to carry out a grant program to support efforts to provide fare-free transit service, 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. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Freedom to Move Act’’. 4 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 5 The purposes of this Act are— 6 (1) to invest in State, county, and local munici- 7 palities efforts to provide fare-free public transpor- 8 tation; and 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2848.IH H2848 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 2848 IH (2) to support State, county, and local munici- 1 palities in improving and expanding access to safe, 2 accessible, and reliable mass transit systems in order 3 to improve the livability of communities. 4 SEC. 3. GRANTS TO SUPPORT FARE-FREE TRANSIT. 5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 360 days after the 6 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall award 7 grants (which shall be known as ‘‘Freedom to Move 8 Grants’’) to eligible entities, on a competitive basis, to 9 cover the lost fare revenue for fare-free public transpor- 10 tation and improve public transportation. 11 (b) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant 12 under this section, an eligible entity shall submit to the 13 Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, 14 and containing such information as the Secretary may re- 15 quire, including, at a minimum, the following: 16 (1) A description of how the eligible entity 17 plans to implement fare free transit access. 18 (2) A description of how the entity will work to 19 expand and improve bus service, which may in- 20 clude— 21 (A) a bus network redesign; 22 (B) how such redesign will prioritize con- 23 sistent and reliable service for low-income and 24 historically underserved communities; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2848.IH H2848 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 2848 IH (C) how such redesign will prioritize 1 connectivity to critical services and improve 2 community livability; and 3 (D) how the eligible entity will meaning- 4 fully consult with community, community lead- 5 ers, local stakeholders and advocates, including 6 transit advocates and disability advocates, local 7 education agencies and institutions of higher 8 education, community developers, labor unions, 9 public housing agencies and workforce develop- 10 ment boards, while facilitating such redesign. 11 (3) A description of how the eligible entity will 12 meaningfully partner and collaborate with commu- 13 nity, community leaders, local stakeholders and ad- 14 vocates, including transit advocates and disability 15 advocates, local education agencies and institutions 16 of higher education, community developers, labor 17 unions, public housing agencies and workforce devel- 18 opment boards to support outreach efforts to in- 19 crease awareness of fare-free bus and transit pro- 20 grams. 21 (4) A description of the eligible entity’s equity 22 evaluation examining any transit and mobility gaps 23 within the current transit system and how the eligi- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2848.IH H2848 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HR 2848 IH ble entity plans to significantly improve these gaps, 1 including— 2 (A) the average commute times for driver 3 commuters and non-driver commuters; 4 (B) public transit ridership rates 5 disaggregated by mode of transportation and 6 demographic group (youth (including youth in- 7 volved in the foster care system), seniors, indi- 8 viduals with disabilities, and low-income status); 9 and 10 (C) average length of bus routes and aver- 11 age delay times. 12 (5) A description of the eligible entity’s current 13 fare evasion enforcement policies, including— 14 (A) the cost of the fine and whether the in- 15 fraction is considered a civil offense or a crimi- 16 nal offense punishable by imprisonment; 17 (B) the number of individuals charged with 18 violating a fare evasion policy, disaggregated by 19 age, race, gender, and disability status; and 20 (C) how the eligible entity plans to elimi- 21 nate fare evasion policies and end the criminal- 22 ization of individuals evading fares. 23 (6) An estimate of additional costs as a result 24 of increased ridership, including— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2848.IH H2848 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HR 2848 IH (A) fuel; 1 (B) personnel; 2 (C) maintenance; and 3 (D) other operational costs. 4 (7) Information and statistics on assaults on 5 transit employees and a description of trainings and 6 policies to protect employees, which may include de- 7 escalation training. 8 (c) DURATION.—Grants awarded under this section 9 shall be for a 5-year period. 10 (d) SELECTION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—In car- 11 rying out the program under this section, the Secretary 12 shall award grants to eligible entities located in both rural 13 and urbanized areas. 14 (e) USES OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity that receives 15 a grant under this section shall use such grant to sup- 16 port— 17 (1) implementing a fare-free transit program; 18 and 19 (2) efforts to improve public transportation, 20 particularly in underserved communities, including 21 costs associated with efforts to provide more safe, 22 frequent, and reliable bus service, including— 23 (A) bus stop safety and accessibility im- 24 provements; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2848.IH H2848 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HR 2848 IH (B) pedestrian and bike shelters; 1 (C) signage; 2 (D) painted bus lanes; 3 (E) signal priority systems; 4 (F) street redesign; 5 (G) operational costs to meet demands of 6 increased ridership, including hiring and train- 7 ing of personnel; and 8 (H) conducting a bus network redesign. 9 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 10 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—In this section, the 11 term ‘‘eligible entity’’ means— 12 (A) a State, county, local municipality; 13 (B) a transit agency; 14 (C) a private nonprofit organization en- 15 gaged in public transportation in rural areas; or 16 (D) a partnership between entities de- 17 scribed in subparagraphs (A) through (C). 18 (2) UNDERSERVED COMMUNITY.—The term 19 ‘‘underserved community’’ means— 20 (A) a community not served by existing 21 bus routes or infrequent service; and 22 (B) a community located in an area within 23 a census tract that is identified as— 24 (i) a low-income community; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2848.IH H2848 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HR 2848 IH (ii) a community of color. 1 (3) LOW-INCOME INDIVIDUALS.—The term 2 ‘‘low-income individuals’’ means an individual whose 3 family income is at or below 150 percent of the pov- 4 erty line (as that term is defined in section 673(2) 5 of the Community Service Block Grant Act (42 6 U.S.C. 9902(2)), including any revision required by 7 that section) for a family of the size involved. 8 (4) FOSTER CARE YOUTH.—The term ‘‘foster 9 care youth’’— 10 (A) means children and youth whose care 11 and placement are the responsibility of the 12 State or Tribal agency that administers a State 13 or Tribal plan under part B or E of title IV of 14 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq. 15 and 670 et seq.), without regard to whether fos- 16 ter care maintenance payments are made under 17 section 472 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 672) on be- 18 half of such children and youth; and 19 (B) includes individuals who were age 13 20 or older when their care and placement were 21 the responsibility of a State or Tribal agency 22 that administered a State or Tribal plan under 23 part B or E of title IV of the Social Security 24 Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq. and 670 et seq.) 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2848.IH H2848 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •HR 2848 IH and who are no longer under the care and re- 1 sponsibility of such a State or Tribal agency, 2 without regard to any such individual’s subse- 3 quent adoption, guardianship arrangement, or 4 other form of permanency outcome. 5 (5) PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION.—The term 6 ‘‘public transportation’’— 7 (A) means regular, continuing shared-ride 8 surface transportation services that are open to 9 the general public or open to a segment of the 10 general public defined by age, disability, or low 11 income; and 12 (B) does not include— 13 (i) intercity passenger rail transpor- 14 tation provided by the entity described in 15 chapter 243 of title 49, United States 16 Code, (or a successor to such entity); 17 (ii) intercity bus service; 18 (iii) charter bus service; 19 (iv) school bus service; 20 (v) sightseeing service; 21 (vi) courtesy shuttle service for pa- 22 trons of one or more specific establish- 23 ments; or 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2848.IH H2848 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9 •HR 2848 IH (vii) intra-terminal or intra-facility 1 shuttle services. 2 (g) REPORT.— 3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after 4 the date on which funds are made available to carry 5 out this section, the Secretary shall collect data from 6 eligible entities receiving a grant under this section 7 on the progress of meeting the targets described in 8 the application of such entity. 9 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The report required 10 under paragraph (1) shall— 11 (A) collect data on demographics of com- 12 munities served under this Act, disaggregated 13 and cross-tabulated by— 14 (i) race; 15 (ii) ethnicity; 16 (iii) sex; and 17 (iv) household median income; and 18 (B) progress towards significantly closing 19 transit equity gaps as described in subsection 20 (b)(4). 21 (h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 22 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2848.IH H2848 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10 •HR 2848 IH $5,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 through 1 2028. 2 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H2848.IH H2848 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB