Grants for testing and ensuring the fitness of operators of commercial motor vehicles

§ 31312. Grants for testing and ensuring the fitness of operators of commercial motor vehicles (a) Basic Grants.—(1) The Secretary of Transportation may make a grant to a State under this subsection if the State— (A) makes an agreement with the Secretary— (i) to adopt and carry out in the fiscal year in which the grant is made a program for testing and ensuring the fitness of individuals who operate commercial motor 108 STAT. 1026vehicles under the minimum standards prescribed by the Secretary under section 31305(a) of this title; and (ii) to require that operators of commercial motor vehicles have passed written and driving tests that meet the minimum standards; and (B) has in effect and enforces in that fiscal year a law providing that an individual with a blood alcohol concentration of at least .10 percent when operating a commercial motor vehicle is deemed to be driving under the influence of alcohol. (2) A State may— (A) administer driving tests referred to in paragraph (1) of this subsection and section 31311(a) of this title; or (B) make an agreement, approved by the Secretary, for the tests to be administered by a person (including a department, agency, or instrumentality of a local government) that meets minimum standards the Secretary prescribes by regulation if— (i) the agreement allows the Secretary and the State each to conduct random examinations, inspections, and audits of the testing without prior notification; and (ii) the State annually conducts at least one onsite inspection of the testing. (3) The Secretary shall decide on the amount of a grant in a fiscal year to be made under this subsection to a State eligible to receive the grant in the fiscal year. However— (A) a grant to a State under this subsection shall be at least $100,000 in a fiscal year; and (B) to the extent each State grant under this subsection is more than $100,000 in a fiscal year, the Secretary shall ensure that those States are treated equitably. (4) A State receiving a grant under this subsection may use the amounts provided under the grant only to test operators of commercial motor vehicles. (5) There is available to the Secretary to carry out this subsection $__________ from amounts made available under section 31104 of this title for the fiscal year ending September 30, 19__. (b) Supplemental Grants.—(1) The Secretary may make a grant under this subsection in a fiscal year to a State eligible to receive a grant under subsection (a) of this section in that fiscal year. A grant made under this subsection shall be used for testing operators of commercial motor vehicles. (2) Amounts of grants under this subsection shall be distributed among the States eligible to receive grants under subsection (a) of this section in the fiscal year on the basis of the number of written and driving tests administered, and the number of drivers’ licenses for the operation of commercial motor vehicles issued, in the prior fiscal year. (3) There is available to the Secretary to carry out this subsection $__________ from amounts made available under section 31104 of this title for the fiscal year ending September 30, 19__. (c) Maintenance of Expenditures.—The Secretary may make a grant to a State under this section only if the State agrees that the total expenditure of amounts of the State and political subdivisions of the State, exclusive of United States Government amounts, for testing operators of commercial motor vehicles will be maintained at a level at least equal to the average level of that expenditure for its last 2 fiscal years before October 27, 1986. 108 STAT. 1027 (d) Availability of Amounts.—(1) Amounts made available to a State under this section remain available for obligation by the State for the fiscal year for which the amounts are made available. Any of those amounts not obligated before the last day of that fiscal year are no longer available for obligation by the State and are available to the Secretary to carry out this chapter. (2) Amounts made available to the Secretary under this section remain available until expended. (e) Grants as Contractual Obligations.—Approval by the Secretary of a grant to a State under this section is a contractual obligation of the Government for payment of the amount of the grant. (f) Testing and Fitness Program Studies.—In this section, development of a program for testing and ensuring the fitness of individuals who operate commercial motor vehicles includes studies of— (1) the number of vehicles that will need to be tested under the program in a calendar year; (2) facilities at which testing of those individuals could be conducted; and (3) additional resources (including personnel) that will be necessary to conduct the testing.