PROJECTS OF NATIONAL AND REGIONAL SIGNIFICANCE.

SEC. 1301. PROJECTS OF NATIONAL AND REGIONAL SIGNIFICANCE.(a) Findings.—Congress finds the following:(1) Under current law, surface transportation programs rely primarily on formula capital apportionments to States.(2) Despite the significant increase for surface transportation program funding in the Transportation Equity Act of the 21st Century, current levels of investment are insufficient to fund critical high-cost transportation infrastructure facilities that address critical national economic and transportation needs.(3) Critical high-cost transportation infrastructure facilities often include multiple levels of government, agencies, modes of transportation, and transportation goals and planning processes that are not easily addressed or funded within existing surface transportation program categories.(4) Projects of national and regional significance have national and regional benefits, including improving economic productivity by facilitating international trade, relieving congestion, and improving transportation safety by facilitating passenger and freight movement.(5) The benefits of projects described in paragraph (4) accrue to local areas, States, and the Nation as a result of the effect such projects have on the national transportation system.(6) A program dedicated to constructing projects of national and regional significance is necessary to improve the safe, secure, and efficient movement of people and goods throughout the United States and improve the health and welfare of the national economy.(b) Establishment of Program.—The Secretary shall establish a program to provide grants to States for projects of national and regional significance.(c) Definitions.—In this section, the following definitions apply:(1) Eligible project costs.—The term “eligible project costs” means the costs of—(A) development phase activities, including planning, feasibility analysis, revenue forecasting, environmental review, preliminary engineering and design work, and other preconstruction activities; and(B) construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, and acquisition of real property (including land related to the project and improvements to land), environmental mitigation, construction contingencies, acquisition of equipment, and operational improvements.119 STAT. 1199(2) Eligible project.—The term “eligible project” means any surface transportation project eligible for Federal assistance under title 23, United States Code, including freight railroad projects and activities eligible under such title.(3) State.—The term “State” has the meaning such term has in section 101(a) of title 23, United States Code.(d) Eligibility.—To be eligible for assistance under this section, a project shall have eligible project costs that are reasonably anticipated to equal or exceed the lesser of—(1) $500,000,000; or(2) 75 percent of the amount of Federal highway assistance funds apportioned for the most recently completed fiscal year to the State in which the project is located.(e) Applications.—Each State seeking to receive a grant under this section for an eligible project shall submit to the Secretary an application in such form and in accordance with such requirements as the Secretary shall establish.(f) Competitive Grant Selection and Criteria for Grants.—(1) In general.—The Secretary shall—(A) establish criteria for selecting among projects that meet the eligibility criteria specified in subsection (d);(B) conduct a national solicitation for applications; and(C) award grants on a competitive basis.(2) Criteria for grants.—The Secretary may approve a grant under this section for a project only if the Secretary determines that the project—(A) is based on the results of preliminary engineering;(B) is justified based on the ability of the project—(i) to generate national economic benefits, including creating jobs, expanding business opportunities, and impacting the gross domestic product;(ii) to reduce congestion, including impacts in the State, region, and Nation;(iii) to improve transportation safety, including reducing transportation accidents, injuries, and fatalities;(iv) to otherwise enhance the national transportation system; and(v) to garner support for non-Federal financial commitments and provide evidence of stable and dependable financing sources to construct, maintain, and operate the infrastructure facility; and(C) is supported by an acceptable degree of non-Federal financial commitments, including evidence of stable and dependable financing sources to construct, maintain, and operate the infrastructure facility.(3) Selection considerations.—In selecting a project under this section, the Secretary shall consider the extent to which the project—(A) leverages Federal investment by encouraging non-Federal contributions to the project, including contributions from public-private partnerships;(B) uses new technologies, including intelligent transportation systems, that enhance the efficiency of the project; and(C) helps maintain or protect the environment.119 STAT. 1200(4) Preliminary engineering.—In evaluating a project under paragraph (2)(A), the Secretary shall analyze and consider the results of preliminary engineering for the project.(5) Non-federal financial commitment.—(A) Evaluation of project.—In evaluating a project under paragraph (2)(C), the Secretary shall require that—(i) the proposed project plan provides for the availability of contingency amounts that the Secretary determines to be reasonable to cover unanticipated cost increases; and(ii) each proposed non-Federal source of capital and operating financing is stable, reliable, and available within the proposed project timetable.(B) Considerations.—In assessing the stability, reliability, and availability of proposed sources of non-Federal financing under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall consider—(i) existing financial commitments;(ii) the degree to which financing sources are dedicated to the purposes proposed;(iii) any debt obligation that exists or is proposed by the recipient for the proposed project; and(iv) the extent to which the project has a non-Federal financial commitment that exceeds the required non-Federal share of the cost of the project.(6) Regulations.—Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue regulations on the manner in which the Secretary will evaluate and rate the projects based on the results of preliminary engineering, project justification, and the degree of non-Federal financial commitment, as required under this subsection.(7) Project evaluation and rating.—(A) In general.—A proposed project may advance from preliminary engineering to final design and construction only if the Secretary finds that the project meets the requirements of this subsection and there is a reasonable likelihood that the project will continue to meet such requirements.(B) Evaluation and rating.—In making such findings, the Secretary shall evaluate and rate the project as “highly recommended”, “recommended”, or “not recommended” based on the results of preliminary engineering, the project justification criteria, and the degree of non-Federal financial commitment, as required under this subsection. In rating the projects, the Secretary shall provide, in addition to the overall project rating, individual ratings for each of the criteria established under the regulations issued under paragraph (6).(g) Letters of Intent and Full Funding Grant Agreements.—(1) Letter of intent.—(A) In general.—The Secretary may issue a letter of intent to an applicant announcing an intention to obligate, for a project under this section, an amount from future available budget authority specified in law that is not more than the amount stipulated as the financial participation of the Secretary in the project.119 STAT. 1201(B) Notification.—At least 60 days before issuing a letter under subparagraph (A) or entering into a full funding grant agreement, the Secretary shall notify in writing the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate of the proposed letter or agreement. The Secretary shall include with the notification a copy of the proposed letter or agreement as well as the evaluations and ratings for the project.(C) Not an obligation.—The issuance of a letter is deemed not to be an obligation under sections 1108(c), 1108(d), 1501, and 1502(a) of title 31, United States Code, or an administrative commitment.(D) Obligation or commitment.—An obligation or administrative commitment may be made only when contract authority is allocated to a project.(2) Full funding grant agreement.—(A) In general.—A project financed under this subsection shall be carried out through a full funding grant agreement. The Secretary shall enter into a full funding grant agreement based on the evaluations and ratings required under subsection (f)(7).(B) Terms.—If the Secretary makes a full funding grant agreement with an applicant, the agreement shall—(i) establish the terms of participation by the United States Government in a project under this section;(ii) establish the maximum amount of Government financial assistance for the project;(iii) cover the period of time for completing the project, including a period extending beyond the period of an authorization; and(iv) make timely and efficient management of the project easier according to the laws of the United States.(C) Agreement.—An agreement under this paragraph obligates an amount of available budget authority specified in law and may include a commitment, contingent on amounts to be specified in law in advance for commitments under this paragraph, to obligate an additional amount from future available budget authority specified in law. The agreement shall state that the contingent commitment is not an obligation of the Government. Interest and other financing costs of efficiently carrying out a part of the project within a reasonable time are a cost of carrying out the project under a full funding grant agreement, except that eligible costs may not be more than the cost of the most favorable financing terms reasonably available for the project at the time of borrowing. The applicant shall certify, in a way satisfactory to the Secretary, that the applicant has shown reasonable diligence in seeking the most favorable financing terms.(3) Amounts.—The total estimated amount of future obligations of the Government and contingent commitments to incur obligations covered by all outstanding letters of intent and full funding grant agreements may be not more than the greater of the amount authorized to carry out this section or an amount 119 STAT. 1202 equivalent to the last 2 fiscal years of funding authorized to carry out this section less an amount the Secretary reasonably estimates is necessary for grants under this section not covered by a letter. The total amount covered by new letters and contingent commitments included in full funding grant agreements may be not more than a limitation specified in law.(h) Grant Requirements.—(1) In general.—A grant for a project under this section shall be subject to all of the requirements of title 23, United States Code.(2) Other terms and conditions.—The Secretary shall require that all grants under this section be subject to all terms, conditions, and requirements that the Secretary decides are necessary or appropriate for purposes of this section, including requirements for the disposition of net increases in value of real property resulting from the project assisted under this section.(i) Government’s Share of Project Cost.—Based on engineering studies, studies of economic feasibility, and information on the expected use of equipment or facilities, the Secretary shall estimate the cost of a project receiving assistance under this section. A grant for the project is for 80 percent of the project cost, unless the grant recipient requests a lower grant percentage. A refund or reduction of the remainder may be made only if a refund of a proportional amount of the grant of the Government is made at the same time.(j) Fiscal Capacity Considerations.—If the Secretary gives priority consideration to financing projects that include more than the non-Government share required under subsection (i) the Secretary shall give equal consideration to differences in the fiscal capacity of State and local governments.(k) Reports.—(1) Annual report.—Not later than the first Monday in February of each year, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate a report that includes a proposal on the allocation of amounts to be made available to finance grants under this section.(2) Recommendations on funding.—The annual report under this paragraph shall include evaluations and ratings, as required under subsection (f). The report shall also include recommendations of projects for funding based on the evaluations and ratings and on existing commitments and anticipated funding levels for the next 3 fiscal years and for the next 10 fiscal years based on information currently available to the Secretary.(l) Applicability of Title 23.—Funds made available to carry out this section shall be available for obligation in the same manner as if such funds were apportioned under chapter 1 of title 23, United States Code; except that such funds shall not be transferable and shall remain available until expended and the Federal share of the cost of a project under this section shall be as provided in this section.(m) Designated Projects.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the Secretary shall allocate for each of fiscal 119 STAT. 1203 years 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009, from funds made available to carry out this section, 10 percent, 20 percent, 25 percent, 25 percent, and 20 percent respectively, of the following amounts for grants to carry out the following projects under this section: No.StateProject DescriptionAmount 1.CABakersfield Beltway System$140,000,000 2.VA, WV, OHHeartland Corridor Project including multiple intermodal facility improvements and improvements to facilitate the movement of intermodal freight from VA to OH$90,000,000 3.CARoadway improvements in and around the former Norton Air Force Base as part of the Inland Empire Goods Movement Gateway project$55,000,000 4.MIPlanning, design, and construction of a new American border plaza at the Blue Water Bridge in or near Port Huron, MI$20,000,000 5.ILConstruction of O’Hare Bypass/Elgin O’Hare Extension$140,000,000 6.WIReconstruction of the Marquette Interchange, Milwaukee WI$30,000,000 7.ILCREATE$100,000,000 8.ORI–5 Bridge repair, replacement and associated improvements in the I–5 corridor$160,000,000 9.CAAlameda Corridor East$125,000,000 10.ILMississippi River Bridge and related roads$150,000,000 11.CATransbay Terminal$27,000,000 12.NYCross Harbor Freight Movement Project, New York$100,000,000 13.WAAlaska Way Viaduct and Seawall Replacement$100,000,000 14.CAGerald Desmond/I–710 Gateway Project$100,000,000 15.CODenver’s Union Station$50,000,000 16.MNUnion Depot Multimodal Transit Facility$50,000,000 17.CASacramento Intermodal Station$3,000,000 18.NJLiberty Corridor$100,000,000 19.NMRelocate the El Paso, TX rail yard to Santa Teresa$14,000,000 119 STAT. 1204 20.PARoute 23/US 422 Interchange Modernization and Route 363/US 422 Interchange Improvement Project and U.S. 422 Widening, Montgomery County, PA$20,000,000 21.PARoute 28 Widening and improvements, Allegheny County, PA$15,000,000 22.PAImprovements to I–80, Monroe County, PA$15,000,000 23.SCI–73, Construction of I–73 from Myrtle Beach, SC to I–95, ending at the North Carolina State line$40,000,000 24.VARail Relocation to route 164/I–664 rail corridor, Portsmouth$15,000,000 25.WAReplacement of the Alaskan Way Viaduct and Seawall in Seattle$120,000,000