Sec. 3. National infrastructure investment grants
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Chapter 55 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: The Secretary of Transportation shall establish a competitive grant program to provide financial assistance for projects that will have a significant impact on the Nation, a metropolitan area, or a region. An applicant is eligible for a grant under this section for a project that is part of, or related to, a transportation improvement, including projects related to the construction or improvement of— a passenger or freight rail line; a highway; a bridge; an airport; an air traffic control system; a port or marine facility; an inland waterway; a transmission or distribution pipeline; public transportation facilities or systems; intercity passenger bus or passenger rail facilities or equipment; freight rail facilities or equipment; or planning, preparation, or design of any project described in paragraphs
(1)through (11). In determining whether to award a grant to an eligible applicant under this section, the Secretary shall consider the extent to which the project— leverages Federal investment by encouraging non-Federal contributions to the project, including contributions from public-private partnerships; improves the mobility of people, goods, and commodities; incorporates new and innovative technologies, including intelligent transportation systems; improves energy efficiency or reduces greenhouse gas emissions; helps maintain or protect the environment, including reducing air and water pollution; reduces congestion; improves the condition of transportation infrastructure, including bringing it into a state of good repair; improves safety, including reducing transportation accidents, injuries, and fatalities; demonstrates that the proposed project cannot be readily and efficiently realized without Federal support and participation; and enhances national or regional economic development, growth, and competitiveness. The Secretary shall give priority to projects that have the highest system performance improvement relative to their benefit-cost analysis. The Secretary may issue a letter of intent to an applicant announcing an intention to obligate, for a major capital project under this subsection, 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. Not later than 30 days before issuing a letter under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit written notification of the proposed letter or agreement to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives, which shall include— a copy of the proposed letter or agreement; the criteria used under subsection
(c)for selecting the project for a grant award; and a description of how the project meets such criteria. An obligation or administrative commitment may be made only when amounts are made available. The letter of intent shall state that the contingent commitment is not an obligation of the Federal Government, and is subject to the availability of funds under Federal law and to Federal laws in force or enacted after the date of the contingent commitment. The Federal share of a grant for the project shall not exceed 80 percent of the project net capital cost. The Secretary shall estimate the net project cost based on engineering studies, studies of economic feasibility, and information on the expected use of equipment or facilities. The Secretary shall give priority in allocating future obligations and contingent commitments to incur obligations to grant requests seeking a lower Federal share of the project net capital cost. An applicant may enter into an agreement with any public, private, or nonprofit entity to cooperatively implement any project funded with a grant under this subchapter. Participation by an entity under paragraph
(1)may consist of— ownership or operation of any land, facility, vehicle, or other physical asset associated with the project; cost-sharing of any project expense or non-Federal share of the project cost, including in-kind contributions; carrying out administration, construction management, project management, project operation, or any other management or operational duty associated with the project; and any other form of participation approved by the Secretary. The Secretary shall establish an oversight program to monitor the effective and efficient use of funds authorized to carry out this section. At a minimum, the program shall be responsive to all areas relating to financial integrity and project delivery. The Secretary shall perform annual reviews that address elements of the applicant’s financial management systems that affect projects approved under subsection (a). The Secretary shall develop minimum standards for estimating project costs and shall periodically evaluate the practices of applicants for estimating project costs, awarding contracts, and reducing project costs. The Secretary shall perform annual reviews that address elements of the project delivery system of an applicant, which elements include one or more activities that are involved in the life cycle of a project from conception to completion of the project. Each applicant shall submit to the Secretary for approval such plans, specifications, and estimates for each proposed project as the Secretary may require. The applicant shall be responsible for determining that a subrecipient of Federal funds under this section has— adequate project delivery systems for projects approved under this section; and sufficient accounting controls to properly manage such Federal funds. The Secretary shall periodically review the monitoring of subrecipients by the applicant. Nothing in this section shall affect or discharge any oversight responsibility of the Secretary specifically provided for under this title or other Federal law. A recipient of a grant for a project under this section with an estimated total cost of $500,000,000 or more, and a recipient for such other projects as may be identified by the Secretary, shall submit to the Secretary for each project— a project management plan; and an annual financial plan. A project management plan shall document— the procedures and processes that are in effect to provide timely information to the project decision makers to effectively manage the scope, costs, schedules, and quality of, and the Federal requirements applicable to, the project; and the role of the agency leadership and management team in the delivery of the project. A financial plan shall— be based on detailed estimates of the cost to complete the project; and provide for the annual submission of updates to the Secretary that are based on reasonable assumptions, as determined by the Secretary, of future increases in the cost to complete the project. A recipient of Federal financial assistance for a project under this section with an estimated total cost of $100,000,000 or more that is not covered by subsection
(i)shall prepare an annual financial plan. Annual financial plans prepared under this subsection shall be made available to the Secretary for review upon the request of the Secretary. The Secretary shall determine what additional grant terms and conditions are necessary and appropriate to meet the requirements of this section. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the American Infrastructure Investment Fund Act , the Secretary shall prescribe regulations to implement this section. In this subchapter, the term applicant includes a State, a political subdivision of a State, government-sponsored authorities and corporations, and the District of Columbia. The Secretary may use not more than 1 percent of amounts made available in a fiscal year for capital projects under this subchapter to enter into contracts to oversee the construction of such projects. The Secretary may use amounts available under paragraph
(1)to make contracts for safety, procurement, management, and financial compliance reviews and audits of a recipient of amounts under paragraph (1). The Federal Government shall pay the entire cost of carrying out a contract under this subsection. The provisions of subchapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, shall apply to funds made available under this subchapter. A project that receives financial assistance under this subchapter shall comply with— the applicable planning and programming requirements under sections 134 and 135 of title 23; and all applicable environmental laws and requirements, including the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 ( 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq. ) and the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 ( 16 U.S.C. 470 et seq. ). None of the funds made available under this subchapter may be used for a project for the construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of a public building or public work unless all of the iron, steel, and manufactured goods used in the project are produced in the United States. Paragraph
(1)shall not apply in any case or category of cases in which the Secretary finds that— applying paragraph
(1)would be inconsistent with the public interest; iron, steel, and the relevant manufactured goods are not produced in the United States in sufficient and reasonably available quantities and of a satisfactory quality; or inclusion of iron, steel, and manufactured goods produced in the United States will increase the cost of the overall project by more than 25 percent. If the Secretary determines that it is necessary to waive the application of paragraph
(1)based on a finding under paragraph (2), the head of the department or agency shall publish in the Federal Register a detailed written justification as to why the provision is being waived. This subsection shall be applied in a manner consistent with United States obligations under international agreements. The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct an annual assessment to evaluate the overall performance of grants made under the program established under subsection (a). The Comptroller General shall submit a report containing the results of the evaluation under subparagraph
(A)to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the American Infrastructure Investment Fund Act , and every 6 months thereafter, the Secretary of Transportation shall submit a report to the congressional committees set forth in paragraph (1)(B) that documents— the number of applications received under this section; the status of such applications; the outcome of application evaluations; and the status of grants awarded under the program established under subsection (a). There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $600,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2014 and 2015 to carry out this section. . The table of sections for chapter 55 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: SUBCHAPTER III—Financial Assistance 5581. National infrastructure investment grants. .
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