[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 740 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 740
To require the Secretary of Transportation to solicit a study on
climate resilient transportation infrastructure, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 3, 2021
Ms. Brownley introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Transportation to solicit a study on
climate resilient transportation infrastructure, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Climate Resilient Transportation
Infrastructure Study Act''.
SEC. 2. CLIMATE RESILIENT TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE STUDY.
(a) Climate Resilient Transportation Infrastructure Study.--Not
later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Secretary of Transportation shall enter into an agreement with the
Transportation Research Board of the National Academies to conduct a
study of the actions needed to ensure that Federal agencies are taking
into account current and future climate conditions in planning,
designing, building, operating, maintaining, investing in, and
upgrading any federally funded transportation infrastructure
investments.
(b) Methodologies.--In conducting the study, the Transportation
Research Board shall build on the methodologies examined and
recommended in--
(1) the 2018 report issued the American Society of Civil
Engineers, titled ``Climate-Resilient Infrastructure: Adaptive
Design and Risk Management''; and
(2) the report issued by the California Climate-Safe
Infrastructure Working Group, titled ``Paying it Forward: The
Path Toward Climate-Safe Infrastructure in California''.
(c) Contents of Study.--The study shall include specific
recommendations regarding the following:
(1) Integrating scientific knowledge of projected climate
change impacts, and other relevant data and information, into
Federal infrastructure planning, design, engineering,
construction, operation and maintenance.
(2) Addressing critical information gaps and challenges.
(3) Financing options to help fund climate-resilient
infrastructure.
(4) A platform or process to facilitate communication
between climate scientists and other experts with
infrastructure planners, engineers and other relevant experts.
(5) A stakeholder process to engage with representatives of
State, local, tribal and community groups.
(6) A platform for tracking Federal funding of climate-
resilient infrastructure.
(7) Labor and workforce needs to implement climate-
resilient transportation infrastructure projects including new
and emerging skills, training programs, competencies and
recognized postsecondary credentials that may be required to
adequately equip the workforce.
(8) Outlining how Federal infrastructure planning, design,
engineering, construction, operation, and maintenance impact
the environment and public health of disproportionately exposed
communities. For purposes of this paragraph, the term
``disproportionately exposed communities'' means a community in
which climate change, pollution, or environmental destruction
have exacerbated systemic racial, regional, social,
environmental, and economic injustices by disproportionately
affecting indigenous peoples, communities of color, migrant
communities, deindustrialized communities, depopulated rural
communities, the poor, low-income workers, women, the elderly,
people experiencing homelessness, people with disabilities,
people who are incarcerated, or youth.
(d) Considerations.--In carrying out the study, the Transportation
Research Board shall determine the need for information related to
climate resilient transportation infrastructure by considering--
(1) the current informational and institutional barriers to
integrating projected infrastructure risks posed by climate
change into federal infrastructure planning, design,
engineering, construction, operation and maintenance;
(2) the critical information needed by engineers, planners
and those charged with infrastructure upgrades and maintenance
to better incorporate climate change risks and impacts over the
lifetime of projects;
(3) how to select an appropriate, adaptive engineering
design for a range of future climate scenarios as related to
infrastructure planning and investment;
(4) how to incentivize and incorporate systems thinking
into engineering design to maximize the benefits of multiple
natural functions and emissions reduction, as well as regional
planning;
(5) how to take account of the risks of cascading
infrastructure failures and develop more holistic approaches to
evaluating and mitigating climate risks;
(6) how to ensure that investments in infrastructure
resilience benefit all communities, including communities of
color, low-income communities and tribal communities that face
a disproportionate risk from climate change and in many cases
have experienced long-standing unmet needs and underinvestment
in critical infrastructure;
(7) how to incorporate capital assessment and planning
training and techniques, including a range of financing options
to help local and State governments plan for and provide
matching funds;
(8) how federal agencies can track and monitor federally
funded resilient infrastructure in a coordinated fashion to
help build the understanding of the cost-benefit of resilient
infrastructure and to build the capacity for implementing
resilient infrastructure; and
(9) the occupations, skillsets, training programs,
competencies and recognized postsecondary credentials that will
be needed to implement such climate-resilient transportation
infrastructure projects, and how to ensure that any new jobs
created by such projects ensure that priority hiring
considerations are given to individuals facing barriers to
employment, communities of color, low-income communities and
tribal communities that face a disproportionate risk from
climate change and have been excluded from job opportunities.
(e) Consultation.--In carrying out the study, the Transportation
Research Board--
(1) shall convene and consult with a panel of national
experts, including operators and users of Federal
transportation infrastructure and private sector stakeholders;
and
(2) is encouraged to consult with--
(A) representatives from the thirteen federal
agencies that comprise the United States Global Change
Research Program;
(B) representatives from the Department of the
Treasury;
(C) professional engineers with relevant expertise
in infrastructure design;
(D) scientists from the National Academies with
relevant expertise;
(E) scientists, social scientists and experts from
academic and research institutions who have expertise
in climate change projections and impacts; engineering;
architecture; or other relevant areas of expertise;
(F) licensed architects with relevant experience in
infrastructure design;
(G) certified planners;
(H) representatives of State, local and Tribal
governments;
(I) representatives of environmental justice
groups; and
(J) representatives of labor unions that represent
key trades and industries involved in infrastructure
projects.
(f) Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Transportation Research Board shall submit to the
Secretary, the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the
House of Representatives, and the Committee on Environment and Public
Works of the Senate a report on the results of the study conducted
under this section.
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