The Surface Transportation Research and Development Act of 2026 updates federal programs to extend their funding periods through fiscal year 2031 and establishes a new Transportation Statistics Coordination Council to oversee data collection across the Department of Transportation. The bill also creates a study on the safety impacts of new headlamp technologies and requires a strategy to increase the use of reclaimed asphalt in road construction. Additionally, it expands rail research to address safety challenges in modern commuter and freight systems while ensuring data standards remain consistent.
The Safe Bus Routes to School Act directs federal transportation funds toward improving safety for students traveling to and from school. It allows states to use money for building safer sidewalks, crossing areas, and bus stops, as well as for running public awareness campaigns and traffic education programs. Additionally, the bill ensures that these safety projects are included in the list of eligible uses for federal highway improvement grants. This legislation directly affects local education agencies and state transportation departments by expanding their ability to fund infrastructure and educational initiatives that protect students on school bus routes.
This bill amends federal law concerning the distribution of highway funds to states. It establishes a new minimum funding guarantee, ensuring that each state receives at least 0.5 percent of the total funds allocated through the federal highway apportionment formula. This change provides a baseline level of federal funding for state highway programs.
The Gas Prices Relief Act of 2026 would temporarily suspend federal gasoline taxes and the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund financing rate from its enactment until October 1, 2026, aiming to reduce costs for consumers who purchase gasoline. Specifically, it sets the federal excise tax on gasoline to zero during this period. To prevent funding shortfalls, the bill directs the Treasury to transfer equivalent amounts from the general fund to the Highway Trust Fund and the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund. It also includes a policy that the tax reduction should be passed on to consumers and empowers the Secretary of the Treasury to ensure this, potentially through monetary penalties for producers and dealers who do not reduce prices.
This bill, the Safer Roads for Those Who Serve Act of 2026, aims to improve safety for highway workers such as construction crews, utility personnel, and emergency responders by updating federal regulations and funding programs. It requires the Federal Highway Administration to better track and separate crash data for highway workers from other road users, and mandates that states with rising injury or fatality rates include specific strategies in their safety plans. The legislation also directs the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to update public awareness materials and run public service announcements about Move Over laws, covering various types of workers and vehicles. Additionally, the bill requires that federal transportation grant applications include plans for protecting highway workers during and after construction, and authorizes funding for research and outreach to enhance roadside worker safety.
This bill, known as the BASICS Act, creates a new $5.5 billion federal funding program over five years to repair and replace bridges in poor condition across the United States. The program prioritizes projects based on the cost of bridge rehabilitation in each state and guarantees a minimum funding allocation of $45 million per state annually. It also expands funding for regional transportation planning in rural areas and increases flexibility for local governments to select and manage transportation projects through enhanced consultation requirements. Additionally, the legislation removes local matching fund requirements for metropolitan planning activities and allows 100 percent federal funding for off-system bridge projects owned by local governments or tribes.
The Tribal Roads Improvement Act addresses the poor condition of approximately 160,000 miles of roads on Tribal lands by allowing Tribal governments to use more of their transportation funding for road grading projects. This change removes a previous limitation that restricted how much of Tribal Transportation Program funds could be spent on grading, giving Tribes greater flexibility to improve road infrastructure. The bill also requires the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study within three years to evaluate the impact of this funding flexibility on road conditions, economic development, and community access. Results from the study will be reported to Congress with recommendations on how to further support Tribal road grading initiatives.
The Roadway Resiliency Act establishes an interagency working group to develop best practices for managing roadways during inclement weather. This group will be formed by the Secretary of Transportation and the Director of the National Weather Service within 180 days of the bill's enactment. Once the best practices are developed, they must be submitted to Congress for review. The legislation focuses on improving coordination between transportation and weather agencies to address road safety during adverse weather conditions.
The Next Gen Road Safety Act amends federal funding provisions to allow law enforcement agencies to purchase specialized equipment for managing high-speed vehicle pursuits. This legislation specifically authorizes the procurement of technologies such as vehicle-disabling systems, police bumper systems, and drones to help prevent and de-escalate dangerous chase situations. The changes apply to federal crime control grants under the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, enabling agencies to use these funds for the specified safety equipment. The bill focuses on updating existing grant categories to include modern tools that support officer safety and public safety during vehicular pursuits.
This bill, titled the Toll Evasion Prevention and Plate Visibility Act of 2026, prohibits the sale of products designed to obscure license plates and bans the sale of counterfeit or altered plates. It gives the Federal Trade Commission authority to enforce these rules and allows the Federal Highway Administration to issue guidance on plate design and frames that affect readability. The legislation also establishes a grant program to help states and local agencies develop technology systems to identify vehicles that evade tolls and provides $10 million in funding from 2027 to 2030 for these efforts.
