,i  #aadth ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #bicc  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,june #be1 #bjae ,mr4
 ,larsen of ,washington introduced the  
following bill2 which was referred to   
the ,committee on ,transportation and   
,infrastructure  ,a ,,bill  ,to amend   
title #di1 ,united ,states ,code1 to    
establish a local rail facilities and   
safety program to award grants for      
freight capacity projects1 and for other
 purposes4  #a4 ,short title ,this ,act 
may be cited as the ,at-,grade ,crossing
 ,enhancement ,act of #bjae4  #b4 ,local
 rail facilities and safety  7a7 ,in    
general ,chapter #bja of title #di1     
,united ,states ,code1 is amended by    
adding at the end the following3        
#bjafh4 ,local rail facilities and      
safety program  7a7 ,establishment ,the 
,secretary of ,transportation1 acting   
through the ,administrator of the       
,federal ,railroad ,administration1     
shall establish a local rail facilities 
and safety program 7in this section     

referred to as the ,program7 to mitigate
 the impacts of railroad operations in  
local communities through improvements  
to highway-rail grade crossings1 rail   
line relocation and improvement         
projects1 and training and technical    
assistance to local governments4  7b7   
,grant authority ,in carrying out the   
,program1 the ,secretary may award      
grants to eligible entities for freight 
capacity projects 7as described under   
subsection 7e774  7c7 ,application ,to  
be eligible for a grant under the       
,program1 an eligible entity shall      
submit to the ,secretary an application 
in such form1 at such time1 and         
containing such information as the      
,secretary determines is appropriate4   
7d7 ,project selection criteria ,in     
selecting the recipients of grants for  
freight capacity projects under the     
,program1 the ,secretary shall          
consider--  7#a7 the extent to which a  
proposed project-- 7,a7 alleviates the  
impacts of rail operations on local     

neighborhoods or urbanized areas2  7,b7 
will result in clearly defined public   
benefits2  7,c7 contributes to          
increasing the competitiveness and state
 of good repair of short line railroads2
  7,d7 enhances safety at critical      
highway-rail grade crossings2  7,e7 is  
compatible with local land use1 economic
 development1 and transportation plans  
and objectives2  7,f7 includes equitable
 participation from other beneficiaries 
in the project's financing1 including   
the extent to which the project will    
leverage private or local government    
investments2 and  7,g7 will increase the
 reliability and resilience of the      
,nation's freight system2 and  7#b7 the 
past performance of the recipient and   
other beneficiaries of the project in   
developing and delivering rail projects4
  7e7 ,freight capacity projects ,a     
grant awarded under the ,program may be 
used for the following3 7#a7 ,a capital 
project to mitigate the impacts of rail 
infrastructure and operations on a local

 community1 including--  7,a7 rail line 
relocation and improvement2 and  7,b7   
improving the safety of1 or eliminating 
hazards at1 a highway-rail grade        
crossing4  7#b7 ,a capital project to   
improve short-line railroad             
infrastructure4  7#c7 ,training and     
technical assistance to help local      
governments better understand how to    
coordinate with railroad carriers on--  
7,a7 operations and safety issues2 and  
7,b7 how to integrate railroad issues   
into land use and transportation        
planning processes4  7f7 ,use of funds  
,a grant may be used to pay all or a    
portion of the subsidy and              
administrative costs of projects        
eligible for ,federal credit assistance 
under the ,railroad ,revitalization and 
,regulatory ,reform ,act of #aigf 7#de  
,u4,s4,c4 #hja et seq47 for a capital   
project to improve short-line railroad  
infrastructure4  7g7 ,eligible entity   
defined ,in this section1 the term      
eligible entity means each of the       

following3 7#a7 ,one or more ,states4   
7#b7 ,an ,interstate ,compact4  7#c7 ,a 
local government4  7#d7 ,a tribal       
government4  7#e7 ,one or more          
metropolitan planning organizations4    
7h7 ,authorization of appropriations    
,there is authorized to be appropriated 
to carry out this section #cjj1jjj1jjj  
for each of fiscal years #bjaf through  
#bjba4  4  7b7 ,conforming amendment    
,the analysis for chapter #bja of title 
#di1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended  
by adding at the end the following new  
item3  #bjafh4 ,local rail facilities   
and safety program4  4