110th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 401
To amend the National Capital Transportation Act of 1969 to authorize
additional Federal contributions for maintaining and improving the transit
system of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, and for other
purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 11, 2007
Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia (for himself, Mr. HOYER, Mr. WOLF, Ms. NORTON,
Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mr. WYNN, and Mr. SARBANES) introduced
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform
A BILL
To amend the National Capital Transportation Act of 1969 to authorize
additional Federal contributions for maintaining and improving the transit
system of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, 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; FINDINGS.
(a) Short Title- This Act may be cited as the `National Capital Transportation
Amendments Act of 2007'.
(b) Findings- Congress finds as follows:
(1) Metro, the public transit system of the Washington metropolitan area,
is essential for the continued and effective performance of the functions
of the Federal Government, and for the orderly movement of people during
major events and times of regional or national emergency.
(2) On 3 occasions, Congress has authorized appropriations for the construction
and capital improvement needs of the Metrorail system.
(3) Additional funding is required to protect these previous Federal investments
and ensure the continued functionality and viability of the original 103-mile
Metrorail system.
SEC. 2. FEDERAL CONTRIBUTION FOR CAPITAL PROJECTS FOR WASHINGTON METROPOLITAN
AREA TRANSIT SYSTEM.
The National Capital Transportation Act of 1969 (sec. 9-1111.01 et seq.,
D.C. Official Code) is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
`AUTHORIZATION OF ADDITIONAL FEDERAL CONTRIBUTION FOR CAPITAL AND PREVENTIVE
MAINTENANCE PROJECTS
`Sec. 18. (a) Authorization- Subject to the succeeding provisions of this
section, the Secretary of Transportation is authorized to make grants to
the Transit Authority, in addition to the contributions authorized under
sections 3, 14, and 17, for the purpose of financing in part the capital
and preventive maintenance projects included in the Capital Improvement
Program approved by the Board of Directors of the Transit Authority.
`(b) Use of Funds- The Federal grants made pursuant to the authorization
under this section shall be subject to the following limitations and conditions:
`(1) The work for which such Federal grants are authorized shall be subject
to the provisions of the Compact (consistent with the amendments to the
Compact described in subsection (d)).
`(2) Each such Federal grant shall be for 50 percent of the net project
cost of the project involved, and shall be provided in cash from sources
other than Federal funds or revenues from the operation of public mass
transportation systems. Consistent with the terms of the amendment to
the Compact described in subsection (d)(1), any funds so provided shall
be solely from undistributed cash surpluses, replacement or depreciation
funds or reserves available in cash, or new capital.
`(c) Applicability of Requirements For Mass Transportation Capital Projects
Receiving Funds Under Federal Transportation Law- Except as specifically
provided in this section, the use of any amounts appropriated pursuant to
the authorization under this section shall be subject to the requirements
applicable to capital projects for which funds are provided under chapter
53 of title 49, United States Code, except to the extent that the Secretary
of Transportation determines that the requirements are inconsistent with
the purposes of this section.
`(d) Amendments to Compact- No amounts may be provided to the Transit Authority
pursuant to the authorization under this section until the Transit Authority
notifies the Secretary of Transportation that each of the following amendments
to the Compact (and any further amendments which may be required to implement
such amendments) have taken effect:
`(1)(A) An amendment requiring that all payments by the local signatory
governments for the Transit Authority for the purpose of matching any
Federal funds appropriated in any given year authorized under subsection
(a) for the cost of operating and maintaining the adopted regional system
are made from amounts derived from dedicated funding sources.
`(B) For purposes of this paragraph, the term `dedicated funding source'
means any source of funding which is earmarked or required under State
or local law to be used to match Federal appropriations authorized under
this Act for payments to the Transit Authority.
`(2) An amendment establishing the Office of the Inspector General of
the Transit Authority in accordance with section 3 of the National Capital
Transportation Amendments Act of 2007.
`(3) An amendment expanding the Board of Directors of the Transit Authority
to include 4 additional Directors appointed by the Administrator of General
Services, of whom 2 shall be nonvoting and 2 shall be voting, and requiring
one of the voting members so appointed to be a regular passenger and customer
of the bus or rail service of the Transit Authority.
`(e) Amount- There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of
Transportation for grants under this section an aggregate amount not to
exceed $1,500,000,000 to be available in increments over 10 fiscal years
beginning in fiscal year 2009, or until expended.
`(f) Availability- Amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization under
this section--
`(1) shall remain available until expended; and
`(2) shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of, amounts available to
the Transit Authority under chapter 53 of title 49, United States Code,
or any other provision of law.'.
SEC. 3. WASHINGTON METROPOLITAN AREA TRANSIT AUTHORITY INSPECTOR GENERAL.
(a) Establishment of Office-
(1) IN GENERAL- The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (hereafter
referred to as the `Transit Authority') shall establish in the Transit
Authority the Office of the Inspector General (hereafter in this section
referred to as the `Office'), headed by the Inspector General of the Transit
Authority (hereafter in this section referred to as the `Inspector General').
(2) DEFINITION- In paragraph (1), the `Washington Metropolitan Area Transit
Authority' means the Authority established under Article III of the Washington
Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Compact (Public Law 89-774).
(1) APPOINTMENT- The Inspector General shall be appointed by the vote
of a majority of the Board of Directors of the Transit Authority, and
shall be appointed without regard to political affiliation and solely
on the basis of integrity and demonstrated ability in accounting, auditing,
financial analysis, law, management analysis, public administration, or
investigations, as well as familiarity or experience with the operation
of transit systems.
(2) TERM OF SERVICE- The Inspector General shall serve for a term of 5
years, and an individual serving as Inspector General may be reappointed
for not more than 2 additional terms.
(3) REMOVAL- The Inspector General may be removed from office prior to
the expiration of his term only by the unanimous vote of all of the members
of the Board of Directors of the Transit Authority, and the Board shall
communicate the reasons for any such removal to the Governor of Maryland,
the Governor of Virginia, the Mayor of the District of Columbia, the chair
of the Committee on Government Reform of the House of Representatives,
and the chair of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
of the Senate.
(1) APPLICABILITY OF DUTIES OF INSPECTOR GENERAL OF EXECUTIVE BRANCH ESTABLISHMENT-
The Inspector General shall carry out the same duties and responsibilities
with respect to the Transit Authority as an Inspector General of an establishment
carries out with respect to an establishment under section 4 of the Inspector
General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 4), under the same terms and conditions
which apply under such section.
(2) CONDUCTING ANNUAL AUDIT OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS- The Inspector General
shall be responsible for conducting the annual audit of the financial
accounts of the Transit Authority, either directly or by contract with
an independent external auditor selected by the Inspector General.
(A) SEMIANNUAL REPORTS TO TRANSIT AUTHORITY- The Inspector General shall
prepare and submit semiannual reports summarizing the activities of
the Office in the same manner, and in accordance with the same deadlines,
terms, and conditions, as an Inspector General of an establishment under
section 5 of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 5). For
purposes of applying section 5 of such Act to the Inspector General,
the Board of Directors of the Transit Authority shall be considered
the head of the establishment, except that the Inspector General shall
transmit to the General Manager of the Transit Authority a copy of any
report submitted to the Board pursuant to this paragraph.
(B) ANNUAL REPORTS TO LOCAL SIGNATORY GOVERNMENTS AND CONGRESS- Not
later than January 15 of each year, the Inspector General shall prepare
and submit a report summarizing the activities of the Office during
the previous year, and shall submit such reports to the Governor of
Maryland, the Governor of Virginia, the Mayor of the District of Columbia,
the chair of the Committee on Government Reform of the House of Representatives,
and the chair of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate.
(4) INVESTIGATIONS OF COMPLAINTS OF EMPLOYEES AND MEMBERS-
(A) AUTHORITY- The Inspector General may receive and investigate complaints
or information from an employee or member of the Transit Authority concerning
the possible existence of an activity constituting a violation of law,
rules, or regulations, or mismanagement, gross waste of funds, abuse
of authority, or a substantial and specific danger to the public health
and safety.
(B) NONDISCLOSURE- The Inspector General shall not, after receipt of
a complaint or information from an employee or member, disclose the
identity of the employee or member without the consent of the employee
or member, unless the Inspector General determines such disclosure is
unavoidable during the course of the investigation.
(C) PROHIBITING RETALIATION- An employee or member of the Transit Authority
who has authority to take, direct others to take, recommend, or approve
any personnel action, shall not, with respect to such authority, take
or threaten to take any action against any employee or member as a reprisal
for making a complaint or disclosing information to the Inspector General,
unless the complaint was made or the information disclosed with the
knowledge that it was false or with willful disregard for its truth
or falsity.
(5) INDEPENDENCE IN CARRYING OUT DUTIES- Neither the Board of Directors
of the Transit Authority, the General Manager of the Transit Authority,
nor any other member or employee of the Transit Authority may prevent
or prohibit the Inspector General from carrying out any of the duties
or responsibilities assigned to the Inspector General under this section.
(1) IN GENERAL- The Inspector General may exercise the same authorities
with respect to the Transit Authority as an Inspector General of an establishment
may exercise with respect to an establishment under section 6(a) of the
Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 6(a)), other than paragraphs
(7), (8), and (9) of such section.
(A) ASSISTANT INSPECTOR GENERALS AND OTHER STAFF- The Inspector General
shall appoint and fix the pay of--
(i) an Assistant Inspector General for Audits, who shall be responsible
for coordinating the activities of the Inspector General relating
to audits;
(ii) an Assistant Inspector General for Investigations, who shall
be responsible for coordinating the activities of the Inspector General
relating to investigations; and
(iii) such other personnel as the Inspector General considers appropriate.
(B) INDEPENDENCE IN APPOINTING STAFF- No individual may carry out any
of the duties or responsibilities of the Office unless the individual
is appointed by the Inspector General, or provides services procured
by the Inspector General, pursuant to this paragraph. Nothing in this
subparagraph may be construed to prohibit the Inspector General from
entering into a contract or other arrangement for the provision of services
under this section.
(C) APPLICABILITY OF TRANSIT SYSTEM PERSONNEL RULES- None of the regulations
governing the appointment and pay of employees of the Transit System
shall apply with respect to the appointment and compensation of the
personnel of the Office, except to the extent agreed to by the Inspector
General. Nothing in the previous sentence may be construed to affect
subparagraphs (A) through (B).
(3) EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES- The General Manager of the Transit Authority
shall provide the Office with appropriate and adequate office space, together
with such equipment, supplies, and communications facilities and services
as may be necessary for the operation of the Office, and shall provide
necessary maintenance services for such office space and the equipment
and facilities located therein.
(e) Transfer of Functions- To the extent that any office or entity in the
Transit Authority prior to the appointment of the first Inspector General
under this section carried out any of the duties and responsibilities assigned
to the Inspector General under this section, the functions of such office
or entity shall be transferred to the Office upon the appointment of the
first Inspector General under this section.
SEC. 4. STUDY AND REPORT BY COMPTROLLER GENERAL.
(a) Study- The Comptroller General shall conduct a study on the use of the
funds provided under section 18 of the National Capital Transportation Act
of 1969 (as added by this Act).
(b) Report- Not later than 3 years after the date of the enactment of this
Act, the Comptroller General shall submit a report to the Committee on Government
Reform of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security
and Governmental Affairs of the Senate on the study conducted under subsection
(a).
END
