1.This Act may be cited as
the Older Americans Sustainable
Mobility Act of 2006
.
2.Congress finds the following:
(1)The population of
the United States is aging in greater numbers than ever before in the Nation's
history.
(2)Dignified and
sustainable mobility is essential for the health, safety, and quality of life
of older individuals, their families, their communities, and the Nation.
(3)Older individuals
who rely on the private automobile for transportation need an acceptable
alternative to driving so they may safely transition from driving without
unduly compromising their independence, quality of life, and activity in the
community.
(4)Many older
individuals have special, age-related conditions, such as dementia and frailty,
that special transportation alternatives must effectively address.
(5)Many older
individuals live in rural and suburban areas that lack the density for
traditional mass transit, and more than half of all people age 65 or older live
in communities with no public transportation.
(6)The cost of
addressing the transportation needs of older individuals is outstripping the
public resources available, and that cost will only increase in the next 30
years as the Nation's population ages.
(7)Programs that
provide increased mobility for older individuals will promote economic growth
and development by moderating health care expenses, supporting family
caregivers, promoting volunteerism, fostering civic engagement, and enriching
community well-being through the participation of the Nation's most experienced
citizens.
(8)Models exist by
which private nonprofit organizations can provide economically sustainable,
consumer-oriented senior transportation alternatives, that address the
transportation needs of older individuals.
(9)Those models can
be used to supplement, but not displace, public transportation, and can also be
successfully replicated in communities where public transportation is
unavailable.
(10)It is
appropriate for the Federal Government to accelerate the availability of
transportation alternatives for older individuals through those models, and to
test the viability of constructing a nationwide network based on them.
3.The purpose of this Act is to establish a
demonstration project to develop a national network of economically sustainable
transportation providers and qualified transportation providers, to provide
transportation services to older individuals, and individuals who are blind, in
urban, suburban, and rural settings.
4.In this Act:
(1)Economically
sustainable transportation providerThe term economically
sustainable transportation provider
means a nonprofit provider of
transportation services that—
(A)submits to the
Secretary and obtains approval of a plan demonstrating that the provider is
capable of providing economically sustainable transportation services through
the National Network;
(B)on receiving a
grant under section 6, connects to the National Network and provides
economically sustainable transportation services through the National Network
in accordance with this Act; and
(C)on receiving a
grant under section 7, provides economically sustainable transportation
services through the National Network in accordance with this Act.
(2)Economically
sustainable transportation servicesThe term economically
sustainable transportation services
means demand-responsive
transportation services that are provided—
(A)by
automobile;
(B)to qualified
individuals and qualified passengers;
(C)24 hours a day, 7
days a week;
(D)by a combination
of volunteer and paid drivers; and
(E)(i)for a period of not
more than 5 fiscal years by a provider who is receiving Federal financial
assistance under this Act; and
(ii)after such period, by that
provider without receiving Federal or other public financial assistance for the
services.
(3)The term National Network
means a network
of economically sustainable transportation providers and qualified
transportation providers that provides transportation services to qualified
individuals and qualified passengers.
(4)The term qualified individual
means an
individual who is—
(A)an older
individual, as defined in section 102 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42
U.S.C. 3002); or
(B)an individual who
is blind, within the meaning of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701
et seq.), an individual who has significant visual impairment described in
section 751 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796j), or an
individual who is eligible for benefits under title II or XVI of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 401 et seq., 1381 et seq.) on the basis of
blindness.
(5)The term qualified passenger
means an
individual who is authorized by a qualified individual to receive
transportation services paid for in part or in whole through the qualified
transportation account of the qualified individual.
(6)Qualified
transportation accountThe term qualified transportation
account
means an account established for a qualified individual for the
purpose of acquiring transportation services from an economically sustainable
transportation provider or a qualified transportation provider.
(7)Qualified
transportation providerThe term qualified transportation
provider
means a nonprofit, public, or licensed private transportation
provider that—
(A)submits to the
Secretary and obtains approval of a plan demonstrating that the provider is
capable of providing transportation services through the National Network;
and
(B)on receiving a
grant under section 6, connects to the National Network and provides
transportation services through the National Network in accordance with this
Act.
(8)The
term Secretary
means the Secretary of Health and Human Services,
acting through the Assistant Secretary for Aging.
(9)The term transportation services
means
transportation of a passenger or a group of passengers, along with the
incidental goods or luggage of a passenger described in this paragraph.
5.
(a)The Secretary shall establish and carry out
a demonstration project to enable qualified individuals and qualified
passengers to obtain economically sustainable transportation services from
economically sustainable transportation providers and transportation services
from qualified transportation providers.
(b)In carrying out the
demonstration project, the Secretary shall enter into a contract or a
cooperative agreement with an eligible entity to provide recommendations to the
Secretary on appropriate requirements and other provisions for, and
administration of, the demonstration project.
(c)To be eligible to
enter into a contract or agreement under subsection (b), an organization shall
be a private nonprofit organization with experience in replicating models for
economically sustainable transportation services.
(d)An entity that enters into a contract or
agreement under this section shall—
(1)provide technical assistance and support to
the Secretary for the administration of the demonstration project;
(2)provide recommendations to the Secretary
about the establishment of, and requirements for, the National Network,
including requirements concerning locations where transportation services will
be provided through the network;
(3)provide
recommendations to the Secretary for provisions for the establishment of
qualified transportation accounts for the transportation services, including
provisions that such an account—
(A)may be funded
with credits or funds equal to the value of a vehicle traded to an economically
sustainable transportation provider by, or on behalf of, a qualified
individual, or by other means;
(B)shall be used
only to provide transportation services to the qualified individual or a
qualified passenger of the qualified individual;
(C)shall have a
designated beneficiary; and
(D)shall be
transferable to an individual other than the qualified individual;
(4)provide
recommendations to the Secretary for provisions for the use of the qualified
transportation accounts, including the manner in which—
(A)an economically
sustainable transportation provider or a qualified transportation provider may
debit such an account in exchange for providing transportation services to a
qualified individual or qualified passenger;
(B)the account may
be terminated; and
(C)the credits or
funds in the account may be exchanged or withdrawn;
(5)provide
recommendations to the Secretary regarding requirements for, and the
administration of, the national network connection grant program described in
section 6; and
(6)provide
recommendations to the Secretary regarding requirements for, and the
administration of, the matching grant program described in section 7.
(e)After
receiving the recommendations described in subsection (d), the Secretary shall
establish the requirements and other provisions described in subsection
(d).
(f)Copyrights and
trademarksNothing in this Act shall affect the rights of the
eligible entity under the copyright or trademark laws of the United States.
Nothing in this Act shall require the disclosure of information to which
Federal law relating to trade secrets (including section 552(b)(4) of title 5,
United States Code) applies. In entering into a contract or cooperative
agreement under this section, the Secretary shall not establish any conditions
that affect such rights or require such disclosure.
(g)Incentive for
vehicles traded to economically sustainable transportation
providersFor purposes of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986,
there shall be allowed as a credit against income tax of any qualified
individual under chapter 1 of such Code for any taxable year, an amount equal
to 30 percent of the value of transportation services allocated to a qualified
transportation account of such qualified individual in exchange for the
transfer of any motor vehicle by such qualified individual to an economically
sustainable transportation provider during such taxable year. Such credit shall
be treated as a credit under subpart A of part IV of subchapter A of such
chapter.
6.National network
connection grant program
(a)In carrying out the demonstration project,
the Secretary shall make grants to economically sustainable transportation
providers and qualified transportation providers to pay for the Federal share
of the costs of acquiring and using technology to connect to the National
Network.
(b)The
Secretary shall make a grant under this section in an amount of not more than
$25,000.
(c)To be eligible to receive a grant under
this section, a provider shall submit an application to the Secretary at such
time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may
require.
(d)The Federal share of the costs described in subsection (a)
shall be 50 percent. The provider shall provide the non-Federal share of the
costs in cash or in kind, fairly evaluated, including plant, equipment, or
services, except that not more than 10 percent of the costs may be provided in
kind.
7.
(a)In carrying out the demonstration project,
the Secretary shall make grants to economically sustainable transportation
providers to pay for the Federal share of the costs of participating in, and
providing economically sustainable transportation services through, the
National Network (other than the costs described in section 6(a)).
(b)To be eligible to receive a grant under
this section, a provider shall submit an application to the Secretary at such
time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may
require.
(c)The Federal share of the costs described in subsection (a)
shall be 50 percent. The provider shall provide the non-Federal share of the
costs in cash or in kind, fairly evaluated, including plant, equipment, or
services, except that not more than 10 percent of the costs may be provided in
kind. The non-Federal share of the costs provided in cash shall be provided
through passenger fares, including fares from qualified transportation
accounts, and public funds or private contributions from the community in which
the provider is located.
8.Authorization of
appropriationsThere are
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act $25,000,000 for the period
of fiscal years 2007 through 2011.
9.This Act ceases to be effective 5 years
after the date of enactment of this Act.