[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 801 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 801

 To amend title 23, United States Code, with respect to vehicle weight 
    limitations applicable to the Interstate System, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 18, 2011

Mr. Cravaack (for himself, Mrs. Blackburn, Mr. Paul, Mr. Westmoreland, 
and Mr. Peterson) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
           the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title 23, United States Code, with respect to vehicle weight 
    limitations applicable to the Interstate System, 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 ``Truck Weight Uniformity Act of 
2011''.

SEC. 2. INCREASING WEIGHT LIMITATIONS FOR CERTAIN VEHICLES.

    Section 127 of title 23, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following:
    ``(i) Exception to Weight Requirements.--
            ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), a State 
        may authorize a vehicle with a gross weight that exceeds the 
        maximum gross weight applicable under subsection (a) to operate 
        on the Interstate System routes in that State, if--
                    ``(A) the vehicle is equipped with at least 6 
                axles;
                    ``(B) the weight carried on any single axle of the 
                vehicle does not exceed 20,000 pounds;
                    ``(C) the weight carried on any tandem axle of the 
                vehicle does not exceed 34,000 pounds;
                    ``(D) the weight carried on any group of 3 axles of 
                the vehicle does not exceed 51,000 pounds; and
                    ``(E) the gross weight of the vehicle does not 
                exceed 99,000 pounds.
            ``(2) Special rules.--
                    ``(A) Increase in axle weight requirement.--A State 
                may authorize a vehicle to exceed the maximum axle 
                weight requirements under any one axle grouping in 
                subparagraph (B), (C), or (D) of paragraph (1) by not 
                more than 2,000 pounds.
                    ``(B) Increase in gross weight requirement.--A 
                State may authorize a vehicle to exceed the maximum 
                gross weight requirement under paragraph (1)(E) by not 
                more than 5 percent.
            ``(3) Approval by state legislature.--Any State seeking to 
        authorize a vehicle to operate on the Interstate System routes 
        in that State under paragraph (1) or to increase maximum axle 
        or gross weight requirements under paragraph (2) shall do so by 
        law.
            ``(4) Termination.--The Secretary may terminate the 
        operation of vehicles, described under paragraph (1) and 
        authorized to operate under this subsection, on a specific 
        route if the Secretary determines that such operation poses an 
        unreasonable safety risk based on an engineering analysis or an 
        analysis of safety data or any other applicable data the 
        Secretary may use.
            ``(5) Statutory construction.--Vehicle operations 
        authorized pursuant to this subsection shall be in addition to 
        other vehicle operations authorized by this section.
            ``(6) Waiver of highway funding reduction.--Notwithstanding 
        subsection (a), the total amount of funds apportioned to a 
        State under section 104(b)(1) for any period may not be reduced 
        under subsection (a) as a result of a State authorizing a 
        vehicle described in paragraph (1) to operate on the Interstate 
        System routes in that State in accordance with this 
        subsection.''.
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