[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6140 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 6140

   To facilitate access to swiftly transport goods during a publicly 
                announced state of emergency situation.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 1, 2023

 Mr. Ezell (for himself, Mr. Garamendi, and Mr. Balderson) introduced 
      the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                   Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To facilitate access to swiftly transport goods during a publicly 
                announced state of emergency situation.

    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 ``Facilitating Access to Swiftly 
Transport Goods during a Publicly Announced State of Emergency 
Situation Act'' or the ``FAST PASS Act''.

SEC. 2. STUDY ON CRITICAL CARGO.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this section, the Secretary of Transportation shall initiate a study 
to examine--
            (1) efforts to expedite the movement of critical cargo 
        through ports and marine terminals; and
            (2) methodologies, practices, and processes for moving such 
        cargo during an event for which an emergency is declared by the 
        President or a Federal agency.
    (b) Contents.--In conducting the study under subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall examine methodologies, practices, and processes for--
            (1) identifying critical cargo and expediting the movement 
        of such cargo through the marine terminals and ports;
            (2) expediting the movement of critical cargo across all 
        modes of transportation after leaving marine terminals and 
        ports; and
            (3) mitigating the impact on the movement of other cargo 
        that is not critical.
    (c) Consultation.--In conducting the study under subsection (a), 
the Secretary shall consult with--
            (1) the Secretary of Health and Human Services; and
            (2) other relevant Federal agencies.
    (d) Request for Information.--The Secretary shall issue a request 
for information in the Federal Register seeking public comment on the 
matters to be considered in the study required under subsection (a).
    (e) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of 
this section, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 
report containing--
            (1) the findings of the study conducted under subsection 
        (a); and
            (2) recommendations for methodologies, practices, and 
        processes described in such subsection, including 
        recommendations for using data from commercial and government 
        data tracking initiatives to--
                    (A) determine when cargo is critical and needs to 
                be expedited;
                    (B) identify such critical cargo at port and marine 
                terminals; and
                    (C) expedite the movement and distribution of such 
                cargo to end users.
    (f) Pilot Program.--In conducting the study under subsection (a), 
the Secretary may establish 1 or more voluntary pilot programs to test 
the effectiveness of methodologies, practices, and processes for 
expediting the movement of critical cargo through ports and marine 
terminals.
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