[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8188 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8188

To remove certain limitations with respect to road grading under Tribal 
transportation programs and study the impacts of such removal, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 2, 2026

 Mr. Stanton introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the 
    Committee on Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To remove certain limitations with respect to road grading under Tribal 
transportation programs and study the impacts of such removal, 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 ``Tribal Roads Improvement Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Approximately 160,000 miles of roads exist on or 
        provide access to Tribal lands, with an estimated 65 percent in 
        poor or failing condition.
            (2) Inadequate road grading on Tribal lands contributes to 
        increased vehicle damage, emergency response delays, reduced 
        economic development opportunities, and isolation of Tribal 
        communities.
            (3) Poor road conditions disproportionately impact Tribal 
        members' access to healthcare, education, employment, and 
        essential services.
            (4) Current Federal funding for Tribal road maintenance 
        addresses less than 35 percent of identified needs.
            (5) Tribal governments possess the capacity and expertise 
        to manage road grading projects efficiently when provided 
        adequate resources and regulatory flexibility.
            (6) Improving Tribal road infrastructure serves Federal 
        trust responsibilities and promotes Tribal self-determination.

SEC. 3. TRIBAL ROAD GRADING.

    Section 202(a)(8)(A) of title 23, United States Code, is amended by 
inserting ``grading and'' after ``excluding road''.

SEC. 4. STUDY.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 3 years after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall conduct a study to determine 
the impact of removing the limitation on TTP road grading funds 
pursuant to the amendment made by section 3, including--
            (1) the number of Indian Tribes spending, with respect to 
        road grading, at least--
                    (A) 25 percent of the TTP funds allocated to the 
                Indian Tribe; or
                    (B) $500,000;
            (2) the number of miles of Tribal roads graded after the 
        removal of the limitation;
            (3) improvements in road condition ratings on participating 
        Tribal transportation facilities;
            (4) impacts on Tribal economic development, emergency 
        response times, and community access;
            (5) Tribal satisfaction with flexibility provided by the 
        removal of the limitation; and
            (6) employment of Tribal members in Tribal road grading 
        projects.
    (b) Report to Congress.--Not later than 2 years after the 
completion of the study under subsection (a), the Secretary shall 
submit to Congress a report that includes--
            (1) the results of the study; and
            (2) recommendations with respect to addressing the 
        continued need to Tribal road grading and ways to support 
        Tribal road grading initiatives.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior, acting through the Director of the Bureau of 
        Indian Affairs.
            (2) Tribal transportation facility.--The term ``Tribal 
        transportation facility'' has the meaning given the term 
        ``tribal transportation facility'' in section 101 of title 23, 
        United States Code.
            (3) TTP.--The term ``TTP'' means a tribal transportation 
        program as such term is used in chapter 2 of title 23, United 
        States Code.
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