[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 185 (Monday, December 5, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8184-S8185]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
By Mr. KOHL (for himself and Mr. Wyden):
S. 1942. A bill to amend title 49, United States Code, to improve
transportation for seniors, and for other purposes; to the Committee on
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
Mr. KOHL. Mr President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the
bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be
printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 1942
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 ``Senior Transportation and
Mobility Improvement Act of 2011''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) According to projections from the 2010 decennial
census, the number of individuals in the United States who
are 65 years of age or older will increase from 40,000,000 in
2010 to 72,000,000 in 2030. Yet, a 2004 report by the Surface
Transportation Policy Project found that more than 1 in 5 (or
21 percent) of individuals who are 65 years of age or older
do not drive.
(2) According to a 2011 report by the National Association
of Area Agencies on Aging, inadequate transportation options
for older adults has emerged as the second greatest challenge
identified by communities during the 5-year period ending in
2011.
(3) According to a 2004 report by the Surface
Transportation Policy Project, more than \1/2\ of seniors who
are 65 years of age and older (numbering 3,600,000
individuals) who no longer drive due to a decline in health,
stay at home on any given day partially because they lack
transportation options. Alternatives to driving are
particularly sparse in some regions and in rural and small
town communities.
(4) According to a 2004 report by the Surface
Transportation Policy Project, compared with older drivers,
older non-drivers in the United States make 15 percent fewer
trips to the doctor, 59 percent fewer shopping trips, and 65
percent fewer trips for social, family, and religious
activities.
(5) In 2009, the program under section 5310 of title 49,
United States Code, provided more than 43,000,000 rides to
older adults and people with disabilities.
(6) Access to mobility management services help transit and
human services systems meet the needs of older adults and
people with disabilities. This person-centered strategy helps
individuals and families review available transportation
options and support their decisions regarding the
transportation options that are best suited to their
circumstances, preferences and mobility needs.
SEC. 3. PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SERVICES FOR ELDERLY
INDIVIDUALS AND INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.
(a) Elderly Individuals and Individuals With
Disabilities.--
(1) Use of funds.--Section 5310 of title 49, United States
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(i) Operating Costs.--
[[Page S8185]]
``(1) Definition.--In this subsection, the term `covered
amounts' means, for a fiscal year, any amounts apportioned to
a State under this section in excess of the amounts
apportioned to the State under this section for fiscal year
2010.
``(2) Use of funds.--A State may use not more than 33
percent of any covered amounts for costs relating to the
operation and maintenance of vehicles and other capital
assets acquired by the State using funds under this section,
including insurance, fuel, and driver compensation.
``(3) Federal share.--The Federal share of the cost of
operation and maintenance carried out using funds under this
subsection may not exceed 50 percent.''.
(2) Additional requirements for grant recipients.--Section
5310(d) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding
at the end the following:
``(3) Reporting requirements.--Each recipient of funding
under this section shall submit to the Administrator of the
Federal Transit Administration an annual report that
describes how the recipient will coordinate, or is
coordinating, the activities carried out by the recipient
using a grant under this section with the activities, if any,
carried out by the recipient using a grant under title III of
the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3021 et seq.).''.
(3) Federal share.--Section 5310(c)(1)(B) of title 49,
United States Code, is amended--
(A) by striking ``(B) Exception.--A State'' and inserting
the following:
``(B) Exceptions.--
``(i) Certain states.--A State''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(ii) Mobility management.--A grant under this section for
a capital project described in section 5302(a)(1)(L) shall be
for 90 percent of the capital costs of the project, as
determined by the Secretary.''.
(b) National Transit Database.--Section 5335 of title 49,
United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (b), by striking ``section 5307 or 5311''
and inserting ``section 5307, 5310, or 5311''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(c) Data Relating to Sections 5310 and 5311.--The
reporting and uniform systems established under subsection
(a) shall include information with respect to activities
carried out using a grant under section 5310 or 5311,
including, for each recipient of a grant under section 5310
or 5311 and for each State--
``(1) the number of vehicles purchased; and
``(2) the number of rides provided.''.
SEC. 4. METROPOLITAN AND STATEWIDE TRANSPORTATION PLANNING.
(a) Metropolitan Transportation Planning.--Section 5303(i)
of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the
end the following:
``(8) Participation by older individuals and people with
disabilities.--
``(A) Definitions.--In this paragraph, the terms
`disability' and `older individual' have the same meanings as
in section 102 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C.
3002).
``(B) Participation required.--In developing a
transportation plan under this section, a metropolitan
planning organization shall--
``(i) ensure that organizations that represent older
individuals and individuals with disabilities (including
community action agencies, area agencies on aging, aging and
disability resource centers, and other representatives of the
aging and disability networks) have a reasonable opportunity
to comment on the transportation plan and document the
efforts of the metropolitan planning organization to solicit
such comments;
``(ii) take into consideration any comments received under
clause (i) and document how any such comments were taken into
consideration in the development of the transportation plan;
and
``(iii) give organizations that represent older individuals
and individuals with disabilities (including community action
agencies, area agencies on aging, aging and disability
resource centers, and other representatives of the aging and
disability networks) an opportunity to review and comment on
the transportation plan before the transportation plan
becomes final.''.
(b) Statewide Transportation Planning.--Section 5304 of
title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(k) Participation by Older Individuals and People With
Disabilities.--
``(1) Definitions.--In this subsection, the terms
`disability' and `older individual' have the same meanings as
in section 102 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C.
3002).
``(2) Participation required.--In developing a statewide
transportation plan or a statewide transportation improvement
program under this section, a State shall--
``(A) ensure that organizations that represent older
individuals and individuals with disabilities have a
reasonable opportunity to comment on the plan or program and
document the efforts of the State to solicit such comments;
``(B) take into consideration any comments received under
subparagraph (A) and document how any such comments were
taken into consideration in the development of the plan or
program; and
``(C) give organizations that represent older individuals
and individuals with disabilities an opportunity to review
and comment on the plan or program before the plan or program
becomes final.''.
SEC. 5. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND MOBILITY MANAGEMENT.
(a) Technical Assistance.--
(1) Definition.--For purposes of this subsection--
(A) the term ``eligible entity'' means a nonprofit
organization that provides transportation services to older
individuals;
(B) the term ``older individual'' has the same meaning as
in section 102 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C.
3002); and
(C) the term ``urbanized area'' has the same meaning as in
section 5302 of title 49, United States Code.
(2) In general.--The Administrator of the Federal Transit
Administration shall enter into a cooperative agreement with
the National Center on Senior Transportation--
(A) to provide technical assistance to transit and human
services organizations;
(B) to disseminate best practices with respect to
transportation for older individuals to consumers, Federal,
State, and local transportation and aging services providers,
and researchers; and
(C) to make grants to eligible entities to test innovative
and replicable approaches for addressing the mobility needs
of older individuals, including individuals in other than
urbanized areas.
(3) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this subsection--
(A) $5,500,000 for fiscal year 2012; and
(B) $6,000,000 for fiscal year 2013.
(b) Mobility Management Program.--
(1) In general.--The Federal Transit Administration shall
make grants to nonprofit aging services organizations--
(A) to offer mobility management services, including
mobility management activities and projects described in
section 5302(a)(1)(L) of title 49, United States Code; and
(B) to develop and implement enhanced technology to support
mobility management services.
(2) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this subsection--
(A) $3,000,000 for fiscal year 2012; and
(B) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2013.
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