[Senate Report 116-61]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                      Calendar No. 116
116th Congress      }                                    {      Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session        }                                    {      116-61

======================================================================



 
              REVIVING AMERICA'S SCENIC BYWAYS ACT OF 2019

                                _______
                                

                 July 23, 2019.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

   Mr. Barrasso, from the Committee on Environment and Public Works, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 349]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Environment and Public Works, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 349) to require the Secretary of 
Transportation to request nominations for, and make 
determinations regarding, roads to be designated under the 
national scenic byways program, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an 
amendment in the nature of a substitute and recommends that the 
bill, as amended, do pass.

                    GENERAL STATEMENT AND BACKGROUND

    The National Scenic Byways Program was established under 
the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) of 
1991, and is part of the Department of Transportation's (DOT) 
Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The program is a grass-
roots collaborative effort established to help recognize, 
preserve, and enhance selected roads throughout the United 
States. Pursuant to the program, the Secretary of 
Transportation recognizes certain roads as All-American Roads 
or National Scenic Byways based on one or more archeological, 
cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic 
qualities. The FHWA discontinued the process for designating 
roads under the National Scenic Byways Program because the 
Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) of 
2012 did not provide funding for the grant program.
    S. 349, Reviving America's Scenic Byways Act of 2019, 
restarts the designation process by requiring the Secretary of 
Transportation to issue a request for nominations with respect 
to roads to be designated under the program, and make publicly 
available a list specifying the roads designated. S. 349 does 
not provide funding for the program.

                     OBJECTIVES OF THE LEGISLATION

    The objectives of S. 349 are to protect and promote 
America's scenic roadways. To achieve this, the bill requires 
the Secretary of Transportation (Secretary) to issue a request 
for nominations with respect to roads to be designated under 
the national scenic byways program, requires the Secretary to 
make the request for nominations available on the appropriate 
website of the Department of Transportation, and requires, not 
later than 1 year after the issuance of the request for 
nominations, that the Secretary make publicly available on the 
appropriate website of the Department of Transportation a list 
specifying the roads, nominated pursuant to such request, to be 
designated under the National Scenic Byways program.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title

    This section states that this Act may be cited as the 
``Reviving America's Scenic Byways Act of 2019''.

Sec. 2. National Scenic Byways Program

    This section requires the Secretary of Transportation to 
issue a request for nominations with respect to roads to be 
designated under the National Scenic Byways Program, and make 
publicly available a list specifying the roads designated.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    On February 6, 2019, Senator Collins introduced S. 349, 
Reviving America's Scenic Byways Act of 2019, with Senator 
Cardin as an original cosponsor. The bill was read twice and 
referred to the Senate Committee on Environment and Public 
Works. Senators Coons, King, Shaheen, Van Hollen, Warren, and 
Whitehouse are additional co-sponsors. The Committee met on 
June 19, 2019, and ordered S. 349 favorably reported by voice 
vote with an amendment in the nature of a substitute offered by 
Senator Cardin.

                                HEARINGS

    No legislative hearings were held by the Committee on 
Environment and Public Works to consider S. 349.

                             ROLLCALL VOTES

    On June 19, 2019, the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works met to consider S. 349. The bill was ordered favorably 
reported by voice vote with an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute. No roll call votes were taken.

                      REGULATORY IMPACT STATEMENT

    In compliance with section 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee finds that S. 349 
does not create any additional regulatory burdens, nor will it 
cause any adverse impact on the personal privacy of 
individuals.

                          MANDATES ASSESSMENT

    In compliance with the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 
(Public Law 104-4), the Committee notes that the Congressional 
Budget Office found that S. 349 contains no intergovernmental 
or private-sector mandates.

                          COST OF LEGISLATION

    Section 403 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment 
Control Act requires that a statement of the cost of the 
reported bill, prepared by the Congressional Budget Office, be 
included in the report. That statement follows:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                     Washington, DC, July 10, 2019.
Hon. John Barrasso,
Chairman, Committee on Environment and Public Works,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 349, the Reviving 
America's Scenic Byways Act of 2019.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Robert Reese.
            Sincerely,
                                                 Phillip L. Swagel.
    Enclosure.

[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
    

    S. 349 would require the Department of Transportation (DOT) 
to solicit nominations of roads for the National Scenic Byways 
Program. DOT is authorized to designate scenic byways that are 
nominated by states, Indian tribes, and federal land management 
agencies and that meet certain other qualifications. States, 
tribes, and land management agencies that control such roads 
have been eligible to receive grants and technical assistance 
for maintenance and improvement projects. In the past, contract 
authority (a form of mandatory budget authority) was provided 
to fund such activities, but no grants have been made since 
2012 and that authority expired in 2013.
    Under the bill, DOT would be required to post the request 
for nominations on its website and to designate new scenic 
byways within one year. The bill would not authorize 
appropriations for this program and accordingly CBO does not 
estimate any increased spending for grants or technical 
assistance.
    Using data from DOT about the number of designations before 
2009 (the most recent year in which designations were made) and 
information from a recent survey of likely applicants, CBO 
estimates that DOT would receive roughly 50 nominations and 
would need the equivalent of one to two full-time staff for up 
to a year to assess those nominations. As a result, CBO 
estimates, implementing the bill would cost less than $500,000 
over the 2019-2024 period; any spending would be subject to the 
availability of appropriated funds.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Robert Reese. 
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    Section 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate 
requires the committee to publish changes in existing law made 
by the bill as reported. Passage of this bill will make no 
changes to existing law.

                                  [all]