STARTER Act 2.0
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Water Resources and Environment.
Surface Transportation Advanced through Reform, Technology, and Efficient Review Act 2.0 or the STARTER Act 2.0
This bill addresses provisions related to federal-aid highway, transit, highway safety, motor carrier, innovation, and resiliency programs of the Department of Transportation (DOT). It also sets forth requirements for the operation of railroad freight cars in the United States.
For example, the bill extends FY2020 enacted levels through FY2026 for federal-aid highway, transit, and safety programs.
DOT must
provide competitive grants for projects to provide parking for commercial motor vehicles on the federal-aid highway system;
establish a discretionary program to award competitive grants for eligible projects that encourage economic viability of the nation, a metropolitan area, or a region;
create a public awareness campaign to reduce instances of driving while under the influence of prescription and over-the-counter medications; and
promulgate regulations to implement an apprenticeship program for licensed commercial motor vehicle drivers under the age of 21.
The bill also establishes new competitive grant programs to spur innovation of connected vehicle applications into operational deployments and to test the safe integration of automated driving system technologies into the on-road transportation system.
Additionally, the bill addresses projects to improve the resiliency of federal-aid highways and bridges on and off the National Highway System.
Further, the bill prohibits the operation of railroad freight cars in the United States that have been manufactured or assembled by certain foreign countries or that contain sensitive technology from such countries.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on May 19, 2021. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on May 20, 2021: Referred to the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 117th Congress (2021-22), 362 of the 15,242 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.4 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
SAM GRAVES (R-MO) introduced it on May 19, 2021, and 38 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 38 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on May 19, 2021, 1940 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 1939 days ago, on May 20, 2021.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 117th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2023 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers