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[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6531 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6531
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to issue regulations
requiring bridge clearance information in certain GPS navigation
devices, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 9, 2025
Mr. Latimer (for himself, Mr. Bresnahan, Mr. Larson of Connecticut, Mr.
Mackenzie, and Mr. Kennedy of New York) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Science, Space, and
Technology, 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 direct the Secretary of Transportation to issue regulations
requiring bridge clearance information in certain GPS navigation
devices, 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 ``Bridges not Bumpers Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. DOT BRIDGE CLEARANCE STRIKE WORKING GROUP.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Transportation shall establish
a bridge clearance strike working group to make recommendations on ways
to improve public-private data sharing regarding bridge clearance and
commercial motor vehicle route data.
(b) Membership.--The working group established under subsection (a)
shall include representatives from--
(1) the Federal Highway Administration;
(2) The Federal Railroad Administration;
(3) the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration;
(4) State departments of transportation;
(5) trucking organizations;
(6) producers of GPS navigation systems;
(7) law enforcement agencies;
(8) companies that rent or lease covered rental vehicles
directly to consumers; and
(9) Class I, II, and III railroad carriers.
(c) Contents of Recommendations.--The recommendations required
under subsection (a) shall--
(1) include ways to improve the availability of information
and route signs specific to commercial motor vehicles on GPS
navigation tools;
(2) address potential liability issues if bridge clearance
information shared between public and private partners is not
accurate;
(3) address ways to improve truck driver knowledge about
bridge strikes that may include a section on commercial
driver's license tests about bridge strikes;
(4) include ways for companies that rent covered rental
vehicles to clearly label their vehicles with height and weight
information;
(5) include ways for companies that rent covered rental
vehicles to provide notice, whether orally or written, of
vehicle height to individuals who rent or lease a vehicle, and
warn such individuals to look out for road signs about vehicle
height; and
(6) address what public or private funding streams would be
necessary to incorporate bridge clearance and truck route data
into GPS navigation tools.
(d) Regulations.--Not later than 1 year after the working group
issues recommendations under subsection (a), the Secretary shall issue
such regulations as are necessary to implement such recommendations.
(e) Immunity From Certain Liability.--A GPS administrator shall be
immune from liability in a civil action in any court for any injury
resulting from the inclusion of information on clearance heights of
bridges, tunnels, or underpasses provided by a State or the Federal
Government.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON NATIONAL EDUCATION CAMPAIGN.
(a) In General.--It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the Secretary, in coordination with the working group
established under section 3, should conduct a national
education campaign to prevent and raise awareness on bridge
strikes by commercial motor vehicles; and
(2) the national education campaign should be targeted
towards--
(A) educational programs for commercial drivers;
(B) independent operator businesses; and
(C) motor carrier associations.
SEC. 4. NATIONAL CLEARINGHOUSE FOR BRIDGE AND TUNNEL CLEARANCE STRIKES.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Transportation shall establish
a national clearinghouse for bridge and tunnel clearance strikes that--
(1) serves as a centralized repository for data collection,
management, and dissemination of best practices for prevention
of bridge strikes by commercial motor vehicles; and
(2) is modeled after the prototype developed by the
National Cooperative Highway Research Program of the National
Academies in the publication titled ``Guide for Preventing and
Mitigating the Risk of Bridge and Tunnel Strikes by Motor
Vehicles'' (NCHRP 08-139).
(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to the Secretary $5,000,000 to carry out this section.
SEC. 5. GRANTS FOR RESEARCH ON POTENTIAL IMPROVEMENTS TO ROADWAY,
BRIDGE, AND TUNNEL LOCATIONS.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish a grant program
to provide grants to eligible entities to conduct research using the
clearinghouse established under section 4 to--
(1) identify roadway, bridge, and tunnel locations for
potential infrastructure improvement projects to mitigate
bridge and tunnel clearance strikes;
(2) conduct basic, preliminary engineering tasks to analyze
alternative bridge strike mitigation options and identify
preferred mitigation alternative recommendations; and
(3) assess the effectiveness of currently implemented and
future countermeasures against bridge and tunnel clearance
strikes and strategies and programs to reduce such strikes.
(b) Eligible Entities.--An entity eligible to receive a grant under
this section is--
(1) a State department of transportation;
(2) a unit of local government;
(3) a metropolitan planning organization;
(4) Class II and Class III railroads; and
(5) a transportation safety organization.
(c) Prioritization.--In providing grants under this section, the
Secretary shall prioritize eligible entities located in States with a
high incidence of bridge strikes, as determined by the Secretary.
(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030 to
carry out this section.
SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS OF COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE.
In this Act:
(1) Commercial motor vehicle.--The term ``commercial motor
vehicle'' has the meaning given the term in section 31132 of
title 49, United States Code.
(2) Covered rental vehicle.--The term ``covered rental
vehicle'' means a motor vehicle that--
(A) is self-propelled or towed and used on public
streets, roads, and highways except a truck tractor;
(B) has a gross vehicle weight rating of at least
5,700 pounds;
(C) is rented without a driver for an initial term
of less than 4 months; and
(D) is part of a motor vehicle fleet of 5 or more
motor vehicles that are used for rental purposes by a
rental company.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, 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.
Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, 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.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit.
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