Research and Innovative Technology Administration Reauthorization Act of 2011

Summary

Research and Innovative Technology Administration Reauthorization Act of 2011 - Revises the National Cooperative Freight Transportation Research program. Includes as one of the governing elements of the program that the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) coordinate research agendas, research project selections, and competitions across all NAS transportation-related cooperative research programs to ensure program efficiency, effectiveness, and sharing of research findings. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to establish a Multimodal Innovative Research Program in the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) to support key partnerships between the Department of Transportation (DOT) and other federal agencies in order to leverage their investments in transportation research and technology developments to address transportation problems at modal interfaces or affecting more than one transportation mode. Requires the Program, moreover, to award contracts or cooperative agreements competitively for advanced multimodal transportation research to facilitate practical innovative approaches to solve transportation problems. Establishes in RITA the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), headed by a Director. (Actually, BTS was created in 1992 under the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act [ISTEA] and later transferred to become part of RITA on February 20, 2005.) Requires the BTS Director to establish a transportation database for all modes of transportation. Establishes in the BTS a National Transportation Library. Requires the BTS Director to maintain an Advisory Council on Transportation Statistics. Prohibits certain disclosures of statistical transportation information by a BTS officer, employee, or contractor. Requires the BTS Director to develop a national transportation atlas database composed of geospatial databases. Subjects to a specified fine an owner or person in charge of any company that neglects, or refuses when requested by the BTS Director, to answer completely all questions relating to the company or to make available company records or statistics. Directs the Secretary to report to Congress on the deployment of Gigahertz (GHz) vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communications systems. Authorizes the Secretary to award competitive cash prizes to stimulate innovation in research, technology development, and prototype demonstration that have potential for application to the national transportation system. Revises the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) program. Increases from $250,000 to $500,000 the amount of DOT funds the Secretary may use for each fiscal year to carry out the program on ITS outreach, websites, public relations, displays, tours, and brochures. Authorizes the Secretary to develop and implement incentives to accelerate deployment of ITS technologies and services within all programs funded under this Act. Directs the Secretary to establish the National Travel Data Program. Reauthorizes appropriations out of the Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Account) for FY2012-FY2013 for RITA.

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Documents

6 official files

• Reported to Senate (text)

  Reported to Senate · EN · 13 November 2012

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• Reported to Senate (PDF)

  Reported to Senate · EN · 13 November 2012

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• Reported to Senate without amendment

  summary · EN · 13 November 2012

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• Introduced in Senate (text)

  Introduced in Senate · EN · 7 December 2011

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• Introduced in Senate (PDF)

  Introduced in Senate · EN · 7 December 2011

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• Introduced in Senate

  summary · EN · 7 December 2011

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