August 5, 2026
Mr. Reed (for himself and Mr. Hawley) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
To amend title 49, United States Code, to set requirements for certain operator workstations for fixed route buses, 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 Bus Operator Safety and Security Act
.
Sec. 2. Public transportation safety program
Section 5329 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
(1)
by redesignating subsections (f) through (k) as subsections (g) through (l), respectively; and
(2)
by inserting after subsection (e) the following:
(f) Fixed route bus operator workstations
Beginning 2 years after the date of enactment of this subsection, unless a recipient certifies that a labor organization representing the plurality of the frontline workforce employed by the recipient or, if applicable, employed by a contractor to the recipient, has agreed to waive this requirement with regard to the new fixed route bus being purchased with the requested Federal funds, the operator workstation of any new fixed route bus which is 30 or more feet in length with a useful life of 10 or more years purchased with Federal funds (with the exception of funds derived from section 5311) by a recipient shall be equipped with a barrier that—
(1)
reaches from the bus floor to the bus ceiling;
(2)
is capable of fully enclosing the workstation and preventing the unwanted entry of persons, fluids, and objects into the workstation; and
(3)
does not impede the operator’s lines of sight from the workstation to the exterior of the bus.