Transit agencies must post suicide hotline info on buses and trains
H.R. 10216 — Public Transit Mental Health Awareness Act · Filed by Brittany Pettersen (D-CO) · 13 cosponsors · Introduced Sep 1, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill requires public transit agencies that receive federal funding to display information about the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on buses, trains, and transit stations where passengers can see it. The hotline information must note that it is free, confidential, and available 24/7. Transit agencies can meet this requirement by posting in all vehicles or all facilities, and they have one year to comply after the bill becomes law.
Why we flagged it
The bill's sole operative mechanism is a straightforward affirmative requirement that transit agencies receiving federal funds display suicide prevention hotline information. It is a public-health awareness measure, not a funding mechanism, regulatory relief, or commemorative provision.
What the text implies
- Agencies with limited advertising space or tight budgets may face operational friction, though the bill permits satisfaction via either all vehicles OR all facilities, reducing compliance burden.
- The 'reasonable compliance' safe harbor (paragraph 3) protects agencies from liability for temporary damage or vandalism, preventing perverse incentives to neglect displays.
- Requirement does not apply to private transit operators or those not receiving federal chapter 53 assistance, creating a two-tier system where only federally-funded systems must display the information.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
The bill places a low-cost, non-intrusive information requirement on transit agencies to increase public awareness of and access to a free suicide prevention resource. Citizens gain visibility of a potentially life-saving hotline at a high-traffic public venue with no corresponding cost or restriction to their rights or protections.
Named in the bill
Public transit agencies (federal chapter 53 assistance recipients), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (988), U.S. Department of Transportation
Where it stands
13 cosponsors: 11 Democrats, 2 Republicans.
- Sep 1, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Sep 1, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (1,652 characters) on Sep 5, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-10-21.
“Transit agencies must post suicide hotline info on buses and trains” QuorumCivic. https://share.quorumcivic.app/bill/119/hr10216 Report an error
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