Congress mandates 5% of public-lands funds for trails and sidewalks
H.R. 8514 — Active Transportation for Public Lands Act · Filed by Jared Huffman (D-CA) · Introduced Apr 27, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill requires the Secretary of Transportation to set aside at least 5% of federal funding from two existing public-lands transportation programs (Federal Lands Transportation and Federal Lands Access) for active transportation projects—sidewalks, bike trails, pedestrian infrastructure, and safe routes for non-drivers on federal lands. The money comes from existing program budgets, not new appropriations.
Why we flagged it
The bill's sole operative mechanism is a mandatory funding set-aside for pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure on federal lands. It is a straightforward public-goods allocation with no private carve-outs or deregulatory intent.
What the text implies
- The 5% set-aside reduces funds available for other Federal Lands Transportation and Access program activities (vehicle roads, maintenance, etc.), potentially affecting rural access or vehicle-dependent communities on federal lands.
- The bill does not specify how the 5% is calculated or whether it applies to both programs equally, creating potential implementation ambiguity.
- Active transportation infrastructure on federal lands may have lower utilization in remote areas, raising questions about cost-effectiveness in low-density regions.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
The bill mandates dedicated funding for pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure on federal lands, benefiting non-drivers (children, older adults, people with disabilities, low-income travelers) by improving safe access to public lands and reducing car dependency. The set-aside is funded from existing program budgets, not new taxes, so the cost is borne by reallocation rather than public expense.
Who stands to gain
- construction and engineering firms specializing in pedestrian/bicycle infrastructure
- landscape architecture and design consultants
- trail maintenance contractors
Named in the bill
Secretary of Transportation, Federal Lands Transportation Program, Federal Lands Access Program, 23 U.S.C. § 201, Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
Where it stands
- Apr 27, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Apr 27, 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 (1,413 characters) on Jul 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 2026-10-20.
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