PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

The federal government runs a program that names roads with special scenic, historic, cultural, natural, recreational, or archaeological value. Roads can be called National Scenic Byways, All‑American Roads, or America’s Byways. The Secretary in charge sets the rules for choosing roads. A State, an Indian tribe, or a Federal land management agency must nominate a road, and the road must already be a State, tribe, or federal byway first. An Indian tribe may only nominate a road if no other federal agency (except the Bureau of Indian Affairs), State, or local government controls or manages it. Tribes must keep nominated roads safe and in good condition. States, tribes, and federal agencies must tell each other about nominations for roads inside or that connect to their areas. The Secretary gives grants and technical help to States and tribes to run byway projects and to create byway programs. Priority goes to projects tied to nationally designated roads that follow a corridor plan, projects on State or tribal byways working toward that plan or national designation, and projects that build State or tribal byway programs. Eligible work includes planning, making corridor management plans, safety upgrades for increased traffic, sidewalks and bike paths, rest areas and overlooks, access for recreation (including water access), protecting nearby resources, tourist info, and marketing. Grants cannot pay for projects that would harm the road’s scenic or historic value. The federal share of project costs is 80 percent. Federal land agencies may use their own funds as the non‑federal share for public roads that give access to federal or Indian lands.

Title 23, §162

Highways, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Designation of Roads.—

(1)In general.—

The Secretary shall carry out a national scenic byways program that recognizes roads having outstanding scenic, historic, cultural, natural, recreational, and archaeological qualities by designating the roads as—

(A)National Scenic Byways;

(B)All-American Roads; or

(C)America’s Byways.

(2)Criteria.—

The Secretary shall designate roads to be recognized under the national scenic byways program in accordance with criteria developed by the Secretary.

(3)Nomination.—

(A)In general.—

To be considered for a designation, a road must be nominated by a State, an Indian tribe, or a Federal land management agency and must first be designated as a State scenic byway, an Indian tribe scenic byway, or, in the case of a road on Federal land, as a Federal land management agency byway.

(B)Nomination by indian tribes.—

An Indian tribe may nominate a road as a National Scenic Byway, an All-American Road, or one of America’s Byways under paragraph (1) only if a Federal land management agency (other than the Bureau of Indian Affairs), a State, or a political subdivision of a State does not have—

(i)jurisdiction over the road; or

(ii)responsibility for managing the road.

(C)Safety.—

An Indian tribe shall maintain the safety and quality of roads nominated by the Indian tribe under subparagraph (A).

(4)Reciprocal notification.—

States, Indian tribes, and Federal land management agencies shall notify each other regarding nominations made under this subsection for roads that—

(A)are within the jurisdictional boundary of the State, Federal land management agency, or Indian tribe; or

(B)directly connect to roads for which the State, Federal land management agency, or Indian tribe is responsible.

(b)Grants and Technical Assistance.—

(1)In general.—

The Secretary shall make grants and provide technical assistance to States and Indian tribes to—

(A)implement projects on highways designated as—

(i)National Scenic Byways;

(ii)All-American Roads;

(iii)America’s Byways;

(iv)State scenic byways; or

(v)Indian tribe scenic byways; and

(B)plan, design, and develop a State or Indian tribe scenic byway program.

(2)Priorities.—

In making grants, the Secretary shall give priority to—

(A)each eligible project that is associated with a highway that has been designated as a National Scenic Byway, All-American Road, or 1 of America’s Byways and that is consistent with the corridor management plan for the byway;

(B)each eligible project along a State or Indian tribe scenic byway that is consistent with the corridor management plan for the byway, or is intended to foster the development of such a plan, and is carried out to make the byway eligible for designation as—

(i)a National Scenic Byway;

(ii)an All-American Road; or

(iii)1 of America’s Byways; and

(C)each eligible project that is associated with the development of a State or Indian tribe scenic byway program.

(c)Eligible Projects.—

The following are projects that are eligible for Federal assistance under this section: (1)

(2)Development and implementation of a corridor management plan to maintain the scenic, historical, recreational, cultural, natural, and archaeological characteristics of a byway corridor while providing for accommodation of increased tourism and development of related amenities.

(3)Safety improvements to a State scenic byway, Indian tribe scenic byway, National Scenic Byway, All-American Road, or one of America’s Byways to the extent that the improvements are necessary to accommodate increased traffic and changes in the types of vehicles using the highway as a result of the designation as a State scenic byway, Indian tribe scenic byway, National Scenic Byway, All-American Road, or one of America’s Byways.

(4)Construction along a scenic byway of a facility for pedestrians and bicyclists, rest area, turnout, highway shoulder improvement, overlook, or interpretive facility.

(5)An improvement to a scenic byway that will enhance access to an area for the purpose of recreation, including water-related recreation.

(6)Protection of scenic, historical, recreational, cultural, natural, and archaeological resources in an area adjacent to a scenic byway.

(7)Development and provision of tourist information to the public, including interpretive information about a scenic byway.

(8)Development and implementation of a scenic byway marketing program.

(d)Limitation.—

The Secretary shall not make a grant under this section for any project that would not protect the scenic, historical, recreational, cultural, natural, and archaeological integrity of a highway and adjacent areas.

(e)Savings Clause.—

The Secretary shall not withhold any grant or impose any requirement on a State or Indian tribe as a condition of providing a grant or technical assistance for any scenic byway unless the requirement is consistent with the authority provided in this chapter.

(f)Federal Share.—

The Federal share of the cost of carrying out a project under this section shall be 80 percent, except that, in the case of any scenic byway project along a public road that provides access to or within Federal or Indian land, a Federal land management agency may use funds authorized for use by the agency as the non-Federal share.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2008—Subsec. (a)(3)(B). Pub. L. 110–244, § 101(o)(1), substituted “a National Scenic Byway, an All-American Road, or one of America’s Byways under paragraph (1)” for “a National Scenic Byway under subparagraph (A)” in introductory provisions. Subsec. (c)(3). Pub. L. 110–244, § 101(o)(2), substituted “All-American Road, or one of America’s Byways” for “or All-American Road” in two places. 2005—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(a)(1), substituted “the roads as—” and subpars. (A) to (C) for “the roads as National Scenic Byways or All-American Roads.” Subsec. (a)(3), (4). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(a)(2), added pars. (3) and (4) and struck out heading and text of former par. (3). Text read as follows: “To be considered for the designation, a road must be nominated by a State or a Federal land management agency and must first be designated as a State scenic byway or, in the case of a road on Federal land, as a Federal land management agency byway.” Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(b)(1), inserted “and Indian tribes” after “States” in introductory provisions. Subsec. (b)(1)(A). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(b)(2), substituted “designated as—” and cls. (i) to (v) for “designated as National Scenic Byways or All-American Roads, or as State scenic byways; and”. Subsec. (b)(1)(B). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(b)(3), inserted “or Indian tribe” after “State”. Subsec. (b)(2)(A). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(b)(4), substituted “Byway, All-American Road, or 1 of America’s Byways” for “Byway or All-American Road”. Subsec. (b)(2)(B). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(b)(5), substituted “State or Indian tribe” for “State-designated” and “designation as—” and cls. (i) to (iii) for “designation as a National Scenic Byway or All-American Road; and”. Subsec. (b)(2)(C). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(b)(6), inserted “or Indian tribe” after “State”. Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(c)(1), inserted “or Indian tribe” after “State”. Subsec. (c)(3). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(c)(2), inserted “Indian tribe scenic byway,” after “improvements to a State scenic byway,” and “designation as a State scenic byway,”. Subsec. (c)(4). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(c)(3), struck out “passing lane,” before “overlook,”. Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 109–59, § 1802(d), inserted “or Indian tribe” after “State”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Reviving America’s Scenic Byways Pub. L. 116–57, Sept. 22, 2019, 133 Stat. 1090, provided that: “section 1.

Short Title

.“This Act may be cited as the ‘Reviving America’s Scenic Byways Act of 2019’. “SEC. 2. NATIONAL SCENIC BYWAYS PROGRAM.“(a) Request for Nominations.—Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act [Sept. 22, 2019], the Secretary of Transportation shall issue a request for nominations with respect to roads to be designated under the national scenic byways program, as described in section 162(a) of title 23, United States Code. The Secretary shall make the request for nominations available on the appropriate website of the Department of Transportation. “(b) Designation Determinations.—Not later than 1 year after the date on which the request for nominations required under subsection (a) is issued, the Secretary shall make publicly available on the appropriate website of the Department of Transportation a list specifying the roads, nominated pursuant to such request, to be designated under the national scenic byways program.”

§162 National Scenic Byways Program