49 U.S.C. § 6304 — National Transportation Library

Page 401 TITLE 49—TRANSPORTATION § 6305 Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective Oct. 1, 2012, see section 3(a) of Pub. L. 112–141, set out as an Effective and Termination Dates of 2012 Amendment note under section 101 of Title 23, Highways. § 6304. National Transportation Library (a) PURPOSE AND ESTABLISHMENT.—To support the information management and decision- making needs of transportation officials at the Federal, State, and local levels, there is estab- lished in the Bureau a National Transportation Library which shall— (1) be headed by an individual who is highly qualified in library and information science; (2) acquire, preserve, and manage transpor- tation information and information products and services for use by the Department, other Federal agencies, and the general public; (3) provide reference and research assistance; (4) serve as a central depository for research results and technical publications of the De- partment; (5) provide a central clearinghouse for trans- portation data and information of the Federal Government; (6) serve as coordinator and policy lead for transportation information access; (7) provide transportation information and information products and services to— (A) the Department; (B) other Federal agencies; (C) public and private organizations; and (D) individuals, within the United States and internationally; (8) coordinate efforts among, and cooperate with, transportation libraries, information providers, and technical assistance centers, in conjunction with private industry and other transportation library and information cen- ters, with the goal of developing a comprehen- sive transportation information and knowl- edge network that supports the activities de- scribed in section 6302(b)(3)(B)(vi); and (9) engage in such other activities as the Di- rector determines to be necessary and as the resources of the Library permit. (b) ACCESS.—The Director shall publicize, fa- cilitate, and promote access to the information products and services described in subsection (a), to improve the ability of the transportation community to share information and the ability of the Director to make statistics and other in- formation readily accessible as required under section 6302(b)(3)(B)(x). (c) AGREEMENTS.— (1) IN GENERAL.—To carry out this section, the Director may enter into agreements with, award grants to, and receive amounts from, any— (A) State or local government; (B) organization; (C) business; or (D) individual. (2) CONTRACTS, GRANTS, AND AGREEMENTS.— The Library may initiate and support specific information and data management, access, and exchange activities in connection with matters relating to the Department’s stra- tegic goals, knowledge networking, and na- tional and international cooperation, by en- tering into contracts or other agreements or awarding grants for the conduct of such activi- ties. (3) AMOUNTS.—Any amounts received by the Library as payment for library products and services or other activities shall be made available to the Director to carry out this sec- tion, deposited in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology of the Department of Transportation’s general fund account, and remain available until expended. (Added Pub. L. 112–141, div. E, title II, § 52011(a), July 6, 2012, 126 Stat. 890; amended Pub. L. 113–76, div. L, title I, Jan. 17, 2014, 128 Stat. 574.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries CHANGE OF NAME ‘‘Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology of the Department of Transportation’s’’ substituted for ‘‘Research and Innovative Technology Administration’s’’ in subsec. (c)(3) on authority of title I of div. L of Pub. L. 113–76, set out in part as a Transfer of Duties and Powers note under former section 112 of this title. EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective Oct. 1, 2012, see section 3(a) of Pub. L. 112–141, set out as an Effective and Termination Dates of 2012 Amendment note under section 101 of Title 23, Highways. § 6305. Advisory council on transportation statis- tics (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall establish and consult with an advisory council on trans- portation statistics. (b) FUNCTION.—The advisory council estab- lished under this section shall advise the Direc- tor on— (1) the quality, reliability, consistency, ob- jectivity, and relevance of transportation sta- tistics and analyses collected, supported, or disseminated by the Bureau and the Depart- ment; and (2) methods to encourage cooperation and interoperability of transportation data col- lected by the Bureau, the operating adminis- trations of the Department, States, local gov- ernments, metropolitan planning organiza- tions, and private sector entities. (c) MEMBERSHIP.— (1) IN GENERAL.—The advisory council shall be composed of not fewer than 9 and not more than 11 members appointed by the Director. (2) SELECTION.—In selecting members for the advisory council, the Director shall appoint individuals who— (A) are not officers or employees of the United States; (B) possess expertise in— (i) transportation data collection, anal- ysis, or application; (ii) economics; or (iii) transportation safety; and (C) represent a cross section of transpor- tation stakeholders, to the greatest extent possible.