Rep. Kiley Introduces Bill to Fund Self-Driving Public Transit and Autonomous Bus Testing
The SAM Act of 2026 was recently introduced in the House and is currently being reviewed by the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. It is in the early stages of the lawmaking process and is considered active. There are no upcoming votes scheduled at this time.
Most new bills face a long path to becoming law, and this one may face concerns from labor groups about how self-driving buses could affect the jobs of human transit drivers.
Scores run from -100 (strongly harmful) to +100 (strongly beneficial) for each group, combining impact, certainty, scope, and duration ratings of 1-5. How impact scoring works
Transit workers who are union members face uncertain long-term effects. Autonomous bus technology could eventually reduce the need for bus drivers, threatening jobs in a heavily unionized sector. However, deployment will be gradual and create some new maintenance and monitoring roles. The bill does not include workforce transition protections.
Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Introduced in House
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
The SAM Act of 2026, introduced by Rep. Kevin Kiley (I-CA), aims to accelerate the deployment of autonomous buses by making software and digital services eligible capital expenses for federal grants. It also mandates the DOT to establish a second dedicated bus testing site for autonomous vehicles by 2027.
Representative Kevin Kiley has introduced the SAM Act (H.R. 8692) to modernize federal funding for shared autonomous vehicles. The bill proposes a $100 million grant program and updates rules to allow existing grants to cover software and licensing for ADS-equipped buses.
The ACES Mobility Coalition applauded the introduction of the SAM Act, which would provide transit agencies with $100 million in new grants and modernize procurement rules. The bill seeks to address first-and last-mile challenges by integrating self-driving technology into public transit.
No votes or related bills recorded for this bill yet.
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
SAM Act of 2026
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