WASHINGTON The U.S House of Representatives has passed without dissent -- a controversial bill that seeks to beef up motorcoach industry compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The bill would require the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to crack down on existing and new operators that fail to comply with federal accessibility regulations. (See Dec. 1 and Dec. 15 issues of Bus & Motorcoach News.)

The bill's sponsors say the intent of the legislation is to have FMCSA put compliance with ADA on par with compliance with federal safety rules. And it would make clear the agency may suspend, amend or revoke USDOT operating authority if an operator willfully fails to comply with federal ADA requirements.

Additionally, the bill requires the USDOT and the Justice Department to enter into a memorandum of understanding to clearly define each departments role and responsibility in enforcing the ADA provisions that apply to over-the-road bus operators.

The bill is being pushed in Congress by the American Bus Association; the United Motorcoach Association has stated its opposition to the measure.

Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, took the bill to the floor of the House before Congress' Christmas break and got the rules suspended so it could be put to an immediate vote.

Oberstar told fellow House members the legislation would ensure that the USDOT accessibility regulations for motorcoach operators "are vigorously monitored and actively enforced."

"Regulations have to be enforced to be effective, and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has interpreted the motor carrier statute in a way that limits the agencys ability to assess compliance with over-the-road bus accessibility regulations," said Oberstar.

"That's not acceptable. ... Relying simply on Department of Justice enforcement authority, the FMCSA felt it couldn't take action on violations of its own regulations by over-the-road bus companies. In (a) U.S. Court of Appeals case, Peter Pan Bus Lines and Bonanza Acquisition, the court rejected the claim the agency does not have discretion to interpret the law to allow consideration of compliance with ADA. The case was sent back to FMCSA for further review in February of this year.

"But again the agency dragged its feet. After eight months of failure to act, the FMCSA responded to the court in October but only after (Rep. Peter) DeFazio (D-Ore.) and I expressed our intent to legislate a solution if the agency did not provide its own plans to comply with ADA requirements.

"In the decision, FMCSA defends its position that the agency does not have the authority to enforce the American with Disabilities Act and said, "If Congress intended to expand the fitness criteria to include compliance with additional DOT regulations, such as 49 CFR part 37, it presumably would have said so."

"Well, we are saying so today," said Oberstar. "If thats what they think they need, then we are going to make sure they have the authority to do it. There is no excuse for any further delay."

Specifically, the bill amends federal law to prohibit the FMCSA from granting operating authority to any motor carrier providing over-the-road bus transportation where the carrier is not willing or able to comply with ADA accessibility requirements.

"ADA was enacted 17 years ago. We need to keep our vigilance over its enforcement, make sure that the agency is doing its responsibility to oversight and that the carriers are complying with their responsibility to all members of the traveling public," said Oberstar.

Speaking in support of the bill, Rep. Thomas Petri, D-Wis., said the legislation "will level the playing field for all bus and motorcoach companies operating in interstate commerce. Companies who have ignored the ADA will not have a competitive advantage over the good actors who have spent substantial amounts on lifts and other equipment to make their buses accessible."

Among the lingering concerns about the legislation is how the FMCSA will react if and when the bill becomes law, and how it will set about implementing it.

Many critics of the bill believe it will require a rulemaking by the FMCSA, raising the specter of additional paperwork requirements for operators, plus tougher penalties. There also is worry about possible administrative nightmares for companies that operate mixed fleets of line-run buses, where ADA requirements are stringent, and tour and charter coaches, which have different ADA rules.

Even if the paperwork burden doesn't grow substantially, certainly there will be greater scrutiny of the annual reports operators currently are required to submit to the FMCSA.

One senior regional FMCSA official predicted in a phone conversation with Bus & Motorcoach News that federal compliance reviews will become longer and more time consuming, and record keeping requirements will expand if the bill becomes law.