BUILD America 250 Act Targets Truck Parking and Cargo Theft

What does the BUILD America 250 Act do for truck parking?

The BUILD America 250 Act introduced by House leaders on May 21 would expand access to truck parking and fund measures to combat cargo theft, two operational issues that directly affect hours-of-service compliance and cargo insurance costs for small fleets.

The bill addresses trucking industry concerns that have pushed drivers into HOS violations when safe parking is unavailable and left carriers exposed to organized theft rings using digital fraud to steal loads.

Parking Shortages Force HOS Violations

Truck parking shortages force drivers to park on highway shoulders, in abandoned lots, or to continue driving past their 11-hour limit to reach a safe spot. Each choice carries compliance risk. Parking on a shoulder can trigger a roadside inspection. Driving past the 11-hour mark generates an HOS violation that adds CSA points and raises the carrier's Unsafe Driving BASIC percentile.

The BUILD America 250 Act would fund construction of new truck parking facilities and expand capacity at existing rest areas. The bill does not specify dollar amounts for parking projects or mandate how states must allocate funds, but it signals federal recognition that parking shortages are a compliance problem, not just a driver convenience issue.

Carriers operating in the Southeast and along I-95 corridors face the tightest parking markets. Drivers in those regions routinely report circling rest areas for 30 minutes or more looking for an open spot during evening hours. When no legal parking is available, the driver must choose between an HOS violation and an unsafe parking location.

Cargo Theft Provisions Target Organized Crime

The BUILD America 250 Act also includes measures to combat cargo theft. Organized crime groups have shifted from physical hijacking to digital fraud, impersonating legitimate carriers, hacking broker systems, and using fake MC numbers to book loads they never intend to deliver.

Cargo theft cost the freight industry $767 million in the first quarter of 2026, according to industry tracking data. Small fleets face higher insurance premiums and stricter broker vetting when theft rates climb. Carriers with a single stolen load on their record can lose access to high-paying broker networks.

The bill does not detail specific anti-theft measures, but the inclusion of cargo theft language indicates House leaders are treating the issue as infrastructure-related: not just a law enforcement problem. Federal funding could support secure parking facilities with surveillance, improved lighting at rest areas, and coordination between state DOT agencies and law enforcement on theft hotspots.

What Small Fleets Should Watch

The BUILD America 250 Act is in the introduction phase. It has not passed committee, received a floor vote, or been signed into law. Carriers should not expect immediate changes to parking availability or theft enforcement.

However, the bill's language signals that federal policymakers are linking parking shortages to HOS compliance failures and cargo theft to infrastructure gaps. If the bill advances, carriers operating in high-theft corridors or parking-scarce regions could see federal dollars flow to state DOT projects that directly affect their daily operations.

Carriers should continue logging parking search time in their ELD remarks and documenting instances where no legal parking was available. If the bill passes and triggers federal audits of parking capacity, that documentation will support state-level funding requests.

For cargo theft, carriers should verify broker identities before accepting loads, check MC numbers against the FMCSA SAFER database, and confirm process agent details match the carrier profile. Organized crime groups are placing fake drivers inside legitimate carriers to steal loads from within, and federal prosecutors now treat cargo theft as organized fraud using fake identities and hacked systems.

The Compliance Angle on Parking Funding

Federal funding for truck parking is a compliance issue because parking shortages force HOS violations. A driver who cannot find legal parking at the end of an 11-hour shift has three choices: park illegally, drive past the limit, or shut down early and lose revenue. All three carry risk.

Parking illegally on a shoulder or in an unauthorized lot can trigger a roadside inspection. If the inspector finds other violations, an expired medical card, a missing fire extinguisher, a tire tread below 2/32, the carrier takes CSA points. Driving past the 11-hour limit generates an automatic HOS violation visible in ELD data during an audit. Shutting down early costs the driver miles and the carrier revenue, but it is the only choice that avoids a violation.

The BUILD America 250 Act would fund parking capacity that reduces the frequency of those forced choices. Carriers operating in regions with new federally funded parking facilities would see fewer HOS violations tied to parking shortages and fewer roadside inspections triggered by illegal shoulder parking.

What Happens Next

The BUILD America 250 Act must pass the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, receive a floor vote in the House, pass the Senate, and be signed by the President before any funding flows. That process typically takes months, and the bill's language may change during committee markup.

Carriers should monitor the bill's progress through the House committee. If the parking and cargo theft provisions survive committee, the bill could trigger federal rulemaking on parking capacity standards or cargo theft reporting requirements. Those rulemakings would carry compliance obligations for carriers.

For now, the bill is a signal that federal policymakers recognize parking shortages and cargo theft as infrastructure problems that affect carrier compliance and operational costs. Small fleets should continue documenting parking search time and theft exposure while the bill moves through Congress.