[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1605 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







104th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 1605

To amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to manage the Strategic 
      Petroleum Reserve more effectively, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 12, 1996

  Mr. Murkowski (by request) introduced the following bill; which was 
    read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
                               Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to manage the Strategic 
      Petroleum Reserve more effectively, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be 
cited as the ``Energy Policy and Conservation Act Amendment Act''.
    Sec. 2. Section 2 of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 
U.S.C. 6201) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ``standby'' and ``, 
        subject to congressional review, to impose rationing, to reduce 
        demand for energy through the implementation of energy 
        conservation plans, and''; and
            (2) by striking paragraphs (3) and (6).
    Sec. 3. Title I of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 
U.S.C. 6211-6251) is amended--
            (a) by striking section 102 (42 U.S.C. 6211);
            (b) in section 105 (42 U.S.C. 6213)--
                    (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows--
    ``(a) The Secretary of the Interior shall prohibit the bidding for 
any right to develop crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids on 
any lands located on the Outer Continental Shelf by any person if more 
than one major oil company, more than one affiliate of a major oil 
company, or a major oil company and any affiliate of a major oil 
company, has or have a significant ownership interest in that person, 
when the Secretary determines prior to any lease sale that this bidding 
would adversely affect competition or the receipt of fair market 
value''; and
                    (2) by striking subsections (c) and (e);
            (c) by striking section 106 (42 U.S.C. 6214);
            (d) in section 151 (42 U.S.C. 6231)--
                    (1) in subsection (a) by striking ``limited'' and 
                ``short-term''; and
                    (2) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
    ``(b) It is the policy of the United States to provide for the 
creation of a Strategic Petroleum Reserve for the storage of up to 1 
billion barrels of petroleum products to reduce the impact of 
disruptions in supplies of petroleum products or to carry out 
obligations of the United States under the international energy 
program.'';
            (e) in section 152 (42 U.S.C. 6232)--
                    (1) by striking paragraphs (1) and (7); and
                    (2) in paragraph (11) by striking ``, the Early 
                Storage Reserve, and the Regional Petroleum Reserve'', 
                and by adding a period after Industrial Petroleum 
                Reserve.
            (f) by striking section 153 (42 U.S.C. 6233);
            (g) in section 154 (42 U.S.C. 6234)--
                    (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
    ``(a) A Strategic Petroleum Reserve for the storage of up to 1 
billion barrels of petroleum products shall be created pursuant to this 
part.'';
                    (2) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
    ``(b) The Secretary, acting through the Strategic Petroleum Reserve 
Office and in accordance with this part, shall exercise authority over 
the development, operation, and maintenance of the Reserve''; and
                    (3) by striking subsections (c), (d), and (e);
            (h) by striking section 155 (42 U.S.C. 6235);
            (i) in section 156(b) (42 U.S.C. 6236(b)), by striking ``To 
        implement the Early Storage Reserve Plan or the Strategic 
        Petroleum Reserve Plan which has taken effect pursuant to 
        section 159(a), the'' and inserting ``The'';
            (j) by striking section 157 (42 U.S.C. 6237);
            (k) by striking section 158 (42 U.S.C. 6238);
            (l) by amending the heading for section 159 (42 U.S.C. 
        6239) to read: ``Development, Operation, and Maintenance of the 
        Reserve'';
            (m) in section 159 (42 U.S.C. 6239)--
                    (1) by striking subsections (a), (b), (c), (d), and 
                (e);
                    (2) by amending subsection (f) to read as follows:
    ``(f) In order to develop, operate, or maintain the Strategic 
Petroleum Reserve, the Secretary may--
            ``(1) issue rules, regulations, or orders;
            ``(2) acquire by purchase, condemnation, or otherwise, land 
        or interests in land for the location of storage and related 
        facilities;
            ``(3) construct, purchase, lease, or otherwise acquire 
        storage and related facilities;
            ``(4) use, lease, maintain, sell, or otherwise dispose of 
        storage and related facilities acquired under this part, under 
        such terms and conditions as the Secretary may deem necessary 
        or appropriate;
            ``(5) acquire, subject to the provisions of section 160, by 
        purchase, exchange, or otherwise, petroleum products for 
        storage in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve;
            ``(6) store petroleum products in storage facilities owned 
        and controlled by the United States or in storage facilities 
        owned by others if those facilities are subject to audit by the 
        United States;
            ``(7) execute any contracts necessary to develop, operate, 
        or maintain the Strategic Petroleum Reserve;
            ``(8) require an importer of petroleum products or refiner 
        to acquire and to store and maintain, in readily available 
        inventories, petroleum products in the Industrial Petroleum 
        Reserve, under section 156;
            ``(9) require the storage of petroleum products in the 
        Industrial Petroleum Reserve, under section 156, on terms that 
        the Secretary specifies, in storage facilities owned and 
        controlled by the United States or in storage facilities other 
        than those owned by the United States if those facilities are 
        subject to audit by the United States;
            ``(10) require the maintenance of the Industrial Petroleum 
        Reserve;
            ``(11) bring an action, when the Secretary considers it 
        necessary; in any court having jurisdiction over the 
        proceedings, to acquire by condemnation any real or personal 
        property, including facilities, temporary use of facilities; or 
        other interests in land, together with any personal property 
        located on or used with the land; and
            ``(12) to the extent provided in an Appropriations Act, and 
        notwithstanding section 649(b) of the Department of Energy 
        Organization Act (42 U.S.C. 7259(b)),the Secretary is 
        authorized to store in underutilized facilities, by lease or 
        otherwise, petroleum product owned by a foreign government or 
        its representative, petroleum product stored under this 
        paragraph is not part of the Reserve, is not subject to part C 
        of this title, and notwithstanding any provision of this Act, 
        may be exported from the United States.'';
                    (3) in subsection (g)--
                            (A) by striking ``implementation'' and 
                        inserting ``development''; and
                            (B) by striking ``Plan'';
                    (4) by striking subsections (h) and (i);
                    (5) by amending subsection (j) to read as follows:
    ``(j) When the Secretary determines that a 750,000,000 barrel 
inventory can reasonably be expected to be reached in the Reserve 
within 5 years, a plan for expansion will be submitted to the 
Congress.''; and
            (6) by amending subsection (l) to read as follows:
    ``(l) During any period in which drawdown and distribution are 
being implemented, the Secretary may issue rules, regulations, or 
orders to implement the drawdown and distribution of the Strategic 
Petroleum Reserve in accordance with section 553 of title 5, United 
States Code, without regard to rulemaking requirements in section 523 
of this Act, and section 501 of the Department of Energy Organization 
Act (42 U.S.C. 7191);
            (n) in section 160 (42 U.S.C. 6240)--
                    (1) in subsection (a), by striking all before the 
                dash and inserting the following--
    ``(a) To the extent funds are available under section 167(b)(2) and 
(3) and for the purposes of implementing the Strategic Petroleum 
Reserve, the Secretary may acquire, place in storage, transport, or 
exchange'';
                    (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``including the 
                Early Storage Reserve and the Regional Petroleum 
                Reserve'' and paragraph (2); and
                    (3) by striking subsections (c), (d), (e), and (g);
            (o) in section 161 (42 U.S.C. 6241)--
                    (1) by striking subsections (b) and (c);
                    (2) by amending subsection (d)(1) to read as 
                follows:
    ``(d)(1) No drawdown and distribution of the Strategic Petroleum 
Reserve may be made unless the President has found drawdown and 
distribution is required by a severe energy supply interruption or by 
obligations of the United States under the international energy 
program.'';
                    (3) by amending subsection (e) to read as follows:
    ``(e)(1) The Secretary shall sell any petroleum product withdrawn 
from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve at public sale to the highest 
qualified bidder in the amounts, for the period, and after a notice of 
sale the Secretary considers proper, and without regard to Federal, 
State, or local regulations controlling sales of petroleum products.
    ``(2) The Secretary may cancel in whole or in part any offer to 
sell petroleum products as part of any drawdown and distribution under 
this section.''; and
                    (4) in subsection (g)--
                            (A) in paragraph (1), by striking 
                        ``Distribution Plan'' and inserting 
                        ``distribution procedures'';
                            (B) by striking paragraphs (2) and (6); and
                            (C) in paragraph (4), by striking ``90'' 
                        and inserting ``95'';
            (p) by striking section 164 (42 U.S.C. 6244);
            (q) by amending section 165 (42 U.S.C. 6245) to read as 
        follows--
    ``Sec. 165. The Secretary shall report annually to the President 
and the Congress on actions taken to implement this part. This report 
shall include--
            ``(1) the status of the physical capacity of the Reserve 
        and the type and quantity of petroleum in the Reserve;
            ``(2) an estimate of the schedule and cost to complete 
        planned equipment upgrade or capital investment in the Reserve, 
        including those carried out as part of operational maintenance 
        or extension of life activities;
            ``(3) an identification of any life-limiting conditions or 
        operational problems at any Reserve facility, and proposed 
        remedial actions including an estimate of the schedule and cost 
        of implementing such remedial actions;
            ``(4) a description of current withdrawal and distribution 
        rates and capabilities, and an identification of any 
        operational or other limitations on such rates and 
        capabilities;
            ``(5) an identification of purchases of petroleum made in 
        the preceding year and planned in the following year, including 
        quantity, price, and type of petroleum;
            ``(6) a summary of the actions taken to develop, operate, 
        and maintain the Reserve;
            ``(7) a summary of the financial status and financial 
        transactions of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and Strategic 
        Petroleum Reserve Petroleum Accounts for the year;
            ``(8) a summary of expenses for the year, and the number of 
        Federal and contractor employees;
            ``(9) the status of contracts for development, operation, 
        maintenance, distribution, and other activities related to the 
        implementation of this part; and
            ``(10) any recommendations for supplemental legislation or 
        policy or operational changes the Secretary considers necessary 
        and appropriate to implement this part.'';
            (r) in section 166 (42 U.S.C. 6246) by striking all after 
        ``appropriated'' and inserting ``the funds necessary to 
        implement this part.'';
            (s) in section 167 (42 U.S.C. 6247) subsection (b)--
                            (A) by inserting ``for test sales of 
                        petroleum products from the Reserve,'' after 
                        ``Strategic Petroleum Reserve,'', and by 
                        inserting ``for'' before ``the drawdown'';
                            (B) by striking paragraph (1); and
                            (C) in paragraph (2), by striking ``after 
                        fiscal year 1982'';
            (t) in section 171 (42 U.S.C. 6249) by amending 
        subparagraph (b)(2)(B) to read as follows:
                    ``(B) the Secretary notifies each House of the 
                Congress of the determination and identifies in the 
                notification the location, type, and ownership of 
                storage and related facilities proposed to be included, 
                or the volume, type, and ownership of petroleum product 
                proposed to be stored, in the Reserve, and an estimate 
                of the proposed benefits;'';
            (u) in section 172 (42 U.S.C. 6249a), by striking 
        subsections (a) and (b);
            (v) by striking section 173 (42 U.S.C. 6249b); and
            (w) in section 181 (42 U.S.C. 6251), by striking ``June 30, 
        1996'' each time it appears and inserting ``September 30, 
        2001''.
    Sec. 4. Title II of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 
U.S.C. 6211-6251) is amended--
            (a) by striking Part A (42 U.S.C. 6261 through 6264);
            (b) by striking ``section 252(l)(1)'' in section 251(e)(1) 
        (42 U.S.C. 6271(e)(1)) and inserting ``section 252(k)(1)'';
            (c) in section 252 (42 U.S.C. 6272)--
                    (1) in subsections (a)(1) and (b), by striking 
                ``allocation and information provisions of the 
                international energy program'' and inserting 
                ``international emergency response provisions'';
                    (2) in subsection (d)(3), by striking ``known'' and 
                inserting after ``circumstances'' ``known at the time 
                of approval'';
                    (3) in subsection (e)(2) by striking ``shall'' and 
                inserting ``may'';
                    (4) in subsection (f)(2) by inserting ``voluntary 
                agreement or'' after ``approved'';
                    (5) by amending subsection (h) to read as follows:
    ``(h) Section 708 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 shall not 
apply to any agreement or action undertaken for the purpose of 
developing or carrying out--
            ``(1) the international energy program, or
            ``(2) any allocation, price control, or similar program 
        with respect to petroleum products under this Act.'';
                    (6) in subsection (i) by inserting ``annually, or'' 
                after ``least'' and by inserting ``during an 
                international energy supply emergency'' after 
                ``months'';
                    (7) in subsection (k) by amending paragraph (2) to 
                read as follows:
            ``(2) The term `international emergency response 
        provisions' means--
                    ``(A) the provisions of the international energy 
                program which relate to international allocation of 
                petroleum products and to the information system 
                provided in the program; and
                    ``(B) the emergency response measures adopted by 
                the Governing Board of the International Energy Agency 
                (including the July 11, 1984, decision by the Governing 
                Board on `Stocks and Supply Disruptions') for--
                            ``(i) the coordinated drawdown of stocks of 
                        petroleum products held or controlled by 
                        governments; and
                            ``(ii) complementary actions taken by 
                        governments during an existing or impending 
                        international oil supply disruption''; and
                    (8) by amending subsection (l) to read as follows:
    ``(l) The antitrust defense under subsection (f) shall not extend 
to the international allocation of petroleum products unless allocation 
is required by chapters III and IV of the international energy program 
during an international energy supply emergency.'';
            (d) by adding at the end of section 256(h), ``There are 
        authorized to be appropriated for fiscal years 1996 through 
        2001, such sums as may be necessary.'';
            (e) by striking Part C (42 U.S.C. 271 through 272); and
            (f) in section 281 (42 U.S.C. 6285), by striking ``June 30, 
        1996'' each time it appears and inserting ``September 30, 
        2001''.
    Sec. 5. (a) Title III of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 
U.S.C. 6291-6327, 6361-6374d) is amended--
            (1) in section 365(f) (42 U.S.C. 6325(f)) by amending 
        paragraph (1) to read as follows:
            ``(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), for the purpose 
        of carrying out this part, there are authorized to be 
        appropriated $24,650 million for fiscal year 1996 and for 
        fiscal years 1997 through 2001, such sums as may be 
        necessary.''; and
            (2) section 397 (42 U.S.C. 6371f) is amended to read as 
        follows: ``For the purpose of carrying out this part, there are 
        authorized $26,849 million to be appropriated for fiscal year 
        1996 and for fiscal years 1997 through 2001, such sums as may 
        be necessary.''.
    (b) In section 400BB(b) (42 U.S.C. 6374a(b)) by amending paragraph 
(1) to read as follows:
            ``(1) There are authorized to be appropriated to the 
        Secretary for carrying out this section such sums as may be 
        necessary for fiscal years 1996 through 2001, to remain 
        available until expended.''.
    Sec. 6. Title V of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 
U.S.C. 6381-6422) is amended--
            (1) by striking section 507 (42 U.S.C. 6385); and
            (2) by striking section 522 (42 U.S.C. 6392).
                                 <all>