[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 171 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
106th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 171
To amend the Clean Air Act to limit the concentration of sulfur in
gasoline used in motor vehicles.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 19, 1999
Mr. Moynihan (for himself, Mr. Levin, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Schumer, Mrs.
Boxer, and Mr. Cleland) introduced the following bill; which was read
twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Clean Air Act to limit the concentration of sulfur in
gasoline used in motor vehicles.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Clean Gasoline Act of 1999''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) according to the National Air Quality and Emissions
Trends Report of the Environmental Protection Agency, dated
1996, motor vehicles account for a major portion of the
emissions that degrade the air quality of the United States: 49
percent of nitrogen oxides emissions, 26 percent of emissions
of particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter smaller than
or equal to 10 micrometers (PM-10), and 78 percent of carbon
monoxide emissions;
(2)(A) failure to control gasoline sulfur concentration
adversely affects catalytic converter function for all vehicles
in the national vehicle fleet; and
(B) research performed collaboratively by the auto and oil
industries demonstrates that when sulfur concentration in motor
vehicle gasoline is reduced from 450 parts per million
(referred to in this section as ``ppm'') to 50 ppm--
(i) hydrocarbon emissions are reduced by 18
percent;
(ii) carbon monoxide emissions are reduced by 19
percent; and
(iii) nitrogen oxide emissions are reduced by 8
percent;
(3)(A) recent studies conducted by the the Association of
International Automobile Manufacturers, and the Coordinating
Research Council confirm that sulfur in vehicle fuel impairs to
an even greater degree the emission controls of Low-Emission
Vehicles (referred to in this section as ``LEVs'') and Ultra-
Low-Emission Vehicles (referred to in this section as
``ULEVs'');
(B) because sulfur-induced impairment of advanced
technology emission control systems is not fully reversible
under normal in-use driving conditions, a nationwide, year-
round sulfur standard is necessary to prevent impairment of
vehicles' emission control systems as the vehicles travel
across State lines;
(C) industry research on LEVs and ULEVs demonstrates that
when gasoline sulfur concentration is lowered from 330 ppm to
40 ppm--
(i) hydrocarbon emissions are reduced by 34
percent;
(ii) carbon monoxide emissions are reduced by 43
percent; and
(iii) nitrogen oxide emissions are reduced by 51
percent;
(D) failure to control sulfur in gasoline will inhibit the
introduction of more fuel-efficient technologies, such as
direct injection engines and ``NO<INF>x</INF> trap'' after-
treatment technology, which require fuel with a very low
concentration of sulfur;
(E) the technology for removing sulfur from fuel during the
refining process is readily available and currently in use; and
(F) the reduction of sulfur concentrations in fuel to the
level required by this Act is a cost-effective means of
improving air quality;
(4)(A) gasoline sulfur levels in the United States--
(i) average between 300 and 350 ppm and range as
high as 1000 ppm; and
(ii) are far higher than the levels allowed in many
other industrialized nations, and higher than the
levels allowed by some developing nations;
(B) the European Union recently approved a standard of 150
ppm to take effect in 2000, to be phased down to 30 through 50
ppm by 2005;
(C) Japan has a standard of 50 ppm; and
(D) gasoline and diesel fuel in Australia, New Zealand,
Taiwan, Hong Kong, Thailand, and Finland have significantly
lower sulfur concentrations than comparable gasoline and diesel
fuel in the United States;
(5)(A) California is the only State that regulates sulfur
concentration in all gasoline sold; and
(B) in June 1996, California imposed a 2-part limitation on
sulfur concentration in gasoline: a 40 ppm per gallon maximum,
or a 30 ppm per gallon annual average with an 80 ppm per gallon
maximum;
(6)(A) a 1998 regulatory impact analysis by the California
Air Resources Board reports that air quality improved
significantly in the year following the introduction of low
sulfur gasoline; and
(B) the California Air Resources Board credits low sulfur
gasoline with reducing ozone levels by 10 percent on the South
Coast, 12 percent in Sacramento, and 2 percent in the Bay Area;
and
(7)(A) reducing sulfur concentration in gasoline to the
level required by this Act is a cost-effective pollution
prevention measure that will provide significant and immediate
benefits; and
(B) unlike vehicle hardware requirements that affect only
new model years, sulfur control produces the benefits of
reduced emissions of air pollutants across the vehicle fleet
immediately upon implementation.
SEC. 3. SULFUR CONCENTRATION REQUIREMENTS FOR GASOLINE.
(a) In General.--Section 211 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545)
is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsection (o) as subsection (p); and
(2) by inserting after subsection (n) the following:
``(o) Sulfur Concentration Requirements for Gasoline.--
``(1) In general.--
``(A) Requirement.--Subject to subparagraph (B),
effective beginning 4 years after the date of enactment
of this paragraph, a person shall not manufacture,
sell, supply, offer for sale or supply, dispense,
transport, or introduce into commerce motor vehicle
gasoline that contains a concentration of sulfur that
is greater than 40 parts per million per gallon of
gasoline.
``(B) Alternative method of measuring compliance.--
A person shall not be considered to be in violation of
paragraph (1) if the person manufactures, sells,
supplies, offers for sale or supply, dispenses,
transports, or introduces into commerce, during any 1-
year period, motor vehicle gasoline that contains a
concentration of sulfur that is greater than 40 but
less than or equal to 80 parts per million per gallon
of gasoline, if the average concentration of sulfur in
the motor vehicle gasoline manufactured, sold,
supplied, offered for sale or supply, dispensed,
transported, or introduced into commerce by the person
during the period is less than 30 parts per million per
gallon of gasoline.
``(C) Regulations.--The Administrator shall
promulgate such regulations as are necessary to carry
out this paragraph.
``(2) Lower sulfur concentration.--
``(A) Report.--
``(i) Initial report.--Not later than 6
years after the date of enactment of this
subsection, the Administrator shall submit to
Congress a report that documents the effects of
use of low sulfur motor vehicle gasoline on
urban and regional air quality.
``(ii) Followup report.--Not later than 2
years after the date of the initial report
under clause (i), the Administrator shall
submit a report updating the information
contained in the initial report.
``(B) Regulation.--After the date of the initial
report under subparagraph (A)(i), the Administrator may
promulgate a regulation to establish maximum and
average allowable sulfur concentrations in motor
vehicle gasoline that are lower than the concentrations
specified in paragraph (1) if the Administrator
determines that--
``(i) research conducted after the date of
enactment of this subsection indicates that
significant air quality benefits would result
from a reduction in allowable sulfur
concentration in motor vehicle gasoline; or
``(ii) advanced vehicle technologies have
been developed that can significantly reduce
emissions of air pollutants from motor vehicles
but that require motor vehicle gasoline with a
lower concentration of sulfur than that
specified in paragraph (1).''.
(b) Penalties and Injunctions.--Section 211(d) of the Clean Air Act
(42 U.S.C. 7545(d)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``or (n)'' each place it
appears and inserting ``(n), or (o)''; and
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and (n)'' each place it
appears and inserting ``(n), and (o)''.
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