[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3933 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3933

To protect electricity reliability by prohibiting the use of funds for 
  carrying out certain policies and procedures that adversely affect 
        domestic coal mining operations, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 29, 2010

  Mr. Bunning introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To protect electricity reliability by prohibiting the use of funds for 
  carrying out certain policies and procedures that adversely affect 
        domestic coal mining operations, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Electricity Reliability Protection 
Act of 2010''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The United States consumes over 1 billion tons of coal 
        annually. Most of this coal is used to meet nearly one-half of 
        the Nation's electricity needs. The remaining amount of coal is 
        used to produce, among other things, steel, plastics, synthetic 
        fibers, medicines, and coke.
            (2) On June 11, 2009, the Environmental Protection Agency 
        and the Department of the Army issued a Memorandum on 
        ``Enhanced Surface Coal Mining Pending Permit Coordination 
        Procedures''.
            (3) As of March 2010, under these new procedures, the 
        Environmental Protection Agency has unlawfully delayed Clean 
        Water Act permits for 190 coal mining operations.
            (4) These 190 coal mining operations are expected to 
        produce over 2 billion tons of coal (throughout the life of 
        operations) and support roughly 17,806 new and existing jobs as 
        well as 81 small businesses.
            (5) Due to the actions of the Environmental Protection 
        Agency, roughly 1 in every 4 coal mining jobs in the 
        Appalachian region is at risk of elimination, 81 small 
        businesses will lose significant income and will be at risk of 
        bankruptcy, and more than 2 years of the Nation's coal supply 
        is in jeopardy.
            (6) By preventing the production and use of a 2-year supply 
        of coal, the Environmental Protection Agency is putting 
        electricity reliability for consumers at risk.
            (7) On April 1, 2010, Peter S. Silva, Assistant 
        Administrator for the Office of Water, and Cynthia Giles, 
        Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and 
        Compliance Assistance, took further action to threaten jobs, 
        harm small businesses, reduce electricity reliability, harm 
        national security, and drive up energy prices by releasing 
        detailed guidance on ``Improving EPA Review of Appalachian 
        Surface Coal Mining Operations under the Clean Water Act, 
        National Environmental Policy Act, and the Environmental 
        Justice Executive Order''.
            (8) This guidance goes far beyond clarification and 
        coordination and arrogates to the Environmental Protection 
        Agency wholly new powers to supersede the authority of States 
        under the Clean Water Act and the Surface Mining Control and 
        Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA), the authority of the Corps of 
        Engineers (Corps) under the Clean Water Act, the authority of 
        the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement of the 
        Department of the Interior (OSM) under SMCRA, and the authority 
        of both the Corps and OSM under the National Environmental 
        Policy Act of 1969.
            (9) The June 2009 memorandum and the April 2010 guidance 
        meet the definition of a rulemaking under the Administrative 
        Procedure Act because each is an ``agency statement of general 
        or particular applicability and future effect designed to 
        implement, interpret, or prescribe law or policy'' under 
        section 551(4) of title 5, United States Code.
            (10) The Environmental Protection Agency has not gone 
        through notice and comment rulemaking to prescribe the new 
        policies set forth in the June 2009 memorandum or the April 
        2010 guidance in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act.
            (11) Any use of the June 2009 memorandum or the April 2010 
        guidance to review, delay, and veto Clean Water Act permits is 
        unlawful.
            (12) The actions of the Environmental Protection Agency 
        could cause drastic increases in the Nation's energy prices due 
        to decreases in coal supply.
            (13) By preventing the United States from reducing our 
        reliance on foreign sources of energy and by reducing our 
        ability to produce energy domestically, the Environmental 
        Protection Agency is harming national security.

SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS.

    None of the funds made available to the Environmental Protection 
Agency, the Corps of Engineers, or the Office of Surface Mining 
Reclamation and Enforcement for fiscal year 2010 or any fiscal year 
thereafter may be used to carry out, implement, administer, or enforce 
any policy or procedure set forth in--
            (1) the memorandum issued by the Environmental Protection 
        Agency and Department of the Army entitled ``Enhanced Surface 
        Coal Mining Pending Permit Coordination Procedures'', dated 
        June 11, 2009, or
            (2) the guidance issued by the Environmental Protection 
        Agency entitled ``Improving EPA Review of Appalachian Surface 
        Coal Mining Operations under the Clean Water Act, National 
        Environmental Policy Act, and the Environmental Justice 
        Executive Order'', dated April 1, 2010,
until the Environmental Protection Agency, the Corps of Engineers, or 
the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement of the 
Department of the Interior, as appropriate under their existing 
statutory authorities, promulgates regulations for the implementation 
of such policy or procedure after providing notice and an opportunity 
for comment in accordance with subchapter II of chapter 5 of title 5, 
United States Code, popularly known as the Administrative Procedure 
Act.
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