[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6872 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 6872

  To require the Secretary of Energy to establish a grant program to 
support hydrogen-fueled equipment at ports and to conduct a study with 
the Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary of Homeland Security 
    on the feasibility and safety of using hydrogen-derived fuels, 
                 including ammonia, as a shipping fuel.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 19, 2023

  Ms. Porter (for herself and Mr. Bilirakis) introduced the following 
 bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and 
in addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for 
a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To require the Secretary of Energy to establish a grant program to 
support hydrogen-fueled equipment at ports and to conduct a study with 
the Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary of Homeland Security 
    on the feasibility and safety of using hydrogen-derived fuels, 
                 including ammonia, as a shipping fuel.

    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 ``Hydrogen for Ports Act''.

SEC. 2. MARITIME MODERNIZATION GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means an 
        entity described in subsection (d).
            (2) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian Tribe'' has the 
        meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-
        Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304).
            (3) Low-income or disadvantaged community.--The term ``low-
        income or disadvantaged community'' means a community 
        (including a city, a town, a county, and any reasonably 
        isolated and divisible segment of a larger municipality) with 
        an annual median household income that is less than 100 percent 
        of the statewide annual median household income for the State 
        in which the community is located, according to the most recent 
        decennial census.
            (4) Program.--The term ``program'' means the program 
        established under subsection (b).
            (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Energy.
    (b) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish a program under 
which the Secretary shall provide grants, on a competitive basis, to 
eligible entities for--
            (1) the purchase, installation, construction, facilitation, 
        maintenance, or operation of, as appropriate--
                    (A) hydrogen- or ammonia-fueled cargo-handling 
                equipment, including, at a minimum, equipment used for 
                drayage applications;
                    (B) hydrogen fuel cell or ammonia-fueled trucks for 
                use at ports;
                    (C) hydrogen fuel cell or ammonia-fueled ferries, 
                tugboats, dredging vessels, container ships, bulk 
                carriers, fuel tankers, and other marine vessels;
                    (D) hydrogen fuel cell-based shore power for ships 
                while docked at the port;
                    (E) hydrogen fuel cell or ammonia onsite power 
                plants; and
                    (F) port infrastructure for hydrogen or ammonia 
                import, export, storage, and fueling; and
            (2) the training of ship crew and shore personnel to handle 
        hydrogen or ammonia.
    (c) Goals.--The goals of the program shall be--
            (1) to demonstrate fuel cell, hydrogen, or ammonia 
        technologies in maritime and associated logistics applications;
            (2) to assist in the development and validation of 
        technical targets for hydrogen, ammonia, and fuel cell systems 
        for maritime and associated logistics applications;
            (3) to benchmark the conditions required for broad 
        commercialization of hydrogen, ammonia, and fuel cell 
        technologies in maritime and associated logistics applications;
            (4) to assess the operational and technical considerations 
        for installing, constructing, and using hydrogen- or ammonia-
        fueled equipment and supporting infrastructure at ports; and
            (5) to reduce emissions and improve air quality in areas in 
        and around ports.
    (d) Eligible Entities.--
            (1) In general.--An entity eligible to receive a grant 
        under the program is--
                    (A) a State;
                    (B) a political subdivision of a State;
                    (C) a local government;
                    (D) a public agency or publicly chartered authority 
                established by 1 or more States;
                    (E) a special purpose district with a 
                transportation function;
                    (F) an Indian Tribe or a consortium of Indian 
                Tribes;
                    (G) a multistate or multijurisdictional group of 
                entities described in any of subparagraphs (A) through 
                (F); or
                    (H) subject to paragraph (2), a private entity or 
                group of private entities, including the owners or 
                operators of 1 or more facilities at a port.
            (2) Joint eligibility with private entities.--A private 
        entity or group of private entities is eligible for a grant 
        under the program if--
                    (A) the private entity or group of private entities 
                partners with an entity described in any of 
                subparagraphs (A) through (G) of paragraph (1) for 
                purposes of applying for, and carrying out activities 
                under, the grant; and
                    (B) the entity described in the applicable 
                subparagraph of that paragraph is the lead entity with 
                respect to the application and those activities.
    (e) Applications.--
            (1) In general.--An eligible entity desiring a grant under 
        the program shall submit to the Secretary an application at 
        such time, in such manner, and containing such information as 
        the Secretary may require.
            (2) Requirement.--The application of an eligible entity 
        described in subparagraph (H) of subsection (d)(1) shall be 
        submitted jointly with an entity described in subparagraphs (A) 
        through (G) of that subsection.
    (f) Considerations.--In providing grants under the program, the 
Secretary, to the maximum extent practicable, shall--
            (1) select projects that will generate the greatest benefit 
        to low-income or disadvantaged communities; and
            (2) select projects that will--
                    (A) maximize the creation or retention of jobs in 
                the United States; and
                    (B) provide the highest job quality.
    (g) Priority.--In selecting eligible entities to receive a grant 
under the program, the Secretary shall give priority to projects that 
will provide greater net impact in avoiding or reducing emissions of 
greenhouse gases.
    (h) Leak Detection.--Each eligible entity that receives a grant 
under the program shall conduct--
            (1) a hydrogen leakage monitoring, reporting, and 
        verification (also known as ``MRV'') program; and
            (2) a hydrogen leak detection and repair (also known as 
        ``LDAR'') program.
    (i) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this section $100,000,000 
for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028.
    (j) Prohibition on Use of Funds.--None of the funds made available 
under this section may be used to provide a grant to purchase fully 
automated cargo handling equipment that is remotely operated or 
remotely monitored with or without the exercise of human intervention 
or control, if the Secretary of Transportation determines such 
equipment would result in a net loss of jobs within a port or port 
terminal.

SEC. 3. STUDY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Energy, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary of Homeland Security, 
shall conduct, and submit to Congress a report describing the results 
of, a study--
            (1) to fully address the challenges to ensure the safe use 
        and handling of hydrogen, ammonia, and other hydrogen-based 
        fuels on vessels and in ports;
            (2) to identify, compare, and evaluate the feasibility of, 
        the safety, environmental, and health impacts of, and best 
        practices with respect to, the use of hydrogen-derived fuels, 
        including ammonia, as a shipping fuel;
            (3) to identify and evaluate considerations for hydrogen 
        and ammonia storage, including--
                    (A) at ports;
                    (B) on board vessels; and
                    (C) for subsea hydrogen storage; and
            (4) to assess the cost and value of a hydrogen or ammonia 
        strategic reserve, either as a new facility or as a 
        modification to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve established 
        under part B of title I of the Energy Policy and Conservation 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 6231 et seq.).
    (b) Requirements.--In carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary of 
Energy, the Secretary of Transportation, and the Secretary of Homeland 
Security shall--
            (1) take into account lessons learned from demonstration 
        projects in other industries, including--
                    (A) projects carried out in the United States;
                    (B) projects carried out in other countries; and
                    (C) projects relating to the automotive industry, 
                buses, petroleum refining, chemical production, 
                fertilizer production, and stationary power; and
            (2) evaluate the applicability of the lessons described in 
        paragraph (1) to the use of hydrogen in maritime and associated 
        logistics applications.
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