[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 130 (Friday, October 7, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11314-S11315]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. BURR (for himself, Mr. Allen, Mr. DeMint, and Mr. Talent):
  S. 1859. A bill to amend the Clean Air Act to provide for a Federal 
Fuels List, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Environment and 
Public Works.
  Mr. BURR. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the 
bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1859

       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 ``Affordable and Reliable Gas 
     Act of 2005''.

     SEC. 2. LIST OF FUELS.

       (a) List of Fuels.--Section 211(c)(4)(C) of the Clean Air 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(c)(4)(C)) (as amended by the Energy 
     Policy Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-58; 119 Stat. 1106)) is 
     amended by striking the second clause (v) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(vi)(I) The Administrator shall have no authority, when 
     considering a State implementation plan or a State 
     implementation plan revision, to approve under this paragraph 
     any fuel included in such plan or revision if the effect of 
     such approval would be to increase the total number of fuels 
     approved under this paragraph as of September 1, 2004 in all 
     State implementation plans.
       ``(II) The Administrator, in consultation with the 
     Secretary of Energy, shall determine the total number of 
     fuels approved under this paragraph as of September 1, 2004, 
     in all State implementation plans and shall publish a list of 
     such fuels, including the states and Petroleum Administration 
     for Defense District in which they are used, in the Federal 
     Register no later than 90 days after enactment.
       ``(III) The Administrator shall remove a fuel from the list 
     published under subclause (II) if a fuel ceases to be 
     included in a State implementation plan or if a fuel in a 
     State implementation plan is identical to a Federal fuel 
     formulation implemented by the Administrator and shall reduce 
     the total number of fuels authorized under the list published 
     under subclause (II) appropriately.
       ``(IV) Subclause (I) shall not limit the Administrator's 
     authority to approve a control or prohibition respecting any 
     new fuel under this paragraph in a State's implementation 
     plan or a revision to that State's implementation plan after 
     the date of enactment of this Act if such new fuel completely 
     replaces a fuel on the list published under subclause (II).
       ``(V) The Administrator shall have no authority under this 
     paragraph, when considering any particular State's 
     implementation

[[Page S11315]]

     plan or a revision to that State's implementation plan, to 
     approve any fuel unless that fuel was, as of the date of such 
     consideration, approved in at least one State implementation 
     plan in the applicable Petroleum Administrator for Defense 
     District. However, the Administrator may approve as part of a 
     State implementation plan or State implementation plan 
     revision a fuel with a summertime Reid Vapor Pressure of 7.0 
     psi. In no event shall such approval by the Administrator 
     cause an increase in the total number of fuels on the list 
     published under subclause (II) as of the date of 
     consideration.
       ``(VI) Nothing in this clause shall be construed to have 
     any effect regarding any available authority of States to 
     require the use of any fuel additive registered in accordance 
     with subsection (b), including any fuel additive registered 
     in accordance with subsection (b) after the enactment of this 
     subclause.
       ``(vii)(I) The provisions of clause (vi), including the 
     limitations of the authority of the Administrator and the cap 
     on the total number of fuels permitted, shall remain in 
     effect until the harmonization of fuels under subclause V of 
     this clause is accomplished. Once such harmonization has been 
     accomplished, clause (v) shall sunset and the limitations of 
     the authority of the Administrator under subclause (IV) of 
     this clause shall apply.
       ``(II) The Administrator, in coordination with the 
     Secretary of Energy (hereinafter in this clause referred to 
     as the `Secretary'), shall identify and publish in the 
     Federal Register, within 12 months after the enactment of 
     this subclause and after notice and opportunity for public 
     comment, a list of 5 gasolines and diesel fuels to be used in 
     States that have not received a waiver under section 209(b) 
     of this Act. The list shall be referred to as the `Federal 
     Fuels List' and shall include one Federal on-road diesel fuel 
     (which shall grandfather the sulfur phase down in the 
     Administrator's ultra low sulfur diesel fuel regulations in 
     effect as of the date of enactment and shall permit the 
     implementation of one alternative diesel fuel, approved under 
     this subparagraph before enactment of this subclause for a 
     State that has not received a section 209(b) waiver, only in 
     the State in which it was approved prior to enactment), one 
     conventional gasoline for ozone attainment areas, one 
     reformulated gasoline (RFG) meeting the requirements of 
     subsection (k), and 2 additional gasolines with Reid vapor 
     pressure (RVP) controls for use in ozone attainment areas of 
     varying degrees of severity. None of the fuels identified 
     under this subclause shall control fuel sulfur or toxics 
     levels beyond levels required by regulations of the 
     Administrator.
       ``(III) Gasolines and diesel fuels shall be included on the 
     Federal Fuels List based on the Administrator's analysis of 
     their ability to reduce ozone emissions to assist States in 
     attaining established ozone standards under this Act, and on 
     an analysis by the Secretary that the adoption of the Federal 
     Fuels List will not result in a reduction in supply or in 
     producibility, including that caused by a reduction in 
     domestic refining capacity as a result of the adoption of the 
     Federal Fuels List. In the event the Secretary concludes that 
     adoption of the Federal Fuels List will result in a reduction 
     in supply or in producibility, the Administrator and the 
     Secretary shall report that conclusion to Congress, and 
     suspend implementation of this clause. The Administrator and 
     the Secretary shall conduct the study required under section 
     1541(c) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 on the timetable 
     required in that section to provide Congress with legislative 
     recommendations for modifications to the proposed Federal 
     Fuels List only if the Secretary concludes that adoption of 
     the Federal Fuels List will result in a reduction in supply 
     or in producibility.
       ``(IV) Upon publication of the Federal Fuels List, the 
     Administrator shall have no authority, when considering a 
     State implementation plan or State implementation plan 
     revisions, to approve under this subparagraph any fuel 
     included in such plan or plan revision if the proposed fuel 
     is not one of the fuels on the Federal Fuels List; or to 
     approve a State's plan or plan revision to move from one fuel 
     on the Federal Fuels List to another unless, after 
     consultation with the Secretary, the Administrator publishes 
     in the Federal Register, after notice and opportunity for 
     public comment, a finding that, in the Administrator's 
     judgment, such plan or plan revision to adopt a different 
     fuel on the Federal Fuels List will not cause fuel supply or 
     distribution disruptions in the affected area or contiguous 
     areas. The Administrator's finding shall include an 
     assessment of reasonably foreseeable supply or distribution 
     emergencies that could occur in the affected area or 
     contiguous area and how adoption of the particular fuel 
     revisions would effect alternative supply options during 
     reasonably foreseeable supply or distribution emergencies.
       ``(V) The Administrator, in consultation with the 
     Secretary, shall develop a plan to harmonize the currently 
     approved fuels in State implementation plans with the fuels 
     included on the Federal Fuels List and shall promulgate 
     implementing regulations for this plan not later than 18 
     months after enactment of this subclause. This harmonization 
     shall be fully implemented by the States by December 31, 
     2008.''.
       (b) Boutique Fuels.--Section 1541 of the Energy Policy Act 
     of 2005 (Public Law 109-58; 119 Stat. 1106) is amended by 
     striking subsection (c) and inserting the following:
       ``(c) Study and Report to Congress on Boutique Fuels.--
       ``(1) Joint study.--The Administrator of the Environmental 
     Protection Agency and the Secretary of Energy shall undertake 
     a study of the effects on air quality, on the number of fuel 
     blends, on fuel availability, on fuel fungibility, and on 
     fuel costs of the State plan provisions adopted pursuant to 
     section 211(c)(4)(C) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 
     7545(c)(4)(C)).
       ``(2) Focus of study.--The primary focus of the study 
     required under paragraph (1) shall be to determine how to 
     develop a Federal fuels system that maximizes motor fuel 
     fungibility and supply, preserves air quality standards, and 
     reduces motor fuel price volatility that results from the 
     proliferation of boutique fuels, and to recommend to Congress 
     such legislative changes as are necessary to implement such a 
     system. The study should include the impacts on overall 
     energy supply, distribution, and use as a result of the 
     legislative changes recommended. The study should include an 
     analysis of the impact on ozone emissions and supply of a 
     mandatory reduction in the number of fuel blends to 5, 
     including one on-road Federal diesel fuel (which shall 
     grandfather the sulfur phase down in the Administrator's 
     ultra low sulfur diesel fuel regulations and shall permit the 
     implementation of, one alternative diesel fuel, blend 
     approved under this subparagraph before enactment of this 
     subclause for a State that has not received a section 209(b) 
     waiver, only in the State in which it was approved prior to 
     enactment), one conventional gasoline for ozone attainment 
     areas, one reformulated gasoline (RFG) meeting the 
     requirements of subsection (k), and 2 additional gasolines 
     blends with Reid vapor pressure (RVP) controls for use in 
     ozone attainment areas of varying degrees of severity.
       ``(3) Conduct of study.--In carrying out their joint duties 
     under this section, the Administrator and the Secretary shall 
     use sound science and objective science practices, shall 
     consider the best available science, shall use data collected 
     by accepted means and shall consider and include a 
     description of the weight of the scientific evidence. The 
     Administrator and the Secretary shall coordinate the study 
     required by this section with other studies required by the 
     act and shall endeavor to avoid duplication of effort with 
     regard to such studies.
       ``(4) Responsibility of administrator.--In carrying out the 
     study required by this section, the Administrator shall 
     coordinate obtaining comments from affected parties 
     interested in the air quality impact assessment portion of 
     the study. The Administrator shall use sound and objective 
     science practices, shall consider the best available science, 
     and shall consider and include a description of the weight of 
     the scientific evidence.
       ``(5) Responsibility of secretary.--In carrying out the 
     study required by this section, the Secretary shall 
     coordinate obtaining comments from affected parties 
     interested in the fuel availability, number of fuel blends, 
     fuel fungibility and fuel costs portion of the study.
       ``(6) Report to congress.--The Administrator and the 
     Secretary jointly shall submit the results of the study 
     required by this section in a report to the Congress not 
     later than 12 months after the date of the enactment of this 
     Act, together with any recommended regulatory and legislative 
     changes. Such report shall be submitted to the Committee on 
     Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the 
     Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate.
       ``(7) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated jointly to the Administrator and the 
     Secretary $500,000 for the completion of the study required 
     under this subsection.''.
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