[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 44 (Friday, April 7, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3387-S3388]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. THUNE (for himself and Mr. Obama):
  S. 2614. A bill to amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to establish a 
program to provide reimbursement for the installation of alternative 
energy refueling systems; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation along 
with my colleague from Illinois, Senator Obama, concerning what we 
believe is yet another important step in reducing our Nation's 
dependence on petroleum fuels.
  S. 264, the Alternative Energy Refueling System Act of 2006 would 
provide an incentive for gas station owners across the country to 
install alternative refueling systems for automobiles. This legislation 
builds upon the existing tax credit that gas station owners can receive 
for installing alternative energy tanks. Most importantly, I would like 
to point out to my colleagues that this legislation does not require 
any additional taxes.
  Currently, as a result of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, a tax credit 
of up to $30,000 is available through 2009 for gas station owners who 
install an alternative refueling system. Eligible alternative fuels 
include those that contain 85 percent by volume of ethanol, natural 
gas, compressed natural gas, liquefied natural gas, liquefied petroleum 
gas, hydrogen, or any mixture of biodiesel or diesel fuel that is 
composed of at least 20 percent biodiesel.
  Our legislation basically allows gas station owners and operators to 
be reimbursed for 30 percent of the costs--not to exceed $30,000--of 
installing an alternative energy system.
  One of the primary benefits of this legislation is that it can be 
used for up to two alternative refueling systems per gas station. This 
is important because under the tax credit that was part of last year's 
energy bill, a gas station owner can only utilize the $30,000 tax 
credit one time--even for those individuals who own multiple refueling 
stations.
  For example, if a gas station owner in South Dakota, Illinois, or 
elsewhere wanted to install three new alternative refueling systems at 
his or her gas station, under the current system that owner would be 
limited to the $30,000 tax credit for a single alternative fuel system.
  Under our legislation, that same gas station owner would continue to 
receive the tax credit for the first alternative fuel system. However, 
the station owner could also be reimbursed for 30 percent of the 
costs--not to exceed $30,000--for up to two additional alternative 
refueling systems. Therefore, the legislation we have introduced today 
would drastically increase the incentives for gas station owners to 
install additional alternative fuel systems.
  I am hopeful that if this bill is signed into law, gas station owners 
across the country will be able to use this reimbursement mechanism to 
help consumers who already own or are thinking of purchasing an 
alternative fuel vehicle.
  Senator Obama and I are both strong supporters of alternative fuels. 
In fact, South Dakota and Illinois are leaders in the production of 
ethanol--our Nation's leading renewable fuel. The legislation we are 
introducing today in no way preferences ethanol over other alternative 
fuels. In fact, they are all treated equally under our bill.
  Alternative fuels such as E-85, which is composed of 85 percent 
ethanol, are starting to gain popularity. However, while automakers 
such as Ford and General Motors are producing an increasing number of 
flex fuel vehicles, which can run on either E-85 or gasoline, there is 
a critical need for more alternative refueling sites across the 
country. Many individuals would be shocked to know that of the 180,000 
gas stations across the country, only 600--far less than 1 percent--
offer alternative fuels such as E-85.
  There are approximately 5 million flexible fuel vehicles on the road 
today. The addition of alternative refueling systems--such as E-85, 
compressed natural gas, biodiesel, and hydrogen--will allow American 
consumers the ability to refuel their vehicles with alternative fuels 
that are better for both the environment and our Nation's security.
  As President Bush noted in his State of the Union Address earlier 
this year, ``America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from 
unstable parts of the world.'' Since being elected to Congress I have 
worked hard in promoting the development of alternative energy sources. 
In fact, last year's energy bill marked an important milestone due to 
the 7.5 billion gallon renewable fuels standard that I and others 
advocated.
  S. 2614 utilizes the interest earned from the Leaking Underground 
Storage Tank Trust Fund, which currently has a $2.6 billion surplus, to 
reimburse eligible gas station owners who add alternative refueling 
systems.
  This trust fund continues to grow from a portion of the Federal gas 
tax--one-tenth of a cent per gallon--which amounted to roughly $190 
million last year. The fund also continues to grow from the interest 
that is earned on the balance of the fund, which amounted to roughly 
$67 million in 2005.
  I firmly believe that the Leaking Underground Storage Tank program 
serves an important function in keeping our land and water safe from 
storage tank releases. Our legislation simply seeks to use a portion of 
the interest earned annually to reimburse gas station owners for a 
portion of the costs associated with the installation of new 
alternative refueling systems.
  An added benefit of using a portion of the interest from this trust 
fund is that the installation of alternative refueling systems reduces 
the overall number of petroleum tanks that can cause leaks.
  Additionally, this bill ensures that States are not required to use 
their annual allocation of appropriated funding to reimburse gas 
station owners for the installation of alternative refueling systems. 
Such reimbursement would come directly from the EPA Administrator.
  Mr. President, this bill would help to lessen our Nation's dependence 
on foreign sources of oil and--increase the use of alternative fuels. 
It is a step in the right direction, and is something I hope my 
colleagues will support.
  Mr. OBAMA. I am pleased to join my distinguished colleague from South 
Dakota, Mr. Thune, in introducing the Alternative Energy Refueling 
System Act of 2006. I applaud his work in crafting this bill and I hope 
my colleagues will provide their full support and work towards its 
swift enactment.
  As members of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, the 
Senator from South Dakota and I have worked to promote the expansion of 
alternative fuels production capacity in the United States--most 
notably

[[Page S3388]]

with the enactment of the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) included in 
last year's Energy Policy Act of 2005. The RFS states that 7.5 billion 
gallons of ethanol must be phased into the 140-billion-gallon annual 
national gasoline pool during the next 6 years.
  That's a bold step in reducing our reliance on foreign oil, but we 
can't just rely on greater production of alternative fuels if we also 
don't make sure those fuels are available at gas stations. We need to 
make sure that when American drivers want to ``fill `er up'' with 
something other than petroleum, they can.
  Last year, I introduced S. 918, a bill to provide a tax credit for 
the cost of installing alternative fuel pumps. I was pleased that this 
tax credit was enacted as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Soon 
hundreds more ethanol and biodiesel pumps throughout the United States 
will be installed as a result of this new policy.
  But if we are serious about reducing our reliance on foreign oil in 
an expeditious fashion, we must intensify our efforts. We must double, 
triple, and quadruple our efforts. And that's exactly the purpose of 
our bill today, which simply provides a partial Federal reimbursement 
for the installation of alternative fuel pumps that otherwise are 
ineligible or have received the new tax credit.
  Many more alternative refueling properties will be established by 
this bill--a strong complement to the tax credit passed last year. And 
this bill is fully offset in that it is financed by using just a small 
slice of the approximately $70 million in annual interest generated by 
the Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) Trust Fund. We don't ask to 
use that small slice in perpetuity, but just for the next several years 
until enough alternative fuel refueling capacity is established across 
the country.
  The total principal of the LUST fund is more than $2.5 billion--none 
of which we propose to draw down. And given that this fund has been 
capitalized by a one-tenth-of-a-penny fee for every gallon of petro-gas 
or petro-diesel purchased by the American people, it is altogether 
appropriate that any interest generated by any unused fractions-of-
pennies be reinvested in infrastructure that weans our Nation from its 
dependence on the Middle East. All of this can be accomplished, while 
ensuring that the integrity of the LUST fund--which is used to clean up 
underground storage tanks--remains fully intact and untouched. In fact, 
I hope my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee will take note and 
will increase funding for LUST fund activities to the level it has long 
needed and deserved.
  The Thune-Obama bill is a good bill that will accomplish good things 
for our national energy dependence, but even if enacted, this bill 
cannot by itself guarantee more alternative fuel refueling stations. As 
my colleagues are aware, alternative fuel refueling stations make up 
only a tiny fraction of the nationwide network of gas stations. And 
while that fraction is growing by leaps and bounds, the vast majority 
of stations within that small fraction are independently owned and 
operated.
  By comparison, the big oil companies--the Exxons, the BPs, or the 
ConocoPhillips of the American petroleum industry--have not installed 
alternative fuel pumps. Rather, the evidence is accumulating that these 
companies have used institutional policies to deter the installation of 
alternative fuel pumps despite their retailers asking to sell these new 
fuels to meet growing consumer demand.
  I think these practices must end. It is time for these companies to 
demonstrate leadership and reinvest in America. Until that day comes, 
however, I pledge to continue my work in Congress with like-minded 
colleagues to ensure that this Nation invests in a 21st Century 
refueling structure. The bill we are introducing today is part of that 
investment. I thank my colleague from South Dakota for his authorship 
on this bill.
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