[Senate Report 106-163]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 287
106th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    106-163

======================================================================



 
             ENERGY POLICY AND CONSERVATION ACT AMENDMENTS

                                _______
                                

               September 27, 1999.--Ordered to be printed

_______________________________________________________________________


  Mr. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 1051]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 1051) to amend the Energy Policy and 
Conservation Act to manage the Strategic Petroleum Reserve more 
effectively, and for other purposes, having considered the 
same, reports favorably thereon with an amendment and 
recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
    Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu 
thereof the following:

    Section 1. Title of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 
U.S.C. 6211-6251) is amended--
    (a) In section 166 (42 U.S.C. 6246), by inserting ``through 2003'' 
after ``1999''.
    (b) In section 181 (42 U.S.C. 6251), by striking ``1999'' each 
place it appears and inserting ``2003''.
    Sec. 2. Title II of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 
U.S.C. 6261-6285) is amended--
    (a) In section 256(h) (42 U.S.C. 6276(h)), by inserting ``through 
2003'' after ``1997''.
    (b) In section 281 (42 U.S.C. 6285), by striking ``1999'' each 
place it appears and inserting ``2003''.

                         Purpose of the Measure

    The purpose of S. 1051 is to extend certain authorities for 
the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) and U.S. participation in 
the International Energy Program (IEP) which expire on 
September 30, 1999. S. 1051 would extend these authorizations 
through September 30, 2003. Additionally, S. 1051 would delete 
certain requirements in the Act that are outdated or unused.

                          Background and Need

    The Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA), initially 
passed in 1975, deals with issues affecting domestic oil supply 
and conservation, the SPR and the IEP Agreement. Certain 
authorities for the SPR and U.S. participation in IEP will 
expire on September 30, 1999. S. 1051 would extend these 
authorizations through September 30, 2003.

Stragetic petroleum reserve

    Title I of EPCA provided for the creation of the SPR and 
sets forth the method and circumstances for its drawdown and 
distribution in the event of a severe energy supply 
interruption or to fulfill the U.S. obligations under the IEP 
Agreement. The Energy Policy Act of 1992 amended EPCA to allow 
for a drawdown in response to severe price increases, as well. 
Authority to allocate crude oil from the SPR is also provided.
    The SPR had a total storage capacity of 750 million barrels 
of oil with a maximum drawdown capability of 3.5 million 
barrels per day. The capacity was reduced to 680 million 
barrels by the decommissioning of the Weeks Island, Louisiana 
storage site. The SPR currently contains approximately 564 
million barrels of oil and because of some modifications has a 
total capacity of 700 million barrels with a daily draw down 
capacity of 4.1 million barrels. At its peak, the SPR contained 
592 million barrels of oil. In 1993, it was discovered that 
nearly 143 million barrels of oil in the reserve were 
unavailable for drawdown due to the natural phenomena of 
geothermal heating and methane intrusion into the oil in 
certain of the caverns. Four years ago, the Department of 
Energy (DOE) began degasifying the oil and has installed heat 
exchangers to cool the oil. The stabilization program is now 
completed. However, it is expected that further efforts will 
need to be made in this regard in the future.
    In addition, the Weeks Island storage facility developed a 
geologic fissure, which required the removal and relocation of 
the oil to the Big Hill and Bayou Choctaw sites. To pay for 
these activities, DOE requested, and received, authority to 
sell 5.1 million barrels of SPR oil for a total of $96 million 
in the fiscal year 1996 ``Balanced Budget Downpayment Act.''
    In addition to the Weeks Island sale, the fiscal year 1996 
budget agreement required the sale of 12.8 million barrels of 
SPR oil, for a total of $227 million, and the 1997 Omnibus 
Appropriations bill authorized the sale of up to 15 million 
barrels for $220 million. The funds raised by these sales were 
used to offset spending.
    The Energy Policy and Conservation Act Amendments of 1990 
directed the Department of Energy to submit a plan amendment to 
Congress by September 15, 1992 with detailed plans to expand 
the size of the SPR to one billion barrels. Submission of the 
plan has been indefinitely postponed. In the past, the 
Department of Energy has recommended that further plans to 
expand the reserve should be linked to formation of a plan for 
completion of fill of the existing 750 million barrel capacity. 
This recommendation is based on the fact that the EPCA 
requirements for a fill rate of 75,000 barrels per day and the 
expansion of the reserve have not been supported with 
appropriations. The current cost estimate to fill the existing 
capacity is $3.7-$4.7 billion. Expanding the capacity another 
250 million barrels would required $10 billion additional 
investment in facilities and oil.
    In February of 1999, the Department of Energy announced its 
intention to take 28 million barrels of Federal royalty oil to 
fill the SPR. The Committee commends the Administration for 
taking action to begin refilling the SPR. Section 160(a)(2) of 
this Act specifically authorizes the Secretary ``to place in 
storage, transport or exchange crude oil which the United 
States is entitled to receive in kind as royalties from 
production on Federal lands.'' Yet, this is the first time the 
Department has acted to take royalty oil to be stored in the 
Reserve. By storing Federal royalty oil the Department 
eliminates the need for current outlays while retaining the oil 
to be drawndown in the event of an energy supply interruption, 
to fulfill our obligations under the IEP Agreement, or in 
response to severe price increases.
    The 28 million barrels currently being transferred to the 
Reserve will only replace the oil sold in recent years for 
budgetary reasons. The Reserve will still be nearly 120 million 
barrels short of its current capacity. The Committee urges the 
Department of Energy to work with the Department of the 
Interior to continue the policy of filing the remaining unused 
capacity in the Reserve with royalty oil.

International Energy Program

    The International Energy Agency (IEA), founded in 1974 at 
the instigation of the United States, is the principal forum 
for energy cooperation among the twenty-one industrialized 
countries participating in the IEP Agreement. The IEP is 
designed to reduce the economic risks of oil supply disruptions 
and to reduce dependence on oil through coordinated efforts.
    The IEP Agreement called for the establishment of an 
information system on the international oil market and other 
sources of energy. Timely and accurate information on world oil 
supply, stocks, and demand are important to the government and 
industry's ability to make decisions. Uncertainty and 
incomplete data on oil markets in recent years were a 
significant contributor to the extreme reaction of the markets 
to the Asian economic crisis and the attendant drop in oil 
demand. The Committee expects the Department of Energy to make 
improvements in oil market data transparency and timeliness a 
priority. The Department should work with the oil exporting 
countries and the other member countries of the International 
Energy Agency to ensure that accurate information is provided 
in a more timely manner. The Department should also evaluate 
the efficacy of its own data collection.
    In the event of supply emergencies the IEA will first 
consider a coordinated draw-down of oil stocks combined with a 
commitment to reduce oil demand. If those measures are 
inadequate, the IEA implements the Emergency Sharing System. 
Under the Emergency Sharing System, IEA member countries commit 
to reduce oil demand and share available oil supplies according 
to an established formula. Participation in the program 
requires countries to maintain the following capabilities:
          emergency oil stocks equivalent to 90 days of net oil 
        imports;
          the ability to reduce consumption of oil by 10 
        percent, or be prepared to drawdown oil stocks in 
        excess of the 90 day commitment; and
          legal authority to participate in the system by the 
        Government and private companies.
    At this time, the SPR contains approximately a 60-day 
supply of net imports. The last time that IEA completed a 
stocks report, in October of 1995, total U.S. stocks, including 
those privately held, contained approximately 171 days of net 
imports. This was down from a 203-day supply in October of 
1993.
    Title II of EPCA contains the specific authorities for U.S. 
participation in the International Energy Program. Section 251 
provides authority for mandatory oil allocation as a last 
resort in the event voluntary emergency sharing fails to 
achieve its goals.
    Section 252 provides a limited antitrust exemption for U.S. 
companies to participate at the IEA to aid in carrying out the 
provisions of the IEP. Section 254 provides the authority for 
the executive branch to provide to the EIA information and data 
related to the domestic oil industry.
    One example of the coordination between the industry and 
the IEA is the Oil Supply Disruption Simulation Exercise that 
will be held at the end of September 1999. Oil company 
representatives will be working together with energy security 
experts from the U.S. Government and the IEA's 23 other member 
governments to better understand how the IEA's emergency 
response measures can work with the power of oil markets to 
minimize the economic damage resulting from a supply 
disruption. If the antitrust exemptions provided for under 
Title II lapse it is likely few, if any, companies would 
participate in this exercise.
    Coordination of oil stocks through the IEA increases the 
economic benefits by equitably distributing the burden of 
building and maintaining those stocks. The efforts of other IAE 
countries to build up their own oil stocks and willingness to 
draw on them when necessary are a complement to the U.S. 
Strategic Petroleum Reserve program.

                          Legislative History

    S. 1051 was introduced by Senator Murkowski (for himself 
and Mr. Bingaman) (by request) on May 13, 1999. On September 
14, 1999 the Subcommittee on Energy Research, Development, 
Production and Regulation held a hearing. At the business 
meeting on September 22, 1999, theCommittee on Energy and 
Natural Resources ordered S. 1051, as amended, favorably reported.

           Committee Recommendations and Tabulation of Votes

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open 
business session on September 22, 1999, by a unanimous voice 
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 
1051, if amended as described herein.

                          Committee Amendments

    During the consideration of S. 1051, the Committee adopted 
a substitute amendment proposed by Senators Murkowski and 
Bingaman. The amendment extended the authorizations for EPCA 
through September 30, 2003. The amendment also deleted all the 
provisions of the original text dealing with technical changes 
to help manage the Strategic Petroleum Reserve more 
effectively.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

    Section 1: Subsection (a) would authorize appropriations to 
manage and operate the Strategic Petroleum Reserve through 
Fiscal Year 2003.
    Subsection (b) would extend the expiration date of title, 
I, Parts B and C, from September 30, 1999 to September 30, 
2003.
    Section 2: Subsection (a) would authorize appropriations 
through fiscal year 2003 for the activities of the interagency 
working group and interagency working subgroups established by 
section 256 of EPCA to promote exports of renewable energy and 
energy efficiency products and services.
    Subsection (b) would extend the expiration date of title II 
from September 30, 1999 to September 30, 2003.

                   Cost and Budgetary Considerations

    The Congressional Budget Office cost estimate report had 
not been received at the time the report was filed. When the 
report becomes available, the Chairman will request that it be 
printed in the Congressional Record for the advice of the 
Senate.

                      Regulatory Impact Evaluation

    In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following 
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in 
carrying out S. 1051. The bill is not a regulatory measure in 
the sense of imposing Government-established standards or 
significant economic responsibilities on private individuals 
and businesses.
    No personal information would be collected in administering 
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal 
privacy.
    Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the 
enactment of S. 1051, as ordered reported.

                        Executive Communications

    On September 22, 1999 the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources requested legislative reports from the Department of 
Energy and the Office of Management and Budget setting forth 
Executive agency recommendations on S. 1051. These reports had 
not been received at the time the report on S. 1051 was filed. 
When the reports become available, the Chairman will request 
that they be printed in the Congressional Record for the advice 
of the Senate. The testimony provided by the Department of 
Energy at the Subcommittee hearing follows:

Statement of Robert W. Gee, Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy, U.S. 
                          Department of Energy

    Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee I am pleased to 
appear before you today to talk about the Administration's 
legislative proposal to amend and extend to September 30, 2003, 
certain authorities of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act 
(EPCA), which are scheduled to expire on September 30, 1999.\1\ 
I would also like to bring the Committee up to date on certain 
activities the Department has undertaken related to these 
authorities.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ The Administration transmitted its proposed legislation to the 
Congress on March 15, 1999. It was subsequently introduced by Chairman 
Murkowski and Senator Bingaman, by request, as S. 1051.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    EPCA authorizes (in Titles I and II) two programs at the 
core of our nation's energy security: the Strategic Petroleum 
Reserve (SPR) and our participation in the International Energy 
Agency (IEA). It also provides authorities to support our long 
term efforts to reduce vulnerability through several energy 
efficiency and renewable energy and conservation programs. 
These programs (in Title III) were extended in P.L. 105-388 to 
September 30, 2003.
    U.S. capability to draw down the Strategic Petroleum 
Reserve in a severe energy supply interruption is critical to 
U.S. national security and economic interests and is crucial to 
our relationship with the IEA. The U.S. plays a vital role in 
the development of emergency response policies within the IEA. 
It is imperative that Congress act expediently to pass 
legislation to amend and extend these provisions, without a 
lapse of authority. Such a lapse could have major implications 
over the next few months. The extension of EPCA authorities is 
needed, for instance, to facilitate U.S. company participation 
in a major exercise with Y2K implications that is being 
conducted by the IEA beginning at the end of September. 
Additionally, the timely extension of EPCA will be especially 
important this year if it is determined a Y2K-related drawdown 
is necessary.
    In addition, as we promised this Committee, the Department 
of Energy conducted a review of its policies for the SPR. We 
issued a Federal Register Notice inviting public comment on 
various issues affecting the Reserve and subsequently published 
a Statement of Policy on the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in May 
1998. S. 1051 reflects the Administration's Statement of 
Policy.
    Finally, EPCA was enacted 24 years ago and includes many 
provisions pertaining to the SPR which are no longer necessary, 
and references programs that no longer exist. S. 1051 deletes 
or amends EPCA provisions accordingly.
Need for the reserve
    During the last 24 years the Strategic Petroleum Reserve 
has become the Nation's principal defense against oil price 
shocks related to supply interruptions. Additionally, U.S. 
leadership in stockpiling has been and remains critical to the 
accumulation of stocks in other International Energy Agency 
member countries. The SPR inventory is 563 million barrels of 
oil, which is currently held in four sites in Texas and 
Louisiana and is the equivalent of 60 days of imports. It is a 
significant deterrent to the use of oil embargoes as a 
political weapon as well as substantial protection against the 
effect of actual or imminent disruptions in crude oil supplies. 
For example, the Reserve vastly increased the flexibility of 
the United States to pursue the embargo of Iraq and Desert 
Storm in 1990-91 without concern that the hostilities would 
precipitously disrupt the availability of oil.
    Today, the potential for oil market disturbances remains, 
whether caused by wars, political unrest, natural disasters, or 
a failure in transportation logistics. Meanwhile, U.S. 
dependence on oil imports is expected to increase, with the 
world's oil reserves increasingly concentrated in a few 
regions. While the U.S. currently enjoys diversity of suppliers 
for its imports, we remain at potential risk. Supplier 
diversity will not limit the serious economic impact of a 
significant rise in oil prices. A strong and viable SPR is as 
relevant in today's market as it was when EPCA was passed in 
1975.
Recent SPR initiatives
    This year the Administration undertook two new initiatives 
affecting the SPR--the use of royalty oil to fill the SPR and 
initiation of a study on the appropriate size of the SPR.
    In February, Secretary Bill Richardson and Secretary of the 
Interior Bruce Babbitt announced that the Department of the 
Interior would take up to 28 million barrels of Federal royalty 
oil paid in kind and transfer it to the Department of Energy to 
help fill the SPR. Staff from the Department of Energy and 
Department of the Interior have worked together cooperatively 
to craft and implement this program. Under Phase I of the 
program, arrangements were made with four of the largest 
producers in the Gulf of Mexico for the transfer of 
approximately 9.2 million barrels of crude oil to the SPR in 
exchange for royalty oil. Deliveries began in April. In the 
second phase, the program has been expanded to offer the 
maximum feasible volume of oil and open the program to a larger 
number of bidders using a competitive bid process.
    Phase II will be an ongoing solicitation of invitations for 
bids for transfer or exchange royalty oil for oil to be 
delivered to the SPR. In Phase II A of the program, the 
Department awarded contracts for 9.59 million barrels to four 
companies on June 15, 1999. Phase II A deliveries commenced on 
August 1, 1999, and will continue through February, 2000. The 
Phase II B request for offers will be issued in early November, 
1999, with deliveries anticipated between February 1, 2000, and 
November 30, 2000.
    As indicated in the May, 1998, Administration Statement of 
Policy on the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, an interagency 
group, led by the Department of Energy is revisiting the 
Department's 1990 study on the appropriate size of the SPR. 
Participants from the Department of Treasury, Council of 
Economic Advisors, Office of Management and Budget and Central 
Intelligence Agency, as well as the Department of Energy are 
involved in the project. A final report will be transmitted to 
Congress in the near future.
    I would now like to turn to a discussion of the various 
amendments proposed in the Administration's bill to amend and 
extend EPCA.
SPR amendments
    The importance of extending SPR's basic authority under 
EPCA has already been discussed. In addition, the proposed 
Administration SPR amendments modernize EPCA by eliminating 
provisions which are no longer necessary or desirable and 
amending others to reflect the current state of the SPR 
program. S. 1051 proposes to delete the provisions providing 
for the establishment of regional and industrial petroleum 
reserves. It deletes the requirement for an SPR Plan and Plan 
Amendments, and codifies the distribution portion of the Plan 
to require the sale of oil drawn from the Reserve to the 
highest bidder. The bill also would make a plan for expansion 
of the Reserve necessary only when the Secretary determines 
such an expansion is desirable and would eliminate the current 
minimum fill rate. In addition, the bill proposes that the 
requirement for a 30-day congressional review period for 
alternative financing contracts be deleted.
    Regional Petroleum Reserves: The Act currently provides for 
the establishment of regional petroleum reserves in Federal 
Energy Administration regions that are dependent upon petroleum 
imports for more that 20 percent of their consumption. The Act 
also permits the Secretary to substitute crude oil for products 
and to store the oil in a reserve ``readily accessible to'' 
rather than actually located in such regions. Based on 
analytical findings and substantially higher costs for regional 
storage, the Department of Energy and its predecessor 
organizations have consistently determined that the storage of 
crude oil in the centralized SPR would meet the requirements of 
all regions of the country in the event of a petroleum supply 
disruption. Because the need for a regional petroleum reserve 
is not foreseeable and funding for such a program is not 
justifiable based on its expected benefits, the 
Administration's bill deletes this requirement and references 
to regional and refined petroleum product storage.
    Industrial Petroleum Reserve: The Act permits the Secretary 
to establish an Industrial Petroleum Reserve as part of the 
Strategic Petroleum Reserve, by requiring importers of 
petroleum products and refiners to store and maintain oil in 
readily available inventories. This provision has never been 
implemented, would shift the cost of the program to industry, 
and would be particularly onerous to administer. The 
Administration's bill deletes this provision and references to 
industrial petroleum reserves consonant with the 
Administration's stated policy that the Nation is best served 
by centralized, Government-owned, Government-controlled 
storage.
    The Plan: The Act currently requires the Secretary to 
maintain a Strategic Petroleum Reserve Plan, and specifies the 
details that must be included in the Plan. This was appropriate 
when the Reserve was in its planning phase during the mid and 
late 1970's. Now the Reserve consists of four storage sites 
with a cumulative 700 million barrels of storage capacity, and 
the Plan that details those sites has been completed. The Act 
also requires that the Plan specify the levels of fill for 
certain years, all of which are now in the past. The 
Administration's bill proposes that the requirement for the 
Plan and Amendments be deleted. The one remaining part of the 
Plan which is still necessary is the Drawdown and Distribution 
Plan, Plan Amendment No. 4. The basic policy of distributing 
oil from the Reserve by competitive sale, contained in 
Amendment No. 4, is maintained in S. 1051 by making that policy 
part of the governing statutes.
    It is the Administration's belief that free market sales 
are far superior to allocation as a method of distributing oil 
from the world's strategic reserves. While Plan Amendment No. 4 
provides that public sales will be the primary method of 
distribution, it also allows the Secretary to allocate up to 10 
percent of the sales volume. This allocation authority should 
be eliminated. The Department has never used this allocation 
authority, and its existence may encourage some consumers to 
count on the Government rather than the market for supplies in 
an emergency. It will also but elected officials in the 
difficult position of having to evaluate requests for 
preferential treatment from various constituent groups during a 
national emergency. S 1051 reflects the Administration's belief 
in market mechanisms and the impracticality of allocation; it 
does so by codifying open market sales to the highest bidders 
as the method of distributing Strategic Petroleum Reserve oil.
    Expansion: As the Committee is aware, a 1990 amendment of 
EPCA requires the Department to submit an SPR Plan Amendment 
detailing expansion of the Reserve to one billion barrels. 
While the Department did conduct the requisite studies, 
analyses, and public hearings to pick sites and complete such a 
Plan Amendment, final steps in the process were not taken 
because it was clear that such a plan could not be implemented 
within the time horizon for which the studies were relevant. 
Due to budget constraints and the need to decommission the 
Weeks Island site, setting a schedule date for reaching a 
capacity of 1 billion or even 750 million barrels was and is 
unrealistic. The proposed legislation requires that the 
Secretary report to the Congress on plans to expand the Reserve 
at the time such expansion becomes likely. This deferred 
requirement would replace the current statutory requirement.
    Statutory Fill Rate: The Act contains a requirement for 
filling the Reserve at a rate of 75,000 barrels of oil per day 
until the Reserve has reached 750 million barrels. This 
requirement has been waived regularly by a number of Congresses 
at the request of several Administrations. Given that the 
Department has not met this requirement for many years and the 
capacity of the Reserve was reduced to 700 million barrels 
after decommissioning the Weeks Island site, the Administration 
bill deletes the requirement. The bill also proposes to delete 
the linkage which makes sales authority for Naval Petroleum 
Reserve No. 1 crude oil contingent upon an SPR fill rate of at 
least 75,000 barrels. Because Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 1 was 
sold in 1998, this provision is no longer applicable.
    Alternative Financing: Another issue addressed by the 
Administration's bill is Congressional review of alternative 
financing contracts. Alternative financing contracts, including 
oil ``leases'' or similar arrangements, are a means to reduce 
the budgetary requirements for Strategic Petroleum Reserve oil. 
No contracts have ever been negotiated for alternatively 
financed acquisition and current law imposes some requirements 
on alternative financing contracts that diminish the chances 
that such contracts could be successfully negotiated. 
Specifically, the Act requires that contracts that would not 
otherwise require any Congressional action lie before the 
Congress for 30 legislative days before going into effect. This 
provision adds a time delay to already complicated contracts, 
and adds an element of uncertainty to contract negotiations. 
The Administration bill proposes deleting the requirement for a 
30-day congressional lie before period after a contract is 
signed. Of course, if promising negotiations should occur we 
will discuss our plans with the appropriate Congressional 
committees before any contract is signed.
IEA authorities
    S. 1051 also extends to 2003 U.S. participation in the 
emergency preparedness activities of the IEA. The IEA, which is 
the main forum for energy cooperation among 24 countries, was 
created in 1974 under an Agreement on an International Energy 
Program. As a member of the IEA, the U.S. is obligated to 
maintain inventories of Government-owned or commercial stocks 
above minimum operating levels equivalent to 90 days of net 
imports. EPCA also provides limited antitrust defense for U.S. 
oil companies participating in the IEA's emergency preparedness 
programs to enable them to assist the IEA in planning or 
implementing a drawdown of government-controlled oil stocks.
    Last year's amendment to EPCA's antitrust provisions, 
broadening the scope of U.S. oil company participation in IEA 
activities, has enabled the IEA to more fully engage its oil 
industry advisors in planning its response to future oil supply 
disruptions. Last fall's successful Emergency Response Exercise 
was the first major IEA activity at which U.S. companies made 
use of the broadened antitrust provisions. On September 28-30, 
the IEA will sponsor an oil disruption response simulation 
exercise to test its ability to respond to disruptions in world 
oil markets. One element of the exercise will focus on the 
potential impact on world oil supply of Y2K-related computer 
problems. In addition to energy security experts from the IEA's 
24 member governments, representatives of major oil companies 
will play a key role in this exercise. Immediately following 
the exercise on October 1, the IEA and its oil company advisors 
will meet to turn the lessons learned during the simulation 
into policy and response options for addressing the Y2K 
problem.
    We urge you to pass these authorities expeditiously to 
facilitate U.S. participation in these important programs.
Committees on Renewable Energy Commerce and Trade and Energy Efficiency 
        Commerce and Trade
    Title II of EPCA also provides the authority for the 
Committee on Renewable Energy Commerce and Trade (CORECT) and 
the Committee on Energy Efficiency Commerce and Trade (COEECT). 
COEECT is an interagency committee whose 15 Federal Agency 
members, in conjunction with private industry, develop and 
implement strategies for the export of U.S. energy efficiency 
technologies. CORECT, which has not received appropriations in 
the last two years, has curtailed its activities in the export 
of renewable energy technologies. The Administration strongly 
supports reauthorization of these programs to promote the 
export of U.S. energy technologies and products.
Conclusion
    In summary, the energy programs extended by S. 1051 are 
central to our nation's energy and economic strategies. I urge 
you to reaffirm our commitment to these programs and ask for 
your assistance in the passage of this bill.
    That concludes my prepared testimony. I will be glad to 
answer any questions.

                        Changes in Existing Law

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, S. 1051, as ordered reported, are shown as follows 
(existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black 
brackets, new matter is printed in italic, existing law in 
which no change is proposed is shown in roman):

                  ENERGY POLICY AND CONSERVATION ACT

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



        TITLE I--MATTERS RELATED TO DOMESTIC SUPPLY AVAILABILITY

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



                 Part B--Strategic Petroleum Reserve

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



                    authorization of appropriations

    Sec. 166. There are authorized to be appropriated for 
fiscal year 1999 through 2003 such sums as may be necessary to 
implement this part.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                           Part D--Expiration


                               expiration

    Sec. 181. Except as otherwise provided in title I, all 
authority under any provision of title I (other than a 
provision of such title amendment another law) and any rule, 
regulation, or order issued pursuant to such authority, shall 
expire at midnight, September 30, [1999] 2003, but such 
expiration shall not affect any action or pending proceedings, 
civil or criminal, not finally determined on such date, nor any 
action or proceeding based upon any act committed prior to 
midnight. September 30, [1999] 2003.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                 TITLE II--STANDBY ENERGY AUTHORITIES

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                  international voluntary agreements

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


    Sec. 256. (a) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

    (h) Authorizations of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
to be appropriated to the Secretary for purposes of carrying 
out the programs under subsection (d) and (e) $10,000,000, to 
be divided equitably between the interagency working subgroups 
based on program requirements, for each of the fiscal years 
1993 and 1994, and such sums as may be necessary for fiscal 
years 1993 and 1994, and such sums as may be necessary for 
fiscal year 1995 to carry out the purpose of this subtitle. 
There are authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 1997 
through 2003 such sums as may be necessary to carry out this 
part.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

    Sec. 281. Except as otherwise provided in title II, all 
authority under any provision of title II (other than a 
provision of such title amendment another law) and any rule, 
regulation, or order issued pursuant to such authority, shall 
expire at midnight, September 30, [1999] 2003, but such 
expiration shall not affect any action or pending proceedings, 
civil or criminal, not finally determined on such date, nor any 
action or proceeding based upon any act committed prior to 
midnight, September 30, [1999] 2003.

                                  
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