[House Report 113-375]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


113th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     113-375

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



 
          FARMERS UNDERTAKE ENVIRONMENTAL LAND STEWARDSHIP ACT

                                _______
                                

 March 6, 2014.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Shuster, from the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 311]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, to whom 
was referred the bill (H.R. 311) to direct the Administrator of 
the Environmental Protection Agency to change the Spill 
Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure rule with respect to 
certain farms, having considered the same, report favorably 
thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Purpose of Legislation...........................................     2
Background and Need for Legislation..............................     2
Hearings.........................................................     3
Legislative History and Consideration............................     4
Committee Votes..................................................     4
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................     4
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................     4
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................     4
Performance Goals and Objectives.................................     6
Advisory of Earmarks.............................................     6
Duplication of Federal Programs..................................     6
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings..............................     6
Federal Mandate Statement........................................     6
Preemption Clarification.........................................     6
Advisory Committee Statement.....................................     6
Applicability to the Legislative Branch..........................     7
Section-by-Section Analysis of Legislation.......................     7
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............     7

                         PURPOSE OF LEGISLATION

    H.R. 311, the Farmers Undertake Environmental Land 
Stewardship Act, or the FUELS Act, directs the Administrator of 
the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to modify the Spill 
Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) rule with 
respect to certain farms. The bill directs the EPA 
Administrator to require certification of compliance with the 
SPCC rule by: (1) a professional engineer for a farm with an 
individual tank with an above-ground storage capacity greater 
than 10,000 gallons, an aggregate above-ground storage capacity 
of at least 42,000 gallons, or a history that includes a spill; 
or (2) the owner or operator of the farm (via self-
certification) for a farm with an aggregate above-ground 
storage capacity greater than 10,000 gallons but less than 
42,000 gallons and no history of spills. The bill exempts from 
all requirements of the SPCC rule any farm with an aggregate 
above-ground storage capacity that is less than or equal to 
10,000 gallons and no history of spills. The bill excludes all 
containers on separate parcels that have a capacity that is 
less than 1,320 gallons from the aggregate above-ground storage 
capacity of a farm.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    Section 311 of the Clean Water Act (CWA) (33 U.S.C. 
Sec. 1321) requires the President to issue regulations 
establishing procedures, methods, equipment, and other 
requirements to prevent discharges of oil from vessels and 
facilities and to contain such discharges. The President 
delegated to the EPA Administrator the authority to regulate 
non-transportation-related onshore facilities (in Executive 
Order 11548, which has been replaced by Executive Order 12777).
    EPA originally published a Spill Prevention, Control, and 
Countermeasure (SPCC) rule, formally known as the Oil Pollution 
Prevention regulation (at 40 CFR Part 112), in 1973 under the 
authority of CWA section 311. The SPCC rule sets forth 
requirements for prevention of, preparedness for, and response 
to oil discharges at specific non-transportation-related 
facilities. To prevent oil from reaching navigable waters and 
adjoining shorelines, and to contain discharges of oil, 
facilities are required to develop and implement SPCC plans, 
which specify the procedures, methods, and equipment required 
to reduce the risk of oil spills.
    EPA proposed revisions to the SPCC rule in the 1990s and 
finalized amendments in 2002. The amended SPCC rule included 
revised and expanded requirements for SPCC plans, outlined the 
requirements for various classes of oil, revised the 
applicability of the regulation, amended the requirements for 
completing SPCC plans, and made other modifications.
    The obligations of farms to prepare, amend, and implement 
their SPCC plans have been in place since 1974. EPA revised the 
SPCC rule in July 2002 (which became effective in August 2002) 
and subsequently completed four additional amendments to the 
SPCC rule to tailor, streamline, and clarify requirements. On 
eight occasions following the 2002 Final Rule, EPA extended the 
compliance deadline for facilities, including farms, to update 
(or for new facilities to prepare) and implement a SPCC plan 
that complies with the revised requirements. EPA updated the 
SPCC rule in 2009 to expand regulation under the SPCC program, 
applying it to nearly all farms and limiting a 2006 rule that 
reduced compliance requirements for small farms with oil 
storage of 10,000 gallons or less.
    EPA established a final SPCC compliance deadline of 
November 2011 for most facilities; however, in response to 
widespread flooding in the Midwest in 2011, EPA, again, 
extended the deadline date for farms only for an additional 18 
months (until May 10, 2013). EPA has begun enforcing the SPCC 
rule without any reductions in the regulatory burdens the rule 
imposes on farmers.
    The SPCC program is intended to prevent oil spills into 
navigable waters and adjoining shorelines. The SPCC regulations 
apply to farms which: (1) store, transfer, use, or consume oil 
or oil products, such as diesel fuel, gasoline, lube oil, 
hydraulic oil, and crop oil; (2) store more than 1,320 U.S. 
gallons in aboveground containers or more than 42,000 U.S. 
gallons in completely buried containers; and (3) could 
reasonably be expected to discharge oil to navigable waters or 
adjoining shorelines.
    Under the SPCC regulations, any farm that meets the 
applicable criteria is covered by the SPCC rule, and must 
prepare and implement an SPCC plan. The regulations require 
that farmers: (1) use containers suitable for the oil stored; 
(2) identify contractors or other local personnel who can help 
clean up an oil spill; (3) provide overflow prevention for oil 
storage containers (such as high-level alarms); (4) provide 
effective, sized secondary containment for bulk storage 
containers (such as an earthen dike, remote impoundment, or 
double-walled tank); (5) provide effective, general secondary 
containment to address the most likely discharges from oil 
transfers or mobile refuelers (such as sorbent materials, drip 
pans, or curbing); and (6) periodically inspect and test pipes 
and containers. Completed SPCC plans must be kept on site, and 
reviewed and amended when changes are made to the farm or every 
five years.
    These mandated infrastructure improvements, along with the 
necessary inspection and certification by a specially licensed 
professional engineer, can cost many farmers tens of thousands 
of dollars, and compliance costs could reach more than $60,000. 
(See University of Arkansas, Division of Agriculture, Impact of 
Proposed Changes to SPCC Rule for US Farmers: A Preliminary 
Analysis (July 2012). For the entire Nation, H.R. 311 could 
save farmers collectively billions of dollars. (See id.)
    H.R. 311, the FUELS Act, requires that EPA revise the SPCC 
regulations. The SPCC exemption level would be adjusted upward 
from 1,320 gallons of oil storage to an amount that would 
reduce the regulatory burdens on small farms--10,000 gallons. 
All small containers on separate parcels that have a capacity 
that is less than 1,320 gallons would be excluded from a farm's 
aggregate above-ground storage capacity.
    The bill also would allow farmers to self-certify 
compliance if their oil storage facilities exceed the exemption 
level of 10,000 gallons. If a farmer's aggregate above-ground 
storage capacity exceeds 42,000 gallons, a professional 
engineer must certify the SPCC plans for the farm. The bill 
requires a farmer to be able to demonstrate that he or she has 
no history of oil spills, or to fully comply with the SPCC 
rule.

                                HEARINGS

    No hearings were held on H.R. 311.

                 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY AND CONSIDERATION

    On January 18, 2013, Representative Rick Crawford of 
Arkansas introduced H.R. 311, a bill to direct the 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to change 
the Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure rule with 
respect to certain farms.
    On October 29, 2013, the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure met in open session to consider H.R. 311, and 
ordered the bill reported favorably to the House by voice vote 
with a quorum present.
    In the 112th Congress, the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure ordered a virtually identical bill (H.R. 3158) 
reported favorably to the House by voice vote. H.R. 3158 passed 
the House of Representatives under suspension of the rules by 
voice vote.

                            COMMITTEE VOTES

    Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires each committee report to include the 
total number of votes cast for and against on each record vote 
on a motion to report and on any amendment offered to the 
measure or matter, and the names of those members voting for 
and against. There were no record votes taken in connection 
with consideration of H.R. 311, or ordering the bill reported. 
A motion to order H.R. 311 reported favorably to the House was 
agreed to by voice vote with a quorum present.

                      COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS

    With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(1) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee's oversight findings and recommendations are 
reflected in this report.

               NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY AND TAX EXPENDITURES

    Clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives does not apply where a cost estimate and 
comparison prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974 has been timely submitted prior to the filing of the 
report and is included in the report. Such a cost estimate is 
included in this report.

               CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE

    With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(3) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 
402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has 
received the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 311 from the 
Director of the Congressional Budget Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                  Washington, DC, November 6, 2013.
Hon. Bill Shuster,
Chairman, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 311, the Farmers 
Undertake Environmental Land Stewardship Act.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Susanne S. 
Mehlman.
            Sincerely,
                                              Douglas W. Elmendorf.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 311--Farmers Undertake Environmental Land Stewardship Act

    H.R. 311 would have no significant net impact on the 
federal budget, CBO estimates. The bill would, require the 
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to modify the Spill 
Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) rule, which 
regulates oil discharges into navigable waters and adjoining 
shorelines. A portion of the SPCC rule, effective as of 
September 23, 2013, requires certain farmers to develop an oil 
spill prevention plan that is certified by a professional 
engineer. Those plans could involve certain infrastructure 
changes to reduce the possibility of oil spills. Such plans 
apply to farms that store more than 1,320 gallons of oil 
products in aboveground containers or more than 42,000 gallons 
of oil products in buried containers that could reasonably be 
expected to discharge oil into waters of the United States.
    Enacting H.R. 311 would ease some compliance requirements 
for farmers, depending on the capacity of oil product 
containers located on a farm and whether a farm has previously 
experienced any spills. Specifically, under the bill, 
certification of compliance with the EPA rule by a professional 
engineer would only be required if the farm has an individual 
tank with a storage capacity greater than 10,000 gallons, has 
an aggregate storage capacity greater than or equal to 42,000 
gallons, or has previously experienced a spill. However, an 
owner or operator of a farm could provide self-certification 
with the SPCC rule if the farm has an aggregate storage 
capacity greater than 10,000 gallons, but less than 42,000 
gallons, and has no history of spills. Farms with an aggregate 
capacity of less than or equal to 10,000 gallons and no history 
of a spill would be exempt from all requirements of the SPCC 
rule.
    Based on information from EPA, CBO estimates that 
implementing and enforcing the SPCC rule as it pertains to 
farmers under current law will cost $2 million over the next 
five years. Enacting this bill would exempt the majority of 
farms from complying with the rule and also would require EPA 
to amend the SPCC rule for farms and develop guidance and 
outreach material to educate affected stakeholders. CBO expects 
that the resources necessary to support the existing rule over 
the next five years would instead be used to implement H.R. 
311.
    Pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply to H.R. 311 because 
enacting the bill would not affect direct spending or revenues.
    H.R. 311 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal 
governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Susanne S. 
Mehlman. This estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                    PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

    With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(4) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
performance goal and objective of this legislation is to direct 
the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to 
change the Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure rule 
with respect to certain farms.

                          ADVISORY OF EARMARKS

    Pursuant to clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the House 
of Representatives, the Committee is required to include a list 
of congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited 
tariff benefits as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of 
rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives. No 
provision in the bill includes an earmark, limited tax benefit, 
or limited tariff benefit under clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of 
rule XXI.

                    DUPLICATION OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS

    Pursuant to section 3(j) of H. Res. 5, 113th Cong. (2013), 
the Committee finds that no provision of H.R. 311 establishes 
or reauthorizes a program of the federal government known to be 
duplicative of another federal program, a program that was 
included in any report from the Government Accountability 
Office to Congress pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-
139, or a program related to a program identified in the most 
recent Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance.

                  DISCLOSURE OF DIRECTED RULE MAKINGS

    Pursuant to section 3(k) of H. Res. 5, 113th Cong. (2013), 
the Committee estimates that H.R. 311 directs the completion of 
one specific rule making within the meaning of section 551 of 
title 5, United States Code. The bill directs the EPA 
Administrator to change the Spill Prevention, Control, and 
Countermeasure rule, promulgated by EPA under part 112 of title 
40, Code of Federal Regulations, with respect to certain farms.

                       FEDERAL MANDATE STATEMENT

    The Committee adopts as its own the estimate of federal 
mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform 
Act (P.L. 104-4).

                        PREEMPTION CLARIFICATION

    Section 423 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 
requires the report of any Committee on a bill or joint 
resolution to include a statement on the extent to which the 
bill or joint resolution is intended to preempt state, local, 
or tribal law. The Committee states that H.R. 311 does not 
preempt any state, local, or tribal law.

                      ADVISORY COMMITTEE STATEMENT

    No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b) 
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act are created by this 
legislation.

                APPLICABILITY TO THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to 
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public 
services or accommodations within the meaning of section 
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act (P.L. 104-1).

               SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF LEGISLATION

Section 1. Short title

    Section 1 provides the short title of the bill. The Act may 
be cited as the ``Farmers Undertake Environmental Lands 
Stewardship Act'' or the ``FUELS Act''.

Section 2. Applicability of Spill Prevention, Control, and 
        Countermeasure Rule

    Section 2(a) requires the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency to implement the Spill 
Prevention, Control, and Countermeasures rule with respect to 
any farm such that certification of compliance with the rule 
shall be made by a professional engineer for a farm with (1) an 
individual tank with an above-ground storage capacity greater 
than 10,000 gallons, (2) an aggregate above-ground storage 
capacity greater than or equal to 42,000 gallons, or (3) a 
history that includes a spill. Self-certification by the owner 
or operator of a farm shall be required for a farm with (1) an 
aggregate above-ground storage capacity greater than 10,000 
gallons but less than 42,000 gallons, and (2) no history of 
spills. The rule shall exempt from all requirements of such 
rule any farm (1) with an aggregate above-ground storage 
capacity of less than or equal to 10,000 gallons, and (2) no 
history of spills.
    Section 2(b) requires that, for purposes of calculating the 
aggregate above-ground storage capacity of a farm, all 
containers on separate parcels that have a capacity that is 
less than 1,320 gallons shall be excluded.

Section 3. Definitions

    Section 3 defines the following terms used in the bill: 
Administrator, Farm, Gallon, and Spill Prevention, Control, and 
Countermeasures rule.
    The term ``Administrator'' means the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency. The term ``farm'' has the 
meaning given such term in section 112.2 of title 40, Code of 
Federal Regulations. The term ``gallon'' refers to a United 
States liquid gallon. The term ``Spill Prevention, Control, and 
Countermeasure rule'' means the regulation promulgated by EPA 
under part 112 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations.

         CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

    H.R. 311 makes no changes in existing law.

                                  
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