I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3682 

To increase the competitiveness of American manufacturing by reducing regulatory and other burdens, encouraging greater innovation and investment, 

and developing a stronger workforce for the twenty-first century, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 2, 2015 

Mr. GUTHRIE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on 

Natural Resources, Ways and Means, Education and the Workforce, the 

Judiciary, House Administration, Rules, Appropriations, Foreign Affairs, 

Science, Space, and Technology, and Armed Services, 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 increase the competitiveness of American manufacturing 

by reducing regulatory and other burdens, encouraging 

greater innovation and investment, and developing a 

stronger workforce for the twenty-first century, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 (a) THIS ACT.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Re3 ducing Employer Burdens, Unleashing Innovation, and 

4 Labor Development Act of 2015’’. 

5 (b) TITLES VIII AND IX.—Titles VIII and IX may 

6 be cited as the ‘‘Lowering Gasoline Prices to Fuel an 

7 America That Works Act of 2015’’. 

8 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

9 The table of contents for this Act is the following: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

Sec. 3. Findings; sense of the Congress. 

TITLE I—INVESTING IN AMERICA’S WORKFORCE 

Sec. 101. Short title. 

Sec. 102. Industry-recognized and nationally portable credentials for job training programs. 

Sec. 103. Definitions. 

Sec. 104. Rule of construction. 

Sec. 105. Effective date. 

TITLE II—EXTENDING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT TAX 

CREDITS AND CONSIDERING COMPREHENSIVE TAX REFORM 

Sec. 201. Extension of research credit; alternative simplified research credit increased and made permanent. 

Sec. 202. Comprehensive reform of United States tax laws; expedited consideration. 

TITLE III—PREVENTING EVASION OF DUTY ORDERS AND 

REFORMING EXPORT CONTROLS 

Sec. 301. Definitions. 

Sec. 302. Application to Canada and Mexico. 

Subtitle A—Actions Relating to Enforcement of Trade Remedy Laws 

Sec. 311. Trade remedy law enforcement division. 

Sec. 312. Collection of information on evasion of trade remedy laws. 

Sec. 313. Access to information. 

Sec. 314. Cooperation with foreign countries on preventing evasion of trade 

remedy laws. 

Sec. 315. Trade negotiating objectives. 

Subtitle B—Investigation of Evasion of Trade Remedy Laws 


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Sec. 321. Procedures for investigation of evasion of antidumping and countervailing duty orders. 

Sec. 322. Government Accountability Office report. 

Subtitle C—Other Matters 

Sec. 331. Allocation and training of personnel. 

Sec. 332. Annual report on prevention of evasion of antidumping and countervailing duty orders. 

Sec. 333. Addressing circumvention by new shippers. 

Sec. 334. Sense of Congress on reform of export control policies. 

TITLE IV—CREATING FEDERAL SPECTRUM INCENTIVES 

Sec. 401. Short title. 

Sec. 402. Federal spectrum incentives. 

Sec. 403. Costs of incumbent Federal entities related to spectrum sharing. 

TITLE V—PROVIDING REGULATORY RELIEF, CERTAINTY, AND 

TRANSPARENCY 

Subtitle A—Energy Consumers Relief 

CHAPTER 1—FINALIZING ENERGY-RELATED RULES

Sec. 501. Prohibition against finalizing certain energy-related rules that will 

cause significant adverse effects to the economy. 

Sec. 502. Reports and determinations prior to promulgating as final certain energy-related rules. 

Sec. 503. Definitions. 

Sec. 504. Prohibition on use of social cost of carbon in analysis. 

CHAPTER 2—ELECTRICITY SECURITY AND AFFORDABILITY

Sec. 511. Short title. 

Sec. 512. Standards of performance for new fossil fuel-fired electric utility generating units. 

Sec. 513. Congress to set effective date for standards of performance for existing, modified, and reconstructed fossil fuel-fired electric utility 

generating units. 

Sec. 514. Repeal of earlier rules and guidelines. 

Sec. 515. Definitions. 

Subtitle B—LNG Permitting Certainty and Transparency 

Sec. 521. Short title. 

Sec. 522. Action on applications. 

Sec. 523. Public disclosure of export destinations. 

Subtitle C—Preventing Government Waste and Protecting Coal Mining Jobs 

in America 

Sec. 531. Short title. 

Sec. 532. Incorporation of surface mining stream buffer zone rule into State 

programs. 

TITLE VI—REDUCING HEALTH CARE BURDENS AND IMPROVING 

PATIENT COVERAGE 


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Sec. 601. Repeal of the health care law and health care-related provisions in 

the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. 

Sec. 602. No lifetime limits. 

Sec. 603. Establish universal access programs to improve high risk pools and 

reinsurance markets. 

Sec. 604. Elimination of certain requirements for guaranteed availability in individual market. 

Sec. 605. Preventing unjust cancellation of insurance coverage. 

TITLE VII—LOWERING HEALTH CARE COSTS 

Subtitle A—Cooperative Governing of Individual Health Insurance Coverage 

Sec. 701. Cooperative governing of individual health insurance coverage. 

Sec. 702. Severability. 

Subtitle B—Medical Malpractice Reform 

Sec. 711. Purpose. 

Sec. 712. Encouraging speedy resolution of claims. 

Sec. 713. Compensating patient injury. 

Sec. 714. Maximizing patient recovery. 

Sec. 715. Punitive damages. 

Sec. 716. Authorization of payment of future damages to claimants in health 

care lawsuits. 

Sec. 717. Definitions. 

Sec. 718. Effect on other laws. 

Sec. 719. State flexibility and protection of States’ rights. 

Sec. 720. Applicability; effective date. 

Sec. 721. Protection for emergency and related services furnished pursuant to 

EMTALA. 

Sec. 722. Constitutional authority. 

Sec. 723. Application of the antitrust laws to the business of health insurance. 

Sec. 724. Limitation on liability for volunteer health care professionals. 

TITLE VIII—PROMOTING OFFSHORE ENERGY AND JOBS 

Subtitle A—Outer Continental Shelf Leasing Program Reforms 

Sec. 801. Outer Continental Shelf leasing program reforms. 

Sec. 802. Domestic oil and natural gas production goal. 

Sec. 803. Development and submittal of new 5-year oil and gas leasing program. 

Sec. 804. Rule of construction. 

Sec. 805. Addition of lease sales after finalization of 5-year plan. 

Subtitle B—Directing the President To Conduct New OCS Sales 

Sec. 811. Requirement to conduct proposed oil and gas Lease Sale 220 on the 

Outer Continental Shelf offshore Virginia. 

Sec. 812. South Carolina lease sale. 

Sec. 813. Southern California existing infrastructure lease sale. 

Sec. 814. Environmental impact statement requirement. 

Sec. 815. National defense. 

Sec. 816. Eastern Gulf of Mexico not included. 

Subtitle C—Equitable Sharing of Outer Continental Shelf Revenues 


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Sec. 821. Disposition of Outer Continental Shelf revenues to coastal States. 

Subtitle D—Reorganization of Minerals Management Agencies of the 

Department of the Interior 

Sec. 831. Establishment of Under Secretary for Energy, Lands, and Minerals 

and Assistant Secretary of Ocean Energy and Safety. 

Sec. 832. Bureau of Ocean Energy. 

Sec. 833. Ocean Energy Safety Service. 

Sec. 834. Office of Natural Resources revenue. 

Sec. 835. Ethics and drug testing. 

Sec. 836. Abolishment of Minerals Management Service. 

Sec. 837. Conforming amendments to Executive Schedule pay rates. 

Sec. 838. Outer Continental Shelf Energy Safety Advisory Board. 

Sec. 839. Outer Continental Shelf inspection fees. 

Sec. 840. Prohibition on action based on National Ocean Policy developed 

under Executive Order No. 13547. 

Subtitle E—United States Territories 

Sec. 851. Application of Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act with respect to territories of the United States. 

Subtitle F—Miscellaneous Provisions 

Sec. 861. Rules regarding distribution of revenues under Gulf of Mexico Energy 

Security Act of 2006. 

Sec. 862. Amount of distributed qualified outer Continental Shelf revenues. 

Sec. 863. South Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Planning Area defined. 

Sec. 864. Enhancing geological and geophysical information for America’s energy future. 

Subtitle G—Judicial Review 

Sec. 871. Time for filing complaint. 

Sec. 872. District court deadline. 

Sec. 873. Ability to seek appellate review. 

Sec. 874. Limitation on scope of review and relief. 

Sec. 875. Legal fees. 

Sec. 876. Exclusion. 

Sec. 877. Definitions. 

TITLE IX—INCREASING ONSHORE OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT 

AND ENERGY SECURITY 

Subtitle A—Federal Lands Jobs and Energy Security 

Sec. 901. Short title. 

Sec. 902. Policies regarding buying, building, and working for America. 

CHAPTER 1—ONSHORE OIL AND GAS PERMIT STREAMLINING

SUBCHAPTER A—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Sec. 911. Short title. 

Sec. 912. Permit to drill application timeline. 

Sec. 913. Administrative protest documentation reform. 


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Sec. 914. Making pilot offices permanent to improve energy permitting on Federal lands. 

Sec. 915. Administration of current law. 

Sec. 916. Funding oil and gas resource assessments. 

Sec. 917. Rule of construction. 

SUBCHAPTER B—JUDICIAL REVIEW

Sec. 921. Definitions. 

Sec. 922. Exclusive venue for certain civil actions relating to covered energy 

projects. 

Sec. 923. Timely filing. 

Sec. 924. Expedition in hearing and determining the action. 

Sec. 925. Standard of review. 

Sec. 926. Limitation on injunction and prospective relief. 

Sec. 927. Limitation on attorneys’ fees. 

Sec. 928. Legal standing. 

CHAPTER 2—OIL AND GAS LEASING CERTAINTY

Sec. 931. Short title. 

Sec. 932. Minimum acreage requirement for onshore lease sales. 

Sec. 933. Leasing certainty. 

Sec. 934. Leasing consistency. 

Sec. 935. Reduce redundant policies. 

Sec. 936. Streamlined congressional notification. 

CHAPTER 3—OIL SHALE

Sec. 941. Short title. 

Sec. 942. Effectiveness of oil shale regulations, amendments to resource management plans, and record of decision. 

Sec. 943. Oil shale leasing. 

Subtitle B—Planning for American Energy 

Sec. 951. Short title. 

Sec. 952. Onshore domestic energy production strategic plan. 

Subtitle C—National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Access 

Sec. 961. Short title. 

Sec. 962. Sense of Congress and reaffirming national policy for the National 

Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. 

Sec. 963. National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska: lease sales. 

Sec. 964. National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska: planning and permitting pipeline and road construction. 

Sec. 965. Issuance of a new integrated activity plan and environmental impact 

statement. 

Sec. 966. Departmental accountability for development. 

Sec. 967. Deadlines under new proposed integrated activity plan. 

Sec. 968. Updated resource assessment. 

Subtitle D—BLM Live Internet Auctions 

Sec. 971. Short title. 

Sec. 972. Internet-based onshore oil and gas lease sales. 


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Subtitle E—Native American Energy 

Sec. 981. Short title. 

Sec. 982. Appraisals. 

Sec. 983. Standardization. 

Sec. 984. Environmental reviews of major Federal actions on Indian lands. 

Sec. 985. Judicial review. 

Sec. 986. Tribal biomass demonstration project. 

Sec. 987. Tribal resource management plans. 

Sec. 988. Leases of restricted lands for the Navajo Nation. 

Sec. 989. Nonapplicability of certain rules. 

Subtitle F—State Authority for Hydraulic Fracturing Regulation 

Sec. 991. Short title. 

Sec. 992. State authority for hydraulic fracturing regulation. 

Sec. 993. Government Accountability Office study. 

Sec. 994. Tribal authority on trust land. 

TITLE X—PROMOTING STEM EDUCATION IN THE WORKFORCE 

Sec. 1001. Findings; sense of Congress. 

Sec. 1002. STEM Education Advisory Panel. 

Sec. 1003. Committee on STEM Education. 

Sec. 1004. STEM Education Coordinating Office. 

Sec. 1005. Definitions. 

1 SEC. 3. FINDINGS; SENSE OF THE CONGRESS. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) Data indicate that manufacturing employees 

4 earn a higher average salary and receive greater 

5 benefits than workers in other industries. 

6 (2) Recent data also show that United States 

7 manufacturing companies cannot fill as many as 

8 600,000 skilled positions, even as unemployment 

9 numbers hover at historically high levels. 

10 (3) Postsecondary success and workforce readi11 ness can be achieved through attainment of recog12 nized postsecondary credentials. 


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1 (4) Data indicate that United States manufac2 turers invest a far greater percentage of revenue in 

3 research and development than other industries. 

4 (5) The United States has the highest corporate 

5 tax rate in the developed world. 

6 (6) A recent report indicates that United States 

7 manufacturers face a 20 percent structural cost bur8 den compared to companies from the Nation’s 9 

9 largest trading partners. 

10 (7) Excessive Federal regulations are placing a 

11 heavy burden on United States manufacturers. 

12 (8) According to a recent report, it is estimated 

13 that pending and recently finalized Environmental 

14 Protection Agency regulations alone could cost man15 ufacturers over $100,000,000,000 per year in com16 pliance, plus additional one-time costs of over 

17 $500,000,000. 

18 (9) Data indicate that regulatory costs could 

19 cut annual United States economic output by as 

20 much as $630,000,000,000, or 4.2 percent of Gross 

21 Domestic Product, resulting in a net loss of 

22 9,000,000 jobs. 

23 (10) Expanded domestic resource development 

24 would further reduce energy costs, increasing United 

25 States manufacturers’ competitive advantage. 


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1 (11) Data show that United States manufactur2 ers have reduced energy usage and emissions to 

3 below the 1990 levels. 

4 (12) Reports indicate United States health care 

5 costs have increased over 80 percent in the past dec6 ade, creating greater personnel costs for manufac7 turers. 

8 (13) Data show that United States manufactur9 ers are responsible for 47 percent of total United 

10 States exports. 

11 (14) A widening trade gap with major trade 

12 partners means that manufacturers are at risk of 

13 losing export market share. 

14 (b) SENSE OF THE CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 

15 the Congress that increasing the competitiveness of United 

16 States manufacturers will strengthen the national econ17 omy. 

18 TITLE I—INVESTING IN 

19 AMERICA’S WORKFORCE 

20 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 

21 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Investing in America’s 

22 Workforce Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 102. INDUSTRY-RECOGNIZED AND NATIONALLY PORT2 ABLE CREDENTIALS FOR JOB TRAINING PRO3 GRAMS. 

4 (a) WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT OF 1998.— 

5 (1) YOUTH ACTIVITIES.—Section 129(c)(1)(C) 

6 of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 

7 2854(c)(1)(C)) is amended— 

8 (A) by redesignating clauses (ii) through 

9 (iv) as clauses (iii) through (v), respectively; 

10 and 

11 (B) by inserting after clause (i) the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(ii) training (which may include pri14 ority consideration for training programs 

15 that lead to recognized postsecondary cre16 dentials (as defined in section 104 of the 

17 Investing in America’s Workforce Act) that 

18 are aligned with in-demand occupations or 

19 industries in the local area involved, if the 

20 local board determines that the programs 

21 meet the quality criteria described in sec22 tion 123);’’. 

23 (2) GENERAL EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING AC24 TIVITIES.—Section 134(d)(4)(F) of the Workforce 

25 Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2864(d)(4)(F)) 

26 is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(iv) PROGRAMS THAT LEAD TO AN

2 INDUSTRY-RECOGNIZED AND NATIONALLY

3 PORTABLE CREDENTIAL.—In assisting in4 dividuals in selecting programs of training 

5 services under this section, a one-stop op6 erator and employees of a one-stop center 

7 referred to in subsection (c) may give pri8 ority consideration to programs (approved 

9 in conjunction with eligibility decisions 

10 made under section 122) that lead to rec11 ognized postsecondary credentials (as de12 fined in section 103 of the Investing in 

13 America’s Workforce Act) that are aligned 

14 with in-demand occupations or industries 

15 in the local area involved.’’. 

16 (3) CRITERIA.— 

17 (A) GENERAL EMPLOYMENT AND TRAIN18 ING ACTIVITIES.—Section 122(b)(2)(D) of the 

19 Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 

20 2842(b)(2)(D)) is amended— 

21 (i) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

22 the end; 

23 (ii) in clause (iii), by striking the pe24 riod and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 


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1 (iii) by adding at the end the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(iv) in the case of a provider of a 

4 program of training services that leads to 

5 a recognized postsecondary credential (as 

6 defined in section 103 of the Investing in 

7 America’s Workforce Act), that the pro8 gram leading to the credential meets such 

9 quality criteria as the Governor shall es10 tablish.’’. 

11 (B) YOUTH ACTIVITIES.—Section 123 of 

12 the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (29 

13 U.S.C. 2843) is amended by inserting ‘‘(includ14 ing such quality criteria as the Governor shall 

15 establish for a training program that leads to a 

16 recognized postsecondary credential (as defined 

17 in section 103 of the Investing in America’s 

18 Workforce Act))’’ after ‘‘plan’’. 

19 (b) CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION.— 

20 (1) STATE PLAN.—Section 122(c)(1)(B) of the 

21 Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education 

22 Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2342(c)(1)(B)) is amend23 ed— 

24 (A) by striking ‘‘(B) how’’ and inserting 

25 ‘‘(B)(i) how’’; 


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1 (B) by inserting ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

2 and 

3 (C) by adding at the end the following 

4 ‘‘(ii) in the case of an eligible entity that, 

5 in developing and implementing programs of 

6 study leading to recognized postsecondary cre7 dentials, desires to give a priority to such pro8 grams that are aligned with in-demand occupa9 tions or industries in the area served (as deter10 mined by the eligible agency) and that may pro11 vide a basis for additional credentials, certifi12 cates, or degree, how the entity will do so;’’. 

13 (2) USE OF LOCAL FUNDS.—Section 134(b) of 

14 the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education 

15 Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2354(b)) is amended— 

16 (A) in paragraph (11), by striking ‘‘; and’’ 

17 and inserting a semicolon; 

18 (B) in paragraph (12)(B), by striking the 

19 period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

20 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(13) describe the career and technical edu22 cation activities supporting the attainment of recog23 nized postsecondary credentials (as defined in sec24 tion 103 of the Investing in America’s Workforce 

25 Act), and, in the case of an eligible recipient that deVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:09 Oct 08, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3682.IH H3682

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1 sires to provide priority consideration to certain pro2 grams of study in accordance with the State plan 

3 under section 122(c)(1)(B), how the eligible recipi4 ent will give priority consideration to such activi5 ties.’’. 

6 (3) TECH-PREP PROGRAMS.—Section 

7 203(c)(2)(E) of the Carl D. Perkins Career and 

8 Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 

9 2373(c)(2)(E)) is amended by striking ‘‘industry10 recognized credential, a certificate,’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘recognized postsecondary credential (as defined in 

12 section 103 of the Investing in America’s Workforce 

13 Act and approved by the eligible agency),’’. 

14 (c) TRAINING PROGRAMS UNDER TAA.—Section 

15 236(a) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2296(a)) is 

16 amended by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(12) In approving training programs for adversely 

18 affected workers and adversely affected incumbent work19 ers under paragraph (1), the Secretary may give priority 

20 consideration to workers seeking training through pro21 grams that are approved in conjunction with eligibility de22 cisions made under section 122 of the Workforce Invest23 ment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2842), and that lead to rec24 ognized postsecondary credentials (as defined in section 

25 103 of the Investing in America’s Workforce Act) that are 


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1 aligned with in-demand occupations or industries in the 

2 local area (defined for purposes of title I of the Workforce 

3 Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2801 et seq.)) in4 volved.’’. 

5 SEC. 103. DEFINITIONS. 

6 In this title: 

7 (1) INDUSTRY-RECOGNIZED.—The term ‘‘indus8 try-recognized’’, used with respect to a credential, 

9 means a credential that— 

10 (A) is sought or accepted by employers 

11 within the industry sector involved as recog12 nized, preferred, or required for recruitment, 

13 screening, hiring, or advancement; and 

14 (B) is a nationally portable credential, 

15 meaning a credential that is sought or accepted 

16 across multiple States, as described in subpara17 graph (A). 

18 (2) RECOGNIZED POSTSECONDARY CREDEN19 TIAL.—The term ‘‘recognized postsecondary creden20 tial’’ means a credential consisting of an industry21 recognized credential for postsecondary training, a 

22 certificate that meets the requirements of subpara23 graphs (A) and (C) of paragraph (1) for postsec24 ondary training, a certificate of completion of a post25 secondary apprenticeship through a program deVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:09 Oct 08, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3682.IH H3682

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1 scribed in section 122(a)(2)(B) of the Workforce In2 vestment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2842(a)(2)(B)), or 

3 an associate degree or baccalaureate degree awarded 

4 by an institution of higher education (as defined in 

5 section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

6 (20 U.S.C. 1002)). 

7 SEC. 104. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

8 Nothing in this title shall be construed to require an 

9 entity with responsibility for selecting or approving an 

10 education, training, or workforce investment activities pro11 gram with regard to a covered provision, to select a pro12 gram with a recognized postsecondary credential or certifi13 cate as defined by this title. 

14 SEC. 105. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

15 This title, and the amendments made by this title, 

16 take effect 120 days after the date of enactment of this 

17 Act. 


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1 TITLE II—EXTENDING RE2 SEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 

3 TAX CREDITS AND CONSID4 ERING COMPREHENSIVE TAX 

5 REFORM 

6 SEC. 201. EXTENSION OF RESEARCH CREDIT; ALTERNATIVE 

7 SIMPLIFIED RESEARCH CREDIT INCREASED 

8 AND MADE PERMANENT. 

9 (a) EXTENSION OF CREDIT.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) of section 

11 41(h) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

12 amended by striking ‘‘December 31, 2014’’ and in13 serting ‘‘December 31, 2016’’. 

14 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

15 by paragraph (1) shall apply to amounts paid or in16 curred after December 31, 2014. 

17 (b) ALTERNATIVE SIMPLIFIED RESEARCH CREDIT

18 INCREASED AND MADE PERMANENT.— 

19 (1) INCREASED CREDIT.—Subparagraph (A) of 

20 section 41(c)(5) of such Code (relating to election of 

21 alternative simplified credit) is amended by striking 

22 ‘‘14 percent (12 percent in the case of taxable years 

23 ending before January 1, 2009)’’ and inserting ‘‘20 

24 percent’’. 

25 (2) CREDIT MADE PERMANENT.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (h) of sec2 tion 41 of such Code is amended by redesig3 nating the paragraph (2) relating to computa4 tion of taxable year in which credit terminates 

5 as paragraph (4) and by inserting before such 

6 paragraph the following new paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(3) TERMINATION NOT TO APPLY TO ALTER8 NATIVE SIMPLIFIED CREDIT.—Paragraph (1) shall 

9 not apply to the credit determined under subsection 

10 (c)(5).’’. 

11 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Para12 graph (4) of section 41(h) of such Code, as re13 designated by subparagraph (A), is amended to 

14 read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(4) COMPUTATION FOR TAXABLE YEAR IN

16 WHICH CREDIT TERMINATES.—In the case of any 

17 taxable year with respect to which this section ap18 plies to a number of days which is less than the total 

19 number of days in such taxable year, the amount de20 termined under subsection (c)(1)(B) with respect to 

21 such taxable year shall be the amount which bears 

22 the same ratio to such amount (determined without 

23 regard to this paragraph) as the number of days in 

24 such taxable year to which this section applies bears 

25 to the total number of days in such taxable year.’’. 


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1 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

2 by this subsection shall apply to taxable years end3 ing after December 31, 2014. 

4 SEC. 202. COMPREHENSIVE REFORM OF UNITED STATES 

5 TAX LAWS; EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION. 

6 (a) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 

7 term ‘‘tax reform bill’’ means a bill of the 114th Con8 gress— 

9 (1) introduced in the House of Representatives 

10 by the chair of the Committee on Ways and Means 

11 not later than the end of the 114th Congress the 

12 title of which is as follows: ‘‘A bill to provide for 

13 comprehensive tax reform.’’; and 

14 (2) which is the subject of a certification under 

15 subsection (b). 

16 (b) CERTIFICATION.—The chair of the Joint Com17 mittee on Taxation shall notify the House and Senate in 

18 writing whenever the chair of the Joint Committee deter19 mines that an introduced bill described in subsection 

20 (a)(1) contains at least each of the following proposals: 

21 (1) A transition to a more globally competitive 

22 corporate tax code for United States businesses. 

23 (2) A reduction in the complexity of the tax 

24 code. 

25 (3) The elimination of special interest loopholes. 


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1 (c) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION IN THE HOUSE OF

2 REPRESENTATIVES.— 

3 (1) Any committee of the House of Representa4 tives to which the tax reform bill is referred shall re5 port it to the House not later than 20 calendar days 

6 after the date of its introduction. If a committee 

7 fails to report the tax reform bill within that period, 

8 such committee shall be automatically discharged 

9 from further consideration of the bill. 

10 (2) If the House has not otherwise proceeded to 

11 the consideration of the tax reform bill upon the ex12 piration of 15 legislative days after the bill has been 

13 placed on the Union Calendar, it shall be in order 

14 for the Majority Leader or a designee (or, after the 

15 expiration of an additional 2 legislative days, any 

16 Member), to offer one motion that the House resolve 

17 into the Committee of the Whole House on the state 

18 of the Union for the consideration of the tax reform 

19 bill. The previous question shall be considered as or20 dered on the motion to its adoption without inter21 vening motion except 20 minutes of debate equally 

22 divided and controlled by the proponent and an op23 ponent. If such a motion is adopted, consideration 

24 shall proceed in accordance with paragraph (3). A 


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1 motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion 

2 is disposed of shall not be in order. 

3 (3) The first reading of the bill shall be dis4 pensed with. General debate shall be confined to the 

5 bill and shall not exceed 4 hours, equally divided and 

6 controlled by the chair and ranking minority mem7 ber of the Committee on Ways and Means. At the 

8 conclusion of general debate, the bill shall be read 

9 for amendment under the five-minute rule. Any com10 mittee amendment shall be considered as read. At 

11 the conclusion of consideration of the bill for amend12 ment the Committee shall rise and report the bill to 

13 the House with such amendments as may have been 

14 adopted. The previous question shall be considered 

15 as ordered on the bill and amendments thereto to 

16 final passage without intervening motion except one 

17 motion to recommit with or without instructions. A 

18 motion to reconsider the vote on passage of the bill 

19 shall not be in order. 

20 (d) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION IN THE SENATE.— 

21 (1) COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION.—A tax re22 form bill, as defined in subsection (a), received in 

23 the Senate shall be referred to the Committee on Fi24 nance. The Committee shall report the bill not later 

25 than 15 calendar days after receipt of the bill in the 


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1 Senate. If the Committee fails to report the bill 

2 within that period, that committee shall be dis3 charged from consideration of the bill, and the bill 

4 shall be placed on the calendar. 

5 (2) MOTION TO PROCEED.—Notwithstanding 

6 rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, it is 

7 in order, not later than 2 days of session after the 

8 date on which the tax reform bill is reported or dis9 charged from committee, for the majority leader of 

10 the Senate or the majority leader’s designee to move 

11 to proceed to the consideration of the tax reform 

12 bill. It shall also be in order for any Member of the 

13 Senate to move to proceed to the consideration of 

14 the tax reform bill at any time after the conclusion 

15 of such 2-day period. A motion to proceed is in order 

16 even though a previous motion to the same effect 

17 has been disagreed to. All points of order against 

18 the motion to proceed to the tax reform bill are 

19 waived. The motion to proceed is not debatable. The 

20 motion is not subject to a motion to postpone. 

21 (3) CONSIDERATION.—No motion to recommit 

22 shall be in order and debate on any motion or appeal 

23 shall be limited to one hour, to be divided in the 

24 usual form. 


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1 (4) AMENDMENTS.—All amendments must be 

2 relevant to the bill and debate on any amendment 

3 shall be limited to 2 hours to be equally divided in 

4 the usual form between the opponents and pro5 ponents of the amendment. Debate on any amend6 ment to an amendment, debatable motion, or appeal 

7 shall be limited to 1 hour to be equally divided in 

8 the usual form between the opponents and pro9 ponents of the amendment. 

10 (5) VOTE ON PASSAGE.—If the Senate has pro11 ceeded to the bill, and following the conclusion of all 

12 debate, the Senate shall proceed to a vote on pas13 sage of the bill as amended, if amended. 

14 (e) CONFERENCE IN THE HOUSE.—If the House re15 ceives a message that the Senate has passed the tax re16 form bill with an amendment or amendments, it shall be 

17 in order for the chair of the Committee on Ways and 

18 Means or a designee, without intervention of any point of 

19 order, to offer any motion specified in clause 1 of rule 

20 XXII. 

21 (f) CONFERENCE IN THE SENATE.—If the Senate re22 ceives from the House a message to accompany the tax 

23 reform bill, as defined in subsection (a), then no later than 

24 two session days after its receipt— 


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1 (1) the Chair shall lay the message before the 

2 Senate; 

3 (2) the motion to insist on the Senate amend4 ment or disagree to the House amendment or 

5 amendments to the Senate amendment, the request 

6 for a conference with the House or the motion to 

7 agree to the request of the House for a conference, 

8 and the motion to authorize the Chair to appoint 

9 conferees on the part of the Senate shall be agreed 

10 to; and 

11 (3) the Chair shall then be authorized to ap12 point conferees on the part of the Senate without in13 tervening motion, with a ratio agreed to with the 

14 concurrence of both leaders. 

15 (g) RULEMAKING.—This section is enacted by the 

16 Congress as an exercise of the rulemaking power of the 

17 House of Representatives and Senate, respectively, and as 

18 such is deemed a part of the rules of each House, respec19 tively, or of that House to which they specifically apply, 

20 and such procedures supersede other rules only to the ex21 tent that they are inconsistent with such rules; and with 

22 full recognition of the constitutional right of either House 

23 to change the rules (so far as relating to the procedures 

24 of that House) at any time, in the same manner, and to 

25 the same extent as any other rule of that House. 


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1 TITLE III—PREVENTING EVA2 SION OF DUTY ORDERS AND 

3 REFORMING EXPORT CON4 TROLS 

5 SEC. 301. DEFINITIONS. 

6 In this title: 

7 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT8 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com9 mittees’’ means— 

10 (A) the Committee on Finance and the 

11 Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; 

12 and 

13 (B) the Committee on Ways and Means 

14 and the Committee on Appropriations of the 

15 House of Representatives. 

16 (2) COMMISSIONER.—The term ‘‘Commis17 sioner’’ means the Commissioner responsible for 

18 U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 

19 (3) COVERED MERCHANDISE.—The term ‘‘cov20 ered merchandise’’ means merchandise that is sub21 ject to— 

22 (A) a countervailing duty order issued 

23 under section 706 of the Tariff Act of 1930; or 

24 (B) an antidumping duty order issued 

25 under section 736 of the Tariff Act of 1930. 


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1 (4) ELIGIBLE SMALL BUSINESS.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible 

3 small business’’ means any business concern 

4 which, in the Commissioner’s judgment, due to 

5 its small size, has neither adequate internal re6 sources nor financial ability to obtain qualified 

7 outside assistance in preparing and submitting 

8 for consideration allegations of evasion. 

9 (B) NONREVIEWABILITY.—Any agency de10 cision regarding whether a business concern is 

11 an eligible small business for purposes of sec12 tion 311(b)(4)(E) is not reviewable by any 

13 other agency or by any court. 

14 (5) ENTER; ENTRY.—The terms ‘‘enter’’ and 

15 ‘‘entry’’ refer to the entry, or withdrawal from ware16 house for consumption, in the customs territory of 

17 the United States. 

18 (6) EVADE; EVASION.—The terms ‘‘evade’’ and 

19 ‘‘evasion’’ refer to entering covered merchandise into 

20 the customs territory of the United States by means 

21 of any document or electronically transmitted data 

22 or information, written or oral statement, or act that 

23 is material and false, or any omission that is mate24 rial, and that results in any cash deposit or other se25 curity or any amount of applicable antidumping or 


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1 countervailing duties being reduced or not being ap2 plied with respect to the merchandise. 

3 (7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

4 the Secretary of the Treasury. 

5 (8) TRADE REMEDY LAWS.—The term ‘‘trade 

6 remedy laws’’ means title VII of the Tariff Act of 

7 1930. 

8 SEC. 302. APPLICATION TO CANADA AND MEXICO. 

9 Pursuant to article 1902 of the North American Free 

10 Trade Agreement and section 408 of the North American 

11 Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 

12 3438), this title and the amendments made by this title 

13 shall apply with respect to goods from Canada and Mexico. 

14 Subtitle A—Actions Relating to En15 forcement of Trade Remedy 

16 Laws 

17 SEC. 311. TRADE REMEDY LAW ENFORCEMENT DIVISION. 

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland 

20 Security shall establish and maintain within the Of21 fice of International Trade of U.S. Customs and 

22 Border Protection, established under section 2(d) of 

23 the Act of March 3, 1927 (44 Stat. 1381, chapter 

24 348; 19 U.S.C. 2072(d)), a Trade Remedy Law En25 forcement Division. 


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1 (2) COMPOSITION.—The Trade Law Remedy 

2 Enforcement Division shall be composed of— 

3 (A) headquarters personnel led by a Direc4 tor, who shall report to the Assistant Commis5 sioner of the Office of International Trade; and 

6 (B) a National Targeting and Analysis 

7 Group dedicated to preventing and countering 

8 evasion. 

9 (3) DUTIES.—The Trade Remedy Law Enforce10 ment Division shall be dedicated— 

11 (A) to the development and administration 

12 of policies to prevent and counter evasion; 

13 (B) to direct enforcement and compliance 

14 assessment activities concerning evasion; 

15 (C) to the development and conduct of 

16 commercial risk assessment targeting with re17 spect to cargo destined for the United States in 

18 accordance with subsection (c); 

19 (D) to issuing Trade Alerts described in 

20 subsection (d); and 

21 (E) to the development of policies for the 

22 application of single entry and continuous 

23 bonds for entries of covered merchandise to suf24 ficiently protect the collection of antidumping 


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1 and countervailing duties commensurate with 

2 the level of risk of noncollection. 

3 (b) DUTIES OF DIRECTOR.—The duties of the Direc4 tor of the Trade Remedy Law Enforcement Division shall 

5 include— 

6 (1) directing the trade enforcement and compli7 ance assessment activities of U.S. Customs and Bor8 der Protection that concern evasion; 

9 (2) facilitating, promoting, and coordinating co10 operation and the exchange of information between 

11 U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Immigra12 tion and Customs Enforcement, and other relevant 

13 agencies regarding evasion; 

14 (3) notifying on a timely basis the admin15 istering authority (as defined in section 771(1) of 

16 the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1677(1))) and the 

17 Commission (as defined in section 771(2) of the 

18 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1677(2))) of any 

19 finding, determination, civil action, or criminal ac20 tion taken by U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

21 or other Federal agency regarding evasion; 

22 (4) serving as the primary liaison between U.S. 

23 Customs and Border Protection and the public re24 garding United States Government activities con25 cerning evasion, including— 


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1 (A) receive and transmit to the appropriate 

2 U.S. Customs and Border Protection office alle3 gations from parties of evasion; 

4 (B) upon request by the party or parties 

5 that submitted an allegation of evasion, provide 

6 information to such party or parties on the sta7 tus of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s 

8 consideration of the allegation and decision to 

9 pursue or not pursue any administrative inquir10 ies or other actions, such as changes in policies, 

11 procedures, or resource allocation as a result of 

12 the allegation; 

13 (C) as needed, request from the party or 

14 parties that submitted an allegation of evasion 

15 any additional information that may be relevant 

16 for U.S. Customs and Border Protection deter17 mining whether to initiate an administrative in18 quiry or take any other action regarding the al19 legation; 

20 (D) notify on a timely basis the party or 

21 parties that submitted such an allegation of the 

22 results of any administrative, civil or criminal 

23 actions taken by U.S. Customs and Border Pro24 tection or other Federal agency regarding evaVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:09 Oct 08, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3682.IH H3682

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1 sion as a direct or indirect result of the allega2 tion; 

3 (E) upon request, provide technical assist4 ance and advice to eligible small businesses to 

5 enable such businesses to prepare and submit 

6 allegations of evasion, except that the Director 

7 may deny assistance if the Director concludes 

8 that the allegation, if submitted, would not lead 

9 to the initiation of an administrative inquiry or 

10 any other action to address the allegation; 

11 (F) in cooperation with the public, the 

12 Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Com13 mittee, the Trade Support Network, and any 

14 other relevant parties and organizations, de15 velop guidelines on the types and nature of in16 formation that may be provided in allegations 

17 of evasion; and 

18 (G) regularly consult with the public, the 

19 Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Com20 mittee, the Trade Support Network, and any 

21 other relevant parties and organizations regard22 ing the development and implementation of reg23 ulations, interpretations, and policies related to 

24 countering evasion. 


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1 (c) PREVENTING AND COUNTERING EVASION OF THE

2 TRADE REMEDY LAWS.—In carrying out its duties with 

3 respect to preventing and countering evasion, the National 

4 Targeting and Analysis Group dedicated to preventing and 

5 countering evasion shall— 

6 (1) establish targeted risk assessment meth7 odologies and standards— 

8 (A) for evaluating the risk that cargo des9 tined for the United States may constitute 

10 evading covered merchandise; and 

11 (B) for issuing, as appropriate, Trade 

12 Alerts described in subsection (d); and 

13 (2) to the extent practicable and otherwise au14 thorized by law, use information available from the 

15 Automated Commercial System, the Automated 

16 Commercial Environment computer system, the 

17 Automated Targeting System, the Automated Ex18 port System, the International Trade Data System, 

19 and the TECS, and any similar and successor sys20 tems, to administer the methodologies and standards 

21 established under paragraph (1). 

22 (d) TRADE ALERTS.—Based upon the application of 

23 the targeted risk assessment methodologies and standards 

24 established under subsection (c), the Director of the Trade 

25 Remedy Law Enforcement Division shall issue Trade 


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1 Alerts or other such means of notification to directors of 

2 United States ports of entry directing further inspection, 

3 physical examination, or testing of merchandise to ensure 

4 compliance with the trade remedy laws and to require ad5 ditional bonds, cash deposits, or other security to ensure 

6 collection of any duties, taxes and fees owed. 

7 SEC. 312. COLLECTION OF INFORMATION ON EVASION OF 

8 TRADE REMEDY LAWS. 

9 (a) AUTHORITY TO COLLECT INFORMATION.—To de10 termine whether covered merchandise is being entered into 

11 the customs territory of the United States through eva12 sion, the Secretary, acting through the Commissioner— 

13 (1) shall exercise all existing authorities to col14 lect information needed to make the determination; 

15 and 

16 (2) may collect such additional information as 

17 is necessary to make the determination through such 

18 methods as the Commissioner considers appropriate, 

19 including by issuing questionnaires with respect to 

20 the entry or entries at issue to— 

21 (A) a person who filed an allegation with 

22 respect to the covered merchandise; 

23 (B) a person who is alleged to have en24 tered the covered merchandise into the customs 


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1 territory of the United States through evasion; 

2 or 

3 (C) any other person who is determined to 

4 have information relevant to the allegation of 

5 entry of covered merchandise into the customs 

6 territory of the United States through evasion. 

7 (b) ADVERSE INFERENCE.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary finds that a 

9 person who filed an allegation, a person alleged to 

10 have entered covered merchandise into the customs 

11 territory of the United States through evasion, or a 

12 foreign producer or exporter of covered merchandise 

13 that is alleged to have entered into the customs ter14 ritory of the United States through evasion, has 

15 failed to cooperate by not acting to the best of the 

16 person’s ability to comply with a request for infor17 mation, the Secretary may, in making a determina18 tion whether an entry or entries of covered merchan19 dise may constitute merchandise that is entered into 

20 the customs territory of the United States through 

21 evasion, use an inference that is adverse to the inter22 ests of that person in selecting from among the facts 

23 otherwise available to determine whether evasion has 

24 occurred. 


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1 (2) ADVERSE INFERENCE DESCRIBED.—An ad2 verse inference used under paragraph (1) may in3 clude reliance on information derived from— 

4 (A) the allegation of evasion of the trade 

5 remedy laws, if any, submitted to U.S. Customs 

6 and Border Protection; 

7 (B) a determination by the Commissioner 

8 in another investigation, proceeding, or other 

9 action regarding evasion of the unfair trade 

10 laws; or 

11 (C) any other available information. 

12 SEC. 313. ACCESS TO INFORMATION. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 777(b)(1)(A)(ii) of the 

14 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1677f(b)(1)(A)(ii)) is 

15 amended by inserting ‘‘negligence, gross negligence, or’’ 

16 after ‘‘regarding’’. 

17 (b) ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.—Notwithstanding 

18 any other provision of law, the Secretary is authorized to 

19 provide to the Secretary of Commerce or the United States 

20 International Trade Commission any information that is 

21 necessary to enable the Secretary of Commerce or the 

22 United States International Trade Commission to assist 

23 the Secretary to identify, through risk assessment tar24 geting or otherwise, covered merchandise that is entered 


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1 into the customs territory of the United States through 

2 evasion. 

3 SEC. 314. COOPERATION WITH FOREIGN COUNTRIES ON 

4 PREVENTING EVASION OF TRADE REMEDY 

5 LAWS. 

6 (a) BILATERAL AGREEMENTS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall seek to 

8 negotiate and enter into bilateral agreements with 

9 the customs authorities or other appropriate authori10 ties of foreign countries for purposes of cooperation 

11 on preventing evasion of the trade remedy laws of 

12 the United States and the trade remedy laws of the 

13 other country. 

14 (2) PROVISIONS AND AUTHORITIES.—The Sec15 retary shall seek to include in each such bilateral 

16 agreement the following provisions and authorities: 

17 (A) On the request of the importing coun18 try, the exporting country shall provide, con19 sistent with its laws, regulations, and proce20 dures, production, trade, and transit documents 

21 and other information necessary to determine 

22 whether an entry or entries exported from the 

23 exporting country are subject to the importing 

24 country’s trade remedy laws. 


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1 (B) On the written request of the import2 ing country, the exporting country shall conduct 

3 a verification for purposes of enabling the im4 porting country to make a determination de5 scribed in subparagraph (A). 

6 (C) The exporting country may allow the 

7 importing country to participate in a 

8 verification described in subparagraph (B), in9 cluding through a site visit. 

10 (D) If the exporting country does not allow 

11 participation of the importing country in a 

12 verification described in subparagraph (B), the 

13 importing country may take this fact into con14 sideration in its trade enforcement and compli15 ance assessment activities regarding the compli16 ance of the exporting country’s exports with the 

17 importing country’s trade remedy laws. 

18 (b) CONSIDERATION.—The Commissioner is author19 ized to take into consideration whether a country is a sig20 natory to a bilateral agreement described in subsection (a) 

21 and the extent to which the country is cooperating under 

22 the bilateral agreement for purposes of trade enforcement 

23 and compliance assessment activities of U.S. Customs and 

24 Border Protection that concern evasion by such country’s 

25 exports. 


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1 (c) REPORT.—Not later than December 31 of each 

2 year beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

3 the Secretary shall submit to the appropriate congres4 sional committees a report summarizing— 

5 (1) the status of any ongoing negotiations of bi6 lateral agreements described in subsection (a), in7 cluding the identities of the countries involved in 

8 such negotiations; 

9 (2) the terms of any completed bilateral agree10 ments described in subsection (a); and 

11 (3) bilateral cooperation and other activities 

12 conducted pursuant to or enabled by any completed 

13 bilateral agreements described in subsection (a). 

14 SEC. 315. TRADE NEGOTIATING OBJECTIVES. 

15 The principal negotiating objectives of the United 

16 States shall include obtaining the objectives of the bilat17 eral agreements described under section 314(a) for any 

18 trade agreements under negotiation as of the date of the 

19 enactment of this Act or future trade agreement negotia20 tions. 


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1 Subtitle B—Investigation of 

2 Evasion of Trade Remedy Laws 

3 SEC. 321. PROCEDURES FOR INVESTIGATION OF EVASION 

4 OF ANTIDUMPING AND COUNTERVAILING 

5 DUTY ORDERS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title VII of the Tariff Act of 

7 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1671 et seq.) is amended by inserting 

8 after section 781 the following: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 781A. PROCEDURES FOR PREVENTION OF EVASION 

10 OF ANTIDUMPING AND COUNTERVAILING 

11 DUTY ORDERS. 

12 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

13 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTERING AUTHORITY.—The term 

14 ‘administering authority’ has the meaning given that 

15 term in section 771. 

16 ‘‘(2) COMMISSIONER.—The term ‘Commis17 sioner’ means the Commissioner of U.S. Customs 

18 and Border Protection. 

19 ‘‘(3) COVERED MERCHANDISE.—The term ‘cov20 ered merchandise’ means merchandise that is subject 

21 to— 

22 ‘‘(A) a countervailing duty order issued 

23 under section 706; or 

24 ‘‘(B) an antidumping duty order issued 

25 under section 736. 


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1 ‘‘(4) EVASION.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

3 subparagraph (B), the term ‘evasion’ refers to 

4 entering covered merchandise into the customs 

5 territory of the United States by means of any 

6 document or electronically transmitted data or 

7 information, written or oral statement, or act 

8 that is material and false, or any omission that 

9 is material, and that results in any cash deposit 

10 or other security or any amount of applicable 

11 antidumping or countervailing duties being re12 duced or not being applied with respect to the 

13 merchandise. 

14 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION FOR CLERICAL ERROR.— 

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as pro16 vided in clause (ii), the term ‘evasion’ does 

17 not include entering covered merchandise 

18 into the customs territory of the United 

19 States by means of— 

20 ‘‘(I) a document or electronically 

21 transmitted data or information, writ22 ten or oral statement, or act that is 

23 false as a result of a clerical error; or 

24 ‘‘(II) an omission that results 

25 from a clerical error. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) PATTERNS OF NEGLIGENT CON2 DUCT.—If the administering authority de3 termines that a person has entered covered 

4 merchandise into the customs territory of 

5 the United States by means of a clerical 

6 error referred to in subclause (I) or (II) of 

7 clause (i) and that the clerical error is part 

8 of a pattern of negligent conduct on the 

9 part of that person, the administering au10 thority may determine, notwithstanding 

11 clause (i), that the person has entered such 

12 covered merchandise into the customs ter13 ritory of the United States by means of 

14 evasion. 

15 ‘‘(iii) ELECTRONIC REPETITION OF

16 ERRORS.—For purposes of clause (ii), the 

17 mere unintentional repetition by an elec18 tronic system of an initial clerical error 

19 does not constitute a pattern of negligent 

20 conduct. 

21 ‘‘(iv) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—A 

22 determination by the administering author23 ity that a person has entered covered mer24 chandise into the customs territory of the 

25 United States by means of a clerical error 


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1 referred to in subclause (I) or (II) of 

2 clause (i) rather than by means of evasion 

3 shall not be construed to excuse that per4 son from the payment of any duties appli5 cable to the merchandise. 

6 ‘‘(b) INVESTIGATION BY ADMINISTERING AUTHOR7 ITY.— 

8 ‘‘(1) PROCEDURES FOR INITIATING INVESTIGA9 TIONS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) INITIATION BY ADMINISTERING AU11 THORITY.—An investigation under this sub12 section shall be initiated with respect to mer13 chandise imported into the United States when14 ever the administering authority determines, 

15 from information available to the administering 

16 authority, that an investigation is warranted 

17 with respect to whether the merchandise is cov18 ered merchandise that has entered into the cus19 toms territory of the United States by means of 

20 evasion. 

21 ‘‘(B) INITIATION BY PETITION OR REFER22 RAL.— 

23 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The administering 

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1 graph not later than 30 days after the date 

2 on which the administering authority re3 ceives a petition described in clause (ii) or 

4 a referral described in clause (iii). 

5 ‘‘(ii) PETITION DESCRIBED.—A peti6 tion described in this clause is a petition 

7 that— 

8 ‘‘(I) is filed with the admin9 istering authority by an interested 

10 party specified in subparagraph (A), 

11 (C), (D), (E), (F), or (G) of section 

12 771(9); 

13 ‘‘(II) alleges that merchandise 

14 imported into the United States is 

15 covered merchandise that has entered 

16 into the customs territory of the 

17 United States by means of evasion; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(III) is accompanied by infor20 mation reasonably available to the pe21 titioner supporting those allegations. 

22 ‘‘(iii) REFERRAL DESCRIBED.—A re23 ferral described in this clause is a referral 

24 made by the Commissioner pursuant to 

25 subsection (c)(1). 


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1 ‘‘(2) TIME LIMITS FOR DETERMINATIONS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) PRELIMINARY DETERMINATION.— 

3 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 

4 days after the administering authority ini5 tiates an investigation under paragraph (1) 

6 with respect to merchandise, the admin7 istering authority shall issue a preliminary 

8 determination, based on information avail9 able to the administering authority at the 

10 time of the determination, with respect to 

11 whether there is a reasonable basis to be12 lieve or suspect that the merchandise is 

13 covered merchandise that has entered into 

14 the customs territory of the United States 

15 by means of evasion. 

16 ‘‘(ii) EXPEDITED PROCEDURES.—If 

17 the administering authority determines 

18 that expedited action is warranted with re19 spect to an investigation initiated under 

20 paragraph (1), the administering authority 

21 may publish the notice of initiation of the 

22 investigation and the notice of the prelimi23 nary determination in the Federal Register 

24 at the same time. 


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1 ‘‘(B) FINAL DETERMINATION BY THE AD2 MINISTERING AUTHORITY.—Not later than 300 

3 days after the date on which the administering 

4 authority initiates an investigation under para5 graph (1) with respect to merchandise, the ad6 ministering authority shall issue a final deter7 mination with respect to whether the merchan8 dise is covered merchandise that has entered 

9 into the customs territory of the United States 

10 by means of evasion. 

11 ‘‘(3) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.— 

12 ‘‘(A) ENTRY DOCUMENTS, RECORDS, AND

13 OTHER INFORMATION.—Not later than 10 days 

14 after receiving a request from the administering 

15 authority with respect to merchandise that is 

16 the subject of an investigation under paragraph 

17 (1), the Commissioner shall transmit to the ad18 ministering authority copies of the documenta19 tion and information required by section 

20 484(a)(1) with respect to the entry of the mer21 chandise, as well as any other documentation or 

22 information requested by the administering au23 thority. 

24 ‘‘(B) ACCESS OF INTERESTED PARTIES.— 

25 Not later than 10 business days after the date 


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1 on which the administering authority initiates 

2 an investigation under paragraph (1) with re3 spect to merchandise, the administering author4 ity shall provide to the authorized representa5 tive of each interested party that filed a petition 

6 under paragraph (1) or otherwise participates 

7 in a proceeding, pursuant to a protective order, 

8 the copies of the entry documentation and any 

9 other information received by the administering 

10 authority under subparagraph (A). 

11 ‘‘(C) BUSINESS PROPRIETARY INFORMA12 TION FROM PRIOR SEGMENTS.—If an author13 ized representative of an interested party par14 ticipating in an investigation under paragraph 

15 (1) has access to business proprietary informa16 tion released pursuant to an administrative pro17 tective order in a proceeding under subtitle A, 

18 B, or C of title VII of the Tariff Act of 1930 

19 that is relevant to the investigation conducted 

20 under paragraph (1), that authorized represent21 ative may submit such information to the ad22 ministering authority for its consideration in 

23 the context of the investigation conducted under 

24 paragraph (1). 


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1 ‘‘(4) AUTHORITY TO COLLECT AND VERIFY AD2 DITIONAL INFORMATION.—In making a determina3 tion under paragraph (2) with respect to covered 

4 merchandise, the administering authority may collect 

5 such additional information as is necessary to make 

6 the determination through such methods as the ad7 ministering authority considers appropriate, includ8 ing by— 

9 ‘‘(A) issuing a questionnaire with respect 

10 to such covered merchandise to— 

11 ‘‘(i) a person that filed an allegation 

12 under paragraph (1)(B)(ii) that resulted in 

13 the initiation of an investigation under 

14 paragraph (1)(A) with respect to such cov15 ered merchandise; 

16 ‘‘(ii) a person alleged to have entered 

17 such covered merchandise into the customs 

18 territory of the United States by means of 

19 evasion; 

20 ‘‘(iii) a person that is a foreign pro21 ducer or exporter of such covered merchan22 dise; or 

23 ‘‘(iv) the government of a country 

24 from which such covered merchandise was 

25 exported; 


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1 ‘‘(B) conducting verifications, including on2 site verifications, of any relevant information; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(C) requesting— 

5 ‘‘(i) that the Commissioner provide 

6 any information and data available to U.S. 

7 Customs and Border Protection; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) that the Commissioner gather 

9 additional necessary information from the 

10 importer of covered merchandise and other 

11 relevant parties. 

12 ‘‘(5) ADVERSE INFERENCE.—If the admin13 istering authority finds that a person described in 

14 clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of paragraph (4)(A) has failed 

15 to cooperate by not acting to the best of the person’s 

16 ability to comply with a request for information, the 

17 administering authority may, in making a deter18 mination under paragraph (2), use an inference that 

19 is adverse to the interests of that person in selecting 

20 from among the facts otherwise available to make 

21 the determination. 

22 ‘‘(6) EFFECT OF AFFIRMATIVE PRELIMINARY

23 DETERMINATION.—If the administering authority 

24 makes a preliminary determination under paragraph 

25 (2)(A) that merchandise is covered merchandise that 


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1 has entered into the customs territory of the United 

2 States by means of evasion, the administering au3 thority shall instruct U.S. Customs and Border Pro4 tection— 

5 ‘‘(A) to suspend liquidation of each entry 

6 of the merchandise that— 

7 ‘‘(i) enters on or after the date of the 

8 preliminary determination; or 

9 ‘‘(ii) enters before that date, if the liq10 uidation of the entry is not final on that 

11 date; and 

12 ‘‘(B) to require the posting of a cash de13 posit for each entry of the merchandise in an 

14 amount determined pursuant to the order, or 

15 administrative review conducted under section 

16 751, that applies to the merchandise. 

17 ‘‘(7) EFFECT OF AFFIRMATIVE FINAL DETER18 MINATION.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the administering 

20 authority makes a final determination under 

21 paragraph (2)(B) that merchandise is covered 

22 merchandise that has entered into the customs 

23 territory of the United States by means of eva24 sion, the administering authority shall instruct 

25 U.S. Customs and Border Protection— 


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1 ‘‘(i) to assess duties on the merchan2 dise in an amount determined pursuant to 

3 the order, or administrative review con4 ducted under section 751, that applies to 

5 the merchandise; 

6 ‘‘(ii) notwithstanding section 501, to 

7 reliquidate, in accordance with such order 

8 or administrative review, each entry of the 

9 merchandise that was liquidated and is de10 termined to include covered merchandise; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(iii) to review and reassess the 

13 amount of bond or other security the im14 porter is required to post for such mer15 chandise entered on or after the date of 

16 the final determination to ensure the pro17 tection of revenue and compliance with the 

18 law. 

19 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—If the ad20 ministering authority makes a final determina21 tion under paragraph (2)(B) that merchandise 

22 is covered merchandise that has entered into 

23 the customs territory of the United States by 

24 means of evasion, the administering authority 

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1 tion to require the importer of the merchandise 

2 to post a cash deposit or bond on such mer3 chandise entered on or after the date of the 

4 final determination in an amount the admin5 istering authority determines in the final deter6 mination to be owed with respect to the mer7 chandise. 

8 ‘‘(8) EFFECT OF NEGATIVE FINAL DETERMINA9 TION.—If the administering authority makes a final 

10 determination under paragraph (2)(B) that mer11 chandise is not covered merchandise that has en12 tered into the customs territory of the United States 

13 by means of evasion, the administering authority 

14 shall terminate the suspension of liquidation and re15 fund any cash deposit imposed pursuant to para16 graph (6) with respect to the merchandise. 

17 ‘‘(9) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 5 business 

18 days after making a determination under paragraph 

19 (2) with respect to covered merchandise, the admin20 istering authority may provide to importers, in such 

21 manner as the administering authority determines 

22 appropriate, information discovered in the investiga23 tion that the administering authority determines will 

24 help educate importers with respect to importing 

25 merchandise into the customs territory of the United 


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1 States in accordance with all applicable laws and 

2 regulations. 

3 ‘‘(10) SPECIAL RULE FOR CASES IN WHICH THE

4 PRODUCER OR EXPORTER IS UNKNOWN.—If the ad5 ministering authority is unable to determine the ac6 tual producer or exporter of the merchandise with 

7 respect to which the administering authority initi8 ated an investigation under paragraph (1), the ad9 ministering authority shall, in requiring the posting 

10 of a cash deposit under paragraph (6) or assessing 

11 duties pursuant to paragraph (7)(A), impose the 

12 cash deposit or duties (as the case may be) in the 

13 highest amount applicable to any producer or ex14 porter of the merchandise pursuant to any order, or 

15 any administrative review conducted under section 

16 751. 

17 ‘‘(11) PUBLICATION OF DETERMINATIONS.— 

18 The administering authority shall publish in the 

19 Federal Register each notice of initiation of an in20 vestigation made under paragraph (1)(A), each pre21 liminary determination made under paragraph 

22 (2)(A), and each final determination made under 

23 paragraph (2)(B). 

24 ‘‘(12) REFERRALS TO OTHER AGENCIES.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) AFTER PRELIMINARY DETERMINA2 TION.—Notwithstanding section 777 and sub3 ject to subparagraph (C), when the admin4 istering authority makes an affirmative prelimi5 nary determination under paragraph (2)(A), the 

6 administering authority shall— 

7 ‘‘(i) transmit the administrative 

8 record to the Commissioner for such addi9 tional action as the Commissioner deter10 mines appropriate, including proceedings 

11 under section 592; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) at the request of the head of an13 other agency, transmit the administrative 

14 record to the head of that agency. 

15 ‘‘(B) AFTER FINAL DETERMINATION.— 

16 Notwithstanding section 777 and subject to 

17 subparagraph (C), when the administering au18 thority makes an affirmative final determina19 tion under paragraph (2)(B), the administering 

20 authority shall— 

21 ‘‘(i) transmit the complete administra22 tive record to the Commissioner; and 

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1 ministrative record to the head of that 

2 agency. 

3 ‘‘(c) REFERRAL BY U.S. CUSTOMS AND BORDER

4 PROTECTION.—In the event the Commissioner receives in5 formation that a person has entered covered merchandise 

6 into the customs territory of the United States through 

7 evasion, but is not able to determine whether the merchan8 dise is in fact covered merchandise, the Commissioner 

9 shall— 

10 ‘‘(1) refer the matter to the administering au11 thority for additional proceedings under subsection 

12 (b); and 

13 ‘‘(2) transmit to the administering authority— 

14 ‘‘(A) copies of the entry documents and in15 formation required by section 484(a)(1) relating 

16 to the merchandise; and 

17 ‘‘(B) any additional records or information 

18 that the Commissioner considers appropriate. 

19 ‘‘(d) COOPERATION BETWEEN U.S. CUSTOMS AND

20 BORDER PROTECTION AND THE DEPARTMENT OF COM21 MERCE.— 

22 ‘‘(1) NOTIFICATION OF INVESTIGATIONS.— 

23 Upon receiving a petition and upon initiating an in24 vestigation under subsection (b), the administering 

25 authority shall notify the Commissioner. 


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1 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURES FOR COOPERATION.—Not 

2 later than 180 days after the date of the enactment 

3 of this section, the Commissioner and the admin4 istering authority shall establish procedures to en5 sure maximum cooperation and communication be6 tween U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the 

7 administering authority in order to quickly, effi8 ciently, and accurately investigate allegations of eva9 sion of antidumping and countervailing duty orders. 

10 ‘‘(e) ANNUAL REPORT ON PREVENTING EVASION OF

11 ANTIDUMPING AND COUNTERVAILING DUTY ORDERS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than February 

13 28 of each year beginning in 2016, the Under Sec14 retary for International Trade of the Department of 

15 Commerce shall submit to the Committee on Fi16 nance and the Committee on Appropriations of the 

17 Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means and 

18 the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 

19 Representatives a report on the efforts being taken 

20 under subsection (b) to prevent evasion of anti21 dumping and countervailing duty orders. 

22 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each report required by 

23 paragraph (1) shall include, for the calendar year 

24 preceding the submission of the report— 


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1 ‘‘(A)(i) the number of investigations initi2 ated pursuant to subsection (b); and 

3 ‘‘(ii) a description of such investigations, 

4 including— 

5 ‘‘(I) the results of such investigations; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(II) the amount of antidumping and 

8 countervailing duties collected as a result 

9 of such investigations; and 

10 ‘‘(B) the number of referrals made by the 

11 Commissioner pursuant to subsection (c).’’. 

12 (b) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

13 for title VII of the Tariff Act of 1930 is amended by in14 serting after the item relating to section 781 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 781A. Procedures for prevention of evasion of antidumping and countervailing duty orders.’’. 

15 (c) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Section 516A(a)(2) of the 

16 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1516a(a)(2)) is amended— 

17 (1) in subparagraph (A)(i)(I), by striking ‘‘or 

18 (viii)’’ and inserting ‘‘(viii), or (ix)’’; and 

19 (2) in subparagraph (B), by inserting at the 

20 end the following: 

21 ‘‘(ix) A determination by the admin22 istering authority under section 781A.’’. 

23 (d) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 

24 the date of the enactment of this Act— 


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1 (1) the Secretary of Commerce shall prescribe 

2 such regulations as may be necessary to carry out 

3 subsection (b) of section 781A of the Tariff Act of 

4 1930 (as added by subsection (a) of this section); 

5 and 

6 (2) the Commissioner shall prescribe such regu7 lations as may be necessary to carry out subsection 

8 (c) of such section 781A. 

9 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

10 this section shall— 

11 (1) take effect on the date that is 180 days 

12 after the date of the enactment of this Act; and 

13 (2) apply with respect to merchandise entered 

14 on or after such date of enactment. 

15 SEC. 322. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE RE16 PORT. 

17 Not later than 4 years after the date of the enact18 ment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 

19 States shall submit to the Committee on Finance and the 

20 Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Com21 mittee on Ways and Means and the Committee on Appro22 priations of the House of Representatives a report assess23 ing the effectiveness of— 

24 (1) the provisions of, and amendments made 

25 by, this subtitle; and 


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1 (2) the actions taken and procedures developed 

2 by the Secretary of Commerce and the Commis3 sioner pursuant to such provisions and amendments 

4 to prevent evasion of antidumping and counter5 vailing duty orders under title VII of the Tariff Act 

6 of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1671 et seq.). 

7 Subtitle C—Other Matters 

8 SEC. 331. ALLOCATION AND TRAINING OF PERSONNEL. 

9 The Commissioner shall, to the maximum extent pos10 sible, ensure that U.S. Customs and Border Protection— 

11 (1) employs sufficient personnel who have ex12 pertise in, and responsibility for, preventing and in13 vestigating the entry of covered merchandise into the 

14 customs territory of the United States through eva15 sion; 

16 (2) on the basis of risk assessment metrics, as17 signs sufficient personnel with primary responsibility 

18 for preventing the entry of covered merchandise into 

19 the customs territory of the United States through 

20 evasion to the ports of entry in the United States at 

21 which the Commissioner determines potential eva22 sion presents the most substantial threats to the rev23 enue of the United States; and 

24 (3) provides adequate training to relevant per25 sonnel to increase expertise and effectiveness in the 


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1 prevention and identification of entries of covered 

2 merchandise into the customs territory of the United 

3 States through evasion. 

4 SEC. 332. ANNUAL REPORT ON PREVENTION OF EVASION 

5 OF ANTIDUMPING AND COUNTERVAILING 

6 DUTY ORDERS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than February 28 of 

8 each year, beginning in 2017, the Commissioner, in con9 sultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the Director 

10 of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, shall sub11 mit to the appropriate congressional committees a report 

12 on the efforts being taken to prevent and investigate eva13 sion. 

14 (b) CONTENTS.—Each report required under sub15 section (a) shall include— 

16 (1) for the calendar year preceding the submis17 sion of the report— 

18 (A) a summary of the efforts of U.S. Cus19 toms and Border Protection to prevent and 

20 identify evasion; 

21 (B) the number of allegations of evasion 

22 received and the number of allegations of eva23 sion resulting in any administrative, civil, or 

24 criminal actions by U.S. Customs and Border 

25 Protection or any other agency; 


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1 (C) a summary of the completed adminis2 trative inquiries of evasion, including the num3 ber and nature of the inquiries initiated, con4 ducted, or completed, as well as their resolu5 tion; 

6 (D) with respect to inquiries that lead to 

7 issuance of a penalty notice, the penalty 

8 amounts; 

9 (E) the amounts of antidumping and coun10 tervailing duties collected as a result of any ac11 tions by U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

12 or any other agency; 

13 (F) a description of the allocation of per14 sonnel and other resources of U.S. Customs and 

15 Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and 

16 Customs Enforcement to prevent, identify, and 

17 investigate evasion, including any assessments 

18 conducted regarding the allocation of such per19 sonnel and resources; and 

20 (G) a description of training conducted to 

21 increase expertise and effectiveness in the pre22 vention, identification, and investigation of eva23 sion; and 


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1 (2) a description of U.S. Customs and Border 

2 Protection processes and procedures to prevent and 

3 identify evasion, including— 

4 (A) the specific guidelines, policies, and 

5 practices used by U.S. Customs and Border 

6 Protection to ensure that allegations of evasion 

7 are promptly evaluated and acted upon in a 

8 timely manner; 

9 (B) an evaluation of the efficacy of such 

10 existing guidelines, policies, and practices; 

11 (C) identification of any changes since the 

12 last report that have materially improved or re13 duced the effectiveness of U.S. Customs and 

14 Border Protection to prevent and identify eva15 sion; 

16 (D) a description of the development and 

17 implementation of policies for the application of 

18 single entry and continuous bonds for entries of 

19 covered merchandise to sufficiently protect the 

20 collection of antidumping and countervailing 

21 duties commensurate with the level of risk on 

22 noncollection; 

23 (E) the processes and procedures for in24 creased cooperation and information sharing 

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1 gration and Customs Enforcement, and any 

2 other relevant Federal agencies to prevent and 

3 identify evasion; and 

4 (F) identification of any recommended pol5 icy changes of other Federal agencies or legisla6 tive changes to improve the effectiveness of 

7 U.S. Customs and Border Protection to prevent 

8 and identify evasion. 

9 SEC. 333. ADDRESSING CIRCUMVENTION BY NEW SHIP10 PERS. 

11 Section 751(a)(2)(B) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 

12 U.S.C. 1675(a)(2)(B)) is amended— 

13 (1) by striking clause (iii); 

14 (2) by redesignating clause (iv) as clause (iii); 

15 and 

16 (3) by inserting after clause (iii), as redesig17 nated by paragraph (2) of this section, the following: 

18 ‘‘(iv) DETERMINATIONS BASED ON

19 BONAFIDE SALES.—Any weighted average 

20 dumping margin or individual counter21 vailing duty rate determined for an ex22 porter or producer in a review conducted 

23 under clause (i) shall be based solely on 

24 the bona fide United States sales of an ex25 porter or producer, as the case may be, 


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1 made during the period covered by the re2 view. In determining whether the United 

3 States sales of an exporter or producer 

4 made during the period covered by the re5 view were bona fide, the administering au6 thority shall consider, depending on the 

7 circumstances surrounding such sales— 

8 ‘‘(I) the prices of such sales; 

9 ‘‘(II) whether such sales were 

10 made in commercial quantities; 

11 ‘‘(III) the timing of such sales; 

12 ‘‘(IV) the expenses arising from 

13 such sales; 

14 ‘‘(V) whether the subject mer15 chandise involved in such sales was 

16 resold in the United States at a prof17 it; 

18 ‘‘(VI) whether such sales were 

19 made on an arms-length basis; and 

20 ‘‘(VII) any other factor the ad21 ministering authority determines to be 

22 relevant as to whether such sales are, 

23 or are not, likely to be typical of those 

24 the exporter or producer will make 

25 after completion of the review.’’. 


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1 SEC. 334. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON REFORM OF EXPORT 

2 CONTROL POLICIES. 

3 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

4 (1) The United States would benefit from pre5 dictable, efficient, and transparent export control 

6 policies. 

7 (2) Such export control policies should focus on 

8 the mutually reinforcing goals of— 

9 (A) adequate national security; and 

10 (B) increased global competitiveness and 

11 job growth. 

12 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con13 gress that the Export Administration Act of 1979 (50 

14 U.S.C. App. 2401 et seq.), as continued in effect pursuant 

15 to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 

16 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), has become obsolete and should be 

17 reformed and reauthorized. 

18 TITLE IV—CREATING FEDERAL 

19 SPECTRUM INCENTIVES 

20 SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE. 

21 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Spectrum In22 centive Act of 2015’’. 

23 SEC. 402. FEDERAL SPECTRUM INCENTIVES. 

24 (a) NOTICE TO COMMISSION.— 

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1 istration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 923(g)(4)) is 

2 amended— 

3 (A) by striking the heading and inserting 

4 ‘‘NOTICE TO COMMISSION.—’’; 

5 (B) in the second sentence of subpara6 graph (A), by striking ‘‘shall notify the Com7 mission’’ and all that follows and inserting the 

8 following: ‘‘shall notify the Commission— 

9 ‘‘(i) of estimated relocation or sharing 

10 costs and timelines for such relocation or 

11 sharing; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) that, instead of relocation or 

13 sharing costs under this subsection and 

14 section 118, a Federal entity will receive 

15 payment under section 120 because such 

16 entity is— 

17 ‘‘(I) discontinuing the operations 

18 that the Federal entity conducts on 

19 such eligible frequencies without relo20 cating such operations to other fre21 quencies; or 

22 ‘‘(II) relocating such operations 

23 to frequencies assigned to another 

24 Federal entity in order for such enti25 ties to share such frequencies.’’; and 


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1 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(D) This subsection and section 118 shall 

3 not apply with respect to the discontinuance of 

4 operations on eligible frequencies or the reloca5 tion of such operations by a Federal entity after 

6 the Commission receives notice under subpara7 graph (A)(ii) with respect to such discontinu8 ance or relocation.’’. 

9 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

10 113(g) of the National Telecommunications and In11 formation Administration Organization Act (47 

12 U.S.C. 923(g)) is amended— 

13 (A) in paragraph (3)(A)(iii)(I), by striking 

14 ‘‘paragraph (4)(A)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph 

15 (4)(A)(i)’’; 

16 (B) in paragraph (4)— 

17 (i) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

18 ‘‘subparagraph (A)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub19 paragraph (A)(i)’’; and 

20 (ii) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

21 ‘‘subparagraphs (A) and (B)’’ and insert22 ing ‘‘subparagraphs (A)(i) and (B)’’; and 

23 (C) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘para24 graph (4)(A)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph 

25 (4)(A)(i)’’. 


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1 (b) TRANSITION PLANS.—Section 113(h) of the Na2 tional Telecommunications and Information Administra3 tion Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 923(h)) is amended— 

4 (1) in the heading, by striking ‘‘RELOCATION

5 OR SHARING’’; 

6 (2) by amending paragraph (1) to read as fol7 lows: 

8 ‘‘(1) DEVELOPMENT OF TRANSITION PLAN BY

9 FEDERAL ENTITY.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 240 

11 days before the commencement of any auction 

12 of eligible frequencies described in subsection 

13 (g)(2), a Federal entity authorized to use any 

14 such frequency shall submit to the NTIA and 

15 to the Technical Panel established by paragraph 

16 (3) a transition plan in which the Federal enti17 ty— 

18 ‘‘(i) declares the intention of such en19 tity— 

20 ‘‘(I) to share such eligible fre21 quencies with a non-Federal user or 

22 to relocate to other frequencies, and 

23 to receive relocation or sharing costs 

24 from the Spectrum Relocation Fund 

25 established by section 118; or 


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1 ‘‘(II) to discontinue the oper2 ations that the Federal entity con3 ducts on such eligible frequencies 

4 without relocating such operations to 

5 other frequencies or to relocate such 

6 operations to frequencies assigned to 

7 another Federal entity in order for 

8 such entities to share such fre9 quencies, and to receive payment from 

10 the Federal Spectrum Incentive Fund 

11 established by section 120; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) describes how the entity will im13 plement the relocation, sharing, or dis14 continuance arrangement. 

15 ‘‘(B) COMMON FORMAT.—The NTIA shall 

16 specify, after public input, a common format for 

17 all Federal entities to follow in preparing tran18 sition plans under this paragraph.’’; 

19 (3) in paragraph (2)— 

20 (A) in subparagraph (D), by inserting ‘‘, to 

21 discontinue such use,’’ after ‘‘from such fre22 quencies’’; 

23 (B) in subparagraph (F), by inserting ‘‘, 

24 discontinuance,’’ after ‘‘relocation’’; and 


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1 (C) in subparagraph (G), by striking ‘‘The 

2 plans’’ and inserting ‘‘To the extent applicable 

3 given the intention declared by the entity under 

4 paragraph (1)(A)(i), the plans’’; 

5 (4) in paragraph (4)(A), by inserting ‘‘(if appli6 cable)’’ after ‘‘timelines and’’; 

7 (5) in paragraph (6)— 

8 (A) by inserting ‘‘(if applicable)’’ after 

9 ‘‘costs’’; and 

10 (B) by inserting ‘‘, discontinuance,’’ after 

11 ‘‘relocation’’ the second place it appears; and 

12 (6) in paragraph (7)(A)(ii), by inserting ‘‘, dis13 continuance,’’ after ‘‘relocation’’. 

14 (c) RELOCATION OR DISCONTINUANCE PRIORITIZED

15 OVER SHARING.—Section 113(j) of the National Tele16 communications and Information Administration Organi17 zation Act (47 U.S.C. 923(j)) is amended— 

18 (1) in the heading, by inserting ‘‘OR DIS19 CONTINUANCE’’ after ‘‘RELOCATION’’; and 

20 (2) by inserting ‘‘or discontinuance of the oper21 ations that the Federal entity conducts on the band’’ 

22 after ‘‘from the band’’ each place it appears. 

23 (d) DEPOSIT OF AUCTION PROCEEDS.—Section 

24 309(j)(8) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

25 309(j)(8)) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subparagraph (C)(i), by striking 

2 ‘‘(D)(ii)’’ and inserting ‘‘(D)(ii), (D)(iii)’’; and 

3 (2) in subparagraph (D)— 

4 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘clause (ii)’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘clauses (ii) and (iii)’’; and 

6 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(iii) FEDERAL SPECTRUM INCEN8 TIVES.—Notwithstanding subparagraph 

9 (A) and except as provided in subpara10 graph (B) and clause (ii) of this subpara11 graph, in the case of proceeds (including 

12 deposits and upfront payments from suc13 cessful bidders) attributable to the auction 

14 of eligible frequencies described in section 

15 113(g)(2) of the National Telecommuni16 cations and Information Administration 

17 Organization Act with respect to which the 

18 Commission has received notice under sec19 tion 113(g)(4)(A)(ii) of such Act, 1 per20 cent of such proceeds shall be deposited in 

21 the Federal Spectrum Incentive Fund es22 tablished by section 120 of such Act and 

23 shall be available in accordance with such 

24 section. The remainder of such proceeds 

25 shall be deposited in the general fund of 


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1 the Treasury, where such proceeds shall be 

2 dedicated for the sole purpose of deficit re3 duction.’’. 

4 (e) FEDERAL SPECTRUM INCENTIVE FUND.—Part B 

5 of the National Telecommunications and Information Ad6 ministration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 921 et seq.) is 

7 amended by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 120. FEDERAL SPECTRUM INCENTIVE FUND. 

9 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

10 Treasury of the United States a fund to be known as the 

11 Federal Spectrum Incentive Fund (in this section referred 

12 to as the ‘Fund’), which shall be administered by the Of13 fice of Management and Budget (in this section referred 

14 to as ‘OMB’), in consultation with the NTIA. 

15 ‘‘(b) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—The Director of OMB 

16 shall transfer from the Fund to a Federal entity an 

17 amount equal to the amount deposited in accordance with 

18 section 309(j)(8)(D)(iii) of the Communications Act of 

19 1934 that is attributable to the auction of eligible fre20 quencies described in section 113(g)(2) of this Act being 

21 vacated by such entity. Such amount shall be available to 

22 the Federal entity in accordance with subsection (c) and 

23 shall remain available until expended. 


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1 ‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—A Federal entity may use an 

2 amount transferred under subsection (b) for the following 

3 purposes: 

4 ‘‘(1) OFFSET OF SEQUESTRATION.—Any pur5 poses permitted under the terms and conditions of 

6 an appropriations account of the Federal entity that 

7 was subject to sequestration for any fiscal year 

8 under the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit 

9 Control Act of 1985. The amount used for such pur10 poses under this paragraph may not exceed the 

11 amount by which the amount available to such entity 

12 under such account was reduced by sequestration for 

13 such fiscal year. 

14 ‘‘(2) TRANSFER TO INCUMBENT FEDERAL EN15 TITY.—In the case of a Federal entity that is relo16 cating operations to frequencies assigned to an in17 cumbent Federal entity in order for such entities to 

18 share such frequencies, to transfer an amount to the 

19 incumbent Federal entity for any purposes permitted 

20 under this subsection (except this paragraph). The 

21 transferred amount shall remain available to the in22 cumbent Federal entity until expended. 

23 ‘‘(d) PROHIBITION ON DUPLICATIVE PAYMENTS.—If 

24 the Commission receives notice under section 

25 113(g)(4)(A)(ii) of a discontinuance of operations on or 


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1 relocation from eligible frequencies by a Federal entity 

2 that has received, from the Spectrum Relocation Fund in 

3 accordance with section 118(d)(3), relocation or sharing 

4 costs related to pre-auction estimates or research with re5 spect to such frequencies, the Director of OMB shall de6 duct from the amount to be transferred to such entity 

7 under subsection (b) an amount equal to such costs and 

8 shall transfer such amount to the Spectrum Relocation 

9 Fund.’’. 

10 (f) DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE SPECTRUM.—Section 

11 1062(b) of the National Defense Authorization Act for 

12 Fiscal Year 2000 (Public Law 106–65) does not apply to 

13 frequencies with respect to which the Federal Communica14 tions Commission has received notice under section 

15 113(g)(4)(A)(ii) of the National Telecommunications and 

16 Information Administration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 

17 923(g)(4)(A)(ii)). 

18 SEC. 403. COSTS OF INCUMBENT FEDERAL ENTITIES RE19 LATED TO SPECTRUM SHARING. 

20 (a) DESCRIPTION OF ELIGIBLE FEDERAL ENTI21 TIES.—Section 113(g)(1) of the National Telecommuni22 cations and Information Administration Organization Act 

23 (47 U.S.C. 923(g)(1)) is amended— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘authorized to use a band of eli25 gible frequencies described in paragraph (2)’’; 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘spectrum frequencies’’ the first 

2 place it appears and inserting ‘‘eligible frequencies 

3 described in paragraph (2)’’; and 

4 (3) by striking ‘‘spectrum frequencies’’ the sec5 ond place it appears and inserting ‘‘eligible fre6 quencies described in such paragraph’’. 

7 (b) DEFINITION OF RELOCATION OR SHARING

8 COSTS.—Section 113(g)(3)(A) of the National Tele9 communications and Information Administration Organi10 zation Act (47 U.S.C. 923(g)(3)(A)) is amended— 

11 (1) in clause (iv)(II), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

12 end; 

13 (2) in clause (v), by striking the period and in14 serting ‘‘; and’’; and 

15 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(vi) the costs incurred by an incum17 bent Federal entity to accommodate shar18 ing the spectrum frequencies assigned to 

19 such entity with a Federal entity the oper20 ations of which are being relocated from el21 igible frequencies described in paragraph 

22 (2), unless the Commission receives notice 

23 under paragraph (4)(A)(ii)(II) with respect 

24 to the relocation of such operations.’’. 


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1 (c) SPECTRUM RELOCATION FUND.—Section 118 of 

2 the National Telecommunications and Information Ad3 ministration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 928) is amend4 ed— 

5 (1) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘with respect 

6 to’’ and all that follows and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘with respect to— 

8 ‘‘(1) relocation from or sharing of such eligible 

9 frequencies; or 

10 ‘‘(2) in the case of an incumbent Federal entity 

11 described in section 113(g)(3)(A)(vi), accommo12 dating sharing the spectrum frequencies assigned to 

13 such entity with a Federal entity the operations of 

14 which are being relocated from such eligible fre15 quencies.’’; and 

16 (2) in subsection (d)— 

17 (A) in paragraph (2)(A), by inserting ‘‘(or, 

18 in the case of an incumbent Federal entity de19 scribed in section 113(g)(3)(A)(vi), the eligible 

20 Federal entity the operations of which are being 

21 relocated has submitted such a plan)’’ after 

22 ‘‘transition plan’’; and 

23 (B) in paragraph (3)(B)(ii), by inserting 

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1 tity described in section 113(g)(3)(A)(vi),’’ be2 fore ‘‘the transition plan’’. 

3 TITLE V—PROVIDING REGU4 LATORY RELIEF, CERTAINTY, 

5 AND TRANSPARENCY 

6 Subtitle A—Energy Consumers 

7 Relief 

8 CHAPTER 1—FINALIZING ENERGY9 RELATED RULES 

10 SEC. 501. PROHIBITION AGAINST FINALIZING CERTAIN EN11 ERGY-RELATED RULES THAT WILL CAUSE 

12 SIGNIFICANT ADVERSE EFFECTS TO THE 

13 ECONOMY. 

14 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Ad15 ministrator of the Environmental Protection Agency may 

16 not promulgate as final an energy-related rule that is esti17 mated to cost more than $1 billion if the Secretary of En18 ergy determines under section 502(3) that the rule will 

19 cause significant adverse effects to the economy. 

20 SEC. 502. REPORTS AND DETERMINATIONS PRIOR TO PRO21 MULGATING AS FINAL CERTAIN ENERGY-RE22 LATED RULES. 

23 Before promulgating as final any energy-related rule 

24 that is estimated to cost more than $1 billion: 


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1 (1) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Administrator 

2 of the Environmental Protection Agency shall sub3 mit to Congress a report (and transmit a copy to the 

4 Secretary of Energy) containing— 

5 (A) a copy of the rule; 

6 (B) a concise general statement relating to 

7 the rule; 

8 (C) an estimate of the total costs of the 

9 rule, including the direct costs and indirect 

10 costs of the rule; 

11 (D)(i) an estimate of the total benefits of 

12 the rule and when such benefits are expected to 

13 be realized; 

14 (ii) a description of the modeling, the cal15 culations, the assumptions, and the limitations 

16 due to uncertainty, speculation, or lack of infor17 mation associated with the estimates under this 

18 subparagraph; and 

19 (iii) a certification that all data and docu20 ments relied upon by the Agency in developing 

21 such estimates— 

22 (I) have been preserved; and 

23 (II) are available for review by the 

24 public on the Agency’s Web site, except to 

25 the extent to which publication of such 


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1 data and documents would constitute dis2 closure of confidential information in viola3 tion of applicable Federal law; 

4 (E) an estimate of the increases in energy 

5 prices, including potential increases in gasoline 

6 or electricity prices for consumers, that may re7 sult from implementation or enforcement of the 

8 rule; and 

9 (F) a detailed description of the employ10 ment effects, including potential job losses and 

11 shifts in employment, that may result from im12 plementation or enforcement of the rule. 

13 (2) INITIAL DETERMINATION ON INCREASES

14 AND IMPACTS.—The Secretary of Energy, in con15 sultation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Com16 mission and the Administrator of the Energy Infor17 mation Administration, shall prepare an independent 

18 analysis to determine whether the rule will cause— 

19 (A) any increase in energy prices for con20 sumers, including low-income households, small 

21 businesses, and manufacturers; 

22 (B) any impact on fuel diversity of the Na23 tion’s electricity generation portfolio or on na24 tional, regional, or local electric reliability; 


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1 (C) any adverse effect on energy supply, 

2 distribution, or use due to the economic or tech3 nical infeasibility of implementing the rule; or 

4 (D) any other adverse effect on energy 

5 supply, distribution, or use (including a short6 fall in supply and increased use of foreign sup7 plies). 

8 (3) SUBSEQUENT DETERMINATION ON ADVERSE

9 EFFECTS TO THE ECONOMY.—If the Secretary of 

10 Energy determines, under paragraph (2), that the 

11 rule will cause an increase, impact, or effect de12 scribed in such paragraph, then the Secretary, in 

13 consultation with the Administrator of the Environ14 mental Protection Agency, the Secretary of Com15 merce, the Secretary of Labor, and the Adminis16 trator of the Small Business Administration, shall— 

17 (A) determine whether the rule will cause 

18 significant adverse effects to the economy, tak19 ing into consideration— 

20 (i) the costs and benefits of the rule 

21 and limitations in calculating such costs 

22 and benefits due to uncertainty, specula23 tion, or lack of information; and 

24 (ii) the positive and negative impacts 

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1 ing those related to gross domestic prod2 uct, unemployment, wages, consumer 

3 prices, and business and manufacturing ac4 tivity; and 

5 (B) publish the results of such determina6 tion in the Federal Register. 

7 SEC. 503. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this chapter: 

9 (1) The terms ‘‘direct costs’’ and ‘‘indirect 

10 costs’’ have the meanings given such terms in chap11 ter 8 of the Environmental Protection Agency’s 

12 ‘‘Guidelines for Preparing Economic Analyses’’ 

13 dated December 17, 2010. 

14 (2) The term ‘‘energy-related rule that is esti15 mated to cost more than $1 billion’’ means a rule of 

16 the Environmental Protection Agency that— 

17 (A) regulates any aspect of the production, 

18 supply, distribution, or use of energy or pro19 vides for such regulation by States or other gov20 ernmental entities; and 

21 (B) is estimated by the Administrator of 

22 the Environmental Protection Agency or the 

23 Director of the Office of Management and 

24 Budget to impose direct costs and indirect 


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1 costs, in the aggregate, of more than 

2 $1,000,000,000. 

3 (3) The term ‘‘rule’’ has the meaning given to 

4 such term in section 551 of title 5, United States 

5 Code. 

6 SEC. 504. PROHIBITION ON USE OF SOCIAL COST OF CAR7 BON IN ANALYSIS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi9 sion of law or any Executive order, the Administrator of 

10 the Environmental Protection Agency may not use the so11 cial cost of carbon in order to incorporate social benefits 

12 of reducing carbon dioxide emissions, or for any other rea13 son, in any cost-benefit analysis relating to an energy-re14 lated rule that is estimated to cost more than $1 billion 

15 unless and until a Federal law is enacted authorizing such 

16 use. 

17 (b) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘social 

18 cost of carbon’’ means the social cost of carbon as de19 scribed in the technical support document entitled ‘‘Tech20 nical Support Document: Technical Update of the Social 

21 Cost of Carbon for Regulatory Impact Analysis Under Ex22 ecutive Order 12866’’, published by the Interagency 

23 Working Group on Social Cost of Carbon, United States 

24 Government, in May 2013, or any successor or substan25 tially related document, or any other estimate of the moneVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:09 Oct 08, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00081 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3682.IH H3682

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1 tized damages associated with an incremental increase in 

2 carbon dioxide emissions in a given year. 

3 CHAPTER 2—ELECTRICITY SECURITY AND 

4 AFFORDABILITY 

5 SEC. 511. SHORT TITLE. 

6 This chapter may be cited as the ‘‘Electricity Security 

7 and Affordability Act’’. 

8 SEC. 512. STANDARDS OF PERFORMANCE FOR NEW FOSSIL 

9 FUEL-FIRED ELECTRIC UTILITY GENERATING 

10 UNITS. 

11 (a) LIMITATION.—The Administrator of the Environ12 mental Protection Agency may not issue, implement, or 

13 enforce any proposed or final rule under section 111 of 

14 the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411) that establishes a 

15 standard of performance for emissions of any greenhouse 

16 gas from any new source that is a fossil fuel-fired electric 

17 utility generating unit unless such rule meets the require18 ments under subsections (b) and (c). 

19 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—In issuing any rule under sec20 tion 111 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411) estab21 lishing standards of performance for emissions of any 

22 greenhouse gas from new sources that are fossil fuel-fired 

23 electric utility generating units, the Administrator of the 

24 Environmental Protection Agency (for purposes of estab25 lishing such standards)— 


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1 (1) shall separate sources fueled with coal and 

2 natural gas into separate categories; and 

3 (2) shall not set a standard based on the best 

4 system of emission reduction for new sources within 

5 a fossil-fuel category unless— 

6 (A) such standard has been achieved on 

7 average for at least one continuous 12-month 

8 period (excluding planned outages) by each of 

9 at least 6 units within such category— 

10 (i) each of which is located at a dif11 ferent electric generating station in the 

12 United States; 

13 (ii) which, collectively, are representa14 tive of the operating characteristics of elec15 tric generation at different locations in the 

16 United States; and 

17 (iii) each of which is operated for the 

18 entire 12-month period on a full commer19 cial basis; and 

20 (B) no results obtained from any dem21 onstration project are used in setting such 

22 standard. 

23 (c) COAL HAVING A HEAT CONTENT OF 8300 OR

24 LESS BRITISH THERMAL UNITS PER POUND.— 


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1 (1) SEPARATE SUBCATEGORY.—In carrying out 

2 subsection (b)(1), the Administrator of the Environ3 mental Protection Agency shall establish a separate 

4 subcategory for new sources that are fossil fuel-fired 

5 electric utility generating units using coal with an 

6 average heat content of 8300 or less British Ther7 mal Units per pound. 

8 (2) STANDARD.—Notwithstanding subsection 

9 (b)(2), in issuing any rule under section 111 of the 

10 Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411) establishing stand11 ards of performance for emissions of any greenhouse 

12 gas from new sources in such subcategory, the Ad13 ministrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 

14 shall not set a standard based on the best system of 

15 emission reduction unless— 

16 (A) such standard has been achieved on 

17 average for at least one continuous 12-month 

18 period (excluding planned outages) by each of 

19 at least 3 units within such subcategory— 

20 (i) each of which is located at a dif21 ferent electric generating station in the 

22 United States; 

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1 tric generation at different locations in the 

2 United States; and 

3 (iii) each of which is operated for the 

4 entire 12-month period on a full commer5 cial basis; and 

6 (B) no results obtained from any dem7 onstration project are used in setting such 

8 standard. 

9 (d) TECHNOLOGIES.—Nothing in this section shall be 

10 construed to preclude the issuance, implementation, or en11 forcement of a standard of performance that— 

12 (1) is based on the use of one or more tech13 nologies that are developed in a foreign country, but 

14 has been demonstrated to be achievable at fossil 

15 fuel-fired electric utility generating units in the 

16 United States; and 

17 (2) meets the requirements of subsections (b) 

18 and (c), as applicable. 

19 SEC. 513. CONGRESS TO SET EFFECTIVE DATE FOR STAND20 ARDS OF PERFORMANCE FOR EXISTING, 

21 MODIFIED, AND RECONSTRUCTED FOSSIL 

22 FUEL-FIRED ELECTRIC UTILITY GENERATING 

23 UNITS. 

24 (a) APPLICABILITY.—This section applies with re25 spect to any rule or guidelines issued by the Administrator 


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1 of the Environmental Protection Agency under section 

2 111 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411) that— 

3 (1) establish any standard of performance for 

4 emissions of any greenhouse gas from any modified 

5 or reconstructed source that is a fossil fuel-fired 

6 electric utility generating unit; or 

7 (2) apply to the emissions of any greenhouse 

8 gas from an existing source that is a fossil fuel-fired 

9 electric utility generating unit. 

10 (b) CONGRESS TO SET EFFECTIVE DATE.—A rule 

11 or guidelines described in subsection (a) shall not take ef12 fect unless a Federal law is enacted specifying such rule’s 

13 or guidelines’ effective date. 

14 (c) REPORTING.—A rule or guidelines described in 

15 subsection (a) shall not take effect unless the Adminis16 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency has sub17 mitted to Congress a report containing each of the fol18 lowing: 

19 (1) The text of such rule or guidelines. 

20 (2) The economic impacts of such rule or guide21 lines, including the potential effects on— 

22 (A) economic growth, competitiveness, and 

23 jobs in the United States; 

24 (B) electricity ratepayers, including low-in25 come ratepayers in affected States; 


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1 (C) required capital investments and pro2 jected costs for operation and maintenance of 

3 new equipment required to be installed; and 

4 (D) the global economic competitiveness of 

5 the United States. 

6 (3) The amount of greenhouse gas emissions 

7 that such rule or guidelines are projected to reduce 

8 as compared to overall global greenhouse gas emis9 sions. 

10 (d) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out subsection (c), 

11 the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agen12 cy shall consult with the Administrator of the Energy In13 formation Administration, the Comptroller General of the 

14 United States, the Director of the National Energy Tech15 nology Laboratory, and the Under Secretary of Commerce 

16 for Standards and Technology. 

17 SEC. 514. REPEAL OF EARLIER RULES AND GUIDELINES. 

18 The following rules and guidelines shall be of no force 

19 or effect, and shall be treated as though such rules and 

20 guidelines had never been issued: 

21 (1) The proposed rule— 

22 (A) entitled ‘‘Standards of Performance 

23 for Greenhouse Gas Emissions for New Sta24 tionary Sources: Electric Utility Generating 


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1 Units’’, published at 77 Fed. Reg. 22392 (April 

2 13, 2012); and 

3 (B) withdrawn pursuant to the notice enti4 tled ‘‘Withdrawal of Proposed Standards of 

5 Performance for Greenhouse Gas Emissions 

6 From New Stationary Sources: Electric Utility 

7 Generating Units’’, published at 79 Fed. Reg. 

8 1352 (January 8, 2014). 

9 (2) The proposed rule entitled ‘‘Standards of 

10 Performance for Greenhouse Gas Emissions From 

11 New Stationary Sources: Electric Utility Generating 

12 Units’’, published at 79 Fed. Reg. 1430 (January 8, 

13 2014). 

14 (3) With respect to the proposed rules described 

15 in paragraphs (1) and (2), any successor or substan16 tially similar proposed or final rule that— 

17 (A) is issued prior to the date of the enact18 ment of this Act; 

19 (B) is applicable to any new source that is 

20 a fossil fuel-fired electric utility generating unit; 

21 and 

22 (C) does not meet the requirements under 

23 subsections (b) and (c) of section 512. 

24 (4) The proposed rule entitled ‘‘Carbon Pollu25 tion Emission Guidelines for Existing Stationary 


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1 Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units’’, pub2 lished at 79 Fed. Reg. 34830 (June 18, 2014). 

3 (5) The proposed rule entitled ‘‘Carbon Pollu4 tion Standards for Modified and Reconstructed Sta5 tionary Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units’’, 

6 published at 79 Fed. Reg. 34960 (June 18, 2014). 

7 (6) With respect to the proposed rules described 

8 in paragraphs (4) and (5), any successor or substan9 tially similar proposed or final rule that— 

10 (A) is issued prior to the date of the enact11 ment of this Act; and 

12 (B) is applicable to any existing, modified, 

13 or reconstructed source that is a fossil fuel-fired 

14 electric utility generating unit. 

15 SEC. 515. DEFINITIONS. 

16 In this chapter: 

17 (1) DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.—The term 

18 ‘‘demonstration project’’ means a project to test or 

19 demonstrate the feasibility of carbon capture and 

20 storage technologies that has received Federal Gov21 ernment funding or financial assistance. 

22 (2) EXISTING SOURCE.—The term ‘‘existing 

23 source’’ has the meaning given such term in section 

24 111(a) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411(a)), 


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1 except such term shall not include any modified 

2 source. 

3 (3) GREENHOUSE GAS.—The term ‘‘greenhouse 

4 gas’’ means any of the following: 

5 (A) Carbon dioxide. 

6 (B) Methane. 

7 (C) Nitrous oxide. 

8 (D) Sulfur hexafluoride. 

9 (E) Hydrofluorocarbons. 

10 (F) Perfluorocarbons. 

11 (4) MODIFICATION.—The term ‘‘modification’’ 

12 has the meaning given such term in section 111(a) 

13 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411(a)). 

14 (5) MODIFIED SOURCE.—The term ‘‘modified 

15 source’’ means any stationary source, the modifica16 tion of which is commenced after the date of the en17 actment of this Act. 

18 (6) NEW SOURCE.—The term ‘‘new source’’ has 

19 the meaning given such term in section 111(a) of 

20 the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411(a)), except that 

21 such term shall not include any modified source. 


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1 Subtitle B—LNG Permitting 

2 Certainty and Transparency 

3 SEC. 521. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘LNG Permitting 

5 Certainty and Transparency Act’’. 

6 SEC. 522. ACTION ON APPLICATIONS. 

7 (a) DECISION DEADLINE.—For proposals that must 

8 also obtain authorization from the Federal Energy Regu9 latory Commission or the United States Maritime Admin10 istration to site, construct, expand, or operate LNG export 

11 facilities, the Department of Energy shall issue a final de12 cision on any application for the authorization to export 

13 natural gas under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (15 

14 U.S.C. 717b) not later than 30 days after the later of— 

15 (1) the conclusion of the review to site, con16 struct, expand, or operate the LNG facilities re17 quired by the National Environmental Policy Act of 

18 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); or 

19 (2) the date of enactment of this Act. 

20 (b) CONCLUSION OF REVIEW.—For purposes of sub21 section (a), review required by the National Environ22 mental Policy Act of 1969 shall be considered concluded— 

23 (1) for a project requiring an Environmental 

24 Impact Statement, 30 days after publication of a 

25 Final Environmental Impact Statement; 


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1 (2) for a project for which an Environmental 

2 Assessment has been prepared, 30 days after publi3 cation by the Department of Energy of a Finding of 

4 No Significant Impact; and 

5 (3) upon a determination by the lead agency 

6 that an application is eligible for a categorical exclu7 sion pursuant to the National Environmental Policy 

8 Act of 1969 implementing regulations. 

9 (c) JUDICIAL ACTION.—(1) The United States Court 

10 of Appeals for the circuit in which the export facility will 

11 be located pursuant to an application described in sub12 section (a) shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction 

13 over any civil action for the review of— 

14 (A) an order issued by the Department of En15 ergy with respect to such application; or 

16 (B) the Department of Energy’s failure to issue 

17 a final decision on such application. 

18 (2) If the Court in a civil action described in para19 graph (1) finds that the Department of Energy has failed 

20 to issue a final decision on the application as required 

21 under subsection (a), the Court shall order the Depart22 ment of Energy to issue such final decision not later than 

23 30 days after the Court’s order. 

24 (3) The Court shall set any civil action brought under 

25 this subsection for expedited consideration and shall set 


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1 the matter on the docket as soon as practical after the 

2 filing date of the initial pleading. 

3 SEC. 523. PUBLIC DISCLOSURE OF EXPORT DESTINATIONS. 

4 Section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b) 

5 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(g) PUBLIC DISCLOSURE OF LNG EXPORT DES7 TINATIONS.—As a condition for approval of any authoriza8 tion to export LNG, the Secretary of Energy shall require 

9 the applicant to publicly disclose the specific destination 

10 or destinations of any such authorized LNG exports.’’. 

11 Subtitle C—Preventing Govern12 ment Waste and Protecting Coal 

13 Mining Jobs in America 

14 SEC. 531. SHORT TITLE. 

15 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Preventing Govern16 ment Waste and Protecting Coal Mining Jobs in Amer17 ica’’. 

18 SEC. 532. INCORPORATION OF SURFACE MINING STREAM 

19 BUFFER ZONE RULE INTO STATE PROGRAMS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 503 of the Surface Min21 ing Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 

22 1253) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(e) STREAM BUFFER ZONE MANAGEMENT.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the require25 ments under subsection (a), each State program 


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1 shall incorporate the necessary rule regarding excess 

2 spoil, coal mine waste, and buffers for perennial and 

3 intermittent streams published by the Office of Sur4 face Mining Reclamation and Enforcement on De5 cember 12, 2008 (73 Fed. Reg. 75813 et seq.), 

6 which complies with the Endangered Species Act of 

7 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) in view of the 2006 

8 discussions between the Director of the Office of 

9 Surface Mining and the Director of the United 

10 States Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Office of 

11 Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement’s con12 sideration and review of comments submitted by the 

13 United States Fish and Wildlife Service during the 

14 rulemaking process in 2007. 

15 ‘‘(2) STUDY OF IMPLEMENTATION.—The Sec16 retary shall— 

17 ‘‘(A) at such time as the Secretary deter18 mines all States referred to in subsection (a) 

19 have fully incorporated the necessary rule re20 ferred to in paragraph (1) of this subsection 

21 into their State programs, publish notice of 

22 such determination; 

23 ‘‘(B) during the 5-year period beginning on 

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1 tiveness of implementation of such rule by such 

2 States; 

3 ‘‘(C) carry out all required consultation on 

4 the benefits and other impacts of the implemen5 tation of the rule to any threatened species or 

6 endangered species, with the participation of 

7 the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and 

8 the United States Geological Survey; and 

9 ‘‘(D) upon the conclusion of such period, 

10 submit a comprehensive report on the impacts 

11 of such rule to the Committee on Natural Re12 sources of the House of Representatives and the 

13 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 

14 the Senate, including— 

15 ‘‘(i) an evaluation of the effectiveness 

16 of such rule; 

17 ‘‘(ii) an evaluation of any ways in 

18 which the existing rule inhibits energy pro19 duction; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) a description in detail of any 

21 proposed changes that should be made to 

22 the rule, the justification for such changes, 

23 all comments on such changes received by 

24 the Secretary from such States, and the 


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1 projected costs and benefits of such 

2 changes. 

3 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION ON NEW REGULATIONS.—The 

4 Secretary may not issue any regulations under this 

5 Act relating to stream buffer zones or stream protec6 tion before the date of the publication of the report 

7 under paragraph (2), other than a rule necessary to 

8 implement paragraph (1).’’. 

9 (b) DEADLINE FOR STATE IMPLEMENTATION.—Not 

10 later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this 

11 Act, a State with a State program approved under section 

12 503 of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act 

13 of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1253) shall submit to the Secretary 

14 of the Interior amendments to such program pursuant to 

15 part 732 of title 30, Code of Federal Regulations, incor16 porating the necessary rule referred to in subsection (e)(1) 

17 of such section, as amended by this section. 


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1 TITLE VI—REDUCING HEALTH 

2 CARE BURDENS AND IMPROV3 ING PATIENT COVERAGE 

4 SEC. 601. REPEAL OF THE HEALTH CARE LAW AND HEALTH 

5 CARE-RELATED PROVISIONS IN THE HEALTH 

6 CARE AND EDUCATION RECONCILIATION ACT 

7 OF 2010. 

8 (a) HEALTH CARE LAW.—Effective as of the enact9 ment of Public Law 111–148, such Act is repealed, and 

10 the provisions of law amended or repealed by such Act 

11 are restored or revived as if such Act had not been en12 acted. 

13 (b) HEALTH CARE-RELATED PROVISIONS IN THE

14 HEALTH CARE AND EDUCATION RECONCILIATION ACT OF

15 2010.—Effective as of the enactment of the Health Care 

16 and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (Public Law 

17 111–152), title I and subtitle B of title II of such Act 

18 are repealed, and the provisions of law amended or re19 pealed by such title or subtitle, respectively, are restored 

20 or revived as if such title and subtitle had not been en21 acted. 

22 SEC. 602. NO LIFETIME LIMITS. 

23 Part A of title XXVII of the Public Health Service 

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1 serting after section 2702 (42 U.S.C. 300gg–1) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 2703. NO LIFETIME LIMITS. 

4 ‘‘A group health plan and a health insurance issuer 

5 offering group or individual health insurance coverage 

6 may not establish lifetime limits on the dollar value of ben7 efits for any individual.’’. 

8 SEC. 603. ESTABLISH UNIVERSAL ACCESS PROGRAMS TO 

9 IMPROVE HIGH RISK POOLS AND REINSUR10 ANCE MARKETS. 

11 (a) STATE REQUIREMENT.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 1, 

13 2017, each State shall, subject to paragraph (3)— 

14 (A) operate— 

15 (i) a qualified State reinsurance pro16 gram described in subsection (b); or 

17 (ii) a qualifying State high risk pool 

18 described in subsection (c)(1); and 

19 (B) apply to the operation of such a pro20 gram from State funds an amount equivalent to 

21 the portion of State funds derived from State 

22 premium assessments (as defined by the Sec23 retary) that are not otherwise used on State 

24 health care programs. 


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1 (2) RELATION TO CURRENT QUALIFIED HIGH

2 RISK POOL PROGRAM.— 

3 (A) STATES NOT OPERATING A QUALIFIED

4 HIGH RISK POOL.—In the case of a State that 

5 is not operating a current section 2745 quali6 fied high risk pool as of the date of the enact7 ment of this Act— 

8 (i) the State may only meet the re9 quirement of paragraph (1) through the 

10 operation of a qualified State reinsurance 

11 program described in subsection (b); and 

12 (ii) the State’s operation of such a re13 insurance program shall be treated, for 

14 purposes of section 2745 of the Public 

15 Health Service Act, as the operation of a 

16 qualified high risk pool described in such 

17 section. 

18 (B) STATE OPERATING A QUALIFIED HIGH

19 RISK POOL.—In the case of a State that is op20 erating a current section 2745 qualified high 

21 risk pool as of the date of the enactment of this 

22 Act— 

23 (i) as of January 1, 2017, such a pool 

24 shall not be treated as a qualified high risk 

25 pool under section 2745 of the Public 


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1 Health Service Act unless the pool is a 

2 qualifying State high risk pool described in 

3 subsection (c)(1); and 

4 (ii) the State may use premium as5 sessment funds described in paragraph 

6 (1)(B) to transition from operation of such 

7 a pool to operation of a qualified State re8 insurance program described in subsection 

9 (b). 

10 (3) APPLICATION OF FUNDS.—If the program 

11 or pool operated under paragraph (1)(A) is in strong 

12 fiscal health, as determined in accordance with 

13 standards established by the National Association of 

14 Insurance Commissioners and as approved by the 

15 State Insurance Commissioner involved, the require16 ment of paragraph (1)(B) shall be deemed to be 

17 met. 

18 (b) QUALIFIED STATE REINSURANCE PROGRAM.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this section, 

20 the term ‘‘qualified State reinsurance program’’ 

21 means a program operated by a State program that 

22 provides reinsurance for health insurance coverage 

23 offered in the small group market in accordance 

24 with the model for such a program established (as 

25 of the date of the enactment of this Act). 


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1 (2) FORM OF PROGRAM.—A qualified State re2 insurance program may provide reinsurance— 

3 (A) on a prospective or retrospective basis; 

4 and 

5 (B) on a basis that protects health insur6 ance issuers against the annual aggregate 

7 spending of their enrollees as well as purchase 

8 protection against individual catastrophic costs. 

9 (3) SATISFACTION OF HIPAA REQUIREMENT.— 

10 A qualified State reinsurance program shall be 

11 deemed, for purposes of section 2745 of the Public 

12 Health Service Act, to be a qualified high risk pool 

13 under such section. 

14 (c) QUALIFYING STATE HIGH RISK POOL.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—A qualifying State high risk 

16 pool described in this subsection means a current 

17 section 2745 qualified high risk pool that meets the 

18 following requirements: 

19 (A) The pool provides at least two coverage 

20 options, one of which is a high deductible health 

21 plan coupled with a health savings account. 

22 (B) The pool is funded with a stable fund23 ing source. 

24 (C) The pool eliminates any waiting lists 

25 so that all eligible residents who are seeking 


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1 coverage through the pool should be allowed to 

2 receive coverage through the pool. 

3 (D) The pool allows for coverage of indi4 viduals who, but for the 24-month disability 

5 waiting period under section 226(b) of the So6 cial Security Act, would be eligible for Medicare 

7 during the period of such waiting period. 

8 (E) The pool limits the pool premiums to 

9 no more than 150 percent of the average pre10 mium for applicable standard risk rates in that 

11 State. 

12 (F) The pool conducts education and out13 reach initiatives so that residents and brokers 

14 understand that the pool is available to eligible 

15 residents. 

16 (G) The pool provides coverage for preven17 tive services and disease management for chron18 ic diseases. 

19 (2) VERIFICATION OF CITIZENSHIP OR ALIEN

20 QUALIFICATION.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 

22 other provision of law, only citizens and nation23 als of the United States shall be eligible to par24 ticipate in a qualifying State high risk pool that 


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1 receives funds under section 2745 of the Public 

2 Health Service Act or this section. 

3 (B) CONDITION OF PARTICIPATION.—As a 

4 condition of a State receiving such funds, the 

5 Secretary shall require the State to certify, to 

6 the satisfaction of the Secretary, that such 

7 State requires all applicants for coverage in the 

8 qualifying State high risk pool to provide satis9 factory documentation of citizenship or nation10 ality in a manner consistent with section 

11 1903(x) of the Social Security Act. 

12 (C) RECORDS.—The Secretary shall keep 

13 sufficient records such that a determination of 

14 citizenship or nationality only has to be made 

15 once for any individual under this paragraph. 

16 (3) RELATION TO SECTION 2745.—As of Janu17 ary 1, 2017, a pool shall not qualify as qualified 

18 high risk pool under section 2745 of the Public 

19 Health Service Act unless the pool is a qualifying 

20 State high risk pool described in paragraph (1). 

21 (4) WAIVERS.—In order to accommodate new 

22 and innovative programs, the Secretary may waive 

23 such requirements of this section for qualified State 

24 reinsurance programs and for qualifying State high 

25 risk pools as the Secretary deems appropriate. 


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1 (5) FUNDING.—In addition to any other 

2 amounts appropriated, there is appropriated to carry 

3 out section 2745 of the Public Health Service Act 

4 (including through a program or pool described in 

5 subsection (a)(1))— 

6 (A) $15,000,000,000 for the period of fis7 cal years 2017 through 2026; and 

8 (B) an additional $10,000,000,000 for the 

9 period of fiscal years 2022 through 2026. 

10 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 (1) HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE; HEALTH

12 INSURANCE ISSUER.—The terms ‘‘health insurance 

13 coverage’’ and ‘‘health insurance issuer’’ have the 

14 meanings given such terms in section 2791 of the 

15 Public Health Service Act. 

16 (2) CURRENT SECTION 2745 QUALIFIED HIGH

17 RISK POOL.—The term ‘‘current section 2745 quali18 fied high risk pool’’ has the meaning given the term 

19 ‘‘qualified high risk pool’’ under section 2745(g) of 

20 the Public Health Service Act as in effect as of the 

21 date of the enactment of this Act. 

22 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

23 the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

24 (4) STANDARD RISK RATE.—The term ‘‘stand25 ard risk rate’’ means a rate that— 


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1 (A) is determined under the State high 

2 risk pool by considering the premium rates 

3 charged by other health insurance issuers offer4 ing health insurance coverage to individuals in 

5 the insurance market served; 

6 (B) is established using reasonable actu7 arial techniques; and 

8 (C) reflects anticipated claims experience 

9 and expenses for the coverage involved. 

10 (5) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any of 

11 the 50 States or the District of Columbia. 

12 SEC. 604. ELIMINATION OF CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS FOR 

13 GUARANTEED AVAILABILITY IN INDIVIDUAL 

14 MARKET. 

15 Section 2741(b) of the Public Health Service Act (42 

16 U.S.C. 300gg–41(b)) is amended— 

17 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

18 (A) by striking ‘‘(1)(A)’’ and inserting 

19 ‘‘(1)’’; and 

20 (B) by striking ‘‘and (B)’’ and all that fol21 lows up to the semicolon at the end; 

22 (2) by adding ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

23 (2); 

24 (3) in paragraph (3)— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘(1)(A)’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘(1)’’; and 

3 (B) by striking the semicolon at the end 

4 and inserting a period; and 

5 (4) by striking paragraphs (4) and (5). 

6 SEC. 605. PREVENTING UNJUST CANCELLATION OF INSUR7 ANCE COVERAGE. 

8 (a) CLARIFICATION REGARDING APPLICATION OF

9 GUARANTEED RENEWABILITY OF INDIVIDUAL HEALTH

10 INSURANCE COVERAGE.—Section 2742 of the Public 

11 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–42) is amended— 

12 (1) in its heading, by inserting ‘‘, CONTINU13 ATION IN FORCE, INCLUDING PROHIBITION OF

14 RESCISSION,’’ after ‘‘GUARANTEED RENEW15 ABILITY’’; 

16 (2) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘, including 

17 without rescission,’’ after ‘‘continue in force’’; and 

18 (3) in subsection (b)(2), by inserting before the 

19 period at the end the following: ‘‘, including inten20 tional concealment of material facts regarding a 

21 health condition related to the condition for which 

22 coverage is being claimed’’. 

23 (b) OPPORTUNITY FOR INDEPENDENT, EXTERNAL

24 THIRD PARTY REVIEW IN CERTAIN CASES.—Subpart 1 


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1 of part B of title XXVII of the Public Health Service Act 

2 is amended by adding at the end the following new section: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 2746. OPPORTUNITY FOR INDEPENDENT, EXTERNAL 

4 THIRD PARTY REVIEW IN CERTAIN CASES. 

5 ‘‘(a) NOTICE AND REVIEW RIGHT.—If a health in6 surance issuer determines to nonrenew or not continue in 

7 force, including by rescission, health insurance coverage 

8 for an individual in the individual market on the basis de9 scribed in section 2742(b)(2) before such nonrenewal, dis10 continuation, or rescission, may take effect the issuer shall 

11 provide the individual with notice of such proposed non12 renewal, discontinuation, or rescission and an opportunity 

13 for a review of such determination by an independent, ex14 ternal third party under procedures specified by the Sec15 retary. 

16 ‘‘(b) INDEPENDENT DETERMINATION.—If the indi17 vidual requests such review by an independent, external 

18 third party of a nonrenewal, discontinuation, or rescission 

19 of health insurance coverage, the coverage shall remain in 

20 effect until such third party determines that the coverage 

21 may be nonrenewed, discontinued, or rescinded under sec22 tion 2742(b)(2).’’. 

23 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

24 this section shall apply after the date of the enactment 


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1 of this section with respect to health insurance coverage 

2 issued before, on, or after such date. 

3 TITLE VII—LOWERING HEALTH 

4 CARE COSTS 

5 Subtitle A—Cooperative Governing 

6 of Individual Health Insurance 

7 Coverage 

8 SEC. 701. COOPERATIVE GOVERNING OF INDIVIDUAL 

9 HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title XXVII of the Public Health 

11 Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg et seq.) is amended by add12 ing at the end the following new part: 

13 ‘‘PART D—COOPERATIVE GOVERNING OF 

14 INDIVIDUAL HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE 

15 ‘‘SEC. 2795. DEFINITIONS. 

16 ‘‘In this part: 

17 ‘‘(1) PRIMARY STATE.—The term ‘primary 

18 State’ means, with respect to individual health insur19 ance coverage offered by a health insurance issuer, 

20 the State designated by the issuer as the State 

21 whose covered laws shall govern the health insurance 

22 issuer in the sale of such coverage under this part. 

23 An issuer, with respect to a particular policy, may 

24 only designate one such State as its primary State 

25 with respect to all such coverage it offers. Such an 


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1 issuer may not change the designated primary State 

2 with respect to individual health insurance coverage 

3 once the policy is issued, except that such a change 

4 may be made upon renewal of the policy. With re5 spect to such designated State, the issuer is deemed 

6 to be doing business in that State. 

7 ‘‘(2) SECONDARY STATE.—The term ‘secondary 

8 State’ means, with respect to individual health insur9 ance coverage offered by a health insurance issuer, 

10 any State that is not the primary State. In the case 

11 of a health insurance issuer that is selling a policy 

12 in, or to a resident of, a secondary State, the issuer 

13 is deemed to be doing business in that secondary 

14 State. 

15 ‘‘(3) HEALTH INSURANCE ISSUER.—The term 

16 ‘health insurance issuer’ has the meaning given such 

17 term in section 2791(b)(2), except that such an 

18 issuer must be licensed in the primary State and be 

19 qualified to sell individual health insurance coverage 

20 in that State. 

21 ‘‘(4) INDIVIDUAL HEALTH INSURANCE COV22 ERAGE.—The term ‘individual health insurance cov23 erage’ means health insurance coverage offered in 

24 the individual market, as defined in section 

25 2791(b)(5). 


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1 ‘‘(5) APPLICABLE STATE AUTHORITY.—The 

2 term ‘applicable State authority’ means, with respect 

3 to a health insurance issuer in a State, the State in4 surance commissioner or official or officials des5 ignated by the State to enforce the requirements of 

6 this title for the State with respect to the issuer. 

7 ‘‘(6) HAZARDOUS FINANCIAL CONDITION.—The 

8 term ‘hazardous financial condition’ means that, 

9 based on its present or reasonably anticipated finan10 cial condition, a health insurance issuer is unlikely 

11 to be able— 

12 ‘‘(A) to meet obligations to policyholders 

13 with respect to known claims and reasonably 

14 anticipated claims; or 

15 ‘‘(B) to pay other obligations in the normal 

16 course of business. 

17 ‘‘(7) COVERED LAWS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘covered 

19 laws’ means the laws, rules, regulations, agree20 ments, and orders governing the insurance busi21 ness pertaining to— 

22 ‘‘(i) individual health insurance cov23 erage issued by a health insurance issuer; 

24 ‘‘(ii) the offer, sale, rating (including 

25 medical underwriting), renewal, and 


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1 issuance of individual health insurance cov2 erage to an individual; 

3 ‘‘(iii) the provision to an individual in 

4 relation to individual health insurance cov5 erage of health care and insurance related 

6 services; 

7 ‘‘(iv) the provision to an individual in 

8 relation to individual health insurance cov9 erage of management, operations, and in10 vestment activities of a health insurance 

11 issuer; and 

12 ‘‘(v) the provision to an individual in 

13 relation to individual health insurance cov14 erage of loss control and claims adminis15 tration for a health insurance issuer with 

16 respect to liability for which the issuer pro17 vides insurance. 

18 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Such term does not in19 clude any law, rule, regulation, agreement, or 

20 order governing the use of care or cost manage21 ment techniques, including any requirement re22 lated to provider contracting, network access or 

23 adequacy, health care data collection, or quality 

24 assurance. 


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1 ‘‘(8) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means the 50 

2 States and includes the District of Columbia, Puerto 

3 Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, 

4 and the Northern Mariana Islands. 

5 ‘‘(9) UNFAIR CLAIMS SETTLEMENT PRAC6 TICES.—The term ‘unfair claims settlement prac7 tices’ means only the following practices: 

8 ‘‘(A) Knowingly misrepresenting to claim9 ants and insured individuals relevant facts or 

10 policy provisions relating to coverage at issue. 

11 ‘‘(B) Failing to acknowledge with reason12 able promptness pertinent communications with 

13 respect to claims arising under policies. 

14 ‘‘(C) Failing to adopt and implement rea15 sonable standards for the prompt investigation 

16 and settlement of claims arising under policies. 

17 ‘‘(D) Failing to effectuate prompt, fair, 

18 and equitable settlement of claims submitted in 

19 which liability has become reasonably clear. 

20 ‘‘(E) Refusing to pay claims without con21 ducting a reasonable investigation. 

22 ‘‘(F) Failing to affirm or deny coverage of 

23 claims within a reasonable period of time after 

24 having completed an investigation related to 

25 those claims. 


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1 ‘‘(G) A pattern or practice of compelling 

2 insured individuals or their beneficiaries to in3 stitute suits to recover amounts due under its 

4 policies by offering substantially less than the 

5 amounts ultimately recovered in suits brought 

6 by them. 

7 ‘‘(H) A pattern or practice of attempting 

8 to settle or settling claims for less than the 

9 amount that a reasonable person would believe 

10 the insured individual or his or her beneficiary 

11 was entitled by reference to written or printed 

12 advertising material accompanying or made 

13 part of an application. 

14 ‘‘(I) Attempting to settle or settling claims 

15 on the basis of an application that was materi16 ally altered without notice to, or knowledge or 

17 consent of, the insured. 

18 ‘‘(J) Failing to provide forms necessary to 

19 present claims within 15 calendar days of a re20 quest with reasonable explanations regarding 

21 their use. 

22 ‘‘(K) Attempting to cancel a policy in less 

23 time than that prescribed in the policy or by the 

24 law of the primary State. 


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1 ‘‘(10) FRAUD AND ABUSE.—The term ‘fraud 

2 and abuse’ means an act or omission committed by 

3 a person who, knowingly and with intent to defraud, 

4 commits, or conceals any material information con5 cerning, one or more of the following: 

6 ‘‘(A) Presenting, causing to be presented 

7 or preparing with knowledge or belief that it 

8 will be presented to or by an insurer, a rein9 surer, broker or its agent, false information as 

10 part of, in support of or concerning a fact ma11 terial to one or more of the following: 

12 ‘‘(i) An application for the issuance or 

13 renewal of an insurance policy or reinsur14 ance contract. 

15 ‘‘(ii) The rating of an insurance policy 

16 or reinsurance contract. 

17 ‘‘(iii) A claim for payment or benefit 

18 pursuant to an insurance policy or reinsur19 ance contract. 

20 ‘‘(iv) Premiums paid on an insurance 

21 policy or reinsurance contract. 

22 ‘‘(v) Payments made in accordance 

23 with the terms of an insurance policy or 

24 reinsurance contract. 


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1 ‘‘(vi) A document filed with the com2 missioner or the chief insurance regulatory 

3 official of another jurisdiction. 

4 ‘‘(vii) The financial condition of an in5 surer or reinsurer. 

6 ‘‘(viii) The formation, acquisition, 

7 merger, reconsolidation, dissolution or 

8 withdrawal from one or more lines of in9 surance or reinsurance in all or part of a 

10 State by an insurer or reinsurer. 

11 ‘‘(ix) The issuance of written evidence 

12 of insurance. 

13 ‘‘(x) The reinstatement of an insur14 ance policy. 

15 ‘‘(B) Solicitation or acceptance of new or 

16 renewal insurance risks on behalf of an insurer 

17 reinsurer or other person engaged in the busi18 ness of insurance by a person who knows or 

19 should know that the insurer or other person 

20 responsible for the risk is insolvent at the time 

21 of the transaction. 

22 ‘‘(C) Transaction of the business of insur23 ance in violation of laws requiring a license, cer24 tificate of authority or other legal authority for 

25 the transaction of the business of insurance. 


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1 ‘‘(D) Attempt to commit, aiding or abet2 ting in the commission of, or conspiracy to com3 mit the acts or omissions specified in this para4 graph. 

5 ‘‘SEC. 2796. APPLICATION OF LAW. 

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The covered laws of the primary 

7 State shall apply to individual health insurance coverage 

8 offered by a health insurance issuer in the primary State 

9 and in any secondary State, but only if the coverage and 

10 issuer comply with the conditions of this section with re11 spect to the offering of coverage in any secondary State. 

12 ‘‘(b) EXEMPTIONS FROM COVERED LAWS IN A SEC13 ONDARY STATE.—Except as provided in this section, a 

14 health insurance issuer with respect to its offer, sale, rat15 ing (including medical underwriting), renewal, and 

16 issuance of individual health insurance coverage in any 

17 secondary State is exempt from any covered laws of the 

18 secondary State (and any rules, regulations, agreements, 

19 or orders sought or issued by such State under or related 

20 to such covered laws) to the extent that such laws would— 

21 ‘‘(1) make unlawful, or regulate, directly or in22 directly, the operation of the health insurance issuer 

23 operating in the secondary State, except that any 

24 secondary State may require such an issuer— 


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1 ‘‘(A) to pay, on a nondiscriminatory basis, 

2 applicable premium and other taxes (including 

3 high risk pool assessments) which are levied on 

4 insurers and surplus lines insurers, brokers, or 

5 policyholders under the laws of the State; 

6 ‘‘(B) to register with and designate the 

7 State insurance commissioner as its agent solely 

8 for the purpose of receiving service of legal doc9 uments or process; 

10 ‘‘(C) to submit to an examination of its fi11 nancial condition by the State insurance com12 missioner in any State in which the issuer is 

13 doing business to determine the issuer’s finan14 cial condition, if— 

15 ‘‘(i) the State insurance commissioner 

16 of the primary State has not done an ex17 amination within the period recommended 

18 by the National Association of Insurance 

19 Commissioners; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) any such examination is con21 ducted in accordance with the examiners’ 

22 handbook of the National Association of 

23 Insurance Commissioners and is coordi24 nated to avoid unjustified duplication and 

25 unjustified repetition; 


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1 ‘‘(D) to comply with a lawful order 

2 issued— 

3 ‘‘(i) in a delinquency proceeding com4 menced by the State insurance commis5 sioner if there has been a finding of finan6 cial impairment under subparagraph (C); 

7 or 

8 ‘‘(ii) in a voluntary dissolution pro9 ceeding; 

10 ‘‘(E) to comply with an injunction issued 

11 by a court of competent jurisdiction, upon a pe12 tition by the State insurance commissioner al13 leging that the issuer is in hazardous financial 

14 condition; 

15 ‘‘(F) to participate, on a nondiscriminatory 

16 basis, in any insurance insolvency guaranty as17 sociation or similar association to which a 

18 health insurance issuer in the State is required 

19 to belong; 

20 ‘‘(G) to comply with any State law regard21 ing fraud and abuse (as defined in section 

22 2795(10)), except that if the State seeks an in23 junction regarding the conduct described in this 

24 subparagraph, such injunction must be obtained 

25 from a court of competent jurisdiction; 


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1 ‘‘(H) to comply with any State law regard2 ing unfair claims settlement practices (as de3 fined in section 2795(9)); or 

4 ‘‘(I) to comply with the applicable require5 ments for independent review under section 

6 2798 with respect to coverage offered in the 

7 State; 

8 ‘‘(2) require any individual health insurance 

9 coverage issued by the issuer to be countersigned by 

10 an insurance agent or broker residing in that sec11 ondary State; or 

12 ‘‘(3) otherwise discriminate against the issuer 

13 issuing insurance in both the primary State and in 

14 any secondary State. 

15 ‘‘(c) CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS DISCLOSURE.—A 

16 health insurance issuer shall provide the following notice, 

17 in 12-point bold type, in any insurance coverage offered 

18 in a secondary State under this part by such a health in19 surance issuer and at renewal of the policy, with the 5 

20 blank spaces therein being appropriately filled with the 

21 name of the health insurance issuer, the name of the pri22 mary State, the name of the secondary State, the name 

23 of the secondary State, and the name of the secondary 

24 State, respectively, for the coverage concerned: 

25 ‘‘Notice 


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1 ‘‘ ‘This policy is issued by lllll and is 

2 governed by the laws and regulations of the State of 

3 lllll, and it has met all the laws of that 

4 State as determined by that State’s Department of 

5 Insurance. This policy may be less expensive than 

6 others because it is not subject to all of the insur7 ance laws and regulations of the State of 

8 lllll, including coverage of some services or 

9 benefits mandated by the law of the State of 

10 lllll. Additionally, this policy is not subject 

11 to all of the consumer protection laws or restrictions 

12 on rate changes of the State of lllll. As with 

13 all insurance products, before purchasing this policy, 

14 you should carefully review the policy and determine 

15 what health care services the policy covers and what 

16 benefits it provides, including any exclusions, limita17 tions, or conditions for such services or benefits.’. 

18 ‘‘(d) PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN RECLASSIFICATIONS

19 AND PREMIUM INCREASES.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec21 tion, a health insurance issuer that provides indi22 vidual health insurance coverage to an individual 

23 under this part in a primary or secondary State may 

24 not upon renewal— 


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1 ‘‘(A) move or reclassify the individual in2 sured under the health insurance coverage from 

3 the class such individual is in at the time of 

4 issue of the contract based on the health-status 

5 related factors of the individual; or 

6 ‘‘(B) increase the premiums assessed the 

7 individual for such coverage based on a health 

8 status-related factor or change of a health sta9 tus-related factor or the past or prospective 

10 claim experience of the insured individual. 

11 ‘‘(2) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in paragraph 

12 (1) shall be construed to prohibit a health insurance 

13 issuer— 

14 ‘‘(A) from terminating or discontinuing 

15 coverage or a class of coverage in accordance 

16 with subsections (b) and (c) of section 2742; 

17 ‘‘(B) from raising premium rates for all 

18 policyholders within a class based on claims ex19 perience; 

20 ‘‘(C) from changing premiums or offering 

21 discounted premiums to individuals who engage 

22 in wellness activities at intervals prescribed by 

23 the issuer, if such premium changes or incen24 tives— 


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1 ‘‘(i) are disclosed to the consumer in 

2 the insurance contract; 

3 ‘‘(ii) are based on specific wellness ac4 tivities that are not applicable to all indi5 viduals; and 

6 ‘‘(iii) are not obtainable by all individ7 uals to whom coverage is offered; 

8 ‘‘(D) from reinstating lapsed coverage; or 

9 ‘‘(E) from retroactively adjusting the rates 

10 charged an insured individual if the initial rates 

11 were set based on material misrepresentation by 

12 the individual at the time of issue. 

13 ‘‘(e) PRIOR OFFERING OF POLICY IN PRIMARY

14 STATE.—A health insurance issuer may not offer for sale 

15 individual health insurance coverage in a secondary State 

16 unless that coverage is currently offered for sale in the 

17 primary State. 

18 ‘‘(f) LICENSING OF AGENTS OR BROKERS FOR

19 HEALTH INSURANCE ISSUERS.—Any State may require 

20 that a person acting, or offering to act, as an agent or 

21 broker for a health insurance issuer with respect to the 

22 offering of individual health insurance coverage obtain a 

23 license from that State, with commissions or other com24 pensation subject to the provisions of the laws of that 

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1 tion or requirement which discriminates against a non2 resident agent or broker. 

3 ‘‘(g) DOCUMENTS FOR SUBMISSION TO STATE IN4 SURANCE COMMISSIONER.—Each health insurance issuer 

5 issuing individual health insurance coverage in both pri6 mary and secondary States shall submit— 

7 ‘‘(1) to the insurance commissioner of each 

8 State in which it intends to offer such coverage, be9 fore it may offer individual health insurance cov10 erage in such State— 

11 ‘‘(A) a copy of the plan of operation or fea12 sibility study or any similar statement of the 

13 policy being offered and its coverage (which 

14 shall include the name of its primary State and 

15 its principal place of business); 

16 ‘‘(B) written notice of any change in its 

17 designation of its primary State; and 

18 ‘‘(C) written notice from the issuer of the 

19 issuer’s compliance with all the laws of the pri20 mary State; and 

21 ‘‘(2) to the insurance commissioner of each sec22 ondary State in which it offers individual health in23 surance coverage, a copy of the issuer’s quarterly fi24 nancial statement submitted to the primary State, 

25 which statement shall be certified by an independent 


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1 public accountant and contain a statement of opin2 ion on loss and loss adjustment expense reserves 

3 made by— 

4 ‘‘(A) a member of the American Academy 

5 of Actuaries; or 

6 ‘‘(B) a qualified loss reserve specialist. 

7 ‘‘(h) POWER OF COURTS TO ENJOIN CONDUCT.— 

8 Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the 

9 authority of any Federal or State court to enjoin— 

10 ‘‘(1) the solicitation or sale of individual health 

11 insurance coverage by a health insurance issuer to 

12 any person or group who is not eligible for such in13 surance; or 

14 ‘‘(2) the solicitation or sale of individual health 

15 insurance coverage that violates the requirements of 

16 the law of a secondary State which are described in 

17 subparagraphs (A) through (H) of section 

18 2796(b)(1). 

19 ‘‘(i) POWER OF SECONDARY STATES TO TAKE AD20 MINISTRATIVE ACTION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

21 construed to affect the authority of any State to enjoin 

22 conduct in violation of that State’s laws described in sec23 tion 2796(b)(1). 

24 ‘‘(j) STATE POWERS TO ENFORCE STATE LAWS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the provisions of 

2 subsection (b)(1)(G) (relating to injunctions) and 

3 paragraph (2), nothing in this section shall be con4 strued to affect the authority of any State to make 

5 use of any of its powers to enforce the laws of such 

6 State with respect to which a health insurance issuer 

7 is not exempt under subsection (b). 

8 ‘‘(2) COURTS OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION.— 

9 If a State seeks an injunction regarding the conduct 

10 described in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection 

11 (h), such injunction must be obtained from a Fed12 eral or State court of competent jurisdiction. 

13 ‘‘(k) STATES’ AUTHORITY TO SUE.—Nothing in this 

14 section shall affect the authority of any State to bring ac15 tion in any Federal or State court. 

16 ‘‘(l) GENERALLY APPLICABLE LAWS.—Nothing in 

17 this section shall be construed to affect the applicability 

18 of State laws generally applicable to persons or corpora19 tions. 

20 ‘‘(m) GUARANTEED AVAILABILITY OF COVERAGE TO

21 HIPAA ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS.—To the extent that a 

22 health insurance issuer is offering coverage in a primary 

23 State that does not accommodate residents of secondary 

24 States or does not provide a working mechanism for resi25 dents of a secondary State, and the issuer is offering covVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:09 Oct 08, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00125 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3682.IH H3682

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1 erage under this part in such secondary State which has 

2 not adopted a qualified high risk pool as its acceptable 

3 alternative mechanism (as defined in section 2744(c)(2)), 

4 the issuer shall, with respect to any individual health in5 surance coverage offered in a secondary State under this 

6 part, comply with the guaranteed availability requirements 

7 for eligible individuals in section 2741. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 2797. PRIMARY STATE MUST MEET FEDERAL FLOOR 

9 BEFORE ISSUER MAY SELL INTO SECONDARY 

10 STATES. 

11 ‘‘A health insurance issuer may not offer, sell, or 

12 issue individual health insurance coverage in a secondary 

13 State if the State insurance commissioner does not use 

14 a risk-based capital formula for the determination of cap15 ital and surplus requirements for all health insurance 

16 issuers. 

17 ‘‘SEC. 2798. INDEPENDENT EXTERNAL APPEALS PROCE18 DURES. 

19 ‘‘(a) RIGHT TO EXTERNAL APPEAL.—A health insur20 ance issuer may not offer, sell, or issue individual health 

21 insurance coverage in a secondary State under the provi22 sions of this title unless— 

23 ‘‘(1) both the secondary State and the primary 

24 State have legislation or regulations in place estab25 lishing an independent review process for individuals 


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1 who are covered by individual health insurance cov2 erage, or 

3 ‘‘(2) in any case in which the requirements of 

4 subparagraph (A) are not met with respect to the ei5 ther of such States, the issuer provides an inde6 pendent review mechanism substantially identical (as 

7 determined by the applicable State authority of such 

8 State) to that prescribed in the ‘Health Carrier Ex9 ternal Review Model Act’ of the National Association 

10 of Insurance Commissioners for all individuals who 

11 purchase insurance coverage under the terms of this 

12 part, except that, under such mechanism, the review 

13 is conducted by an independent medical reviewer, or 

14 a panel of such reviewers, with respect to whom the 

15 requirements of subsection (b) are met. 

16 ‘‘(b) QUALIFICATIONS OF INDEPENDENT MEDICAL

17 REVIEWERS.—In the case of any independent review 

18 mechanism referred to in subsection (a)(2), the following 

19 shall apply: 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In referring a denial of a 

21 claim to an independent medical reviewer, or to any 

22 panel of such reviewers, to conduct independent 

23 medical review, the issuer shall ensure that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) each independent medical reviewer 

2 meets the qualifications described in paragraphs 

3 (2) and (3); 

4 ‘‘(B) with respect to each review, each re5 viewer meets the requirements of paragraph (4) 

6 and the reviewer, or at least 1 reviewer on the 

7 panel, meets the requirements described in 

8 paragraph (5); and 

9 ‘‘(C) compensation provided by the issuer 

10 to each reviewer is consistent with paragraph 

11 (6). 

12 ‘‘(2) LICENSURE AND EXPERTISE.—Each inde13 pendent medical reviewer shall be a physician 

14 (allopathic or osteopathic) or health care profes15 sional who— 

16 ‘‘(A) is appropriately credentialed or li17 censed in one or more States to deliver health 

18 care services; and 

19 ‘‘(B) typically treats the condition, makes 

20 the diagnosis, or provides the type of treatment 

21 under review. 

22 ‘‘(3) INDEPENDENCE.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara24 graph (B), each independent medical reviewer 

25 in a case shall— 


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1 ‘‘(i) not be a related party (as defined 

2 in paragraph (7)); 

3 ‘‘(ii) not have a material familial, fi4 nancial, or professional relationship with 

5 such a party; and 

6 ‘‘(iii) not otherwise have a conflict of 

7 interest with such a party (as determined 

8 under regulations). 

9 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Nothing in subpara10 graph (A) shall be construed to— 

11 ‘‘(i) prohibit an individual, solely on 

12 the basis of affiliation with the issuer, 

13 from serving as an independent medical re14 viewer if— 

15 ‘‘(I) a non-affiliated individual is 

16 not reasonably available; 

17 ‘‘(II) the affiliated individual is 

18 not involved in the provision of items 

19 or services in the case under review; 

20 ‘‘(III) the fact of such an affili21 ation is disclosed to the issuer and the 

22 enrollee (or authorized representative) 

23 and neither party objects; and 

24 ‘‘(IV) the affiliated individual is 

25 not an employee of the issuer and 


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1 does not provide services exclusively or 

2 primarily to or on behalf of the issuer; 

3 ‘‘(ii) prohibit an individual who has 

4 staff privileges at the institution where the 

5 treatment involved takes place from serv6 ing as an independent medical reviewer 

7 merely on the basis of such affiliation if 

8 the affiliation is disclosed to the issuer and 

9 the enrollee (or authorized representative), 

10 and neither party objects; or 

11 ‘‘(iii) prohibit receipt of compensation 

12 by an independent medical reviewer from 

13 an entity if the compensation is provided 

14 consistent with paragraph (6). 

15 ‘‘(4) PRACTICING HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL

16 IN SAME FIELD.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In a case involving 

18 treatment, or the provision of items or serv19 ices— 

20 ‘‘(i) by a physician, a reviewer shall be 

21 a practicing physician (allopathic or osteo22 pathic) of the same or similar specialty, as 

23 a physician who, acting within the appro24 priate scope of practice within the State in 

25 which the service is provided or rendered, 


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1 typically treats the condition, makes the 

2 diagnosis, or provides the type of treat3 ment under review; or 

4 ‘‘(ii) by a non-physician health care 

5 professional, the reviewer, or at least 1 

6 member of the review panel, shall be a 

7 practicing non-physician health care pro8 fessional of the same or similar specialty 

9 as the non-physician health care profes10 sional who, acting within the appropriate 

11 scope of practice within the State in which 

12 the service is provided or rendered, typi13 cally treats the condition, makes the diag14 nosis, or provides the type of treatment 

15 under review. 

16 ‘‘(B) PRACTICING DEFINED.—For pur17 poses of this paragraph, the term ‘practicing’ 

18 means, with respect to an individual who is a 

19 physician or other health care professional, that 

20 the individual provides health care services to 

21 individual patients on average at least 2 days 

22 per week. 

23 ‘‘(5) PEDIATRIC EXPERTISE.—In the case of an 

24 external review relating to a child, a reviewer shall 

25 have expertise under paragraph (2) in pediatrics. 


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1 ‘‘(6) LIMITATIONS ON REVIEWER COMPENSA2 TION.—Compensation provided by the issuer to an 

3 independent medical reviewer in connection with a 

4 review under this section shall— 

5 ‘‘(A) not exceed a reasonable level; and 

6 ‘‘(B) not be contingent on the decision ren7 dered by the reviewer. 

8 ‘‘(7) RELATED PARTY DEFINED.—For purposes 

9 of this section, the term ‘related party’ means, with 

10 respect to a denial of a claim under a coverage relat11 ing to an enrollee, any of the following: 

12 ‘‘(A) The issuer involved, or any fiduciary, 

13 officer, director, or employee of the issuer. 

14 ‘‘(B) The enrollee (or authorized represent15 ative). 

16 ‘‘(C) The health care professional that pro17 vides the items or services involved in the de18 nial. 

19 ‘‘(D) The institution at which the items or 

20 services (or treatment) involved in the denial 

21 are provided. 

22 ‘‘(E) The manufacturer of any drug or 

23 other item that is included in the items or serv24 ices involved in the denial. 


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1 ‘‘(F) Any other party determined under 

2 any regulations to have a substantial interest in 

3 the denial involved. 

4 ‘‘(8) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub5 section: 

6 ‘‘(A) ENROLLEE.—The term ‘enrollee’ 

7 means, with respect to health insurance cov8 erage offered by a health insurance issuer, an 

9 individual enrolled with the issuer to receive 

10 such coverage. 

11 ‘‘(B) HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL.—The 

12 term ‘health care professional’ means an indi13 vidual who is licensed, accredited, or certified 

14 under State law to provide specified health care 

15 services and who is operating within the scope 

16 of such licensure, accreditation, or certification. 

17 ‘‘SEC. 2799. ENFORCEMENT. 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), with 

19 respect to specific individual health insurance coverage the 

20 primary State for such coverage has sole jurisdiction to 

21 enforce the primary State’s covered laws in the primary 

22 State and any secondary State. 

23 ‘‘(b) SECONDARY STATE’S AUTHORITY.—Nothing in 

24 subsection (a) shall be construed to affect the authority 


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1 of a secondary State to enforce its laws as set forth in 

2 the exception specified in section 2796(b)(1). 

3 ‘‘(c) COURT INTERPRETATION.—In reviewing action 

4 initiated by the applicable secondary State authority, the 

5 court of competent jurisdiction shall apply the covered 

6 laws of the primary State. 

7 ‘‘(d) NOTICE OF COMPLIANCE FAILURE.—In the case 

8 of individual health insurance coverage offered in a sec9 ondary State that fails to comply with the covered laws 

10 of the primary State, the applicable State authority of the 

11 secondary State may notify the applicable State authority 

12 of the primary State.’’. 

13 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

14 subsection (a) shall apply to individual health insurance 

15 coverage offered, issued, or sold after the date that is one 

16 year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

17 (c) GAO ONGOING STUDY AND REPORTS.— 

18 (1) STUDY.—The Comptroller General of the 

19 United States shall conduct an ongoing study con20 cerning the effect of the amendment made by sub21 section (a) on— 

22 (A) the number of uninsured and under23 insured; 


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1 (B) the availability and cost of health in2 surance policies for individuals with preexisting 

3 medical conditions; 

4 (C) the availability and cost of health in5 surance policies generally; 

6 (D) the elimination or reduction of dif7 ferent types of benefits under health insurance 

8 policies offered in different States; and 

9 (E) cases of fraud or abuse relating to 

10 health insurance coverage offered under such 

11 amendment and the resolution of such cases. 

12 (2) ANNUAL REPORTS.—The Comptroller Gen13 eral shall submit to Congress an annual report, after 

14 the end of each of the 5 years following the effective 

15 date of the amendment made by subsection (a), on 

16 the ongoing study conducted under paragraph (1). 

17 SEC. 702. SEVERABILITY. 

18 If any provision of this subtitle or the application of 

19 such provision to any person or circumstance is held to 

20 be unconstitutional, the remainder of this subtitle and the 

21 application of the provisions of such to any other person 

22 or circumstance shall not be affected. 


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1 Subtitle B—Medical Malpractice 

2 Reform 

3 SEC. 711. PURPOSE. 

4 It is the purpose of this subtitle to implement reason5 able, comprehensive, and effective health care liability re6 forms designed to— 

7 (1) improve the availability of health care serv8 ices in cases in which health care liability actions 

9 have been shown to be a factor in the decreased 

10 availability of services; 

11 (2) reduce the incidence of ‘‘defensive medi12 cine’’ and lower the cost of health care liability in13 surance, all of which contribute to the escalation of 

14 health care costs; 

15 (3) ensure that persons with meritorious health 

16 care injury claims receive fair and adequate com17 pensation, including reasonable noneconomic dam18 ages; 

19 (4) improve the fairness and cost-effectiveness 

20 of our current health care liability system to resolve 

21 disputes over, and provide compensation for, health 

22 care liability by reducing uncertainty in the amount 

23 of compensation provided to injured individuals; and 


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1 (5) provide an increased sharing of information 

2 in the health care system which will reduce unin3 tended injury and improve patient care. 

4 SEC. 712. ENCOURAGING SPEEDY RESOLUTION OF CLAIMS. 

5 The time for the commencement of a health care law6 suit shall be 3 years after the date of manifestation of 

7 injury or 1 year after the claimant discovers, or through 

8 the use of reasonable diligence should have discovered, the 

9 injury, whichever occurs first. In no event shall the time 

10 for commencement of a health care lawsuit exceed 3 years 

11 after the date of manifestation of injury unless tolled for 

12 any of the following— 

13 (1) upon proof of fraud; 

14 (2) intentional concealment; or 

15 (3) the presence of a foreign body, which has no 

16 therapeutic or diagnostic purpose or effect, in the 

17 person of the injured person. 

18 Actions by a minor shall be commenced within 3 years 

19 from the date of the alleged manifestation of injury except 

20 that actions by a minor under the full age of 6 years shall 

21 be commenced within 3 years of manifestation of injury 

22 or prior to the minor’s 8th birthday, whichever provides 

23 a longer period. Such time limitation shall be tolled for 

24 minors for any period during which a parent or guardian 

25 and a health care provider or health care organization 


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1 have committed fraud or collusion in the failure to bring 

2 an action on behalf of the injured minor. 

3 SEC. 713. COMPENSATING PATIENT INJURY. 

4 (a) UNLIMITED AMOUNT OF DAMAGES FOR ACTUAL

5 ECONOMIC LOSSES IN HEALTH CARE LAWSUITS.—In any 

6 health care lawsuit, nothing in this subtitle shall limit a 

7 claimant’s recovery of the full amount of the available eco8 nomic damages, notwithstanding the limitation in sub9 section (b). 

10 (b) ADDITIONAL NONECONOMIC DAMAGES.—In any 

11 health care lawsuit, the amount of noneconomic damages, 

12 if available, may be as much as $250,000, regardless of 

13 the number of parties against whom the action is brought 

14 or the number of separate claims or actions brought with 

15 respect to the same injury. 

16 (c) NO DISCOUNT OF AWARD FOR NONECONOMIC

17 DAMAGES.—For purposes of applying the limitation in 

18 subsection (b), future noneconomic damages shall not be 

19 discounted to present value. The jury shall not be in20 formed about the maximum award for noneconomic dam21 ages. An award for noneconomic damages in excess of 

22 $250,000 shall be reduced either before the entry of judg23 ment, or by amendment of the judgment after entry of 

24 judgment, and such reduction shall be made before ac25 counting for any other reduction in damages required by 


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1 law. If separate awards are rendered for past and future 

2 noneconomic damages and the combined awards exceed 

3 $250,000, the future noneconomic damages shall be re4 duced first. 

5 (d) FAIR SHARE RULE.—In any health care lawsuit, 

6 each party shall be liable for that party’s several share 

7 of any damages only and not for the share of any other 

8 person. Each party shall be liable only for the amount of 

9 damages allocated to such party in direct proportion to 

10 such party’s percentage of responsibility. Whenever a 

11 judgment of liability is rendered as to any party, a sepa12 rate judgment shall be rendered against each such party 

13 for the amount allocated to such party. For purposes of 

14 this section, the trier of fact shall determine the propor15 tion of responsibility of each party for the claimant’s 

16 harm. 

17 SEC. 714. MAXIMIZING PATIENT RECOVERY. 

18 (a) COURT SUPERVISION OF SHARE OF DAMAGES

19 ACTUALLY PAID TO CLAIMANTS.—In any health care law20 suit, the court shall supervise the arrangements for pay21 ment of damages to protect against conflicts of interest 

22 that may have the effect of reducing the amount of dam23 ages awarded that are actually paid to claimants. In par24 ticular, in any health care lawsuit in which the attorney 

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1 tue of a contingent fee, the court shall have the power 

2 to restrict the payment of a claimant’s damage recovery 

3 to such attorney, and to redirect such damages to the 

4 claimant based upon the interests of justice and principles 

5 of equity. In no event shall the total of all contingent fees 

6 for representing all claimants in a health care lawsuit ex7 ceed the following limits: 

8 (1) Forty percent of the first $50,000 recovered 

9 by the claimant(s). 

10 (2) Thirty-three and one-third percent of the 

11 next $50,000 recovered by the claimant(s). 

12 (3) Twenty-five percent of the next $500,000 

13 recovered by the claimant(s). 

14 (4) Fifteen percent of any amount by which the 

15 recovery by the claimant(s) is in excess of $600,000. 

16 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The limitations in this section 

17 shall apply whether the recovery is by judgment, settle18 ment, mediation, arbitration, or any other form of alter19 native dispute resolution. In a health care lawsuit involv20 ing a minor or incompetent person, a court retains the 

21 authority to authorize or approve a fee that is less than 

22 the maximum permitted under this section. The require23 ment for court supervision in the first two sentences of 

24 subsection (a) applies only in civil actions. 


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1 SEC. 715. PUNITIVE DAMAGES. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Punitive damages may, if other3 wise permitted by applicable State or Federal law, be 

4 awarded against any person in a health care lawsuit only 

5 if it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that such 

6 person acted with malicious intent to injure the claimant, 

7 or that such person deliberately failed to avoid unneces8 sary injury that such person knew the claimant was sub9 stantially certain to suffer. In any health care lawsuit 

10 where no judgment for compensatory damages is rendered 

11 against such person, no punitive damages may be awarded 

12 with respect to the claim in such lawsuit. No demand for 

13 punitive damages shall be included in a health care lawsuit 

14 as initially filed. A court may allow a claimant to file an 

15 amended pleading for punitive damages only upon a mo16 tion by the claimant and after a finding by the court, upon 

17 review of supporting and opposing affidavits or after a 

18 hearing, after weighing the evidence, that the claimant has 

19 established by a substantial probability that the claimant 

20 will prevail on the claim for punitive damages. At the re21 quest of any party in a health care lawsuit, the trier of 

22 fact shall consider in a separate proceeding— 

23 (1) whether punitive damages are to be award24 ed and the amount of such award; and 

25 (2) the amount of punitive damages following a 

26 determination of punitive liability. 


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1 If a separate proceeding is requested, evidence relevant 

2 only to the claim for punitive damages, as determined by 

3 applicable State law, shall be inadmissible in any pro4 ceeding to determine whether compensatory damages are 

5 to be awarded. 

6 (b) DETERMINING AMOUNT OF PUNITIVE DAM7 AGES.— 

8 (1) FACTORS CONSIDERED.—In determining 

9 the amount of punitive damages, if awarded, in a 

10 health care lawsuit, the trier of fact shall consider 

11 only the following: 

12 (A) The severity of the harm caused by the 

13 conduct of such party. 

14 (B) The duration of the conduct or any 

15 concealment of it by such party. 

16 (C) The profitability of the conduct to such 

17 party. 

18 (D) The number of products sold or med19 ical procedures rendered for compensation, as 

20 the case may be, by such party, of the kind 

21 causing the harm complained of by the claim22 ant. 

23 (E) Any criminal penalties imposed on 

24 such party, as a result of the conduct com25 plained of by the claimant. 


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1 (F) The amount of any civil fines assessed 

2 against such party as a result of the conduct 

3 complained of by the claimant. 

4 (2) MAXIMUM AWARD.—The amount of punitive 

5 damages, if awarded, in a health care lawsuit may 

6 be as much as $250,000 or as much as two times 

7 the amount of economic damages awarded, which8 ever is greater. The jury may not be informed of this 

9 limitation. 

10 (c) NO PUNITIVE DAMAGES FOR PRODUCTS THAT

11 COMPLY WITH FDA STANDARDS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

13 (A) No punitive damages may be awarded 

14 against the manufacturer or distributor of a 

15 medical product, or a supplier of any compo16 nent or raw material of such medical product, 

17 based on a claim that such product caused the 

18 claimant’s harm where— 

19 (i)(I) such medical product was sub20 ject to premarket approval, clearance, or li21 censure by the Food and Drug Administra22 tion with respect to the safety of the for23 mulation or performance of the aspect of 

24 such medical product which caused the 

25 claimant’s harm or the adequacy of the 


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1 packaging or labeling of such medical 

2 product; and 

3 (II) such medical product was so ap4 proved, cleared, or licensed; or 

5 (ii) such medical product is generally 

6 recognized among qualified experts as safe 

7 and effective pursuant to conditions estab8 lished by the Food and Drug Administra9 tion and applicable Food and Drug Admin10 istration regulations, including without 

11 limitation those related to packaging and 

12 labeling, unless the Food and Drug Admin13 istration has determined that such medical 

14 product was not manufactured or distrib15 uted in substantial compliance with appli16 cable Food and Drug Administration stat17 utes and regulations. 

18 (B) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Subpara19 graph (A) may not be construed as establishing 

20 the obligation of the Food and Drug Adminis21 tration to demonstrate affirmatively that a 

22 manufacturer, distributor, or supplier referred 

23 to in such subparagraph meets any of the con24 ditions described in such subparagraph. 


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1 (2) LIABILITY OF HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS.— 

2 A health care provider who prescribes, or who dis3 penses pursuant to a prescription, a medical product 

4 approved, licensed, or cleared by the Food and Drug 

5 Administration shall not be named as a party to a 

6 product liability lawsuit involving such product and 

7 shall not be liable to a claimant in a class action 

8 lawsuit against the manufacturer, distributor, or 

9 seller of such product. Nothing in this paragraph 

10 prevents a court from consolidating cases involving 

11 health care providers and cases involving products li12 ability claims against the manufacturer, distributor, 

13 or product seller of such medical product. 

14 (3) PACKAGING.—In a health care lawsuit for 

15 harm which is alleged to relate to the adequacy of 

16 the packaging or labeling of a drug which is required 

17 to have tamper-resistant packaging under regula18 tions of the Secretary of Health and Human Serv19 ices (including labeling regulations related to such 

20 packaging), the manufacturer or product seller of 

21 the drug shall not be held liable for punitive dam22 ages unless such packaging or labeling is found by 

23 the trier of fact by clear and convincing evidence to 

24 be substantially out of compliance with such regula25 tions. 


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1 (4) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

2 apply in any health care lawsuit in which— 

3 (A) a person, before or after premarket ap4 proval, clearance, or licensure of such medical 

5 product, knowingly misrepresented to or with6 held from the Food and Drug Administration 

7 information that is required to be submitted 

8 under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic 

9 Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) or section 351 of 

10 the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 262) 

11 that is material and is causally related to the 

12 harm which the claimant allegedly suffered; 

13 (B) a person made an illegal payment to 

14 an official of the Food and Drug Administra15 tion for the purpose of either securing or main16 taining approval, clearance, or licensure of such 

17 medical product; or 

18 (C) the defendant caused the medical prod19 uct which caused the claimant’s harm to be 

20 misbranded or adulterated (as such terms are 

21 used in chapter V of the Federal Food, Drug, 

22 and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 351 et seq.)). 


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1 SEC. 716. AUTHORIZATION OF PAYMENT OF FUTURE DAM2 AGES TO CLAIMANTS IN HEALTH CARE LAW3 SUITS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—In any health care lawsuit, if an 

5 award of future damages, without reduction to present 

6 value, equaling or exceeding $50,000 is made against a 

7 party with sufficient insurance or other assets to fund a 

8 periodic payment of such a judgment, the court shall, at 

9 the request of any party, enter a judgment ordering that 

10 the future damages be paid by periodic payments, in ac11 cordance with the Uniform Periodic Payment of Judg12 ments Act promulgated by the National Conference of 

13 Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. 

14 (b) APPLICABILITY.—This section applies to all ac15 tions which have not been first set for trial or retrial be16 fore the effective date of this subtitle. 

17 SEC. 717. DEFINITIONS. 

18 In this subtitle: 

19 (1) ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION SYS20 TEM; ADR.—The term ‘‘alternative dispute resolution 

21 system’’ or ‘‘ADR’’ means a system that provides 

22 for the resolution of health care lawsuits in a man23 ner other than through a civil action brought in a 

24 State or Federal court. 

25 (2) CLAIMANT.—The term ‘‘claimant’’ means 

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1 ing a person who asserts or claims a right to legal 

2 or equitable contribution, indemnity, or subrogation, 

3 arising out of a health care liability claim or action, 

4 and any person on whose behalf such a claim is as5 serted or such an action is brought, whether de6 ceased, incompetent, or a minor. 

7 (3) COMPENSATORY DAMAGES.—The term 

8 ‘‘compensatory damages’’ means objectively 

9 verifiable monetary losses incurred as a result of the 

10 provision of, use of, or payment for (or failure to 

11 provide, use, or pay for) health care services or med12 ical products, such as past and future medical ex13 penses, loss of past and future earnings, cost of ob14 taining domestic services, loss of employment, and 

15 loss of business or employment opportunities, dam16 ages for physical and emotional pain, suffering, in17 convenience, physical impairment, mental anguish, 

18 disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of soci19 ety and companionship, loss of consortium (other 

20 than loss of domestic service), hedonic damages, in21 jury to reputation, and all other nonpecuniary losses 

22 of any kind or nature. The term ‘‘compensatory 

23 damages’’ includes economic damages and non24 economic damages, as such terms are defined in this 

25 section. 


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1 (4) CONTINGENT FEE.—The term ‘‘contingent 

2 fee’’ includes all compensation to any person or per3 sons which is payable only if a recovery is effected 

4 on behalf of one or more claimants. 

5 (5) ECONOMIC DAMAGES.—The term ‘‘economic 

6 damages’’ means objectively verifiable monetary 

7 losses incurred as a result of the provision of, use 

8 of, or payment for (or failure to provide, use, or pay 

9 for) health care services or medical products, such as 

10 past and future medical expenses, loss of past and 

11 future earnings, cost of obtaining domestic services, 

12 loss of employment, and loss of business or employ13 ment opportunities. 

14 (6) HEALTH CARE LAWSUIT.—The term 

15 ‘‘health care lawsuit’’ means any health care liability 

16 claim concerning the provision of health care goods 

17 or services or any medical product affecting inter18 state commerce, or any health care liability action 

19 concerning the provision of health care goods or 

20 services or any medical product affecting interstate 

21 commerce, brought in a State or Federal court or 

22 pursuant to an alternative dispute resolution system, 

23 against a health care provider, a health care organi24 zation, or the manufacturer, distributor, supplier, 

25 marketer, promoter, or seller of a medical product, 


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1 regardless of the theory of liability on which the 

2 claim is based, or the number of claimants, plain3 tiffs, defendants, or other parties, or the number of 

4 claims or causes of action, in which the claimant al5 leges a health care liability claim. Such term does 

6 not include a claim or action which is based on 

7 criminal liability; which seeks civil fines or penalties 

8 paid to Federal, State, or local government; or which 

9 is grounded in antitrust. 

10 (7) HEALTH CARE LIABILITY ACTION.—The 

11 term ‘‘health care liability action’’ means a civil ac12 tion brought in a State or Federal court or pursuant 

13 to an alternative dispute resolution system, against 

14 a health care provider, a health care organization, or 

15 the manufacturer, distributor, supplier, marketer, 

16 promoter, or seller of a medical product, regardless 

17 of the theory of liability on which the claim is based, 

18 or the number of plaintiffs, defendants, or other par19 ties, or the number of causes of action, in which the 

20 claimant alleges a health care liability claim. 

21 (8) HEALTH CARE LIABILITY CLAIM.—The 

22 term ‘‘health care liability claim’’ means a demand 

23 by any person, whether or not pursuant to ADR, 

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1 keter, promoter, or seller of a medical product, in2 cluding, but not limited to, third-party claims, cross3 claims, counter-claims, or contribution claims, which 

4 are based upon the provision of, use of, or payment 

5 for (or the failure to provide, use, or pay for) health 

6 care services or medical products, regardless of the 

7 theory of liability on which the claim is based, or the 

8 number of plaintiffs, defendants, or other parties, or 

9 the number of causes of action. 

10 (9) HEALTH CARE ORGANIZATION.—The term 

11 ‘‘health care organization’’ means any person or en12 tity which is obligated to provide or pay for health 

13 benefits under any health plan, including any person 

14 or entity acting under a contract or arrangement 

15 with a health care organization to provide or admin16 ister any health benefit. 

17 (10) HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.—The term 

18 ‘‘health care provider’’ means any person or entity 

19 required by State or Federal laws or regulations to 

20 be licensed, registered, or certified to provide health 

21 care services, and being either so licensed, reg22 istered, or certified, or exempted from such require23 ment by other statute or regulation. 

24 (11) HEALTH CARE GOODS OR SERVICES.—The 

25 term ‘‘health care goods or services’’ means any 


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1 goods or services provided by a health care organiza2 tion, provider, or by any individual working under 

3 the supervision of a health care provider, that relates 

4 to the diagnosis, prevention, or treatment of any 

5 human disease or impairment, or the assessment or 

6 care of the health of human beings. 

7 (12) MALICIOUS INTENT TO INJURE.—The 

8 term ‘‘malicious intent to injure’’ means inten9 tionally causing or attempting to cause physical in10 jury other than providing health care goods or serv11 ices. 

12 (13) MEDICAL PRODUCT.—The term ‘‘medical 

13 product’’ means a drug, device, or biological product 

14 intended for humans, and the terms ‘‘drug’’, ‘‘de15 vice’’, and ‘‘biological product’’ have the meanings 

16 given such terms in sections 201(g)(1) and 201(h) 

17 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 

18 U.S.C. 321(g)(1) and (h)) and section 351(a) of the 

19 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 262(a)), re20 spectively, including any component or raw material 

21 used therein, but excluding health care services. 

22 (14) NONECONOMIC DAMAGES.—The term 

23 ‘‘noneconomic damages’’ means damages for phys24 ical and emotional pain, suffering, inconvenience, 

25 physical impairment, mental anguish, disfigurement, 


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1 loss of enjoyment of life, loss of society and compan2 ionship, loss of consortium (other than loss of do3 mestic service), hedonic damages, injury to reputa4 tion, and all other nonpecuniary losses of any kind 

5 or nature. 

6 (15) PUNITIVE DAMAGES.—The term ‘‘punitive 

7 damages’’ means damages awarded, for the purpose 

8 of punishment or deterrence, and not solely for com9 pensatory purposes, against a health care provider, 

10 health care organization, or a manufacturer, dis11 tributor, or supplier of a medical product. Punitive 

12 damages are neither economic nor noneconomic 

13 damages. 

14 (16) RECOVERY.—The term ‘‘recovery’’ means 

15 the net sum recovered after deducting any disburse16 ments or costs incurred in connection with prosecu17 tion or settlement of the claim, including all costs 

18 paid or advanced by any person. Costs of health care 

19 incurred by the plaintiff and the attorneys’ office 

20 overhead costs or charges for legal services are not 

21 deductible disbursements or costs for such purpose. 

22 (17) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

23 the several States, the District of Columbia, the 

24 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, 

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1 lands, the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and 

2 any other territory or possession of the United 

3 States, or any political subdivision thereof. 

4 SEC. 718. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS. 

5 (a) VACCINE INJURY.— 

6 (1) To the extent that title XXI of the Public 

7 Health Service Act establishes a Federal rule of law 

8 applicable to a civil action brought for a vaccine-re9 lated injury or death— 

10 (A) this subtitle does not affect the appli11 cation of the rule of law to such an action; and 

12 (B) any rule of law prescribed by this sub13 title in conflict with a rule of law of such title 

14 XXI shall not apply to such action. 

15 (2) If there is an aspect of a civil action 

16 brought for a vaccine-related injury or death to 

17 which a Federal rule of law under title XXI of the 

18 Public Health Service Act does not apply, then this 

19 subtitle or otherwise applicable law (as determined 

20 under this subtitle) will apply to such aspect of such 

21 action. 

22 (b) OTHER FEDERAL LAW.—Except as provided in 

23 this section, nothing in this subtitle shall be deemed to 

24 affect any defense available to a defendant in a health care 

25 lawsuit or action under any other provision of Federal law. 


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1 SEC. 719. STATE FLEXIBILITY AND PROTECTION OF 

2 STATES’ RIGHTS. 

3 (a) HEALTH CARE LAWSUITS.—The provisions gov4 erning health care lawsuits set forth in this subtitle pre5 empt, subject to subsections (b) and (c), State law to the 

6 extent that State law prevents the application of any pro7 visions of law established by or under this subtitle. The 

8 provisions governing health care lawsuits set forth in this 

9 subtitle supersede chapter 171 of title 28, United States 

10 Code, to the extent that such chapter— 

11 (1) provides for a greater amount of damages 

12 or contingent fees, a longer period in which a health 

13 care lawsuit may be commenced, or a reduced appli14 cability or scope of periodic payment of future dam15 ages, than provided in this subtitle; or 

16 (2) prohibits the introduction of evidence re17 garding collateral source benefits, or mandates or 

18 permits subrogation or a lien on collateral source 

19 benefits. 

20 (b) PROTECTION OF STATES’ RIGHTS AND OTHER

21 LAWS.—(1) Any issue that is not governed by any provi22 sion of law established by or under this subtitle (including 

23 State standards of negligence) shall be governed by other24 wise applicable State or Federal law. 

25 (2) This subtitle shall not preempt or supersede any 

26 State or Federal law that imposes greater procedural or 


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1 substantive protections for health care providers and 

2 health care organizations from liability, loss, or damages 

3 than those provided by this subtitle or create a cause of 

4 action. 

5 (c) STATE FLEXIBILITY.—No provision of this sub6 title shall be construed to preempt— 

7 (1) any State law (whether effective before, on, 

8 or after the date of the enactment of this subtitle) 

9 that specifies a particular monetary amount of com10 pensatory or punitive damages (or the total amount 

11 of damages) that may be awarded in a health care 

12 lawsuit, regardless of whether such monetary 

13 amount is greater or lesser than is provided for 

14 under this subtitle, notwithstanding section 4(a); or 

15 (2) any defense available to a party in a health 

16 care lawsuit under any other provision of State or 

17 Federal law. 

18 SEC. 720. APPLICABILITY; EFFECTIVE DATE. 

19 This subtitle shall apply to any health care lawsuit 

20 brought in a Federal or State court, or subject to an alter21 native dispute resolution system, that is initiated on or 

22 after the date of the enactment of this subtitle, except that 

23 any health care lawsuit arising from an injury occurring 

24 prior to the date of the enactment of this subtitle shall 


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1 be governed by the applicable statute of limitations provi2 sions in effect at the time the injury occurred. 

3 SEC. 721. PROTECTION FOR EMERGENCY AND RELATED 

4 SERVICES FURNISHED PURSUANT TO 

5 EMTALA. 

6 Section 224(g) of the Public Health Service Act (42 

7 U.S.C. 233(g)) is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘An entity’’ 

9 and inserting ‘‘Subject to paragraph (6), an entity’’; 

10 and 

11 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(6)(A) For purposes of this section— 

13 ‘‘(i) an entity described in subparagraph 

14 (B) shall be considered to be an entity de15 scribed in paragraph (4); and 

16 ‘‘(ii) the provisions of this section shall 

17 apply to an entity described in subparagraph 

18 (B) in the same manner as such provisions 

19 apply to an entity described in paragraph (4), 

20 except that— 

21 ‘‘(I) notwithstanding paragraph 

22 (1)(B), the deeming of any entity described 

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1 ty, to be an employee of the Public Health 

2 Service for purposes of this section shall 

3 apply only with respect to items and serv4 ices that are furnished to an individual 

5 pursuant to section 1867 of the Social Se6 curity Act and to post stabilization services 

7 (as defined in subparagraph (D)) furnished 

8 to such an individual; 

9 ‘‘(II) nothing in paragraph (1)(D) 

10 shall be construed as preventing a physi11 cian or physician group described in sub12 paragraph (B)(ii) from making the appli13 cation referred to in such paragraph or as 

14 conditioning the deeming of a physician or 

15 physician group that makes such an appli16 cation upon receipt by the Secretary of an 

17 application from the hospital or emergency 

18 department that employs or contracts with 

19 the physician or group, or enlists the phy20 sician or physician group as an on-call pro21 vider; 

22 ‘‘(III) notwithstanding paragraph (3), 

23 this paragraph shall apply only with re24 spect to causes of action arising from acts 


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1 or omissions that occur on or after Janu2 ary 1, 2017; 

3 ‘‘(IV) paragraph (5) shall not apply to 

4 a physician or physician group described in 

5 subparagraph (B)(ii); 

6 ‘‘(V) the Attorney General, in con7 sultation with the Secretary, shall make 

8 separate estimates under subsection (k)(1) 

9 with respect to entities described in sub10 paragraph (B) and entities described in 

11 paragraph (4) (other than those described 

12 in subparagraph (B)), and the Secretary 

13 shall establish separate funds under sub14 section (k)(2) with respect to such groups 

15 of entities, and any appropriations under 

16 this subsection for entities described in 

17 subparagraph (B) shall be separate from 

18 the amounts authorized by subsection 

19 (k)(2); 

20 ‘‘(VI) notwithstanding subsection 

21 (k)(2), the amount of the fund established 

22 by the Secretary under such subsection 

23 with respect to entities described in sub24 paragraph (B) may exceed a total of 

25 $10,000,000 for a fiscal year; and 


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1 ‘‘(VII) subsection (m) shall not apply 

2 to entities described in subparagraph (B). 

3 ‘‘(B) An entity described in this subparagraph 

4 is— 

5 ‘‘(i) a hospital or an emergency depart6 ment to which section 1867 of the Social Secu7 rity Act applies; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) a physician or physician group that is 

9 employed by, is under contract with, or is an 

10 on-call provider of such hospital or emergency 

11 department, to furnish items and services to in12 dividuals under such section. 

13 ‘‘(C) For purposes of this paragraph, the term 

14 ‘on-call provider’ means a physician or physician 

15 group that— 

16 ‘‘(i) has full, temporary, or locum tenens 

17 staff privileges at a hospital or emergency de18 partment to which section 1867 of the Social 

19 Security Act applies; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) is not employed by or under contract 

21 with such hospital or emergency department, 

22 but agrees to be ready and available to provide 

23 services pursuant to section 1867 of the Social 

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1 gency department with or without compensation 

2 from the hospital or emergency department. 

3 ‘‘(D) For purposes of this paragraph, the term 

4 ‘post stabilization services’ means, with respect to an 

5 individual who has been treated by an entity de6 scribed in subparagraph (B) for purposes of com7 plying with section 1867 of the Social Security Act, 

8 services that are— 

9 ‘‘(i) related to the condition that was so 

10 treated; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) provided after the individual is sta12 bilized in order to maintain the stabilized condi13 tion or to improve or resolve the condition of 

14 the individual. 

15 ‘‘(E)(i) Nothing in this paragraph (or in any 

16 other provision of this section as such provision ap17 plies to entities described in subparagraph (B) by 

18 operation of subparagraph (A)) shall be construed as 

19 authorizing or requiring the Secretary to make pay20 ments to such entities, the budget authority for 

21 which is not provided in advance by appropriation 

22 Acts. 

23 ‘‘(ii) The Secretary shall limit the total amount 

24 of payments under this paragraph for a fiscal year 

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1 propriation Acts for such purpose for such fiscal 

2 year. If the total amount of payments that would 

3 otherwise be made under this paragraph for a fiscal 

4 year exceeds such total amount appropriated, the 

5 Secretary shall take such steps as may be necessary 

6 to ensure that the total amount of payments under 

7 this paragraph for such fiscal year does not exceed 

8 such total amount appropriated.’’. 

9 SEC. 722. CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY. 

10 The constitutional authority upon which this subtitle 

11 rests is the power of the Congress to provide for the gen12 eral welfare, to regulate commerce, and to make all laws 

13 which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into exe14 cution Federal powers, as enumerated in section 8 of arti15 cle I of the Constitution of the United States. 

16 SEC. 723. APPLICATION OF THE ANTITRUST LAWS TO THE 

17 BUSINESS OF HEALTH INSURANCE. 

18 (a) AMENDMENT TO MCCARRAN-FERGUSON ACT.— 

19 Section 3 of the Act of March 9, 1945 (15 U.S.C. 1013), 

20 commonly known as the McCarran-Ferguson Act, is 

21 amended by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(c) Nothing contained in this Act shall modify, im23 pair, or supersede the operation of any of the antitrust 

24 laws with respect to the business of health insurance. For 

25 purposes of the preceding sentence, the term ‘antitrust 


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1 laws’ has the meaning given it in subsection (a) of the 

2 first section of the Clayton Act, except that such term in3 cludes section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act to 

4 the extent that such section 5 applies to unfair methods 

5 of competition. For the purposes of this subsection, the 

6 term ‘business of health insurance’ shall— 

7 ‘‘(1) mean ‘health insurance coverage’ offered 

8 by a ‘health insurance issuer’ as those terms are de9 fined in section 2791 of the Public Health Service 

10 Act; and 

11 ‘‘(2) not include— 

12 ‘‘(A) life insurance and annuities; 

13 ‘‘(B) property or casualty insurance, in14 cluding but not limited to, automobile, medical 

15 malpractice or workers’ compensation insur16 ance; or 

17 ‘‘(C) any insurance or benefits defined as 

18 ‘excepted benefits’ under section 9832(c) of the 

19 Internal Revenue Code of 1986, whether offered 

20 separately or in combination with products de21 scribed in subparagraph (A).’’. 

22 (b) RELATED PROVISION.—For purposes of section 

23 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) 

24 to the extent such section applies to unfair methods of 

25 competition, section 3(c) of the McCarran-Ferguson Act 


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1 shall apply with respect to the business of health insurance 

2 without regard to whether such business is carried on for 

3 profit, notwithstanding the definition of ‘‘Corporation’’ 

4 contained in section 4 of the Federal Trade Commission 

5 Act. 

6 (c) LIMITATION ON CLASS ACTIONS.— 

7 (1) LIMITATION.—No class action may be 

8 heard in a Federal or State court on a claim against 

9 a person engaged in the business of health insurance 

10 for a violation of any of the antitrust laws (as de11 fined in section 3(c) of the Act of March 9, 1945 

12 (15 U.S.C. 1013), commonly known as the 

13 McCarran-Ferguson Act). 

14 (2) EXEMPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

15 apply with respect to any action commenced— 

16 (A) by the United States or any State; or 

17 (B) by a named claimant for an injury 

18 only to itself. 

19 SEC. 724. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY FOR VOLUNTEER 

20 HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title II of the Public Health Serv22 ice Act is amended by inserting after section 224 (42 

23 U.S.C. 233(g)) the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 224A. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY FOR VOLUNTEER 

2 HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS. 

3 ‘‘(a) LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.—Except as provided 

4 in subsection (b), a health care professional shall not be 

5 liable under Federal or State law for any harm caused 

6 by an act or omission of the professional if— 

7 ‘‘(1) the professional is serving as a volunteer 

8 for purposes of responding to a disaster; and 

9 ‘‘(2) the act or omission occurs— 

10 ‘‘(A) during the period of the disaster, as 

11 determined under the laws listed in subsection 

12 (e)(1); 

13 ‘‘(B) in the health care professional’s ca14 pacity as such a volunteer; and 

15 ‘‘(C) in a good faith belief that the indi16 vidual being treated is in need of health care 

17 services. 

18 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTIONS.—Subsection (a) does not apply 

19 if— 

20 ‘‘(1) the harm was caused by an act or omission 

21 constituting willful or criminal misconduct, gross 

22 negligence, reckless misconduct, or a conscious fla23 grant indifference to the rights or safety of the indi24 vidual harmed by the health care professional; or 

25 ‘‘(2) the health care professional rendered the 

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1 mined pursuant to applicable State law) of intoxi2 cating alcohol or an intoxicating drug. 

3 ‘‘(c) STANDARD OF PROOF.—In any civil action or 

4 proceeding against a health care professional claiming that 

5 the limitation in subsection (a) applies, the plaintiff shall 

6 have the burden of proving by clear and convincing evi7 dence the extent to which limitation does not apply. 

8 ‘‘(d) PREEMPTION.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—This section preempts the 

10 laws of a State or any political subdivision of a State 

11 to the extent that such laws are inconsistent with 

12 this section, unless such laws provide greater protec13 tion from liability. 

14 ‘‘(2) VOLUNTEER PROTECTION ACT.—Protec15 tions afforded by this section are in addition to those 

16 provided by the Volunteer Protection Act of 1997. 

17 ‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

18 ‘‘(1) The term ‘disaster’ means— 

19 ‘‘(A) a national emergency declared by the 

20 President under the National Emergencies Act; 

21 ‘‘(B) an emergency or major disaster de22 clared by the President under the Robert T. 

23 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist24 ance Act; or 


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1 ‘‘(C) a public health emergency determined 

2 by the Secretary under section 319 of this Act. 

3 ‘‘(2) The term ‘harm’ includes physical, non4 physical, economic, and noneconomic losses. 

5 ‘‘(3) The term ‘health care professional’ means 

6 an individual who is licensed, certified, or authorized 

7 in one or more States to practice a health care pro8 fession. 

9 ‘‘(4) The term ‘State’ includes each of the sev10 eral States, the District of Columbia, the Common11 wealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, 

12 American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, 

13 and any other territory or possession of the United 

14 States. 

15 ‘‘(5)(A) The term ‘volunteer’ means a health 

16 care professional who, with respect to the health 

17 care services rendered, does not receive— 

18 ‘‘(i) compensation; or 

19 ‘‘(ii) any other thing of value in lieu of 

20 compensation, in excess of $500 per year. 

21 ‘‘(B) For purposes of subparagraph (A), the 

22 term ‘compensation’— 

23 ‘‘(i) includes payment under any insurance 

24 policy or health plan, or under any Federal or 

25 State health benefits program; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) excludes— 

2 ‘‘(I) reasonable reimbursement or al3 lowance for expenses actually incurred; 

4 ‘‘(II) receipt of paid leave; and 

5 ‘‘(III) receipt of items to be used ex6 clusively for rendering the health services 

7 in the health care professional’s capacity 

8 as a volunteer described in subsection 

9 (a)(1).’’. 

10 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendment made by 

12 subsection (a) shall take effect 90 days after the 

13 date of the enactment of this subtitle. 

14 (2) APPLICATION.—This section applies to any 

15 claim for harm caused by an act or omission of a 

16 health care professional where the claim is filed on 

17 or after the effective date of this subtitle, but only 

18 if the harm that is the subject of the claim or the 

19 conduct that caused such harm occurred on or after 

20 such effective date. 


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1 TITLE VIII—PROMOTING 

2 OFFSHORE ENERGY AND JOBS 

3 Subtitle A—Outer Continental 

4 Shelf Leasing Program Reforms 

5 SEC. 801. OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF LEASING PROGRAM 

6 REFORMS. 

7 Section 18(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands 

8 Act (43 U.S.C. 1344(a)) is amended by adding at the end 

9 the following: 

10 ‘‘(5)(A) In each oil and gas leasing program 

11 under this section, the Secretary shall make avail12 able for leasing and conduct lease sales including at 

13 least 50 percent of the available unleased acreage 

14 within each outer Continental Shelf planning area 

15 considered to have the largest undiscovered, tech16 nically recoverable oil and gas resources (on a total 

17 btu basis) based upon the most recent national geo18 logic assessment of the outer Continental Shelf, with 

19 an emphasis on offering the most geologically pro20 spective parts of the planning area. 

21 ‘‘(B) The Secretary shall include in each pro22 posed oil and gas leasing program under this section 

23 any State subdivision of an outer Continental Shelf 

24 planning area that the Governor of the State that 

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1 able for leasing. The Secretary may not remove such 

2 a subdivision from the program until publication of 

3 the final program, and shall include and consider all 

4 such subdivisions in any environmental review con5 ducted and statement prepared for such program 

6 under section 102(2) of the National Environmental 

7 Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)). 

8 ‘‘(C) In this paragraph the term ‘available un9 leased acreage’ means that portion of the outer Con10 tinental Shelf that is not under lease at the time of 

11 a proposed lease sale, and that has not otherwise 

12 been made unavailable for leasing by law. 

13 ‘‘(6)(A) In the 5-year oil and gas leasing pro14 gram, the Secretary shall make available for leasing 

15 any outer Continental Shelf planning areas that— 

16 ‘‘(i) are estimated to contain more than 

17 2,500,000,000 barrels of oil; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) are estimated to contain more than 

19 7,500,000,000,000 cubic feet of natural gas. 

20 ‘‘(B) To determine the planning areas described 

21 in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall use the 

22 document entitled ‘Minerals Management Service 

23 Assessment of Undiscovered Technically Recoverable 

24 Oil and Gas Resources of the Nation’s Outer Conti25 nental Shelf, 2006’.’’. 


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1 SEC. 802. DOMESTIC OIL AND NATURAL GAS PRODUCTION 

2 GOAL. 

3 Section 18(b) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands 

4 Act (43 U.S.C. 1344(b)) is amended to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(b) DOMESTIC OIL AND NATURAL GAS PRODUC6 TION GOAL.—– 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In developing a 5-year oil 

8 and gas leasing program, and subject to paragraph 

9 (2), the Secretary shall determine a domestic stra10 tegic production goal for the development of oil and 

11 natural gas as a result of that program. Such goal 

12 shall be— 

13 ‘‘(A) the best estimate of the possible in14 crease in domestic production of oil and natural 

15 gas from the outer Continental Shelf; 

16 ‘‘(B) focused on meeting domestic demand 

17 for oil and natural gas and reducing the de18 pendence of the United States on foreign en19 ergy; and 

20 ‘‘(C) focused on the production increases 

21 achieved by the leasing program at the end of 

22 the 15-year period beginning on the effective 

23 date of the program. 

24 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM GOAL.—For purposes of the 5- 

25 year oil and gas leasing program, the production 


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1 goal referred to in paragraph (1) shall be an in2 crease by 2032 of— 

3 ‘‘(A) no less than 3,000,000 barrels in the 

4 amount of oil produced per day; and 

5 ‘‘(B) no less than 10,000,000,000 cubic 

6 feet in the amount of natural gas produced per 

7 day. 

8 ‘‘(3) REPORTING.—The Secretary shall report 

9 annually, beginning at the end of the 5-year period 

10 for which the program applies, to the Committee on 

11 Natural Resources of the House of Representatives 

12 and the Committee on Energy and Natural Re13 sources of the Senate on the progress of the pro14 gram in meeting the production goal. The Secretary 

15 shall identify in the report projections for production 

16 and any problems with leasing, permitting, or pro17 duction that will prevent meeting the goal.’’. 

18 SEC. 803. DEVELOPMENT AND SUBMITTAL OF NEW 5-YEAR 

19 OIL AND GAS LEASING PROGRAM. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior 

21 shall— 

22 (1) by not later than July 15, 2015, publish 

23 and submit to Congress a new proposed oil and gas 

24 leasing program under section 18 of the Outer Con25 tinental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1344) for the 


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1 5-year period beginning on such date and ending 

2 July 15, 2021; and 

3 (2) by not later than July 15, 2016, approve a 

4 final oil and gas leasing program under such section 

5 for such period. 

6 (b) CONSIDERATION OF ALL AREAS.—In preparing 

7 such program the Secretary shall include consideration of 

8 areas of the Continental Shelf off the coasts of all States 

9 (as such term is defined in section 2 of that Act, as 

10 amended by this title), that are subject to leasing under 

11 this title. 

12 (c) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.—Section 18(d)(3) of 

13 the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 

14 1344(d)(3)) is amended by striking ‘‘or after eighteen 

15 months following the date of enactment of this section, 

16 whichever first occurs,’’. 

17 SEC. 804. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

18 Nothing in this title shall be construed to authorize 

19 the issuance of a lease under the Outer Continental Shelf 

20 Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.) to any person des21 ignated for the imposition of sanctions pursuant to— 

22 (1) the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996 (50 U.S.C. 

23 1701 note), the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Ac24 countability and Divestiture Act of 2010 (22 U.S.C. 

25 8501 et seq.), the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria 


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1 Human Rights Act of 2012 (22 U.S.C. 8701 et 

2 seq.), section 1245 of the National Defense Author3 ization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (22 U.S.C. 8513a), 

4 or the Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act 

5 of 2012 (22 U.S.C. 8801 et seq.); 

6 (2) Executive Order No. 13622 (July 30, 

7 2012), Executive Order No. 13628 (October 9, 

8 2012), or Executive Order No. 13645 (June 3, 

9 2013); 

10 (3) Executive Order No. 13224 (September 23, 

11 2001) or Executive Order No. 13338 (May 11, 

12 2004); or 

13 (4) the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sov14 ereignty Restoration Act of 2003 (22 U.S.C. 2151 

15 note). 

16 SEC. 805. ADDITION OF LEASE SALES AFTER FINALIZATION 

17 OF 5-YEAR PLAN. 

18 Section 18(d) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands 

19 Act (43 U.S.C. 1344(d)) is amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘After’’ and 

21 inserting ‘‘Except as provided in paragraph (4), 

22 after’’; and 

23 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(4) The Secretary may add to the areas included 

25 in an approved leasing program additional areas to be 


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1 made available for leasing under the program, if all review 

2 and documents required under section 102 of the National 

3 Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332) have 

4 been completed with respect to leasing of each such addi5 tional area within the 5-year period preceding such addi6 tion.’’. 

7 Subtitle B—Directing the President 

8 To Conduct New OCS Sales 

9 SEC. 811. REQUIREMENT TO CONDUCT PROPOSED OIL AND 

10 GAS LEASE SALE 220 ON THE OUTER CONTI11 NENTAL SHELF OFFSHORE VIRGINIA. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding the exclusion of 

13 Lease Sale 220 in the Final Outer Continental Shelf Oil 

14 & Gas Leasing Program 2012–2017, the Secretary of the 

15 Interior shall conduct offshore oil and gas Lease Sale 220 

16 under section 8 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 

17 (43 U.S.C. 1337) as soon as practicable, but not later 

18 than one year after the date of enactment of this Act. 

19 (b) REQUIREMENT TO MAKE REPLACEMENT LEASE

20 BLOCKS AVAILABLE.—For each lease block in a proposed 

21 lease sale under this section for which the Secretary of 

22 Defense, in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, 

23 under the Memorandum of Agreement referred to in sec24 tion 815(b), issues a statement proposing deferral from 

25 a lease offering due to defense-related activities that are 


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1 irreconcilable with mineral exploration and development, 

2 the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Sec3 retary of Defense, shall make available in the same lease 

4 sale one other lease block in the Virginia lease sale plan5 ning area that is acceptable for oil and gas exploration 

6 and production in order to mitigate conflict. 

7 (c) BALANCING MILITARY AND ENERGY PRODUC8 TION GOALS.—In recognition that the Outer Continental 

9 Shelf oil and gas leasing program and the domestic energy 

10 resources produced therefrom are integral to national se11 curity, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of 

12 Defense shall work jointly in implementing this section in 

13 order to ensure achievement of the following common 

14 goals: 

15 (1) Preserving the ability of the Armed Forces 

16 of the United States to maintain an optimum state 

17 of readiness through their continued use of the 

18 Outer Continental Shelf. 

19 (2) Allowing effective exploration, development, 

20 and production of our Nation’s oil, gas, and renew21 able energy resources. 

22 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

23 (1) LEASE SALE 220.—The term ‘‘Lease Sale 

24 220’’ means such lease sale referred to in the Re25 quest for Comments on the Draft Proposed 5-Year 


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1 Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing 

2 Program for 2010–2015 and Notice of Intent To 

3 Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 

4 for the Proposed 5-Year Program published January 

5 21, 2009 (74 Fed. Reg. 3631). 

6 (2) VIRGINIA LEASE SALE PLANNING AREA.— 

7 The term ‘‘Virginia lease sale planning area’’ means 

8 the area of the outer Continental Shelf (as that term 

9 is defined in the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 

10 (33 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.)) that is bounded by— 

11 (A) a northern boundary consisting of a 

12 straight line extending from the northernmost 

13 point of Virginia’s seaward boundary to the 

14 point on the seaward boundary of the United 

15 States exclusive economic zone located at 37 de16 grees 17 minutes 1 second North latitude, 71 

17 degrees 5 minutes 16 seconds West longitude; 

18 and 

19 (B) a southern boundary consisting of a 

20 straight line extending from the southernmost 

21 point of Virginia’s seaward boundary to the 

22 point on the seaward boundary of the United 

23 States exclusive economic zone located at 36 de24 grees 31 minutes 58 seconds North latitude, 71 

25 degrees 30 minutes 1 second West longitude. 


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1 SEC. 812. SOUTH CAROLINA LEASE SALE. 

2 Notwithstanding exclusion of the South Atlantic 

3 Outer Continental Shelf Planning Area from the Final 

4 Outer Continental Shelf Oil & Gas Leasing Program 

5 2012–2017, the Secretary of the Interior shall conduct a 

6 lease sale not later than 2 years after the date of the en7 actment of this Act for areas off the coast of South Caro8 lina determined by the Secretary to have the most geologi9 cally promising hydrocarbon resources and constituting 

10 not less than 25 percent of the leasable area within the 

11 South Carolina offshore administrative boundaries de12 picted in the notice entitled ‘‘Federal Outer Continental 

13 Shelf (OCS) Administrative Boundaries Extending from 

14 the Submerged Lands Act Boundary seaward to the Limit 

15 of the United States Outer Continental Shelf’’, published 

16 January 3, 2006 (71 Fed. Reg. 127). 

17 SEC. 813. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA EXISTING INFRASTRUC18 TURE LEASE SALE. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall 

20 offer for sale leases of tracts in the Santa Maria and 

21 Santa Barbara/Ventura Basins of the Southern California 

22 OCS Planning Area as soon as practicable, but not later 

23 than December 31, 2015. 

24 (b) USE OF EXISTING STRUCTURES OR ONSHORE25 BASED DRILLING.—The Secretary of the Interior shall in26 clude in leases offered for sale under this lease sale such 


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1 terms and conditions as are necessary to require that de2 velopment and production may occur only from offshore 

3 infrastructure in existence on the date of the enactment 

4 of this Act or from onshore-based, extended-reach drilling. 

5 SEC. 814. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT REQUIRE6 MENT. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of this title, the 

8 Secretary of the Interior shall prepare a multisale environ9 mental impact statement under section 102 of the Na10 tional Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332) 

11 for all lease sales required under this subtitle. 

12 (b) ACTIONS TO BE CONSIDERED.—Notwithstanding 

13 section 102 of the National Environmental Policy Act of 

14 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332), in such statement— 

15 (1) the Secretary is not required to identify 

16 nonleasing alternative courses of action or to analyze 

17 the environmental effects of such alternative courses 

18 of action; and 

19 (2) the Secretary shall only— 

20 (A) identify a preferred action for leasing 

21 and not more than one alternative leasing pro22 posal; and 

23 (B) analyze the environmental effects and 

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1 ferred action and such alternative leasing pro2 posal. 

3 SEC. 815. NATIONAL DEFENSE. 

4 (a) NATIONAL DEFENSE AREAS.—This title does not 

5 affect the existing authority of the Secretary of Defense, 

6 with the approval of the President, to designate national 

7 defense areas on the Outer Continental Shelf pursuant to 

8 section 12(d) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 

9 (43 U.S.C. 1341(d)). 

10 (b) PROHIBITION ON CONFLICTS WITH MILITARY

11 OPERATIONS.—No person may engage in any exploration, 

12 development, or production of oil or natural gas on the 

13 Outer Continental Shelf under a lease issued under this 

14 title that would conflict with any military operation, as 

15 determined in accordance with the Memorandum of Agree16 ment between the Department of Defense and the Depart17 ment of the Interior on Mutual Concerns on the Outer 

18 Continental Shelf signed July 20, 1983, and any revision 

19 or replacement for that agreement that is agreed to by 

20 the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of the Interior 

21 after that date but before the date of issuance of the lease 

22 under which such exploration, development, or production 

23 is conducted. 


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1 SEC. 816. EASTERN GULF OF MEXICO NOT INCLUDED. 

2 Nothing in this title affects restrictions on oil and gas 

3 leasing under the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 

4 2006 (title I of division C of Public Law 109–432; 43 

5 U.S.C. 1331 note). 

6 Subtitle C—Equitable Sharing of 

7 Outer Continental Shelf Revenues 

8 SEC. 821. DISPOSITION OF OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF 

9 REVENUES TO COASTAL STATES. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 9 of the Outer Conti11 nental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1338) is amended— 

12 (1) in the existing text— 

13 (A) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘All 

14 rentals,’’ and inserting the following: 

15 ‘‘(c) DISPOSITION OF REVENUE UNDER OLD

16 LEASES.—All rentals,’’; and 

17 (B) in subsection (c) (as designated by the 

18 amendment made by subparagraph (A) of this 

19 paragraph), by striking ‘‘for the period from 

20 June 5, 1950, to date, and thereafter’’ and in21 serting ‘‘in the period beginning June 5, 1950, 

22 and ending on the date of enactment of the 

23 Lowering Gasoline Prices to Fuel an America 

24 That Works Act of 2015’’; 

25 (2) by adding after subsection (c) (as so des26 ignated) the following: 


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1 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

2 ‘‘(1) COASTAL STATE.—The term ‘coastal 

3 State’ includes a territory of the United States. 

4 ‘‘(2) NEW LEASING REVENUES.—The term ‘new 

5 leasing revenues’— 

6 ‘‘(A) means amounts received by the 

7 United States as bonuses, rents, and royalties 

8 under leases for oil and gas, wind, tidal, or 

9 other energy exploration, development, and pro10 duction on new areas of the outer Continental 

11 Shelf that are authorized to be made available 

12 for leasing as a result of enactment of the Low13 ering Gasoline Prices to Fuel an America That 

14 Works Act of 2015 and leasing under that Act; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(B) does not include amounts received by 

17 the United States under any lease of an area lo18 cated in the boundaries of the Central Gulf of 

19 Mexico and Western Gulf of Mexico Outer Con20 tinental Shelf Planning Areas on the date of en21 actment of the Lowering Gasoline Prices to 

22 Fuel an America That Works Act of 2015, in23 cluding a lease issued before, on, or after such 

24 date of enactment.’’; and 


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1 (3) by inserting before subsection (c) (as so 

2 designated) the following: 

3 ‘‘(a) PAYMENT OF NEW LEASING REVENUES TO

4 COASTAL STATES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para6 graph (2), of the amount of new leasing revenues re7 ceived by the United States each fiscal year, 37.5 

8 percent shall be allocated and paid in accordance 

9 with subsection (b) to coastal States that are af10 fected States with respect to the leases under which 

11 those revenues are received by the United States. 

12 ‘‘(2) PHASE-IN.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

14 subparagraph (B), paragraph (1) shall be ap15 plied— 

16 ‘‘(i) with respect to new leasing reve17 nues under leases awarded under the first 

18 leasing program under section 18(a) that 

19 takes effect after the date of enactment of 

20 the Lowering Gasoline Prices to Fuel an 

21 America That Works Act of 2015, by sub22 stituting ‘12.5 percent’ for ‘37.5 percent’; 

23 and 

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1 ond leasing program under section 18(a) 

2 that takes effect after the date of enact3 ment of the Lowering Gasoline Prices to 

4 Fuel an America That Works Act of 2015, 

5 by substituting ‘25 percent’ for ‘37.5 per6 cent’. 

7 ‘‘(B) EXEMPTED LEASE SALES.—This 

8 paragraph shall not apply with respect to any 

9 lease issued under subtitle B of the Lowering 

10 Gasoline Prices to Fuel an America That 

11 Works Act of 2015. 

12 ‘‘(b) ALLOCATION OF PAYMENTS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of new leasing 

14 revenues received by the United States with respect 

15 to a leased tract that are required to be paid to 

16 coastal States in accordance with this subsection 

17 each fiscal year shall be allocated among and paid 

18 to coastal States that are within 200 miles of the 

19 leased tract, in amounts that are inversely propor20 tional to the respective distances between the point 

21 on the coastline of each such State that is closest to 

22 the geographic center of the lease tract, as deter23 mined by the Secretary. 

24 ‘‘(2) MINIMUM AND MAXIMUM ALLOCATION.— 

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1 graph (1) each fiscal year with respect to a leased 

2 tract shall be— 

3 ‘‘(A) in the case of a coastal State that is 

4 the nearest State to the geographic center of 

5 the leased tract, not less than 25 percent of the 

6 total amounts allocated with respect to the 

7 leased tract; 

8 ‘‘(B) in the case of any other coastal State, 

9 not less than 10 percent, and not more than 15 

10 percent, of the total amounts allocated with re11 spect to the leased tract; and 

12 ‘‘(C) in the case of a coastal State that is 

13 the only coastal State within 200 miles of a 

14 leased tract, 100 percent of the total amounts 

15 allocated with respect to the leased tract. 

16 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATION.—Amounts allocated to 

17 a coastal State under this subsection— 

18 ‘‘(A) shall be available to the coastal State 

19 without further appropriation; 

20 ‘‘(B) shall remain available until expended; 

21 ‘‘(C) shall be in addition to any other 

22 amounts available to the coastal State under 

23 this Act; and 

24 ‘‘(D) shall be distributed in the fiscal year 

25 following receipt. 


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1 ‘‘(4) USE OF FUNDS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

3 subparagraph (B), a coastal State may use 

4 funds allocated and paid to it under this sub5 section for any purpose as determined by the 

6 laws of that State. 

7 ‘‘(B) RESTRICTION ON USE FOR MATCH8 ING.—Funds allocated and paid to a coastal 

9 State under this subsection may not be used as 

10 matching funds for any other Federal pro11 gram.’’. 

12 (b) LIMITATION ON APPLICATION.—This section and 

13 the amendment made by this section shall not affect the 

14 application of section 105 of the Gulf of Mexico Energy 

15 Security Act of 2006 (title I of division C of Public Law 

16 109–432; 43 U.S.C. 1331 note), as in effect before the 

17 enactment of this Act, with respect to revenues received 

18 by the United States under oil and gas leases issued for 

19 tracts located in the Western and Central Gulf of Mexico 

20 Outer Continental Shelf Planning Areas, including such 

21 leases issued on or after the date of the enactment of this 

22 Act. 


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1 Subtitle D—Reorganization of Min2 erals Management Agencies of 

3 the Department of the Interior 

4 SEC. 831. ESTABLISHMENT OF UNDER SECRETARY FOR EN5 ERGY, LANDS, AND MINERALS AND ASSIST6 ANT SECRETARY OF OCEAN ENERGY AND 

7 SAFETY. 

8 There shall be in the Department of the Interior— 

9 (1) an Under Secretary for Energy, Lands, and 

10 Minerals, who shall— 

11 (A) be appointed by the President, by and 

12 with the advise and consent of the Senate; 

13 (B) report to the Secretary of the Interior 

14 or, if directed by the Secretary, to the Deputy 

15 Secretary of the Interior; 

16 (C) be paid at the rate payable for level III 

17 of the Executive Schedule; and 

18 (D) be responsible for— 

19 (i) the safe and responsible develop20 ment of our energy and mineral resources 

21 on Federal lands in appropriate accordance 

22 with United States energy demands; and 

23 (ii) ensuring multiple-use missions of 

24 the Department of the Interior that pro25 mote the safe and sustained development 


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1 of energy and minerals resources on public 

2 lands (as that term is defined in the Fed3 eral Land Policy and Management Act of 

4 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.)); 

5 (2) an Assistant Secretary of Ocean Energy 

6 and Safety, who shall— 

7 (A) be appointed by the President, by and 

8 with the advise and consent of the Senate; 

9 (B) report to the Under Secretary for En10 ergy, Lands, and Minerals; 

11 (C) be paid at the rate payable for level IV 

12 of the Executive Schedule; and 

13 (D) be responsible for ensuring safe and 

14 efficient development of energy and minerals on 

15 the Outer Continental Shelf of the United 

16 States; and 

17 (3) an Assistant Secretary of Land and Min18 erals Management, who shall— 

19 (A) be appointed by the President, by and 

20 with the advise and consent of the Senate; 

21 (B) report to the Under Secretary for En22 ergy, Lands, and Minerals; 

23 (C) be paid at the rate payable for level IV 

24 of the Executive Schedule; and 


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1 (D) be responsible for ensuring safe and 

2 efficient development of energy and minerals on 

3 public lands and other Federal onshore lands 

4 under the jurisdiction of the Department of the 

5 Interior, including implementation of the Min6 eral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 et seq.) and 

7 the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation 

8 Act (30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.) and administra9 tion of the Office of Surface Mining. 

10 SEC. 832. BUREAU OF OCEAN ENERGY. 

11 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

12 Department of the Interior a Bureau of Ocean Energy (re13 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘Bureau’’), which shall— 

14 (1) be headed by a Director of Ocean Energy 

15 (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Director’’); and 

16 (2) be administered under the direction of the 

17 Assistant Secretary of Ocean Energy and Safety. 

18 (b) DIRECTOR.— 

19 (1) APPOINTMENT.—The Director shall be ap20 pointed by the Secretary of the Interior. 

21 (2) COMPENSATION.—The Director shall be 

22 compensated at the rate provided for level V of the 

23 Executive Schedule under section 5316 of title 5, 

24 United States Code. 

25 (c) DUTIES.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte2 rior shall carry out through the Bureau all func3 tions, powers, and duties vested in the Secretary re4 lating to the administration of a comprehensive pro5 gram of offshore mineral and renewable energy re6 sources management. 

7 (2) SPECIFIC AUTHORITIES.—The Director 

8 shall promulgate and implement regulations— 

9 (A) for the proper issuance of leases for 

10 the exploration, development, and production of 

11 nonrenewable and renewable energy and min12 eral resources on the Outer Continental Shelf; 

13 (B) relating to resource identification, ac14 cess, evaluation, and utilization; 

15 (C) for development of leasing plans, lease 

16 sales, and issuance of leases for such resources; 

17 and 

18 (D) regarding issuance of environmental 

19 impact statements related to leasing and post 

20 leasing activities including exploration, develop21 ment, and production, and the use of third 

22 party contracting for necessary environmental 

23 analysis for the development of such resources. 


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1 (3) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall not carry 

2 out through the Bureau any function, power, or duty 

3 that is— 

4 (A) required by section 833 to be carried 

5 out through the Ocean Energy Safety Service; 

6 or 

7 (B) required by section 834 to be carried 

8 out through the Office of Natural Resources 

9 Revenue. 

10 (d) RESPONSIBILITIES OF LAND MANAGEMENT

11 AGENCIES.—Nothing in this section shall affect the au12 thorities of the Bureau of Land Management under the 

13 Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 

14 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) or of the Forest Service under the 

15 National Forest Management Act of 1976 (Public Law 

16 94–588). 

17 SEC. 833. OCEAN ENERGY SAFETY SERVICE. 

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

19 Department of the Interior an Ocean Energy Safety Serv20 ice (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Service’’), which 

21 shall— 

22 (1) be headed by a Director of Energy Safety 

23 (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Director’’); and 

24 (2) be administered under the direction of the 

25 Assistant Secretary of Ocean Energy and Safety. 


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1 (b) DIRECTOR.— 

2 (1) APPOINTMENT.—The Director shall be ap3 pointed by the Secretary of the Interior. 

4 (2) COMPENSATION.—The Director shall be 

5 compensated at the rate provided for level V of the 

6 Executive Schedule under section 5316 of title 5, 

7 United States Code. 

8 (c) DUTIES.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte10 rior shall carry out through the Service all functions, 

11 powers, and duties vested in the Secretary relating 

12 to the administration of safety and environmental 

13 enforcement activities related to offshore mineral 

14 and renewable energy resources on the Outer Conti15 nental Shelf pursuant to the Outer Continental Shelf 

16 Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.) including the 

17 authority to develop, promulgate, and enforce regu18 lations to ensure the safe and sound exploration, de19 velopment, and production of mineral and renewable 

20 energy resources on the Outer Continental Shelf in 

21 a timely fashion. 

22 (2) SPECIFIC AUTHORITIES.—The Director 

23 shall be responsible for all safety activities related to 

24 exploration and development of renewable and minVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:09 Oct 08, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00192 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3682.IH H3682

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1 eral resources on the Outer Continental Shelf, in2 cluding— 

3 (A) exploration, development, production, 

4 and ongoing inspections of infrastructure; 

5 (B) the suspending or prohibiting, on a 

6 temporary basis, any operation or activity, in7 cluding production under leases held on the 

8 Outer Continental Shelf, in accordance with 

9 section 5(a)(1) of the Outer Continental Shelf 

10 Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1334(a)(1)); 

11 (C) cancelling any lease, permit, or right12 of-way on the Outer Continental Shelf, in ac13 cordance with section 5(a)(2) of the Outer Con14 tinental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 

15 1334(a)(2)); 

16 (D) compelling compliance with applicable 

17 Federal laws and regulations relating to worker 

18 safety and other matters; 

19 (E) requiring comprehensive safety and en20 vironmental management programs for persons 

21 engaged in activities connected with the explo22 ration, development, and production of mineral 

23 or renewable energy resources; 

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1 spection or investigation to ascertain compli2 ance with applicable regulations, including 

3 health, safety, or environmental regulations; 

4 (G) implementing the Offshore Technology 

5 Research and Risk Assessment Program under 

6 section 21 of the Outer Continental Shelf 

7 Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1347); 

8 (H) summoning witnesses and directing 

9 the production of evidence; 

10 (I) levying fines and penalties and disquali11 fying operators; 

12 (J) carrying out any safety, response, and 

13 removal preparedness functions; and 

14 (K) the processing of permits, exploration 

15 plans, development plans. 

16 (d) EMPLOYEES.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ensure 

18 that the inspection force of the Bureau consists of 

19 qualified, trained employees who meet qualification 

20 requirements and adhere to the highest professional 

21 and ethical standards. 

22 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—The qualification re23 quirements referred to in paragraph (1)— 

24 (A) shall be determined by the Secretary, 

25 subject to subparagraph (B); and 


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1 (B) shall include— 

2 (i) 3 years of practical experience in 

3 oil and gas exploration, development, or 

4 production; or 

5 (ii) a degree in an appropriate field of 

6 engineering from an accredited institution 

7 of higher learning. 

8 (3) ASSIGNMENT.—In assigning oil and gas in9 spectors to the inspection and investigation of indi10 vidual operations, the Secretary shall give due con11 sideration to the extent possible to their previous ex12 perience in the particular type of oil and gas oper13 ation in which such inspections are to be made. 

14 (4) BACKGROUND CHECKS.—The Director shall 

15 require that an individual to be hired as an inspec16 tion officer undergo an employment investigation 

17 (including a criminal history record check). 

18 (5) LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS.—Individuals 

19 hired as inspectors must be able to read, speak, and 

20 write English well enough to— 

21 (A) carry out written and oral instructions 

22 regarding the proper performance of inspection 

23 duties; and 

24 (B) write inspection reports and state25 ments and log entries in the English language. 


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1 (6) VETERANS PREFERENCE.—The Director 

2 shall provide a preference for the hiring of an indi3 vidual as a inspection officer if the individual is a 

4 member or former member of the Armed Forces and 

5 is entitled, under statute, to retired, retirement, or 

6 retainer pay on account of service as a member of 

7 the Armed Forces. 

8 (7) ANNUAL PROFICIENCY REVIEW.— 

9 (A) ANNUAL PROFICIENCY REVIEW.—The 

10 Director shall provide that an annual evaluation 

11 of each individual assigned inspection duties is 

12 conducted and documented. 

13 (B) CONTINUATION OF EMPLOYMENT.—An 

14 individual employed as an inspector may not 

15 continue to be employed in that capacity unless 

16 the evaluation demonstrates that the indi17 vidual— 

18 (i) continues to meet all qualifications 

19 and standards; 

20 (ii) has a satisfactory record of per21 formance and attention to duty based on 

22 the standards and requirements in the in23 spection program; and 

24 (iii) demonstrates the current knowl25 edge and skills necessary to courteously, 


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1 vigilantly, and effectively perform inspec2 tion functions. 

3 (8) LIMITATION ON RIGHT TO STRIKE.—Any 

4 individual that conducts permitting or inspections 

5 under this section may not participate in a strike, or 

6 assert the right to strike. 

7 (9) PERSONNEL AUTHORITY.—Notwithstanding 

8 any other provision of law, the Director may employ, 

9 appoint, discipline and terminate for cause, and fix 

10 the compensation, terms, and conditions of employ11 ment of Federal service for individuals as the em12 ployees of the Service in order to restore and main13 tain the trust of the people of the United States in 

14 the accountability of the management of our Na15 tion’s energy safety program. 

16 (10) TRAINING ACADEMY.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall es18 tablish and maintain a National Offshore En19 ergy Safety Academy (referred to in this para20 graph as the ‘‘Academy’’) as an agency of the 

21 Ocean Energy Safety Service. 

22 (B) FUNCTIONS OF ACADEMY.—The Sec23 retary, through the Academy, shall be respon24 sible for— 


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1 (i) the initial and continued training 

2 of both newly hired and experienced off3 shore oil and gas inspectors in all aspects 

4 of health, safety, environmental, and oper5 ational inspections; 

6 (ii) the training of technical support 

7 personnel of the Bureau; 

8 (iii) any other training programs for 

9 offshore oil and gas inspectors, Bureau 

10 personnel, Department personnel, or other 

11 persons as the Secretary shall designate; 

12 and 

13 (iv) certification of the successful 

14 completion of training programs for newly 

15 hired and experienced offshore oil and gas 

16 inspectors. 

17 (C) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.— 

18 (i) IN GENERAL.—In performing func19 tions under this paragraph, and subject to 

20 clause (ii), the Secretary may enter into 

21 cooperative educational and training agree22 ments with educational institutions, related 

23 Federal academies, other Federal agencies, 

24 State governments, safety training firms, 


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1 and oil and gas operators and related in2 dustries. 

3 (ii) TRAINING REQUIREMENT.—Such 

4 training shall be conducted by the Acad5 emy in accordance with curriculum needs 

6 and assignment of instructional personnel 

7 established by the Secretary. 

8 (11) USE OF DEPARTMENT PERSONNEL.—In 

9 performing functions under this subsection, the Sec10 retary shall use, to the extent practicable, the facili11 ties and personnel of the Department of the Interior. 

12 The Secretary may appoint or assign to the Acad13 emy such officers and employees as the Secretary 

14 considers necessary for the performance of the du15 ties and functions of the Academy. 

16 (12) ADDITIONAL TRAINING PROGRAMS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

18 work with appropriate educational institutions, 

19 operators, and representatives of oil and gas 

20 workers to develop and maintain adequate pro21 grams with educational institutions and oil and 

22 gas operators that are designed— 

23 (i) to enable persons to qualify for po24 sitions in the administration of this title; 

25 and 


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1 (ii) to provide for the continuing edu2 cation of inspectors or other appropriate 

3 Department of the Interior personnel. 

4 (B) FINANCIAL AND TECHNICAL ASSIST5 ANCE.—The Secretary may provide financial 

6 and technical assistance to educational institu7 tions in carrying out this paragraph. 

8 (e) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall not carry out 

9 through the Service any function, power, or duty that is— 

10 (1) required by section 832 to be carried out 

11 through the Bureau of Ocean Energy; or 

12 (2) required by section 834 to be carried out 

13 through the Office of Natural Resources Revenue. 

14 SEC. 834. OFFICE OF NATURAL RESOURCES REVENUE. 

15 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

16 Department of the Interior an Office of Natural Resources 

17 Revenue (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Office’’) to 

18 be headed by a Director of Natural Resources Revenue 

19 (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Director’’). 

20 (b) APPOINTMENT AND COMPENSATION.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall be ap22 pointed by the Secretary of the Interior. 

23 (2) COMPENSATION.—The Director shall be 

24 compensated at the rate provided for Level V of the 


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1 Executive Schedule under section 5316 of title 5, 

2 United States Code. 

3 (c) DUTIES.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte5 rior shall carry out, through the Office, all functions, 

6 powers, and duties vested in the Secretary and relat7 ing to the administration of offshore royalty and rev8 enue management functions. 

9 (2) SPECIFIC AUTHORITIES.—The Secretary 

10 shall carry out, through the Office, all functions, 

11 powers, and duties previously assigned to the Min12 erals Management Service (including the authority 

13 to develop, promulgate, and enforce regulations) re14 garding offshore royalty and revenue collection; roy15 alty and revenue distribution; auditing and compli16 ance; investigation and enforcement of royalty and 

17 revenue regulations; and asset management for on18 shore and offshore activities. 

19 (d) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall not carry out 

20 through the Office any function, power, or duty that is— 

21 (1) required by section 832 to be carried out 

22 through the Bureau of Ocean Energy; or 

23 (2) required by section 833 to be carried out 

24 through the Ocean Energy Safety Service. 


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1 SEC. 835. ETHICS AND DRUG TESTING. 

2 (a) CERTIFICATION.—The Secretary of the Interior 

3 shall certify annually that all Department of the Interior 

4 officers and employees having regular, direct contact with 

5 lessees, contractors, concessionaires, and other businesses 

6 interested before the Government as a function of their 

7 official duties, or conducting investigations, issuing per8 mits, or responsible for oversight of energy programs, are 

9 in full compliance with all Federal employee ethics laws 

10 and regulations under the Ethics in Government Act of 

11 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) and part 2635 of title 5, Code of 

12 Federal Regulations, and all guidance issued under sub13 section (c). 

14 (b) DRUG TESTING.—The Secretary shall conduct a 

15 random drug testing program of all Department of the 

16 Interior personnel referred to in subsection (a). 

17 (c) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 90 days after the 

18 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue 

19 supplementary ethics and drug testing guidance for the 

20 employees for which certification is required under sub21 section (a). The Secretary shall update the supplementary 

22 ethics guidance not less than once every 3 years there23 after. 


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1 SEC. 836. ABOLISHMENT OF MINERALS MANAGEMENT 

2 SERVICE. 

3 (a) ABOLISHMENT.—The Minerals Management 

4 Service is abolished. 

5 (b) COMPLETED ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Completed administrative 

7 actions of the Minerals Management Service shall 

8 not be affected by the enactment of this Act, but 

9 shall continue in effect according to their terms until 

10 amended, modified, superseded, terminated, set 

11 aside, or revoked in accordance with law by an offi12 cer of the United States or a court of competent ju13 risdiction, or by operation of law. 

14 (2) COMPLETED ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION DE15 FINED.—For purposes of paragraph (1), the term 

16 ‘‘completed administrative action’’ includes orders, 

17 determinations, memoranda of understanding, 

18 memoranda of agreements, rules, regulations, per19 sonnel actions, permits, agreements, grants, con20 tracts, certificates, licenses, registrations, and privi21 leges. 

22 (c) PENDING PROCEEDINGS.—Subject to the author23 ity of the Secretary of the Interior and the officers of the 

24 Department of the Interior under this title— 

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1 making, and applications for licenses, permits, cer2 tificates, grants, and financial assistance, shall con3 tinue, notwithstanding the enactment of this Act or 

4 the vesting of functions of the Service in another 

5 agency, unless discontinued or modified under the 

6 same terms and conditions and to the same extent 

7 that such discontinuance or modification could have 

8 occurred if this title had not been enacted; and 

9 (2) orders issued in such proceedings, and ap10 peals therefrom, and payments made pursuant to 

11 such orders, shall issue in the same manner and on 

12 the same terms as if this title had not been enacted, 

13 and any such orders shall continue in effect until 

14 amended, modified, superseded, terminated, set 

15 aside, or revoked by an officer of the United States 

16 or a court of competent jurisdiction, or by operation 

17 of law. 

18 (d) PENDING CIVIL ACTIONS.—Subject to the au19 thority of the Secretary of the Interior or any officer of 

20 the Department of the Interior under this title, pending 

21 civil actions shall continue notwithstanding the enactment 

22 of this Act, and in such civil actions, proceedings shall be 

23 had, appeals taken, and judgments rendered and enforced 

24 in the same manner and with the same effect as if such 

25 enactment had not occurred. 


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1 (e) REFERENCES.—References relating to the Min2 erals Management Service in statutes, Executive orders, 

3 rules, regulations, directives, or delegations of authority 

4 that precede the effective date of this Act are deemed to 

5 refer, as appropriate, to the Department, to its officers, 

6 employees, or agents, or to its corresponding organiza7 tional units or functions. Statutory reporting requirements 

8 that applied in relation to the Minerals Management Serv9 ice immediately before the effective date of this title shall 

10 continue to apply. 

11 SEC. 837. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO EXECUTIVE 

12 SCHEDULE PAY RATES. 

13 (a) UNDER SECRETARY FOR ENERGY, LANDS, AND

14 MINERALS.—Section 5314 of title 5, United States Code, 

15 is amended by inserting after the item relating to ‘‘Under 

16 Secretaries of the Treasury (3).’’ the following: 

17 ‘‘Under Secretary for Energy, Lands, and Min18 erals, Department of the Interior.’’. 

19 (b) ASSISTANT SECRETARIES.—Section 5315 of title 

20 5, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Assistant 

21 Secretaries of the Interior (6).’’ and inserting the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘Assistant Secretaries, Department of the Inte24 rior (7).’’. 


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1 (c) DIRECTORS.—Section 5316 of title 5, United 

2 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Director, Bureau of 

3 Mines, Department of the Interior.’’ and inserting the fol4 lowing new items: 

5 ‘‘Director, Bureau of Ocean Energy, Depart6 ment of the Interior. 

7 ‘‘Director, Ocean Energy Safety Service, De8 partment of the Interior. 

9 ‘‘Director, Office of Natural Resources Rev10 enue, Department of the Interior.’’. 

11 SEC. 838. OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF ENERGY SAFETY 

12 ADVISORY BOARD. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of the Interior 

14 shall establish, under the Federal Advisory Committee 

15 Act, an Outer Continental Shelf Energy Safety Advisory 

16 Board (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Board’’)— 

17 (1) to provide the Secretary and the Directors 

18 established by this title with independent scientific 

19 and technical advice on safe, responsible, and timely 

20 mineral and renewable energy exploration, develop21 ment, and production activities; and 

22 (2) to review operations of the National Off23 shore Energy Health and Safety Academy estab24 lished under section 833(d), including submitting to 


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1 the Secretary recommendations of curriculum to en2 sure training scientific and technical advancements. 

3 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

4 (1) SIZE.—The Board shall consist of not more 

5 than 11 members, who— 

6 (A) shall be appointed by the Secretary 

7 based on their expertise in oil and gas drilling, 

8 well design, operations, well containment and 

9 oil spill response; and 

10 (B) must have significant scientific, engi11 neering, management, and other credentials and 

12 a history of working in the field related to safe 

13 energy exploration, development, and produc14 tion activities. 

15 (2) CONSULTATION AND NOMINATIONS.—The 

16 Secretary shall consult with the National Academy 

17 of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineer18 ing to identify potential candidates for the Board 

19 and shall take nominations from the public. 

20 (3) TERM.—The Secretary shall appoint Board 

21 members to staggered terms of not more than 4 

22 years, and shall not appoint a member for more 

23 than 2 consecutive terms. 


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1 (4) BALANCE.—In appointing members to the 

2 Board, the Secretary shall ensure a balanced rep3 resentation of industry and research interests. 

4 (c) CHAIR.—The Secretary shall appoint the Chair 

5 for the Board from among its members. 

6 (d) MEETINGS.—The Board shall meet not less than 

7 3 times per year and shall host, at least once per year, 

8 a public forum to review and assess the overall energy 

9 safety performance of Outer Continental Shelf mineral 

10 and renewable energy resource activities. 

11 (e) OFFSHORE DRILLING SAFETY ASSESSMENTS

12 AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—As part of its duties under 

13 this section, the Board shall, by not later than 180 days 

14 after the date of enactment of this section and every 5 

15 years thereafter, submit to the Secretary a report that— 

16 (1) assesses offshore oil and gas well control 

17 technologies, practices, voluntary standards, and 

18 regulations in the United States and elsewhere; and 

19 (2) as appropriate, recommends modifications 

20 to the regulations issued under this title to ensure 

21 adequate protection of safety and the environment, 

22 including recommendations on how to reduce regula23 tions and administrative actions that are duplicative 

24 or unnecessary. 


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1 (f) REPORTS.—Reports of the Board shall be sub2 mitted by the Board to the Committee on Natural Re3 sources of the House of Representatives and the Com4 mittee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate 

5 and made available to the public in electronically acces6 sible form. 

7 (g) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Members of the Board, 

8 other than full-time employees of the Federal Government, 

9 while attending meeting of the Board or while otherwise 

10 serving at the request of the Secretary or the Director 

11 while serving away from their homes or regular places of 

12 business, may be allowed travel expenses, including per 

13 diem in lieu of subsistence, as authorized by section 5703 

14 of title 5, United States Code, for individuals in the Gov15 ernment serving without pay. 

16 SEC. 839. OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF INSPECTION FEES. 

17 Section 22 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 

18 (43 U.S.C. 1348) is amended by adding at the end of the 

19 section the following: 

20 ‘‘(g) INSPECTION FEES.— 

21 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of the 

22 Interior shall collect from the operators of facilities 

23 subject to inspection under subsection (c) non-re24 fundable fees for such inspections— 


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1 ‘‘(A) at an aggregate level equal to the 

2 amount necessary to offset the annual expenses 

3 of inspections of outer Continental Shelf facili4 ties (including mobile offshore drilling units) by 

5 the Department of the Interior; and 

6 ‘‘(B) using a schedule that reflects the dif7 ferences in complexity among the classes of fa8 cilities to be inspected. 

9 ‘‘(2) OCEAN ENERGY SAFETY FUND.—There is 

10 established in the Treasury a fund, to be known as 

11 the ‘Ocean Energy Enforcement Fund’ (referred to 

12 in this subsection as the ‘Fund’), into which shall be 

13 deposited all amounts collected as fees under para14 graph (1) and which shall be available as provided 

15 under paragraph (3). 

16 ‘‘(3) AVAILABILITY OF FEES.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sec18 tion 3302 of title 31, United States Code, all 

19 amounts deposited in the Fund— 

20 ‘‘(i) shall be credited as offsetting col21 lections; 

22 ‘‘(ii) shall be available for expenditure 

23 for purposes of carrying out inspections of 

24 outer Continental Shelf facilities (including 

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1 ministration of the inspection program 

2 under this section; 

3 ‘‘(iii) shall be available only to the ex4 tent provided for in advance in an appro5 priations Act; and 

6 ‘‘(iv) shall remain available until ex7 pended. 

8 ‘‘(B) USE FOR FIELD OFFICES.—Not less 

9 than 75 percent of amounts in the Fund may 

10 be appropriated for use only for the respective 

11 Department of the Interior field offices where 

12 the amounts were originally assessed as fees. 

13 ‘‘(4) INITIAL FEES.—Fees shall be established 

14 under this subsection for the fiscal year in which 

15 this subsection takes effect and the subsequent 10 

16 years, and shall not be raised without advise and 

17 consent of the Congress, except as determined by the 

18 Secretary to be appropriate as an adjustment equal 

19 to the percentage by which the Consumer Price 

20 Index for the month of June of the calendar year 

21 preceding the adjustment exceeds the Consumer 

22 Price Index for the month of June of the calendar 

23 year in which the claim was determined or last ad24 justed. 


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1 ‘‘(5) ANNUAL FEES.—Annual fees shall be col2 lected under this subsection for facilities that are 

3 above the waterline, excluding drilling rigs, and are 

4 in place at the start of the fiscal year. Fees for fiscal 

5 year 2013 shall be— 

6 ‘‘(A) $10,500 for facilities with no wells, 

7 but with processing equipment or gathering 

8 lines; 

9 ‘‘(B) $17,000 for facilities with 1 to 10 

10 wells, with any combination of active or inactive 

11 wells; and 

12 ‘‘(C) $31,500 for facilities with more than 

13 10 wells, with any combination of active or in14 active wells. 

15 ‘‘(6) FEES FOR DRILLING RIGS.—Fees for drill16 ing rigs shall be assessed under this subsection for 

17 all inspections completed in fiscal years 2015 

18 through 2024. Fees for fiscal year 2015 shall be— 

19 ‘‘(A) $30,500 per inspection for rigs oper20 ating in water depths of 1,000 feet or more; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(B) $16,700 per inspection for rigs oper23 ating in water depths of less than 1,000 feet. 

24 ‘‘(7) BILLING.—The Secretary shall bill des25 ignated operators under paragraph (5) within 60 


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1 days after the date of the inspection, with payment 

2 required within 30 days of billing. The Secretary 

3 shall bill designated operators under paragraph (6) 

4 within 30 days of the end of the month in which the 

5 inspection occurred, with payment required within 

6 30 days after billing. 

7 ‘‘(8) SUNSET.—No fee may be collected under 

8 this subsection for any fiscal year after fiscal year 

9 2024. 

10 ‘‘(9) ANNUAL REPORTS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 

12 days after the end of each fiscal year beginning 

13 with fiscal year 2015, the Secretary shall sub14 mit to the Committee on Energy and Natural 

15 Resources of the Senate and the Committee on 

16 Natural Resources of the House of Representa17 tives a report on the operation of the Fund dur18 ing the fiscal year. 

19 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each report shall in20 clude, for the fiscal year covered by the report, 

21 the following: 

22 ‘‘(i) A statement of the amounts de23 posited into the Fund. 

24 ‘‘(ii) A description of the expenditures 

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1 cluding the purpose of the expenditures 

2 and the additional hiring of personnel. 

3 ‘‘(iii) A statement of the balance re4 maining in the Fund at the end of the fis5 cal year. 

6 ‘‘(iv) An accounting of pace of permit 

7 approvals. 

8 ‘‘(v) If fee increases are proposed 

9 after the initial 10-year period referred to 

10 in paragraph (5), a proper accounting of 

11 the potential adverse economic impacts 

12 such fee increases will have on offshore 

13 economic activity and overall production, 

14 conducted by the Secretary. 

15 ‘‘(vi) Recommendations to increase 

16 the efficacy and efficiency of offshore in17 spections. 

18 ‘‘(vii) Any corrective actions levied 

19 upon offshore inspectors as a result of any 

20 form of misconduct.’’. 

21 SEC. 840. PROHIBITION ON ACTION BASED ON NATIONAL 

22 OCEAN POLICY DEVELOPED UNDER EXECU23 TIVE ORDER NO. 13547. 

24 (a) PROHIBITION.—The Bureau of Ocean Energy 

25 and the Ocean Energy Safety Service may not develop, 


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1 propose, finalize, administer, or implement, any limitation 

2 on activities under their jurisdiction as a result of the 

3 coastal and marine spatial planning component of the Na4 tional Ocean Policy developed under Executive Order No. 

5 13547. 

6 (b) REPORT ON EXPENDITURES.—Not later than 60 

7 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the President 

8 shall submit a report to the Committee on Natural Re9 sources of the House of Representatives and the Com10 mittee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate 

11 identifying all Federal expenditures in fiscal years 2011, 

12 2012, 2013, and 2014 by the Bureau of Ocean Energy 

13 and the Ocean Energy Safety Service and their prede14 cessor agencies, by agency, account, and any pertinent 

15 subaccounts, for the development, administration, or im16 plementation of the coastal and marine spatial planning 

17 component of the National Ocean Policy developed under 

18 Executive Order No. 13547, including staff time, travel, 

19 and other related expenses. 


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1 Subtitle E—United States 

2 Territories 

3 SEC. 851. APPLICATION OF OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF 

4 LANDS ACT WITH RESPECT TO TERRITORIES 

5 OF THE UNITED STATES. 

6 Section 2 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 

7 (43 U.S.C. 1331) is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (a), by inserting after ‘‘con9 trol’’ the following: ‘‘or lying within the United 

10 States exclusive economic zone and the Continental 

11 Shelf adjacent to any territory of the United 

12 States’’; 

13 (2) in paragraph (p), by striking ‘‘and’’ after 

14 the semicolon at the end; 

15 (3) in paragraph (q), by striking the period at 

16 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

17 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(r) The term ‘State’ includes each territory of the 

19 United States.’’. 


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1 Subtitle F—Miscellaneous 

2 Provisions 

3 SEC. 861. RULES REGARDING DISTRIBUTION OF REVENUES 

4 UNDER GULF OF MEXICO ENERGY SECURITY 

5 ACT OF 2006. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior 

8 shall issue rules to provide more clarity, certainty, and sta9 bility to the revenue streams contemplated by the Gulf of 

10 Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 (43 U.S.C. 1331 

11 note). 

12 (b) CONTENTS.—The rules shall include clarification 

13 of the timing and methods of disbursements of funds 

14 under section 105(b)(2) of such Act. 

15 SEC. 862. AMOUNT OF DISTRIBUTED QUALIFIED OUTER 

16 CONTINENTAL SHELF REVENUES. 

17 Section 105(f)(1) of the Gulf of Mexico Energy Secu18 rity Act of 2006 (title I of division C of Public Law 109– 

19 432; 43 U.S.C. 1331 note) shall be applied by substituting 

20 ‘‘2024, and shall not exceed $999,999,999 for each of fis21 cal years 2025 through 2055’’ for ‘‘2055’’. 

22 SEC. 863. SOUTH ATLANTIC OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF 

23 PLANNING AREA DEFINED. 

24 For the purposes of this Act, the Outer Continental 

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1 tions or 5-year plan issued under that Act, the term 

2 ‘‘South Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Planning Area’’ 

3 means the area of the outer Continental Shelf (as defined 

4 in section 2 of that Act (43 U.S.C. 1331)) that is located 

5 between the northern lateral seaward administrative 

6 boundary of the State of Virginia and the southernmost 

7 lateral seaward administrative boundary of the State of 

8 Georgia. 

9 SEC. 864. ENHANCING GEOLOGICAL AND GEOPHYSICAL IN10 FORMATION FOR AMERICA’S ENERGY FU11 TURE. 

12 Section 11 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 

13 (43 U.S.C. 1340) is amended by adding at the end the 

14 following: 

15 ‘‘(i) ENHANCING GEOLOGICAL AND GEOPHYSICAL

16 INFORMATION FOR AMERICA’S ENERGY FUTURE.— 

17 ‘‘(1) The Secretary, acting through the Director 

18 of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, shall 

19 facilitate and support the practical study of geology 

20 and geophysics to better understand the oil, gas, and 

21 other hydrocarbon potential in the South Atlantic 

22 Outer Continental Shelf Planning Area by entering 

23 into partnerships to conduct geological and geo24 physical activities on the outer Continental Shelf. 


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1 ‘‘(2)(A) No later than 180 days after the date 

2 of enactment of the Lowering Gasoline Prices to 

3 Fuel an America That Works Act of 2015, the Gov4 ernors of the States of Georgia, South Carolina, 

5 North Carolina, and Virginia may each nominate for 

6 participation in the partnerships— 

7 ‘‘(i) one institution of higher education lo8 cated within the Governor’s State; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) one institution of higher education 

10 within the Governor’s State that is a histori11 cally black college or university, as defined in 

12 section 631(a) of the Higher Education Act of 

13 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1132(a)). 

14 ‘‘(B) In making nominations, the Governors 

15 shall give preference to those institutions of higher 

16 education that demonstrate a vigorous rate of ad17 mission of veterans of the Armed Forces of the 

18 United States. 

19 ‘‘(3) The Secretary shall only select as a part20 ner a nominee that the Secretary determines dem21 onstrates excellence in geophysical sciences cur22 riculum, engineering curriculum, or information 

23 technology or other technical studies relating to seis24 mic research (including data processing). 


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1 ‘‘(4) Notwithstanding subsection (d), nominees 

2 selected as partners by the Secretary may conduct 

3 geological and geophysical activities under this sec4 tion after filing a notice with the Secretary 30 days 

5 prior to commencement of the activity without any 

6 further authorization by the Secretary except those 

7 activities that use solid or liquid explosives shall re8 quire a permit. The Secretary may not charge any 

9 fee for the provision of data or other information 

10 collected under this authority, other than the cost of 

11 duplicating any data or information provided. Nomi12 nees selected as partners under this section shall 

13 provide to the Secretary any data or other informa14 tion collected under this subsection within 60 days 

15 after completion of an initial analysis of the data or 

16 other information collected, if so requested by the 

17 Secretary. 

18 ‘‘(5) Data or other information produced as a 

19 result of activities conducted by nominees selected as 

20 partners under this subsection shall not be used or 

21 shared for commercial purposes by the nominee, may 

22 not be produced for proprietary use or sale, and 

23 shall be made available by the Secretary to the pub24 lic. 


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1 ‘‘(6) The Secretary shall submit to the Com2 mittee on Natural Resources of the House of Rep3 resentatives and the Committee on Energy and Nat4 ural Resources of the Senate reports on the data or 

5 other information produced under the partnerships 

6 under this section. Such reports shall be made no 

7 less frequently than every 180 days following the 

8 conduct of the first geological and geophysical activi9 ties under this section. 

10 ‘‘(7) In this subsection the term ‘geological and 

11 geophysical activities’ means any oil- or gas-related 

12 investigation conducted on the outer Continental 

13 Shelf, including geophysical surveys where magnetic, 

14 gravity, seismic, or other systems are used to detect 

15 or imply the presence of oil or gas.’’. 

16 Subtitle G—Judicial Review 

17 SEC. 871. TIME FOR FILING COMPLAINT. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Any cause of action that arises 

19 from a covered energy decision must be filed not later than 

20 the end of the 60-day period beginning on the date of the 

21 covered energy decision. Any cause of action not filed with22 in this time period shall be barred. 

23 (b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to 

24 a cause of action brought by a party to a covered energy 

25 lease. 


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1 SEC. 872. DISTRICT COURT DEADLINE. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—All proceedings that are subject 

3 to section 10701— 

4 (1) shall be brought in the United States dis5 trict court for the district in which the Federal prop6 erty for which a covered energy lease is issued is lo7 cated or the United States District Court of the Dis8 trict of Columbia; 

9 (2) shall be resolved as expeditiously as pos10 sible, and in any event not more than 180 days after 

11 such cause or claim is filed; and 

12 (3) shall take precedence over all other pending 

13 matters before the district court. 

14 (b) FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH DEADLINE.—If an 

15 interlocutory or final judgment, decree, or order has not 

16 been issued by the district court by the deadline described 

17 under this section, the cause or claim shall be dismissed 

18 with prejudice and all rights relating to such cause or 

19 claim shall be terminated. 

20 SEC. 873. ABILITY TO SEEK APPELLATE REVIEW. 

21 An interlocutory or final judgment, decree, or order 

22 of the district court in a proceeding that is subject to sec23 tion 871 may be reviewed by the U.S. Court of Appeals 

24 for the District of Columbia Circuit. The D.C. Circuit 

25 shall resolve any such appeal as expeditiously as possible 

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1 terlocutory or final judgment, decree, or order of the dis2 trict court was issued. 

3 SEC. 874. LIMITATION ON SCOPE OF REVIEW AND RELIEF. 

4 (a) ADMINISTRATIVE FINDINGS AND CONCLU5 SIONS.—In any judicial review of any Federal action under 

6 this subtitle, any administrative findings and conclusions 

7 relating to the challenged Federal action shall be pre8 sumed to be correct unless shown otherwise by clear and 

9 convincing evidence contained in the administrative 

10 record. 

11 (b) LIMITATION ON PROSPECTIVE RELIEF.—In any 

12 judicial review of any action, or failure to act, under this 

13 subtitle, the Court shall not grant or approve any prospec14 tive relief unless the Court finds that such relief is nar15 rowly drawn, extends no further than necessary to correct 

16 the violation of a Federal law requirement, and is the least 

17 intrusive means necessary to correct the violation con18 cerned. 

19 SEC. 875. LEGAL FEES. 

20 Any person filing a petition seeking judicial review 

21 of any action, or failure to act, under this subtitle who 

22 is not a prevailing party shall pay to the prevailing parties 

23 (including intervening parties), other than the United 

24 States, fees and other expenses incurred by that party in 

25 connection with the judicial review, unless the Court finds 


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1 that the position of the person was substantially justified 

2 or that special circumstances make an award unjust. 

3 SEC. 876. EXCLUSION. 

4 This subtitle shall not apply with respect to disputes 

5 between the parties to a lease issued pursuant to an au6 thorizing leasing statute regarding the obligations of such 

7 lease or the alleged breach thereof. 

8 SEC. 877. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this subtitle, the following definitions apply: 

10 (1) COVERED ENERGY DECISION.—The term 

11 ‘‘covered energy decision’’ means any action or deci12 sion by a Federal official regarding the issuance of 

13 a covered energy lease. 

14 (2) COVERED ENERGY LEASE.—The term ‘‘cov15 ered energy lease’’ means any lease under this title 

16 or under an oil and gas leasing program under this 

17 title. 


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1 TITLE IX—INCREASING ON2 SHORE OIL AND GAS DEVEL3 OPMENT AND ENERGY SECU4 RITY 

5 Subtitle A—Federal Lands Jobs 

6 and Energy Security 

7 SEC. 901. SHORT TITLE. 

8 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Lands 

9 Jobs and Energy Security Act’’. 

10 SEC. 902. POLICIES REGARDING BUYING, BUILDING, AND 

11 WORKING FOR AMERICA. 

12 (a) CONGRESSIONAL INTENT.—It is the intent of the 

13 Congress that— 

14 (1) this subtitle will support a healthy and 

15 growing United States domestic energy sector that, 

16 in turn, helps to reinvigorate American manufac17 turing, transportation, and service sectors by em18 ploying the vast talents of United States workers to 

19 assist in the development of energy from domestic 

20 sources; 

21 (2) to ensure a robust onshore energy produc22 tion industry and ensure that the benefits of devel23 opment support local communities, under this sub24 title, the Secretary shall make every effort to pro25 mote the development of onshore American energy, 


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1 and shall take into consideration the socioeconomic 

2 impacts, infrastructure requirements, and fiscal sta3 bility for local communities located within areas con4 taining onshore energy resources; and 

5 (3) the Congress will monitor the deployment of 

6 personnel and material onshore to encourage the de7 velopment of American manufacturing to enable 

8 United States workers to benefit from this subtitle 

9 through good jobs and careers, as well as the estab10 lishment of important industrial facilities to support 

11 expanded access to American resources. 

12 (b) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary of the Interior 

13 shall when possible, and practicable, encourage the use of 

14 United States workers and equipment manufactured in 

15 the United States in all construction related to mineral 

16 resource development under this subtitle. 

17 CHAPTER 1—ONSHORE OIL AND GAS 

18 PERMIT STREAMLINING 

19 Subchapter A—Miscellaneous Provisions 

20 SEC. 911. SHORT TITLE. 

21 This chapter may be cited as the ‘‘Streamlining Per22 mitting of American Energy Act of 2015’’. 

23 SEC. 912. PERMIT TO DRILL APPLICATION TIMELINE. 

24 Section 17(p)(2) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 

25 U.S.C. 226(p)(2)) is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(2) APPLICATIONS FOR PERMITS TO DRILL RE2 FORM AND PROCESS.— 

3 ‘‘(A) TIMELINE.—The Secretary shall de4 cide whether to issue a permit to drill within 30 

5 days after receiving an application for the per6 mit. The Secretary may extend such period for 

7 up to 2 periods of 15 days each, if the Sec8 retary has given written notice of the delay to 

9 the applicant. The notice shall be in the form 

10 of a letter from the Secretary or a designee of 

11 the Secretary, and shall include the names and 

12 titles of the persons processing the application, 

13 the specific reasons for the delay, and a specific 

14 date a final decision on the application is ex15 pected. 

16 ‘‘(B) NOTICE OF REASONS FOR DENIAL.— 

17 If the application is denied, the Secretary shall 

18 provide the applicant— 

19 ‘‘(i) in writing, clear and comprehen20 sive reasons why the application was not 

21 accepted and detailed information con22 cerning any deficiencies; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) an opportunity to remedy any de24 ficiencies. 


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1 ‘‘(C) APPLICATION DEEMED APPROVED.— 

2 If the Secretary has not made a decision on the 

3 application by the end of the 60-day period be4 ginning on the date the application is received 

5 by the Secretary, the application is deemed ap6 proved, except in cases in which existing reviews 

7 under the National Environmental Policy Act of 

8 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) or the Endan9 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 

10 seq.) are incomplete. 

11 ‘‘(D) DENIAL OF PERMIT.—If the Sec12 retary decides not to issue a permit to drill in 

13 accordance with subparagraph (A), the Sec14 retary shall— 

15 ‘‘(i) provide to the applicant a descrip16 tion of the reasons for the denial of the 

17 permit; 

18 ‘‘(ii) allow the applicant to resubmit 

19 an application for a permit to drill during 

20 the 10-day period beginning on the date 

21 the applicant receives the description of 

22 the denial from the Secretary; and 

23 ‘‘(iii) issue or deny any resubmitted 

24 application not later than 10 days after the 


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1 date the application is submitted to the 

2 Secretary. 

3 ‘‘(E) FEE.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding 

5 any other law, the Secretary shall collect a 

6 single $6,500 permit processing fee per ap7 plication from each applicant at the time 

8 the final decision is made whether to issue 

9 a permit under subparagraph (A). This fee 

10 shall not apply to any resubmitted applica11 tion. 

12 ‘‘(ii) TREATMENT OF PERMIT PROC13 ESSING FEE.—Of all fees collected under 

14 this paragraph, 50 percent shall be trans15 ferred to the field office where they are col16 lected and used to process protests, leases, 

17 and permits under this Act subject to ap18 propriation.’’. 

19 SEC. 913. ADMINISTRATIVE PROTEST DOCUMENTATION RE20 FORM. 

21 Section 17(p) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

22 226(p)) is further amended by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(4) PROTEST FEE.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

2 collect a $5,000 documentation fee to accom3 pany each protest for a lease, right-of-way, or 

4 application for permit to drill. 

5 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF FEES.—Of all fees 

6 collected under this paragraph, 50 percent shall 

7 remain in the field office where they are col8 lected and used to process protests subject to 

9 appropriation.’’. 

10 SEC. 914. MAKING PILOT OFFICES PERMANENT TO IM11 PROVE ENERGY PERMITTING ON FEDERAL 

12 LANDS. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of the Interior 

14 (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall estab15 lish a Federal Permit Streamlining Project (referred to 

16 in this section as the ‘‘Project’’) in every Bureau of Land 

17 Management field office with responsibility for permitting 

18 energy projects on Federal land. 

19 (b) MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

21 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

22 shall enter into a memorandum of understanding for 

23 purposes of this section with— 

24 (A) the Secretary of Agriculture; 


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1 (B) the Administrator of the Environ2 mental Protection Agency; and 

3 (C) the Chief of the Army Corps of Engi4 neers. 

5 (2) STATE PARTICIPATION.—The Secretary 

6 may request that the Governor of any State with en7 ergy projects on Federal lands to be a signatory to 

8 the memorandum of understanding. 

9 (c) DESIGNATION OF QUALIFIED STAFF.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 

11 the date of the signing of the memorandum of un12 derstanding under subsection (b), all Federal signa13 tory parties shall, if appropriate, assign to each of 

14 the Bureau of Land Management field offices an 

15 employee who has expertise in the regulatory issues 

16 relating to the office in which the employee is em17 ployed, including, as applicable, particular expertise 

18 in— 

19 (A) the consultations and the preparation 

20 of biological opinions under section 7 of the En21 dangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

22 1536); 

23 (B) permits under section 404 of the Fed24 eral Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 

25 1344); 


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1 (C) regulatory matters under the Clean Air 

2 Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.); 

3 (D) planning under the National Forest 

4 Management Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 472a et 

5 seq.); and 

6 (E) the preparation of analyses under the 

7 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

8 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 

9 (2) DUTIES.—Each employee assigned under 

10 paragraph (1) shall— 

11 (A) not later than 90 days after the date 

12 of assignment, report to the Bureau of Land 

13 Management Field Managers in the office to 

14 which the employee is assigned; 

15 (B) be responsible for all issues relating to 

16 the energy projects that arise under the au17 thorities of the employee’s home agency; and 

18 (C) participate as part of the team of per19 sonnel working on proposed energy projects, 

20 planning, and environmental analyses on Fed21 eral lands. 

22 (d) ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL.—The Secretary shall 

23 assign to each Bureau of Land Management field office 

24 identified in subsection (a) any additional personnel that 

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1 mentation of energy projects administered by the Bureau 

2 of Land Management field offices, including inspection 

3 and enforcement relating to energy development on Fed4 eral land, in accordance with the multiple use mandate 

5 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 

6 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.). 

7 (e) FUNDING.—Funding for the additional personnel 

8 shall come from the Department of the Interior reforms 

9 identified in sections 21111 and 21121. 

10 (f) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Nothing in this section af11 fects— 

12 (1) the operation of any Federal or State law; 

13 or 

14 (2) any delegation of authority made by the 

15 head of a Federal agency whose employees are par16 ticipating in the Project. 

17 (g) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section the 

18 term ‘‘energy projects’’ includes oil, natural gas, and other 

19 energy projects as defined by the Secretary. 

20 SEC. 915. ADMINISTRATION OF CURRENT LAW. 

21 Notwithstanding any other law, the Secretary of the 

22 Interior shall not require a finding of extraordinary cir23 cumstances in administering section 390 of the Energy 

24 Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15942). 


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1 SEC. 916. FUNDING OIL AND GAS RESOURCE ASSESSMENTS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall 

3 provide matching funding for joint projects with States to 

4 conduct oil and gas resource assessments on Federal lands 

5 with significant oil and gas potential. 

6 (b) COST SHARING.—The Federal share of the cost 

7 of activities under this section shall not exceed 50 percent. 

8 (c) RESOURCE ASSESSMENT.—Any resource assess9 ment under this section shall be conducted by a State, in 

10 consultation with the United States Geological Survey. 

11 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

12 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 

13 out this section a total of $50,000,000 for fiscal years 

14 2015 through 2018. 

15 SEC. 917. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

16 Nothing in this subtitle shall be construed to author17 ize the issuance of a lease under the Mineral Leasing Act 

18 (30 U.S.C. 181 et seq.) to any person designated for the 

19 imposition of sanctions pursuant to— 

20 (1) the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996 (50 U.S.C. 

21 1701 note), the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Ac22 countability and Divestiture Act of 2010 (22 U.S.C. 

23 8501 et seq.), the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria 

24 Human Rights Act of 2012 (22 U.S.C. 8701 et 

25 seq.), section 1245 of the National Defense Author26 ization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (22 U.S.C. 8513a), 


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1 or the Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act 

2 of 2012 (22 U.S.C. 8801 et seq.); 

3 (2) Executive Order No. 13622 (July 30, 

4 2012), Executive Order No. 13628 (October 9, 

5 2012), or Executive Order No. 13645 (June 3, 

6 2013); 

7 (3) Executive Order No. 13224 (September 23, 

8 2001) or Executive Order No. 13338 (May 11, 

9 2004); or 

10 (4) the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sov11 ereignty Restoration Act of 2003 (22 U.S.C. 2151 

12 note). 

13 Subchapter B—Judicial Review 

14 SEC. 921. DEFINITIONS. 

15 In this subchapter— 

16 (1) the term ‘‘covered civil action’’ means a civil 

17 action containing a claim under section 702 of title 

18 5, United States Code, regarding agency action (as 

19 defined for the purposes of that section) affecting a 

20 covered energy project on Federal lands of the 

21 United States; and 

22 (2) the term ‘‘covered energy project’’ means 

23 the leasing of Federal lands of the United States for 

24 the exploration, development, production, processing, 

25 or transmission of oil, natural gas, or any other 


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1 source of energy, and any action under such a lease, 

2 except that the term does not include any disputes 

3 between the parties to a lease regarding the obliga4 tions under such lease, including regarding any al5 leged breach of the lease. 

6 SEC. 922. EXCLUSIVE VENUE FOR CERTAIN CIVIL ACTIONS 

7 RELATING TO COVERED ENERGY PROJECTS. 

8 Venue for any covered civil action shall lie in the dis9 trict court where the project or leases exist or are pro10 posed. 

11 SEC. 923. TIMELY FILING. 

12 To ensure timely redress by the courts, a covered civil 

13 action must be filed no later than the end of the 90-day 

14 period beginning on the date of the final Federal agency 

15 action to which it relates. 

16 SEC. 924. EXPEDITION IN HEARING AND DETERMINING THE 

17 ACTION. 

18 The court shall endeavor to hear and determine any 

19 covered civil action as expeditiously as possible. 

20 SEC. 925. STANDARD OF REVIEW. 

21 In any judicial review of a covered civil action, admin22 istrative findings and conclusions relating to the chal23 lenged Federal action or decision shall be presumed to be 

24 correct, and the presumption may be rebutted only by the 


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1 preponderance of the evidence contained in the adminis2 trative record. 

3 SEC. 926. LIMITATION ON INJUNCTION AND PROSPECTIVE 

4 RELIEF. 

5 In a covered civil action, the court shall not grant 

6 or approve any prospective relief unless the court finds 

7 that such relief is narrowly drawn, extends no further than 

8 necessary to correct the violation of a legal requirement, 

9 and is the least intrusive means necessary to correct that 

10 violation. In addition, courts shall limit the duration of 

11 preliminary injunctions to halt covered energy projects to 

12 no more than 60 days, unless the court finds clear reasons 

13 to extend the injunction. In such cases of extensions, such 

14 extensions shall only be in 30-day increments and shall 

15 require action by the court to renew the injunction. 

16 SEC. 927. LIMITATION ON ATTORNEYS’ FEES. 

17 Sections 504 of title 5, United States Code, and 2412 

18 of title 28, United States Code (together commonly called 

19 the Equal Access to Justice Act), do not apply to a covered 

20 civil action, nor shall any party in such a covered civil ac21 tion receive payment from the Federal Government for 

22 their attorneys’ fees, expenses, and other court costs. 

23 SEC. 928. LEGAL STANDING. 

24 Challengers filing appeals with the Department of the 

25 Interior Board of Land Appeals shall meet the same 


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1 standing requirements as challengers before a United 

2 States district court. 

3 CHAPTER 2—OIL AND GAS LEASING 

4 CERTAINTY 

5 SEC. 931. SHORT TITLE. 

6 This chapter may be cited as the ‘‘Providing Leasing 

7 Certainty for American Energy Act of 2015’’. 

8 SEC. 932. MINIMUM ACREAGE REQUIREMENT FOR ON9 SHORE LEASE SALES. 

10 In conducting lease sales as required by section 17(a) 

11 of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(a)), each year 

12 the Secretary of the Interior shall perform the following: 

13 (1) The Secretary shall offer for sale no less 

14 than 25 percent of the annual nominated acreage 

15 not previously made available for lease. Acreage of16 fered for lease pursuant to this paragraph shall not 

17 be subject to protest and shall be eligible for cat18 egorical exclusions under section 390 of the Energy 

19 Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15942), except that 

20 it shall not be subject to the test of extraordinary 

21 circumstances. 

22 (2) In administering this section, the Secretary 

23 shall only consider leasing of Federal lands that are 

24 available for leasing at the time the lease sale oc25 curs. 


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1 SEC. 933. LEASING CERTAINTY. 

2 Section 17(a) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

3 226(a)) is amended by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘All lands’’, 

4 and by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(2)(A) The Secretary shall not withdraw any cov6 ered energy project issued under this Act without finding 

7 a violation of the terms of the lease by the lessee. 

8 ‘‘(B) The Secretary shall not infringe upon lease 

9 rights under leases issued under this Act by indefinitely 

10 delaying issuance of project approvals, drilling and seismic 

11 permits, and rights of way for activities under such a 

12 lease. 

13 ‘‘(C) No later than 18 months after an area is des14 ignated as open under the current land use plan the Sec15 retary shall make available nominated areas for lease 

16 under the criteria in section 2. 

17 ‘‘(D) Notwithstanding any other law, the Secretary 

18 shall issue all leases sold no later than 60 days after the 

19 last payment is made. 

20 ‘‘(E) The Secretary shall not cancel or withdraw any 

21 lease parcel after a competitive lease sale has occurred and 

22 a winning bidder has submitted the last payment for the 

23 parcel. 

24 ‘‘(F) After the conclusion of the public comment pe25 riod for a planned competitive lease sale, the Secretary 


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1 shall not cancel, defer, or withdraw any lease parcel an2 nounced to be auctioned in the lease sale. 

3 ‘‘(G) Not later than 60 days after a lease sale held 

4 under this Act, the Secretary shall adjudicate any lease 

5 protests filed following a lease sale. If after 60 days any 

6 protest is left unsettled, said protest is automatically de7 nied and appeal rights of the protestor begin. 

8 ‘‘(H) No additional lease stipulations may be added 

9 after the parcel is sold without consultation and agree10 ment of the lessee, unless the Secretary deems such stipu11 lations as emergency actions to conserve the resources of 

12 the United States.’’. 

13 SEC. 934. LEASING CONSISTENCY. 

14 Federal land managers must follow existing resource 

15 management plans and continue to actively lease in areas 

16 designated as open when resource management plans are 

17 being amended or revised, until such time as a new record 

18 of decision is signed. 

19 SEC. 935. REDUCE REDUNDANT POLICIES. 

20 Bureau of Land Management Instruction Memo21 randum 2010–117 shall have no force or effect. 

22 SEC. 936. STREAMLINED CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATION. 

23 Section 31(e) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

24 188(e)) is amended in the matter following paragraph (4) 


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1 by striking ‘‘at least thirty days in advance of the rein2 statement’’ and inserting ‘‘in an annual report’’. 

3 CHAPTER 3—OIL SHALE 

4 SEC. 941. SHORT TITLE. 

5 This chapter may be cited as the ‘‘Protecting Invest6 ment in Oil Shale the Next Generation of Environmental, 

7 Energy, and Resource Security Act’’ or the ‘‘PIONEERS 

8 Act’’. 

9 SEC. 942. EFFECTIVENESS OF OIL SHALE REGULATIONS, 

10 AMENDMENTS TO RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 

11 PLANS, AND RECORD OF DECISION. 

12 (a) REGULATIONS.—Notwithstanding any other law 

13 or regulation to the contrary, the final regulations regard14 ing oil shale management published by the Bureau of 

15 Land Management on November 18, 2008 (73 Fed. Reg. 

16 69,414), are deemed to satisfy all legal and procedural re17 quirements under any law, including the Federal Land 

18 Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et 

19 seq.), the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

20 1531 et seq.), and the National Environmental Policy Act 

21 of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and the Secretary of 

22 the Interior shall implement those regulations, including 

23 the oil shale leasing program authorized by the regula24 tions, without any other administrative action necessary. 


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1 (b) AMENDMENTS TO RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

2 PLANS AND RECORD OF DECISION.—Notwithstanding 

3 any other law or regulation to the contrary, the November 

4 17, 2008, U.S. Bureau of Land Management Approved 

5 Resource Management Plan Amendments/Record of Deci6 sion for Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resources to Address 

7 Land Use Allocations in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming 

8 and Final Programmatic Environmental Impact State9 ment are deemed to satisfy all legal and procedural re10 quirements under any law, including the Federal Land 

11 Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et 

12 seq.), the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

13 1531 et seq.), and the National Environmental Policy Act 

14 of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and the Secretary of 

15 the Interior shall implement the oil shale leasing program 

16 authorized by the regulations referred to in subsection (a) 

17 in those areas covered by the resource management plans 

18 amended by such amendments, and covered by such record 

19 of decision, without any other administrative action nec20 essary. 

21 SEC. 943. OIL SHALE LEASING. 

22 (a) ADDITIONAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

23 LEASE SALES.—The Secretary of the Interior shall hold 

24 a lease sale within 180 days after the date of enactment 

25 of this Act offering an additional 10 parcels for lease for 


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1 research, development, and demonstration of oil shale re2 sources, under the terms offered in the solicitation of bids 

3 for such leases published on January 15, 2009 (74 Fed. 

4 Reg. 10). 

5 (b) COMMERCIAL LEASE SALES.—No later than Jan6 uary 1, 2016, the Secretary of the Interior shall hold no 

7 less than 5 separate commercial lease sales in areas con8 sidered to have the most potential for oil shale develop9 ment, as determined by the Secretary, in areas nominated 

10 through public comment. Each lease sale shall be for an 

11 area of not less than 25,000 acres, and in multiple lease 

12 blocs. 

13 Subtitle B—Planning for American 

14 Energy 

15 SEC. 951. SHORT TITLE. 

16 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Planning for Amer17 ican Energy Act of 2015’’. 

18 SEC. 952. ONSHORE DOMESTIC ENERGY PRODUCTION 

19 STRATEGIC PLAN. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Mineral Leasing Act (30 

21 U.S.C. 181 et seq.) is amended by redesignating section 

22 44 as section 45, and by inserting after section 43 the 

23 following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 44. QUADRENNIAL STRATEGIC FEDERAL ONSHORE 

2 ENERGY PRODUCTION STRATEGY. 

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 

4 ‘‘(1) The Secretary of the Interior (hereafter in 

5 this section referred to as ‘Secretary’), in consulta6 tion with the Secretary of Agriculture with regard to 

7 lands administered by the Forest Service, shall de8 velop and publish every 4 years a Quadrennial Fed9 eral Onshore Energy Production Strategy. This 

10 Strategy shall direct Federal land energy develop11 ment and department resource allocation in order to 

12 promote the energy and national security of the 

13 United States in accordance with Bureau of Land 

14 Management’s mission of promoting the multiple use 

15 of Federal lands as set forth in the Federal Land 

16 Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 

17 1701 et seq.). 

18 ‘‘(2) In developing this Strategy, the Secretary 

19 shall consult with the Administrator of the Energy 

20 Information Administration on the projected energy 

21 demands of the United States for the next 30-year 

22 period, and how energy derived from Federal on23 shore lands can put the United States on a trajec24 tory to meet that demand during the next 4-year pe25 riod. The Secretary shall consider how Federal lands 

26 will contribute to ensuring national energy security, 


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1 with a goal for increasing energy independence and 

2 production, during the next 4-year period. 

3 ‘‘(3) The Secretary shall determine a domestic 

4 strategic production objective for the development of 

5 energy resources from Federal onshore lands. Such 

6 objective shall be— 

7 ‘‘(A) the best estimate, based upon com8 mercial and scientific data, of the expected in9 crease in domestic production of oil and natural 

10 gas from the Federal onshore mineral estate, 

11 with a focus on lands held by the Bureau of 

12 Land Management and the Forest Service; 

13 ‘‘(B) the best estimate, based upon com14 mercial and scientific data, of the expected in15 crease in domestic coal production from Federal 

16 lands; 

17 ‘‘(C) the best estimate, based upon com18 mercial and scientific data, of the expected in19 crease in domestic production of strategic and 

20 critical energy minerals from the Federal on21 shore mineral estate; 

22 ‘‘(D) the best estimate, based upon com23 mercial and scientific data, of the expected in24 crease in megawatts for electricity production 

25 from each of the following sources: wind, solar, 


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1 biomass, hydropower, and geothermal energy 

2 produced on Federal lands administered by the 

3 Bureau of Land Management and the Forest 

4 Service; 

5 ‘‘(E) the best estimate, based upon com6 mercial and scientific data, of the expected in7 crease in unconventional energy production, 

8 such as oil shale; 

9 ‘‘(F) the best estimate, based upon com10 mercial and scientific data, of the expected in11 crease in domestic production of oil, natural 

12 gas, coal, and other renewable sources from 

13 tribal lands for any federally recognized Indian 

14 tribe that elects to participate in facilitating en15 ergy production on its lands; 

16 ‘‘(G) the best estimate, based upon com17 mercial and scientific data, of the expected in18 crease in production of helium on Federal lands 

19 administered by the Bureau of Land Manage20 ment and the Forest Service; and 

21 ‘‘(H) the best estimate, based upon com22 mercial and scientific data, of the expected in23 crease in domestic production of geothermal, 

24 solar, wind, or other renewable energy sources 

25 from ‘available lands’ (as such term is defined 


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1 in section 203 of the Hawaiian Homes Commis2 sion Act, 1920 (42 Stat. 108 et seq.), and in3 cluding any other lands deemed by the Terri4 tory or State of Hawaii, as the case may be, to 

5 be included within that definition) that the 

6 agency or department of the government of the 

7 State of Hawaii that is responsible for the ad8 ministration of such lands selects to be used for 

9 such energy production. 

10 ‘‘(4) The Secretary shall consult with the Ad11 ministrator of the Energy Information Administra12 tion regarding the methodology used to arrive at its 

13 estimates for purposes of this section. 

14 ‘‘(5) The Secretary has the authority to expand 

15 the energy development plan to include other energy 

16 production technology sources or advancements in 

17 energy on Federal lands. 

18 ‘‘(6) The Secretary shall include in the Strategy 

19 a plan for addressing new demands for transmission 

20 lines and pipelines for distribution of oil and gas 

21 across Federal lands to ensure that energy produced 

22 can be distributed to areas of need. 

23 ‘‘(b) TRIBAL OBJECTIVES.—It is the sense of Con24 gress that federally recognized Indian tribes may elect to 

25 set their own production objectives as part of the Strategy 


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1 under this section. The Secretary shall work in coopera2 tion with any federally recognized Indian tribe that elects 

3 to participate in achieving its own strategic energy objec4 tives designated under this subsection. 

5 ‘‘(c) EXECUTION OF THE STRATEGY.—The relevant 

6 Secretary shall have all necessary authority to make deter7 minations regarding which additional lands will be made 

8 available in order to meet the production objectives estab9 lished by strategies under this section. The Secretary shall 

10 also take all necessary actions to achieve these production 

11 objectives unless the President determines that it is not 

12 in the national security and economic interests of the 

13 United States to increase Federal domestic energy produc14 tion and to further decrease dependence upon foreign 

15 sources of energy. In administering this section, the rel16 evant Secretary shall only consider leasing Federal lands 

17 available for leasing at the time the lease sale occurs. 

18 ‘‘(d) STATE, FEDERALLY RECOGNIZED INDIAN

19 TRIBES, LOCAL GOVERNMENT, AND PUBLIC INPUT.—In 

20 developing each strategy, the Secretary shall solicit the 

21 input of affected States, federally recognized Indian tribes, 

22 local governments, and the public. 

23 ‘‘(e) REPORTING.—The Secretary shall report annu24 ally to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House 

25 of Representatives and the Committee on Energy and 


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1 Natural Resources of the Senate on the progress of meet2 ing the production goals set forth in the strategy. The Sec3 retary shall identify in the report projections for produc4 tion and capacity installations and any problems with leas5 ing, permitting, siting, or production that will prevent 

6 meeting the goal. In addition, the Secretary shall make 

7 suggestions to help meet any shortfalls in meeting the pro8 duction goals. 

9 ‘‘(f) PROGRAMMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

10 STATEMENT.—Not later than 12 months after the date 

11 of enactment of this section, in accordance with section 

12 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 

13 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)), the Secretary shall com14 plete a programmatic environmental impact statement. 

15 This programmatic environmental impact statement will 

16 be deemed sufficient to comply with all requirements 

17 under that Act for all necessary resource management and 

18 land use plans associated with the implementation of the 

19 strategy. 

20 ‘‘(g) CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW.—At least 60 days 

21 prior to publishing a proposed strategy under this section, 

22 the Secretary shall submit it to the President and the Con23 gress, together with any comments received from States, 

24 federally recognized Indian tribes, and local governments. 

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1 ommendation of a State, federally recognized Indian tribe, 

2 or local government was not accepted. 

3 ‘‘(h) STRATEGIC AND CRITICAL ENERGY MINERALS

4 DEFINED.—For purposes of this section, the term ‘stra5 tegic and critical energy minerals’ means those that are 

6 necessary for the Nation’s energy infrastructure including 

7 pipelines, refining capacity, electrical power generation 

8 and transmission, and renewable energy production and 

9 those that are necessary to support domestic manufac10 turing, including but not limited to, materials used in en11 ergy generation, production, and transportation.’’. 

12 (b) FIRST QUADRENNIAL STRATEGY.—Not later 

13 than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, 

14 the Secretary of the Interior shall submit to Congress the 

15 first Quadrennial Federal Onshore Energy Production 

16 Strategy under the amendment made by subsection (a). 

17 Subtitle C—National Petroleum 

18 Reserve in Alaska Access 

19 SEC. 961. SHORT TITLE. 

20 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘National Petro21 leum Reserve Alaska Access Act’’. 

22 SEC. 962. SENSE OF CONGRESS AND REAFFIRMING NA23 TIONAL POLICY FOR THE NATIONAL PETRO24 LEUM RESERVE IN ALASKA. 

25 It is the sense of Congress that— 


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1 (1) the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska 

2 remains explicitly designated, both in name and legal 

3 status, for purposes of providing oil and natural gas 

4 resources to the United States; and 

5 (2) accordingly, the national policy is to actively 

6 advance oil and gas development within the Reserve 

7 by facilitating the expeditious exploration, produc8 tion, and transportation of oil and natural gas from 

9 and through the Reserve. 

10 SEC. 963. NATIONAL PETROLEUM RESERVE IN ALASKA: 

11 LEASE SALES. 

12 Section 107(a) of the Naval Petroleum Reserves Pro13 duction Act of 1976 (42 U.S.C. 6506a(a)) is amended to 

14 read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall conduct an 

16 expeditious program of competitive leasing of oil and gas 

17 in the reserve in accordance with this Act. Such program 

18 shall include at least one lease sale annually in those areas 

19 of the reserve most likely to produce commercial quantities 

20 of oil and natural gas each year in the period 2017 

21 through 2027.’’. 


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1 SEC. 964. NATIONAL PETROLEUM RESERVE IN ALASKA: 

2 PLANNING AND PERMITTING PIPELINE AND 

3 ROAD CONSTRUCTION. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi5 sion of law, the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation 

6 with other appropriate Federal agencies, shall facilitate 

7 and ensure permits, in a timely and environmentally re8 sponsible manner, for all surface development activities, 

9 including for the construction of pipelines and roads, nec10 essary to— 

11 (1) develop and bring into production any areas 

12 within the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska 

13 that are subject to oil and gas leases; and 

14 (2) transport oil and gas from and through the 

15 National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska in the most 

16 direct manner possible to existing transportation or 

17 processing infrastructure on the North Slope of 

18 Alaska. 

19 (b) TIMELINE.—The Secretary shall ensure that any 

20 Federal permitting agency shall issue permits in accord21 ance with the following timeline: 

22 (1) Permits for such construction for transpor23 tation of oil and natural gas produced under existing 

24 Federal oil and gas leases with respect to which the 

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1 proved within 60 days after the date of enactment 

2 of this Act. 

3 (2) Permits for such construction for transpor4 tation of oil and natural gas produced under Federal 

5 oil and gas leases shall be approved within 6 months 

6 after the submission to the Secretary of a request 

7 for a permit to drill. 

8 (c) PLAN.—To ensure timely future development of 

9 the Reserve, within 270 days after the date of the enact10 ment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall submit 

11 to Congress a plan for approved rights-of-way for a plan 

12 for pipeline, road, and any other surface infrastructure 

13 that may be necessary infrastructure that will ensure that 

14 all leasable tracts in the Reserve are within 25 miles of 

15 an approved road and pipeline right-of-way that can serve 

16 future development of the Reserve. 

17 SEC. 965. ISSUANCE OF A NEW INTEGRATED ACTIVITY 

18 PLAN AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATE19 MENT. 

20 (a) ISSUANCE OF NEW INTEGRATED ACTIVITY

21 PLAN.—The Secretary of the Interior shall, within 180 

22 days after the date of enactment of this Act, issue— 

23 (1) a new proposed integrated activity plan 

24 from among the non-adopted alternatives in the Na25 tional Petroleum Reserve Alaska Integrated Activity 


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1 Plan Record of Decision issued by the Secretary of 

2 the Interior and dated February 21, 2013; and 

3 (2) an environmental impact statement under 

4 section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental 

5 Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)) for 

6 issuance of oil and gas leases in the National Petro7 leum Reserve-Alaska to promote efficient and max8 imum development of oil and natural gas resources 

9 of such reserve. 

10 (b) NULLIFICATION OF EXISTING RECORD OF DECI11 SION, IAP, AND EIS.—Except as provided in subsection 

12 (a), the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska Integrated 

13 Activity Plan Record of Decision issued by the Secretary 

14 of the Interior and dated February 21, 2013, including 

15 the integrated activity plan and environmental impact 

16 statement referred to in that record of decision, shall have 

17 no force or effect. 

18 SEC. 966. DEPARTMENTAL ACCOUNTABILITY FOR DEVEL19 OPMENT. 

20 The Secretary of the Interior shall issue regulations 

21 not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of 

22 this Act that establish clear requirements to ensure that 

23 the Department of the Interior is supporting development 

24 of oil and gas leases in the National Petroleum Reserve25 Alaska. 


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1 SEC. 967. DEADLINES UNDER NEW PROPOSED INTEGRATED 

2 ACTIVITY PLAN. 

3 At a minimum, the new proposed integrated activity 

4 plan issued under section 965(a)(1) shall— 

5 (1) require the Department of the Interior to 

6 respond within 5 business days to a person who sub7 mits an application for a permit for development of 

8 oil and natural gas leases in the National Petroleum 

9 Reserve-Alaska acknowledging receipt of such appli10 cation; and 

11 (2) establish a timeline for the processing of 

12 each such application, that— 

13 (A) specifies deadlines for decisions and 

14 actions on permit applications; and 

15 (B) provides that the period for issuing 

16 each permit after submission of such an appli17 cation shall not exceed 60 days without the con18 currence of the applicant. 

19 SEC. 968. UPDATED RESOURCE ASSESSMENT. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall 

21 complete a comprehensive assessment of all technically re22 coverable fossil fuel resources within the National Petro23 leum Reserve in Alaska, including all conventional and un24 conventional oil and natural gas. 

25 (b) COOPERATION AND CONSULTATION.—The re26 source assessment required by subsection (a) shall be carVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:09 Oct 08, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00255 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3682.IH H3682

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1 ried out by the United States Geological Survey in co2 operation and consultation with the State of Alaska and 

3 the American Association of Petroleum Geologists. 

4 (c) TIMING.—The resource assessment required by 

5 subsection (a) shall be completed within 24 months of the 

6 date of the enactment of this Act. 

7 (d) FUNDING.—The United States Geological Survey 

8 may, in carrying out the duties under this section, coop9 eratively use resources and funds provided by the State 

10 of Alaska. 

11 Subtitle D—BLM Live Internet 

12 Auctions 

13 SEC. 971. SHORT TITLE. 

14 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘BLM Live Internet 

15 Auctions Act’’. 

16 SEC. 972. INTERNET-BASED ONSHORE OIL AND GAS LEASE 

17 SALES. 

18 (a) AUTHORIZATION.—Section 17(b)(1) of the Min19 eral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(b)(1)) is amended— 

20 (1) in subparagraph (A), in the third sentence, 

21 by inserting ‘‘, except as provided in subparagraph 

22 (C)’’ after ‘‘by oral bidding’’; and 

23 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(C) In order to diversify and expand the Nation’s 

25 onshore leasing program to ensure the best return to the 


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1 Federal taxpayer, reduce fraud, and secure the leasing 

2 process, the Secretary may conduct onshore lease sales 

3 through Internet-based bidding methods. Each individual 

4 Internet-based lease sale shall conclude within 7 days.’’. 

5 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the tenth 

6 Internet-based lease sale conducted under the amendment 

7 made by subsection (a), the Secretary of the Interior shall 

8 analyze the first 10 such lease sales and report to Con9 gress the findings of the analysis. The report shall in10 clude— 

11 (1) estimates on increases or decreases in such 

12 lease sales, compared to sales conducted by oral bid13 ding, in— 

14 (A) the number of bidders; 

15 (B) the average amount of bid; 

16 (C) the highest amount bid; and 

17 (D) the lowest bid; 

18 (2) an estimate on the total cost or savings to 

19 the Department of the Interior as a result of such 

20 sales, compared to sales conducted by oral bidding; 

21 and 

22 (3) an evaluation of the demonstrated or ex23 pected effectiveness of different structures for lease 

24 sales which may provide an opportunity to better 

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1 turn to the Federal taxpayers, minimize opportuni2 ties for fraud or collusion, and ensure the security 

3 and integrity of the leasing process. 

4 Subtitle E—Native American 

5 Energy 

6 SEC. 981. SHORT TITLE. 

7 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Native American 

8 Energy Act’’. 

9 SEC. 982. APPRAISALS. 

10 (a) AMENDMENT.—Title XXVI of the Energy Policy 

11 Act of 1992 (25 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) is amended by add12 ing at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 2607. APPRAISAL REFORMS. 

14 ‘‘(a) OPTIONS TO INDIAN TRIBES.—With respect to 

15 a transaction involving Indian land or the trust assets of 

16 an Indian tribe that requires the approval of the Sec17 retary, any appraisal relating to fair market value required 

18 to be conducted under applicable law, regulation, or policy 

19 may be completed by— 

20 ‘‘(1) the Secretary; 

21 ‘‘(2) the affected Indian tribe; or 

22 ‘‘(3) a certified, third-party appraiser pursuant 

23 to a contract with the Indian tribe. 

24 ‘‘(b) TIME LIMIT ON SECRETARIAL REVIEW AND AC25 TION.—Not later than 30 days after the date on which 


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1 the Secretary receives an appraisal conducted by or for 

2 an Indian tribe pursuant to paragraph (2) or (3) of sub3 section (a), the Secretary shall— 

4 ‘‘(1) review the appraisal; and 

5 ‘‘(2) provide to the Indian tribe a written notice 

6 of approval or disapproval of the appraisal. 

7 ‘‘(c) FAILURE OF SECRETARY TO APPROVE OR DIS8 APPROVE.—If, after 60 days, the Secretary has failed to 

9 approve or disapprove any appraisal received, the ap10 praisal shall be deemed approved. 

11 ‘‘(d) OPTION TO INDIAN TRIBES TO WAIVE AP12 PRAISAL.— 

13 ‘‘(1) An Indian tribe wishing to waive the re14 quirements of subsection (a), may do so after it has 

15 satisfied the requirements of subsections (2) and (3) 

16 below. 

17 ‘‘(2) An Indian tribe wishing to forego the ne18 cessity of a waiver pursuant to this section must 

19 provide to the Secretary a written resolution, state20 ment, or other unambiguous indication of tribal in21 tent, duly approved by the governing body of the In22 dian tribe. 

23 ‘‘(3) The unambiguous indication of intent pro24 vided by the Indian tribe to the Secretary under 

25 paragraph (2) must include an express waiver by the 


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1 Indian tribe of any claims for damages it might have 

2 against the United States as a result of the lack of 

3 an appraisal undertaken. 

4 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this subsection, 

5 the term ‘appraisal’ includes appraisals and other esti6 mates of value. 

7 ‘‘(f) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall develop 

8 regulations for implementing this section, including stand9 ards the Secretary shall use for approving or disapproving 

10 an appraisal.’’. 

11 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con12 tents of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13201 

13 note) is amended by adding at the end of the items relat14 ing to title XXVI the following: 

‘‘Sec. 2607. Appraisal reforms.’’. 

15 SEC. 983. STANDARDIZATION. 

16 As soon as practicable after the date of the enactment 

17 of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall implement 

18 procedures to ensure that each agency within the Depart19 ment of the Interior that is involved in the review, ap20 proval, and oversight of oil and gas activities on Indian 

21 lands shall use a uniform system of reference numbers and 

22 tracking systems for oil and gas wells. 


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1 SEC. 984. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS OF MAJOR FEDERAL 

2 ACTIONS ON INDIAN LANDS. 

3 Section 102 of the National Environmental Policy 

4 Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332) is amended by inserting 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ before the first sentence, and by 

6 adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(b) REVIEW OF MAJOR FEDERAL ACTIONS ON IN8 DIAN LANDS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For any major Federal ac10 tion on Indian lands of an Indian tribe requiring the 

11 preparation of a statement under subsection 

12 (a)(2)(C), the statement shall only be available for 

13 review and comment by the members of the Indian 

14 tribe and by any other individual residing within the 

15 affected area. 

16 ‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.—The Chairman of the 

17 Council on Environmental Quality shall develop reg18 ulations to implement this section, including descrip19 tions of affected areas for specific major Federal ac20 tions, in consultation with Indian tribes. 

21 ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, each of 

22 the terms ‘Indian land’ and ‘Indian tribe’ has the 

23 meaning given that term in section 2601 of the En24 ergy Policy Act of 1992 (25 U.S.C. 3501). 

25 ‘‘(4) CLARIFICATION OF AUTHORITY.—Nothing 

26 in the Native American Energy Act, except section 


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1 25006 of that Act, shall give the Secretary any addi2 tional authority over energy projects on Alaska Na3 tive Claims Settlement Act lands.’’. 

4 SEC. 985. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 

5 (a) TIME FOR FILING COMPLAINT.—Any energy re6 lated action must be filed not later than the end of the 

7 60-day period beginning on the date of the final agency 

8 action. Any energy related action not filed within this time 

9 period shall be barred. 

10 (b) DISTRICT COURT VENUE AND DEADLINE.—All 

11 energy related actions— 

12 (1) shall be brought in the United States Dis13 trict Court for the District of Columbia; and 

14 (2) shall be resolved as expeditiously as pos15 sible, and in any event not more than 180 days after 

16 such cause of action is filed. 

17 (c) APPELLATE REVIEW.—An interlocutory order or 

18 final judgment, decree or order of the district court in an 

19 energy related action may be reviewed by the U.S. Court 

20 of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The D.C. 

21 Circuit Court of Appeals shall resolve such appeal as expe22 ditiously as possible, and in any event not more than 180 

23 days after such interlocutory order or final judgment, de24 cree or order of the district court was issued. 


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1 (d) LIMITATION ON CERTAIN PAYMENTS.—Notwith2 standing section 1304 of title 31, United States Code, no 

3 award may be made under section 504 of title 5, United 

4 States Code, or under section 2412 of title 28, United 

5 States Code, and no amounts may be obligated or ex6 pended from the Claims and Judgment Fund of the 

7 United States Treasury to pay any fees or other expenses 

8 under such sections, to any person or party in an energy 

9 related action. 

10 (e) LEGAL FEES.—In any energy related action in 

11 which the plaintiff does not ultimately prevail, the court 

12 shall award to the defendant (including any intervenor13 defendants), other than the United States, fees and other 

14 expenses incurred by that party in connection with the en15 ergy related action, unless the court finds that the position 

16 of the plaintiff was substantially justified or that special 

17 circumstances make an award unjust. Whether or not the 

18 position of the plaintiff was substantially justified shall be 

19 determined on the basis of the administrative record, as 

20 a whole, which is made in the energy related action for 

21 which fees and other expenses are sought. 

22 (f) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this section, 

23 the following definitions apply: 


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1 (1) AGENCY ACTION.—The term ‘‘agency ac2 tion’’ has the same meaning given such term in sec3 tion 551 of title 5, United States Code. 

4 (2) INDIAN LAND.—The term ‘‘Indian Land’’ 

5 has the same meaning given such term in section 

6 203(c)(3) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Public 

7 Law 109–58; 25 U.S.C. 3501), including lands 

8 owned by Native Corporations under the Alaska Na9 tive Claims Settlement Act (Public Law 92–203; 43 

10 U.S.C. 1601). 

11 (3) ENERGY RELATED ACTION.—The term ‘‘en12 ergy related action’’ means a cause of action that— 

13 (A) is filed on or after the effective date of 

14 this Act; and 

15 (B) seeks judicial review of a final agency 

16 action to issue a permit, license, or other form 

17 of agency permission allowing: 

18 (i) any person or entity to conduct ac19 tivities on Indian Land, which activities in20 volve the exploration, development, produc21 tion or transportation of oil, gas, coal, 

22 shale gas, oil shale, geothermal resources, 

23 wind or solar resources, underground coal 

24 gasification, biomass, or the generation of 

25 electricity; or 


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1 (ii) any Indian tribe, or any organiza2 tion of two or more entities, at least one 

3 of which is an Indian tribe, to conduct ac4 tivities involving the exploration, develop5 ment, production or transportation of oil, 

6 gas, coal, shale gas, oil shale, geothermal 

7 resources, wind or solar resources, under8 ground coal gasification, biomass, or the 

9 generation of electricity, regardless of 

10 where such activities are undertaken. 

11 (4) ULTIMATELY PREVAIL.—The phrase ‘‘ulti12 mately prevail’’ means, in a final enforceable judg13 ment, the court rules in the party’s favor on at least 

14 one cause of action which is an underlying rationale 

15 for the preliminary injunction, administrative stay, 

16 or other relief requested by the party, and does not 

17 include circumstances where the final agency action 

18 is modified or amended by the issuing agency unless 

19 such modification or amendment is required pursu20 ant to a final enforceable judgment of the court or 

21 a court-ordered consent decree. 

22 SEC. 986. TRIBAL BIOMASS DEMONSTRATION PROJECT. 

23 The Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 is amended 

24 by inserting after section 2 (25 U.S.C. 3115a) the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 3. TRIBAL BIOMASS DEMONSTRATION PROJECT. 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For each of fiscal years 2017 

3 through 2021, the Secretary shall enter into stewardship 

4 contracts or other agreements, other than agreements that 

5 are exclusively direct service contracts, with Indian tribes 

6 to carry out demonstration projects to promote biomass 

7 energy production (including biofuel, heat, and electricity 

8 generation) on Indian forest land and in nearby commu9 nities by providing reliable supplies of woody biomass from 

10 Federal land. 

11 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—The definitions in section 2 

12 shall apply to this section. 

13 ‘‘(c) DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.—In each fiscal 

14 year for which projects are authorized, the Secretary shall 

15 enter into contracts or other agreements described in sub16 section (a) to carry out at least 4 new demonstration 

17 projects that meet the eligibility criteria described in sub18 section (d). 

19 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA.—To be eligible to enter 

20 into a contract or other agreement under this subsection, 

21 an Indian tribe shall submit to the Secretary an applica22 tion— 

23 ‘‘(1) containing such information as the Sec24 retary may require; and 

25 ‘‘(2) that includes a description of— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the Indian forest land or rangeland 

2 under the jurisdiction of the Indian tribe; and 

3 ‘‘(B) the demonstration project proposed 

4 to be carried out by the Indian tribe. 

5 ‘‘(e) SELECTION.—In evaluating the applications 

6 submitted under subsection (c), the Secretary— 

7 ‘‘(1) shall take into consideration the factors set 

8 forth in paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 2(e) of 

9 Public Law 108–278; and whether a proposed dem10 onstration project would— 

11 ‘‘(A) increase the availability or reliability 

12 of local or regional energy; 

13 ‘‘(B) enhance the economic development of 

14 the Indian tribe; 

15 ‘‘(C) improve the connection of electric 

16 power transmission facilities serving the Indian 

17 tribe with other electric transmission facilities; 

18 ‘‘(D) improve the forest health or water19 sheds of Federal land or Indian forest land or 

20 rangeland; or 

21 ‘‘(E) otherwise promote the use of woody 

22 biomass; and 

23 ‘‘(2) shall exclude from consideration any mer24 chantable logs that have been identified by the Sec25 retary for commercial sale. 


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1 ‘‘(f) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Secretary shall— 

2 ‘‘(1) ensure that the criteria described in sub3 section (c) are publicly available by not later than 

4 120 days after the date of enactment of this section; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(2) to the maximum extent practicable, consult 

7 with Indian tribes and appropriate intertribal orga8 nizations likely to be affected in developing the ap9 plication and otherwise carrying out this section. 

10 ‘‘(g) REPORT.—Not later than September 20, 2015, 

11 the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report that de12 scribes, with respect to the reporting period— 

13 ‘‘(1) each individual tribal application received 

14 under this section; and 

15 ‘‘(2) each contract and agreement entered into 

16 pursuant to this section. 

17 ‘‘(h) INCORPORATION OF MANAGEMENT PLANS.—In 

18 carrying out a contract or agreement under this section, 

19 on receipt of a request from an Indian tribe, the Secretary 

20 shall incorporate into the contract or agreement, to the 

21 extent practicable, management plans (including forest 

22 management and integrated resource management plans) 

23 in effect on the Indian forest land or rangeland of the re24 spective Indian tribe. 


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1 ‘‘(i) TERM.—A stewardship contract or other agree2 ment entered into under this section— 

3 ‘‘(1) shall be for a term of not more than 20 

4 years; and 

5 ‘‘(2) may be renewed in accordance with this 

6 section for not more than an additional 10 years.’’. 

7 SEC. 987. TRIBAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLANS. 

8 Unless otherwise explicitly exempted by Federal law 

9 enacted after the date of the enactment of this Act, any 

10 activity conducted or resources harvested or produced pur11 suant to a tribal resource management plan or an inte12 grated resource management plan approved by the Sec13 retary of the Interior under the National Indian Forest 

14 Resources Management Act (25 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.) or 

15 the American Indian Agricultural Resource Management 

16 Act (25 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.), shall be considered a sus17 tainable management practice for purposes of any Federal 

18 standard, benefit, or requirement that requires a dem19 onstration of such sustainability. 

20 SEC. 988. LEASES OF RESTRICTED LANDS FOR THE NAVAJO 

21 NATION. 

22 Subsection (e)(1) of the first section of the Act of 

23 August 9, 1955 (25 U.S.C. 415(e)(1); commonly referred 

24 to as the ‘‘Long-Term Leasing Act’’), is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘, except a lease for’’ and insert2 ing ‘‘, including leases for’’; 

3 (2) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘25’’ the 

4 first place it appears and all that follows and insert5 ing ‘‘99 years;’’; 

6 (3) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period 

7 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

8 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(C) in the case of a lease for the exploration, 

10 development, or extraction of mineral resources, in11 cluding geothermal resources, 25 years, except that 

12 any such lease may include an option to renew for 

13 one additional term not to exceed 25 years.’’. 

14 SEC. 989. NONAPPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN RULES. 

15 No rule promulgated by the Department of the Inte16 rior regarding hydraulic fracturing used in the develop17 ment or production of oil or gas resources shall have any 

18 effect on any land held in trust or restricted status for 

19 the benefit of Indians except with the express consent of 

20 the beneficiary on whose behalf such land is held in trust 

21 or restricted status. 


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1 Subtitle F—State Authority for 

2 Hydraulic Fracturing Regulation 

3 SEC. 991. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Protecting States’ 

5 Rights to Promote American Energy Security Act’’. 

6 SEC. 992. STATE AUTHORITY FOR HYDRAULIC FRACTURING 

7 REGULATION. 

8 The Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 et seq.) is 

9 amended by redesignating section 44 as section 45, and 

10 by inserting after section 43 the following: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 44. STATE AUTHORITY FOR HYDRAULIC FRACTURING 

12 REGULATION. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Department of the Interior 

14 shall not enforce any Federal regulation, guidance, or per15 mit requirement regarding hydraulic fracturing, or any 

16 component of that process, relating to oil, gas, or geo17 thermal production activities on or under any land in any 

18 State that has regulations, guidance, or permit require19 ments for that activity. 

20 ‘‘(b) STATE AUTHORITY.—The Department of the 

21 Interior shall recognize and defer to State regulations, 

22 permitting, and guidance, for all activities related to hy23 draulic fracturing, or any component of that process, re24 lating to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities on 

25 Federal land. 


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1 ‘‘(c) TRANSPARENCY OF STATE REGULATIONS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall submit to 

3 the Bureau of Land Management a copy of its regu4 lations that apply to hydraulic fracturing operations 

5 on Federal land. 

6 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary of the In7 terior shall make available to the public State regu8 lations submitted under this subsection. 

9 ‘‘(d) TRANSPARENCY OF STATE DISCLOSURE RE10 QUIREMENTS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall submit to 

12 the Bureau of Land Management a copy of any reg13 ulations of the State that require disclosure of 

14 chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing operations on 

15 Federal land. 

16 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary of the In17 terior shall make available to the public State regu18 lations submitted under this subsection. 

19 ‘‘(e) HYDRAULIC FRACTURING DEFINED.—In this 

20 section the term ‘hydraulic fracturing’ means the process 

21 by which fracturing fluids (or a fracturing fluid system) 

22 are pumped into an underground geologic formation at a 

23 calculated, predetermined rate and pressure to generate 

24 fractures or cracks in the target formation and thereby 


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1 increase the permeability of the rock near the wellbore and 

2 improve production of natural gas or oil.’’. 

3 SEC. 993. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE STUDY. 

4 (a) STUDY.—The Comptroller General of the United 

5 States shall conduct a study examining the economic bene6 fits of domestic shale oil and gas production resulting from 

7 the process of hydraulic fracturing. This study will include 

8 identification of— 

9 (1) State and Federal revenue generated as a 

10 result of shale gas production; 

11 (2) jobs created both directly and indirectly as 

12 a result of shale oil and gas production; and 

13 (3) an estimate of potential energy prices with14 out domestic shale oil and gas production. 

15 (b) REPORT.—The Comptroller General shall submit 

16 a report on the findings of such study to the Committee 

17 on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives 

18 within 30 days after completion of the study. 

19 SEC. 994. TRIBAL AUTHORITY ON TRUST LAND. 

20 The Department of the Interior shall not enforce any 

21 Federal regulation, guidance, or permit requirement re22 garding the process of hydraulic fracturing (as that term 

23 is defined in section 44 of the Mineral Leasing Act, as 

24 amended by section 102 of this Act), or any component 

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1 tion activities on any land held in trust or restricted status 

2 for the benefit of Indians except with the express consent 

3 of the beneficiary on whose behalf such land is held in 

4 trust or restricted status. 

5 TITLE X—PROMOTING STEM 

6 EDUCATION IN THE WORK7 FORCE 

8 SEC. 1001. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

9 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

10 (1) According to the National Science Board’s 

11 Science and Engineering Indicators, the science and 

12 engineering workforce has shown sustained growth 

13 for more than half a century, and workers with 

14 science and engineering degrees tend to earn more 

15 than comparable workers in other fields. 

16 (2) According to the Program for International 

17 Student Assessment 2012 results, America lags be18 hind many other nations in STEM education. Amer19 ican students rank 21st in science and 26th in 

20 mathematics. 

21 (3) Junior Achievement USA and ING found a 

22 decrease of 25 percent in the percentage of teenage 

23 students interested in STEM careers. 

24 (4) According to a 2007 report from the De25 partment of Labor, industries and firms dependent 


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1 on a strong science and mathematics workforce have 

2 launched a variety of programs that target K–12 

3 students and undergraduate and graduate students 

4 in STEM fields. 

5 (5) The Federal Government spends nearly $3 

6 billion annually on STEM education related program 

7 and activities, but encouraging STEM education ac8 tivities beyond the scope of the Federal Government, 

9 including privately sponsored competitions and pro10 grams in our schools, is crucial to the future tech11 nical and economic competitiveness of the United 

12 States. 

13 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con14 gress that— 

15 (1) more effective coordination and adoption of 

16 performance measurement based on objective out17 comes for federally supported STEM programs is 

18 needed; 

19 (2) leveraging private and nonprofit invest20 ments in STEM education will be essential to 

21 strengthening the Federal STEM portfolio; 

22 (3) strengthening the Federal STEM portfolio 

23 may require program consolidations and termi24 nations, but such changes should be based on evi25 dence with stakeholder input; 


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1 (4) coordinating STEM programs and activities 

2 across the Federal Government in order to limit du3 plication and engage stakeholders in STEM pro4 grams and related activities for which objective out5 comes can be measured will bolster results of Fed6 eral STEM education programs, improve the return 

7 on taxpayers’ investments in STEM education pro8 grams, and in turn strengthen the United States 

9 economy; and 

10 (5) as the Committee on STEM Education im11 plements the 5-year Strategic Plan for Federal 

12 STEM education required under section 101(b)(5) 

13 of the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 

14 2010 (42 U.S.C. 6621(b)(5)), STEM education 

15 stakeholders must be engaged and outcome-based 

16 evaluation metrics should be considered in the co17 ordination and consolidation efforts for the Federal 

18 STEM portfolio. 

19 SEC. 1002. STEM EDUCATION ADVISORY PANEL. 

20 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The President shall establish 

21 or designate a STEM Education Advisory Panel that in22 corporates key stakeholders from the education and indus23 try sectors. The co-chairs shall be members of the Presi24 dent’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. 


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1 (b) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Advisory Panel estab2 lished or designated by the President under subsection (a) 

3 shall consist primarily of members from academic institu4 tions, nonprofit organizations, and industry and shall in5 clude in-school, out-of-school, and informal educational 

6 practitioners. Members of the Advisory Panel shall be 

7 qualified to provide advice and information on STEM edu8 cation research, development, training, implementation, 

9 interventions, professional development, or workforce 

10 needs or concerns. In selecting or designating an Advisory 

11 Panel, the President may also seek and give consideration 

12 to recommendations from the Congress, industry, the sci13 entific community (including the National Academy of 

14 Sciences, scientific professional societies, and academia), 

15 State and local governments, and other appropriate orga16 nizations. The Advisory Panel shall consist of 15 mem17 bers, with 3 members appointed by the Speaker of the 

18 House of Representatives and 2 members appointed by the 

19 Majority Leader of the Senate. 

20 (c) DUTIES.—The Advisory Panel shall advise the 

21 President, the Committee on STEM Education, and the 

22 STEM Education Coordinating Office established under 

23 section 1004 on matters relating to STEM education, and 

24 shall each year provide general guidance to every Federal 

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1 cluding in the preparation of requests for appropriations 

2 for activities related to STEM education. The Advisory 

3 Panel shall also assess and develop recommendations 

4 for— 

5 (1) progress made in implementing the STEM 

6 education Strategic Plan required under section 101 

7 of the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 

8 2010 (42 U.S.C. 6621), and any needs or opportuni9 ties to update the strategic plan; 

10 (2) the management, coordination, and imple11 mentation of STEM education programs and activi12 ties across the Federal Government; 

13 (3) the appropriateness of criteria used by Fed14 eral agencies to evaluate the effectiveness of Federal 

15 STEM education programs and activities; 

16 (4) ways to leverage private and nonprofit 

17 STEM investments and encourage public-private 

18 partnerships to strengthen STEM education and 

19 help build the STEM workforce pipeline; 

20 (5) ways to incorporate workforce needs into 

21 Federal STEM education programs, particularly for 

22 specific fields of national interest and areas experi23 encing high unemployment rates; 

24 (6) ways to better vertically and horizontally in25 tegrate Federal STEM programs and activities from 


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1 pre-K through graduate study and the workforce, 

2 and from in-school to out-of-school in order to im3 prove transitions for students moving through the 

4 STEM pipeline; 

5 (7) whether societal and workforce concerns are 

6 adequately addressed by current Federal STEM 

7 education programs and activities; 

8 (8) the extent to which Federal STEM edu9 cation programs and activities are contributing to 

10 recruitment and retention of women and underrep11 resented students in the STEM education and work12 force pipeline; and 

13 (9) ways to encourage geographic diversity in 

14 STEM education and the workforce pipeline. 

15 (d) REPORTS.—The Advisory Panel shall report, not 

16 less frequently than once every 3 fiscal years, to the Presi17 dent and Congress on its assessments under subsection 

18 (c) and its recommendations for ways to improve Federal 

19 STEM education programs. The first report under this 

20 subsection shall be submitted within 1 year after the date 

21 of enactment of this Act. 

22 (e) TRAVEL EXPENSES OF NON-FEDERAL MEM23 BERS.—Non-Federal members of the Advisory Panel, 

24 while attending meetings of the Advisory Panel or while 

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1 sory Panel away from their homes or regular places of 

2 business, may be allowed travel expenses, including per 

3 diem in lieu of subsistence, as authorized by section 5703 

4 of title 5, United States Code, for individuals in the Gov5 ernment serving without pay. Nothing in this subsection 

6 shall be construed to prohibit members of the Advisory 

7 Panel who are officers or employees of the United States 

8 from being allowed travel expenses, including per diem in 

9 lieu of subsistence, in accordance with existing law. 

10 SEC. 1003. COMMITTEE ON STEM EDUCATION. 

11 Section 101 of the America COMPETES Reauthor12 ization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 6621) is amended— 

13 (1) in the first subsection (b)— 

14 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (3) 

15 through (6) as paragraphs (5) through (8), re16 spectively; 

17 (B) by inserting after paragraph (2) the 

18 following new paragraphs: 

19 ‘‘(3) collaborate with the STEM Education Ad20 visory Panel established under section 1002 of the 

21 Reducing Employer Burdens, Unleashing Innova22 tion, and Labor Development Act of 2015 and other 

23 outside stakeholders to ensure the engagement of 

24 the STEM education community; 


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1 ‘‘(4) review evaluation measures used for Fed2 eral STEM education programs;’’; and 

3 (C) in paragraph (8), as so redesignated 

4 by subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, by 

5 striking ‘‘, periodically update,’’; and 

6 (2) in the second subsection (b) and in sub7 section (c), by striking ‘‘subsection (b)(5)’’ and in8 serting ‘‘subsection (b)(7)’’. 

9 SEC. 1004. STEM EDUCATION COORDINATING OFFICE. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Director of the National 

11 Science Foundation shall establish within the Directorate 

12 for Education and Human Resources a STEM Education 

13 Coordinating Office, which shall have a Director and staff 

14 that shall include career employees detailed from Federal 

15 agencies that fund STEM education programs and activi16 ties. 

17 (b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The STEM Education Co18 ordinating Office shall— 

19 (1) provide technical and administrative support 

20 to— 

21 (A) the Committee on STEM Education, 

22 especially in its coordination of Federal STEM 

23 programs and strategic planning responsibil24 ities; 


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1 (B) the Advisory Panel established under 

2 section 1002; and 

3 (C) Federal agencies with STEM edu4 cation programs; 

5 (2) periodically update and maintain the inven6 tory of federally sponsored STEM education pro7 grams and activities established under section 

8 101(b)(8) of the America COMPETES Reauthoriza9 tion Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 6621); and 

10 (3) provide for dissemination of information on 

11 Federal STEM education programs and activities, as 

12 appropriate, to stakeholders in academia, industry, 

13 nonprofit organizations with expertise in STEM edu14 cation, State and local educational agencies, and 

15 other STEM stakeholders. 

16 (c) REPORT.—The Director of the STEM Education 

17 Coordinating Office shall transmit a report annually to 

18 Congress not later than 60 days after the submission of 

19 the President’s budget request. The annual report shall 

20 include— 

21 (1) any updates to the inventory required under 

22 subsection (b)(2); 

23 (2) a description of all consolidations and ter24 minations of Federal STEM education programs im25 plemented in the previous fiscal year, including an 


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1 explanation of the reasons for consolidations and 

2 terminations; 

3 (3) recommendations for consolidations and ter4 minations of STEM education programs or activities 

5 in the upcoming fiscal year; 

6 (4) a description of any significant new STEM 

7 education public-private partnerships; and 

8 (5) a description of the progress made in car9 rying out the strategic plan required under section 

10 101 of the America COMPETES Reauthorization 

11 Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 6621), including a descrip12 tion of the outcome of any program assessments 

13 completed in the previous year. 

14 (d) RESPONSIBILITIES OF NSF.—The Director of 

15 the National Science Foundation shall encourage and 

16 monitor the efforts of the STEM Education Coordinating 

17 Office to ensure that the Coordinating Office is carrying 

18 out its responsibilities under subsection (b) appropriately. 

19 SEC. 1005. DEFINITIONS. 

20 In this title— 

21 (1) the term ‘‘STEM’’ means the subjects of 

22 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics; 

23 (2) the term ‘‘STEM education’’ means edu24 cation in the subjects of STEM, including computer 

25 science; and 


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1 (3) the term ‘‘Committee on STEM Education’’ 

2 means the Committee on Science, Technology, Engi3 neering, and Mathematics Education established 

4 under section 101 of the America COMPETES Re5 authorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 6621). 

Æ 


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