I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1774

To provide for the establishment at the Department of Energy of a program 

for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and infrastructure, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 11, 2003

Mr. BOEHLERT introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, 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 provide for the establishment at the Department of Energy of a program for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and 

infrastructure, 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,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘FreedomCAR and Hy5 drogen Fuel Act of 2003’’ or ‘‘Freedom Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS, PURPOSE, AND DEFINITIONS. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
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1 (1) the United States is currently dependent on 

2 foreign sources for a majority of its petroleum sup3 ply; 

4 (2) the Nation’s dependence on foreign petro5 leum is expected to increase in the decades ahead; 

6 (3) it is in the national interest to reduce de7 pendence on imported petroleum by accelerating 

8 Federal efforts to partner with the private sector by 

9 deploying hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and the refuel10 ing infrastructure to support those vehicles; 

11 (4) it is in the national interest to develop a 

12 light duty vehicle fleet that substantially reduces de13 pendence on foreign petroleum, assists the Nation in 

14 meeting its requirements under the Clean Air Act 

15 and reduces greenhouse gas emissions in a manner 

16 that maintains the freedom of consumers to pur17 chase the kinds of vehicles they wish to drive and 

18 the freedom to refuel those vehicles safely, 

19 affordably, and conveniently; 

20 (5) hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and supporting 

21 infrastructure have the potential to accelerate the 

22 parallel advancement of fuel cells for stationary 

23 power that will enhance the resiliency, reliability, 

24 and environmental performance of the Nation’s elec25 tricity infrastructure; 
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1 (6) ancillary benefits for the Nation, including 

2 the acceleration of fuel cell technology for consumer 

3 electronics and portable power, are likely to result 

4 from the advancement of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles 

5 and supporting infrastructure; 

6 (7) there is a need for deployment of bridging 

7 technologies including gasoline electric and diesel 

8 electric hybrid drive systems, advanced combustion 

9 engines including clean diesel, electric battery, and 

10 power electronics, and alternative fuels and other 

11 technology that can contribute to reducing petroleum 

12 demand and decreasing air emissions; 

13 (8) low-cost hydrogen production, storage, and 

14 delivery facilities are essential to the success of the 

15 FreedomCAR Vehicle Programs; and 

16 (9) work should be performed in a manner that 

17 is cognizant of consumer acceptance, passenger safe18 ty, and marketplace success. 

19 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to reduce 

20 significantly the Nation’s dependence on imported petro21 leum, enhance the production and conservation of energy, 

22 and reduce air emissions through support of the following 

23 Department of Energy actions: 

24 (1) Programs and activities leading to—
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1 (A) a commitment by automakers and hy2 drogen energy and energy infrastructure pro3 viders no later than year 2015 to offer safe, af4 fordable, and technically viable hydrogen fuel 

5 cell vehicles and refueling infrastructure in the 

6 mass consumer market; and 

7 (B) a commitment by the automakers and 

8 hydrogen energy and energy infrastructure pro9 viders to the deployment of hydrogen fuel cell 

10 vehicles and affordable and convenient refueling 

11 infrastructure no later than year 2020. 

12 (2) A program to establish international codes, 

13 standards, and safety protocols for the use and man14 ufacture of domestic and foreign products. 

15 (3) Interagency, intergovernmental, and inter16 national programs and activities for education, infor17 mation exchange, and cooperation. 

18 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 

19 (1) The term ‘‘Advisory Committee’’ means the 

20 Hydrogen Technical and Fuel Cell Advisory Com21 mittee established under section 5028 of this Act. 

22 (2) The term ‘‘Department’’ means the Depart23 ment of Energy. 

24 (3) The term ‘‘FreedomCAR’’ is the acronym 

25 for a Department initiative in automotive research 
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1 and development entitled ‘‘Freedom Cooperative 

2 Automotive Research’’. 

3 (4) The term ‘‘fuel cell’’ means a device that di4 rectly converts the chemical energy of a fuel and an 

5 oxidant into electricity by an electrochemical process 

6 taking place at separate electrodes in the device. 

7 (5) The term ‘‘infrastructure’’ means the equip8 ment, systems, or facilities used to produce, dis9 tribute, deliver, or store hydrogen and other ad10 vanced clean fuels. 

11 (6) The term ‘‘light duty vehicle’’ means a car 

12 or truck, classified by the Department of Transpor13 tation as a Class I or IIA vehicle. 

14 (7) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

15 of Energy. 

16 SEC. 3. PLAN; REPORT. 

17 (a) PLAN.—The Secretary, in consultation with other 

18 appropriate Federal agencies, shall prepare a comprehen19 sive interagency coordination plan for activities under this 

20 Act. This plan may be provided as part of the President’s 

21 annual budget submission to Congress. 

22 (b) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

23 of enactment of this Act, and biennially thereafter, the

24 Secretary shall transmit to the Congress a report on the 

25 status of programs and activities under this Act. This re-
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1 port may be provided as part of the President’s annual 

2 budget submission to Congress. This report may include, 

3 in addition to any views and recommendations of the Sec4 retary— 

5 (1) an assessment of the effectiveness of the 

6 programs and activities under this Act and the ex7 tent to which the purposes in section 2(b) have been 

8 met; and 

9 (2) the potential for interagency, intergovern10 mental, international, or private sector collaboration 

11 opportunities and activities under this Act. 

12 SEC. 4. PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP. 

13 (a) PROGRAM.—In partnership with the private sec14 tor, the Secretary shall conduct a program designed to fa15 cilitate the production and conservation of energy and the 

16 deployment of energy infrastructure, including all of the 

17 following: 

18 (1) Hydrogen energy. 

19 (2) Fuel cells. 

20 (3) Advanced vehicle technologies. 

21 (4) Clean fuels in addition to hydrogen. 

22 (5) Codes, standards, and safety protocols. 

23 (b) PROGRAM GOALS.—

24 (1) AUTOMAKERS.—For automakers the goals 

25 of the program are—
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1 (A) to enable a commitment by auto2 makers no later than year 2015 to offer safe, 

3 affordable, and technically viable hydrogen fuel 

4 cell vehicles into commerce; and 

5 (B) to enable production, delivery, and ac6 ceptance by consumers of model year 2020 hy7 drogen fuel cell and other vehicles that will 

8 have— 

9 (i) a range of at least three hundred 

10 miles; 

11 (ii) improved performance and ease of 

12 driving; 

13 (iii) met all light duty safety regula14 tions created under section 30111 of title 

15 49, United States Code; and 

16 (iv) when compared to light duty vehi17 cles in model year 2003—

18 (I) a fuel economy that is two 

19 and one half times the equivalent fuel 

20 economy of these vehicles as regulated 

21 under the Motor Vehicle Information 

22 and Cost Savings Act, or about 70 

23 miles per gallon, and 
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1 (II) near zero emissions of air 

2 pollutants regulated under the Clean 

3 Air Act. 

4 (2) HYDROGEN ENERGY AND ENERGY INFRA5 STRUCTURE.—For hydrogen energy and energy in6 frastructure the goals of the program include, but 

7 are not limited to, a commitment not later than 

8 2015 that will enable the deployment by 2020 of in9 frastructure to provide—

10 (A) safe and convenient refueling; 

11 (B) activities leading to widespread avail12 ability of hydrogen from domestic energy 

13 sources through—

14 (i) production, including consideration 

15 of cost-effective production from domestic 

16 energy sources; 

17 (ii) delivery, including transmission by 

18 pipeline and other distribution methods for 

19 hydrogen; and 

20 (iii) storage, including storage in sur21 face transportation vehicles; 

22 (C) hydrogen for fuel cells, internal com23 bustion engines, and other energy conversion 

24 devices for portable, stationary, and transpor25 tation applications; and 
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1 (D) other technologies consistent with the 

2 Department’s plan. 

3 (3) FUEL CELLS.—The program for fuel cells 

4 and their portable, stationary, and transportation 

5 applications may include, but is not limited to—

6 (A) a safe, economical, and environ7 mentally sound hydrogen fuel cell; 

8 (B) a fuel cell for light duty and other ve9 hicles; and 

10 (C) other technologies consistent with the 

11 Department’s plan. 

12 (4) ADVANCED VEHICLE TECHNOLOGIES.—The 

13 program for advanced vehicle technologies may in14 clude, but is not limited to—

15 (A) advanced combustion; 

16 (B) materials; 

17 (C) energy storage; 

18 (D) control systems; and 

19 (E) other technologies consistent with the 

20 Department’s plan. 

21 (5) CODES, STANDARDS, AND SAFETY PROTO22 COLS.—(A) The Department’s program for codes, 

23 standards, and safety protocols shall strive towards 

24 establishment of international codes, standards, and 
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1 safety protocols for the use and manufacture of do2 mestic and foreign products. 

3 (B) The Secretary may represent the United 

4 States interests with respect to activities and pro5 grams under this subsection, collaborating with the 

6 Secretary of Transportation, and in consultation 

7 with other appropriate governments and nongovern8 mental organizations including the following: 

9 (i) Other Federal, State, regional, and 

10 local governments and their representatives. 

11 (ii) Industry and its representatives, in12 cluding members of the energy and transpor13 tation industries. 

14 (iii) Foreign governments and their rep15 resentatives including international organiza16 tions. 

17 (c) FEDERAL FUNDING.—(1) The Secretary shall 

18 carry out the programs and activities under this section 

19 consistent with the generally applicable Federal laws and 

20 regulations governing awards of financial assistance, con21 tracts, or other agreements, and may include funding to 

22 nationally recognized university-based research centers. 

23 (2) The Secretary shall endeavor to avoid duplication 

24 or displacement of other research and development pro25 grams and activities.
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1 (d) COST SHARING.—(1) The Secretary shall require 

2 a commitment from non-Federal sources of at least 20 

3 percent of the cost of proposed programs under this sec4 tion. 

5 (2) The Secretary may reduce or eliminate the cost 

6 sharing requirement under paragraph (1)—

7 (A) if the Secretary determines that the activity 

8 is of a basic or fundamental nature which is vital to 

9 the success of the program and unlikely to occur in 

10 a timely manner without reduction or elimination of 

11 the cost-sharing requirement; or 

12 (B) for technical analyses, outreach programs, 

13 and other activities including educational programs 

14 under section 7 of this Act that the Secretary does 

15 not expect to result in a marketable product. 

16 SEC. 5. DEPLOYMENT. 

17 (a) DEPLOYMENT PROGRAM.—In partnership with 

18 the private sector, the Secretary shall conduct a program 

19 to facilitate the deployment of—

20 (1) hydrogen energy and energy infrastructure; 

21 (2) fuel cells; 

22 (3) advanced vehicle technologies; 

23 (4) clean fuels in addition to hydrogen; and 

24 (5) codes, standards, and safety protocols. 
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1 (b) PROGRAM GOALS.—(1) For automakers, the 

2 goals of the program are— 

3 (A) to enable a decision by automakers no later 

4 than year 2015 to offer safe, affordable, and tech5 nically viable hydrogen fuel cell vehicles into com6 merce; and 

7 (B) to enable production and delivery to, and 

8 acceptance by, consumers of model year 2020 hydro9 gen fuel cell and other vehicles that will have—

10 (i) a range of at least 300 miles; 

11 (ii) improved performance and ease of driv12 ing; 

13 (iii) met all light duty safety regulations 

14 created under section 30111 of title 49, United 

15 States Code; and 

16 (iv) when compared to light duty vehicles 

17 in model year 2003—

18 (I) a fuel economy that is two and one 

19 half times the equivalent fuel economy of 

20 these vehicles under the Motor Vehicle In21 formation and Cost Savings Act, or about 

22 70 miles per gallon; and 

23 (II) near zero emissions of air pollut24 ants regulated under the Clean Air Act. 
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1 (2) For hydrogen energy and energy infrastructure 

2 the goals of the program include, but are not limited to, 

3 a commitment not later than 2015 that will enable the 

4 deployment by 2020 of infrastructure to provide—

5 (A) safe, convenient, and affordable refueling; 

6 (B) widespread availability of hydrogen from 

7 domestic energy sources through—

8 (i) production, including consideration of 

9 cost-effective production from domestic energy 

10 sources; 

11 (ii) delivery, including transmission by 

12 pipeline and other distribution methods, for hy13 drogen in its gaseous, liquid, and solid states; 

14 and 

15 (iii) storage, including storage in surface 

16 transportation vehicles; 

17 (C) hydrogen for fuel cells, internal combustion 

18 engines, and other energy conversion devices for 

19 portable, stationary, and transportation applications; 

20 and 

21 (D) other technologies consistent with the De22 partment’s plan. 

23 (c) FUEL CELLS.—The program for fuel cells and 

24 their portable, stationary, and transportation applications 

25 may include but is not limited to—
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1 (1) a safe, economical, and environmentally 

2 sound hydrogen fuel cell; 

3 (2) a fuel cell for light duty and other vehicles; 

4 and 

5 (3) other technologies consistent with the De6 partment’s plan. 

7 (d) ADVANCED VEHICLE TECHNOLOGIES.—The pro8 gram for advanced vehicle technologies may include, but 

9 is not limited to—

10 (1) advanced combustion; 

11 (2) materials; 

12 (3) energy storage; 

13 (4) control systems; and 

14 (5) other technologies consistent with the De15 partment’s plan. 

16 (e) FEDERAL FUNDING.—The Secretary shall carry 

17 out the program and activities under this section con18 sistent with laws and regulations governing awards of fi19 nancial assistance, contracts or other agreements, and 

20 may include funding to nationally recognized university21 based research centers. The Secretary shall endeavor to 

22 avoid duplication or displacement of other programs. 

23 (f) COST SHARING.—

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall require 

25 a commitment from non-Federal sources of at least 
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1 50 percent of the costs directly relating to a dem2 onstration under this section. 

3 (2) REDUCTION.—The Secretary may reduce 

4 the non-Federal requirement under paragraph (1) if 

5 the Secretary determines that—

6 (A) the reduction is appropriate consid7 ering the technological risks involved; and 

8 (B) the terms and conditions are con9 sistent with the Agreement on Subsidies and 

10 Countervailing Measures. 

11 (3) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS WITH GOVERN12 MENTS.—The Secretary may enter into cooperative 

13 and cost sharing agreements with Federal, State, or 

14 local governments to deploy vehicles, vehicle systems, 

15 and refueling infrastructure using hydrogen, fuel 

16 cells, or other advanced technologies in government 

17 facilities or fleet transportation systems. 

18 SEC. 6. ASSESSMENT AND TRANSFER. 

19 (a) PROGRAM.—The Secretary may conduct a pro20 gram to transfer technology to the private sector under 

21 this Act. 

22 (b) DISCLOSURE.—The Secretary may protect from 

23 disclosure, for up to 5 years after the information was de24 veloped, any information developed pursuant to a cost 

25 shared transaction, or subagreement thereunder, entered
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1 into under this Act to advance the goals of the programs, 

2 which developed information is of a character that it would 

3 be protected from disclosure under section 552(b)(4) of 

4 title 5, United States Code, if this developed information 

5 had been obtained from a person other than a Federal 

6 agency. 

7 SEC. 7. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 120 days after 

9 the date of enactment of this Act, the President shall es10 tablish an interagency task force chaired by the Secretary 

11 or his designee with representatives from each of the fol12 lowing: 

13 (1) The Office of Science and Technology Pol14 icy within the Executive Office of the President. 

15 (2) The Department of Transportation. 

16 (3) The Department of Defense. 

17 (4) The Department of Commerce (including 

18 the National Institute of Standards and Tech19 nology). 

20 (5) The Environmental Protection Agency. 

21 (6) The National Aeronautics and Space Ad22 ministration. 

23 (7) Other Federal agencies as the Secretary de24 termines appropriate. 

25 (b) DUTIES OF THE INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE.—
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1 (1) PLANNING.—The task force shall coordinate 

2 the implementation of the interagency plan in sec3 tion 3(a), and work towards deployment of—

4 (A) a safe, economical, and environ5 mentally sound fuel infrastructure, including an 

6 infrastructure that supports buses and other 

7 fleet transportation; 

8 (B) fuel cells in government and other ap9 plications, including portable, stationary, and 

10 transportation applications; and 

11 (C) distributed power generation, including 

12 the generation of combined heat, power, and 

13 clean fuels including hydrogen. 

14 (2) INFORMATION EXCHANGE.—(A) The inter15 agency task force shall coordinate interagency pro16 grams and activities including the exchange of infor17 mation. 

18 (B) The heads of all agencies, including those 

19 whose agencies are not represented on the inter20 agency task force, shall cooperate with and furnish 

21 information to the interagency task force, the Advi22 sory Committee, and the Department. 

23 (C) The information exchange may consist of 

24 workshops, publications, conferences, and a database 
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1 for use by the public and private sectors. The inter2 agency task force is expected to—

3 (i) foster the exchange of generic, non4 proprietary information and technology among 

5 industry, academia, and government; 

6 (ii) update the inventory and assessment of 

7 hydrogen, fuel cells, and other advanced tech8 nologies, including their commercial capability 

9 for the economic and environmentally safe pro10 duction, distribution, delivery, storage, and use 

11 of clean fuels including hydrogen; 

12 (iii) integrate technical and other informa13 tion made available as a result of the programs 

14 and activities under this Act; 

15 (iv) promote the marketplace introduction 

16 of infrastructure for hydrogen and other clean 

17 fuel vehicles; and 

18 (v) conduct an education program to pro19 vide FreedomCAR and hydrogen fuel informa20 tion to potential end-users. 

21 SEC. 8. ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 

22 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Hydrogen Technical and 

23 Fuel Cell Advisory Committee is established to advise the 

24 Secretary on the programs and activities under this Act. 

25 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—
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1 (1) MEMBERS.—The Advisory Committee is 

2 comprised of not fewer than 12 nor more than 25 

3 members. These members shall be appointed by the 

4 Secretary to represent domestic industry, academia, 

5 professional societies, government agencies, and fi6 nancial, environmental, and other appropriate orga7 nizations based on the Department’s assessment of 

8 the technical and other qualifications of committee 

9 members and the needs of the Advisory Committee. 

10 (2) TERMS.—The term of a member of the Ad11 visory Committee shall not be more than 3 years. 

12 The Secretary may appoint members of the Advisory 

13 Committee in a manner that allows the terms of the 

14 members serving at any time to expire at spaced in15 tervals so as to ensure continuity in the functioning 

16 of the Advisory Committee. A member of the Advi17 sory Committee whose term is expiring may be re18 appointed. 

19 (3) CHAIRPERSON.—The Advisory Committee 

20 shall have a chairperson, who is elected by the mem21 bers from among their number. 

22 (c) REVIEW.—The Advisory Committee shall review 

23 and make recommendations to the Secretary on—

24 (1) the implementation of programs and activi25 ties under this Act; 
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1 (2) the safety, economical, and environmental 

2 consequences of technologies for the production, dis3 tribution, delivery, storage, or use of hydrogen en4 ergy and fuel cells; and 

5 (3) the interagency coordination plan under sec6 tion 3(a) of this Act. 

7 (d) RESPONSE TO RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Sec8 retary shall consider, but need not adopt, any rec9 ommendations of the Advisory Committee under sub10 section (c). 

11 (e) ADVISORY COMMITTEE SUPPORT.—The Sec12 retary shall provide resources necessary in the judgment 

13 of the Secretary for the Advisory Committee to carry out 

14 its responsibilities under this Act. 

15 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

16 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

17 the purposes of this Act including programs for light duty 

18 vehicles, in addition to any amounts made available for 

19 these purposes under other Acts—

20 (1) $273,500,000 for fiscal year 2004; 

21 (2) $325,000,000 for fiscal year 2005; 

22 (3) $375,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; 

23 (4) $400,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; and 

24 (5) $425,000,000 for fiscal year 2008.

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