I 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4345 

To provide liability protection for claims based on the design, manufacture, 

sale, offer for sale, introduction into commerce, or use of certain fuels 

and fuel additives, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 30, 2012 

Mr. SHIMKUS (for himself, Mr. ROSS of Arkansas, Mr. SULLIVAN, and Mr. 

PETERSON) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on 

the Judiciary, 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 liability protection for claims based on the design, 

manufacture, sale, offer for sale, introduction into commerce, or use of certain fuels and fuel additives, 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 ‘‘Domestic Fuels Pro5 tection Act of 2012’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FUEL COMPATIBILITY. 

2 (a) COMPATIBILITY.—Subtitle I of the Solid Waste 

3 Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6991 et seq.) is amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating section 9014 as section 

5 9015; and 

6 (2) by inserting after section 9013 the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 9014. COMPATIBILITY. 

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

10 ‘‘(1) ASSOCIATED DISPENSING EQUIPMENT.— 

11 The term ‘associated dispensing equipment’ means 

12 equipment, at a stationary facility, that is— 

13 ‘‘(A) used for the storage and dispensing 

14 of any fuel or fuel additive described in sub15 section (b)(3)(A) and that dispenses the fuel or 

16 fuel additive into any fuel tank of any motor ve17 hicle, motor vehicle engine, nonroad vehicle, 

18 nonroad engine, or nonroad equipment; and 

19 ‘‘(B) subject to regulation under sections 

20 1910.106 and 1926.152 of title 29, Code of 

21 Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of 

22 enactment of the Domestic Fuels Protection 

23 Act of 2012). 

24 ‘‘(2) COMPATIBLE.—The term ‘compatible’ has 

25 the meaning given the term in section 280.12 of title 

26 40, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the 


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1 date of enactment of the Domestic Fuels Protection 

2 Act of 2012). 

3 ‘‘(3) MOTOR VEHICLE.—The term ‘motor vehi4 cle’ has the meaning given the term in section 216 

5 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7550). 

6 ‘‘(4) MOTOR VEHICLE ENGINE.—The term 

7 ‘motor vehicle engine’ means an engine in a motor 

8 vehicle. 

9 ‘‘(5) NONROAD ENGINE.—The term ‘nonroad 

10 engine’ has the meaning given the term in section 

11 216 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7550). 

12 ‘‘(6) NONROAD EQUIPMENT.—The term 

13 ‘nonroad equipment’ means any recreational, con14 struction, industrial, agricultural, logging, residen15 tial, commercial lawn and garden, or other equip16 ment that is powered by a nonroad engine. 

17 ‘‘(7) NONROAD VEHICLE.—The term ‘nonroad 

18 vehicle’ has the meaning given the term in section 

19 216 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7550). 

20 ‘‘(8) PROVIDER OF FINANCIAL ASSURANCE.— 

21 The term ‘provider of financial assurance’ has the 

22 meaning given the term in section 280.92 of title 40, 

23 Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the 

24 date of enactment of the Domestic Fuels Protection 

25 Act of 2012). 


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1 ‘‘(9) UNDERGROUND STORAGE TANK SYS2 TEM.—The term ‘underground storage tank system’ 

3 means an underground storage tank, connected un4 derground piping, underground ancillary equipment, 

5 and containment system, if any. 

6 ‘‘(b) COMPATIBILITY WITH FUELS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) LIABILITY.—No person shall be liable 

8 under any Federal, State, or local law (including 

9 common law) because an underground storage tank, 

10 underground storage tank system, or associated dis11 pensing equipment is not compatible with a fuel or 

12 fuel additive described in paragraph (3)(A) if the 

13 tank, system, or equipment has been determined to 

14 be compatible with the fuel or fuel additive under 

15 the guidelines or regulations described in paragraph 

16 (3). 

17 ‘‘(2) FINANCIAL ASSURANCE.—A provider of fi18 nancial assurance shall not deny payment for any 

19 claim on the basis that an underground storage 

20 tank, underground storage tank system, or associ21 ated dispensing equipment is not compatible with a 

22 fuel or fuel additive described in paragraph (3)(A) if 

23 the tank, system, or equipment has been determined 

24 to be compatible with the fuel or fuel additive under 


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1 the guidelines or regulations described in paragraph 

2 (3). 

3 ‘‘(3) GUIDELINES AND REGULATIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Paragraphs (1) and 

5 (2) apply to any underground storage tank, un6 derground storage tank system, and associated 

7 dispensing equipment that meets any guidelines 

8 or regulations, which may be revised under sub9 paragraph (B), issued by the Administrator and 

10 in effect on the date of enactment of the Do11 mestic Fuels Protection Act of 2012, address12 ing compatibility of such tanks, systems, or 

13 equipment with any fuel or fuel additive that is 

14 authorized and registered, or for which an up15 dated registration is accepted, by the Adminis16 trator or under any Federal law, for use in a 

17 motor vehicle, motor vehicle engine, nonroad ve18 hicle, nonroad engine, or nonroad equipment. 

19 ‘‘(B) REGULATIONS.— 

20 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 

21 year after the date of enactment of the Do22 mestic Fuels Protection Act of 2012, the 

23 Administrator shall issue, or if applicable 

24 revise, regulations setting standards for de25 termining whether an underground storage 


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1 tank, underground storage tank system, or 

2 associated dispensing equipment is compat3 ible with a fuel or fuel additive described 

4 in subparagraph (A). 

5 ‘‘(ii) MINIMUM STANDARDS.—The 

6 regulations issued under clause (i) shall in7 clude minimum standards and processes 

8 for certification by the Administrator or by 

9 an owner, operator, or manufacturer of un10 derground storage tanks, underground 

11 storage tank systems, or associated dis12 pensing equipment, to ensure compat13 ibility. 

14 ‘‘(4) UNDERGROUND STORAGE TANKS, UNDER15 GROUND STORAGE TANK SYSTEMS, AND ASSOCIATED

16 DISPENSING EQUIPMENT PREVIOUSLY LISTED AS

17 COMPATIBLE.—Any underground storage tank, un18 derground storage tank system, or associated dis19 pensing equipment that, on or before the date of en20 actment of the Domestic Fuels Protection Act of 

21 2012, is listed by a nationally recognized testing lab22 oratory as compatible with a fuel or fuel additive de23 scribed in paragraph (3)(A) shall be deemed compat24 ible with such fuel or fuel additive under the regula25 tions issued under this subsection. 


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1 ‘‘(5) ADMINISTRATION.—Nothing in this section 

2 affects— 

3 ‘‘(A) the introduction into commerce, offer4 ing for sale, or sale of any fuel or fuel additive; 

5 or 

6 ‘‘(B) any applicable requirement, including 

7 any requirement under section 211(o) of the 

8 Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(o)).’’. 

9 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—The Solid Waste 

10 Disposal Act is amended— 

11 (1) in section 9003(h)(12)(A) (42 U.S.C. 

12 6991b(h)(12)(A)), by striking ‘‘section 9014(2)(B)’’ 

13 and inserting ‘‘section 9015(2)(B)’’; 

14 (2) in section 9004(f)(1)(A) (42 U.S.C. 

15 6991c(f)(1)(A)), by striking ‘‘section 9014(2)(A)’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘section 9015(2)(A)’’; and 

17 (3) in section 9011 (42 U.S.C. 6991j), by strik18 ing ‘‘section 9014(2)(D)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

19 9015(2)(D)’’. 

20 (c) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents 

21 contained in section 1001 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act 

22 (42 U.S.C. 6901) is amended by striking the item relating 

23 to section 9014 and inserting the following: 

‘‘Sec. 9014. Compatibility. 

‘‘Sec. 9015. Authorization of Appropriations.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. MISFUELING. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 211(g) of the Clean Air 

3 Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(g)) is amended by adding at the end 

4 the following: 

5 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.— 

6 ‘‘(A) LIMITATION.— 

7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

8 clause (ii), no person shall be liable under any 

9 provision of this Act or any Federal, State, or 

10 local law, including common law, if— 

11 ‘‘(I) a self-service purchaser intro12 duces any transportation fuel into any 

13 motor vehicle, motor vehicle engine, 

14 nonroad vehicle, or nonroad equipment for 

15 which the fuel has not been approved 

16 under subsection (f); or 

17 ‘‘(II) the introduction of any transpor18 tation fuel voids the warranty of the manu19 facturer of the motor vehicle, motor vehicle 

20 engine, nonroad engine, nonroad vehicle, or 

21 nonroad equipment. 

22 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION.—Clause (i) shall not 

23 apply to— 

24 ‘‘(I) a person who sells any transpor25 tation fuel and does not comply with the 

26 misfueling regulations adopted by the AdVerDate Mar 15 2010 20:15 Apr 09, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4345.IH H4345

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1 ministrator under section 80.1501 of title 

2 40, Code of Federal Regulations (or suc3 cessor regulations); or 

4 ‘‘(II) a person who intentionally 

5 misfuels. 

6 ‘‘(B) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(i) NONROAD EQUIPMENT.—The term 

8 ‘nonroad equipment’ means any recreational, 

9 construction, industrial, agricultural, logging, 

10 residential, commercial lawn and garden, or 

11 other equipment that is powered by a nonroad 

12 engine. 

13 ‘‘(ii) TRANSPORTATION FUEL.—The term 

14 ‘transportation fuel’ means any fuel that con15 tains fuel or a fuel additive that is authorized 

16 after January 1, 2010, by the Administrator or 

17 under any Federal law, for use in any motor ve18 hicle, motor vehicle engine, nonroad vehicle, 

19 nonroad engine, or nonroad equipment.’’. 

20 (b) PENALTIES.—Section 211(d) of the Clean Air Act 

21 (42 U.S.C. 7545(d)) is amended— 

22 (1) in paragraph (1), in the first sentence, by 

23 inserting ‘‘(g),’’ after ‘‘or the regulations prescribed 

24 under subsection (c),’’; and 


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1 (2) in paragraph (2), in the first sentence, by 

2 inserting ‘‘(g),’’ after ‘‘of the regulations prescribed 

3 under subsections (c),’’. 

4 SEC. 4. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY. 

5 (a) QUALIFIED CIVIL LIABILITY ACTIONS IN FED6 ERAL COURT AND STATE COURT.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—No qualified civil liability ac8 tion shall be filed or maintained in any court of the 

9 United States or any State court. 

10 (2) DISMISSAL OF PENDING ACTIONS.—Any 

11 qualified civil liability action filed or pending in any 

12 court of the United States or any State court on or 

13 after the date of enactment of this Act shall be dis14 missed with prejudice. 

15 (b) SAFE HARBOR.—Notwithstanding any Federal, 

16 State, or local law (including common law), no qualified 

17 product shall be considered to be a defective product, if 

18 the qualified product does not violate a control or prohibi19 tion, respecting any characteristic or component of the 

20 qualified product, imposed by the Administrator of the 

21 Environmental Protection Agency under section 211 of 

22 the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545). 

23 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘‘covered en2 tity’’ means any entity engaged in the design, manu3 facture, sale, or distribution of any— 

4 (A) qualified product; or 

5 (B) motor vehicle, motor vehicle engine, 

6 nonroad vehicle, nonroad engine, or nonroad 

7 equipment. 

8 (2) MOTOR VEHICLE.—The term ‘‘motor vehi9 cle’’ has the meaning given the term in section 216 

10 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7550). 

11 (3) MOTOR VEHICLE ENGINE.—The term 

12 ‘‘motor vehicle engine’’ means an engine in a motor 

13 vehicle. 

14 (4) NONROAD ENGINE.—The term ‘‘nonroad 

15 engine’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

16 216 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7550). 

17 (5) NONROAD EQUIPMENT.—The term 

18 ‘‘nonroad equipment’’ means any recreational, con19 struction, industrial, agricultural, logging, residen20 tial, commercial lawn and garden, or other equip21 ment that incorporates a nonroad engine. 

22 (6) NONROAD VEHICLE.—The term ‘‘nonroad 

23 vehicle’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

24 216 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7550). 


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1 (7) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ has the 

2 meaning given the term in section 1 of title 1, 

3 United States Code, except that the term includes 

4 any governmental entity. 

5 (8) QUALIFIED CIVIL LIABILITY ACTION.—The 

6 term ‘‘qualified civil liability action’’ means any civil 

7 action or proceeding brought by any person against 

8 a covered entity for damages, punitive damages, in9 junctive or declaratory relief, abatement, restitution, 

10 fines, penalties, or other relief, resulting from the in11 troduction of any qualified product into any motor 

12 vehicle, motor vehicle engine, nonroad vehicle, 

13 nonroad engine, or nonroad equipment. 

14 (9) QUALIFIED PRODUCT.—The term ‘‘qualified 

15 product’’ means— 

16 (A) any fuel or fuel additive for which a 

17 registration is in effect under section 211(b) of 

18 the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(b)) or any 

19 other Federal law enacted on or after October 

20 13, 2010; 

21 (B) a transportation fuel or transportation 

22 fuel additive that— 

23 (i) contains any renewable fuel (as de24 fined in section 211(o)(1) of the Clean Air 

25 Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(o)(1))); and 


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1 (ii) is designated for introduction into 

2 interstate commerce by the Administrator 

3 of the Environmental Protection Agency or 

4 the Secretary of Energy under the Clean 

5 Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.), the En6 ergy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13201 

7 et seq.), or any other Federal law enacted 

8 on or after October 13, 2010; 

9 (C) any component of a fuel or fuel addi10 tive described in subparagraph (A) or (B); or 

11 (D) any blend stock. 

12 (10) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

13 the several States of the United States; the District 

14 of Columbia; and any territory, commonwealth, or 

15 possession of the United States. 

Æ 


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