I 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 182 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to impose an excise tax 

on automobiles sold in the United States that are not alternative fueled 

automobiles, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 4, 2007 

Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, 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 amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to impose 

an excise tax on automobiles sold in the United States 

that are not alternative fueled automobiles, 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 ‘‘To Encourage Alter5 natively fueled vehicle Manufacturing up for Energy Inde6 pendence Act of 2007’’ or the ‘‘TEAM up for Energy 

7 Independence Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 The Congress finds that— 

3 (1) Climate change threatens the security and 

4 stability of our planet. The temperature of the Earth 

5 is increasing at a rate unseen in modern times. The 

6 rate of warming has been nearly 3 times the cen7 tury-long average since 1970. 

8 (2) Climate forecasters predict that if green9 house gases continue to accumulate in the atmos10 phere at the current rate, temperatures will rise dra11 matically, weather patterns sharply shift, ice sheets 

12 shrink, and sea levels will rise. 

13 (3) Climate scientists agree that human activi14 ties are the driving force behind the rise in global 

15 temperatures. Smokestacks and automobile emis16 sions have been primary contributors of carbon diox17 ide and other heat-trapping gases that significantly 

18 contribute to the warming trend. 

19 (4) In addition to the alarming data about cli20 mate change, rising gas prices and instability in oil 

21 producing regions have reinforced the need for the 

22 United States to secure our energy independence, 

23 and make progress by developing and distributing 

24 alternatively fueled vehicles. 


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1 (5) Alternative fueled cars can lessen the im2 pact of climate change, and help provide for the sta3 bility and safety of the world. 

4 (6) Biodiesel helps to provide hope that our 

5 country can achieve sustainable energy independence 

6 and combat the effects of global warming. 

7 (7) Vehicles which utilize E–85 ethanol fuel 

8 could reduce our usage of petroleum fuels by up to 

9 40 percent. 

10 (8) Currently, there are just 6,000,000 E–85 

11 capable vehicles on United States roads, compared 

12 to approximately 230,000,000 gasoline and diesel 

13 fueled vehicles. 

14 (9) Just 993 fueling stations in the United 

15 States currently provide E–85 fuel, accounting for 

16 less than one percent of fueling stations. Only 635 

17 retail pumps currently provide consumers with bio18 diesel fuel. 

19 (10) Congress must do more to make alter20 native fueled vehicles practical and accessible to ev21 eryone. 


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1 SEC. 3. EXCISE TAX ON AUTOMOBILES SOLD IN UNITED 

2 STATES THAT ARE NOT ALTERNATIVE 

3 FUELED AUTOMOBILES. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part I of subchapter A of chapter 

5 32 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by 

6 inserting before section 4064 the following new section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 4061. AUTOMOBILES THAT ARE NOT ALTERNATIVE 

8 FUELED AUTOMOBILES. 

9 ‘‘(a) TAX IMPOSED.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is hereby imposed on 

11 the 1st retail sale of each passenger automobile sold 

12 by the manufacturer, producer, or importer thereof 

13 a tax in the amount of the applicable percentage of 

14 the price for which so sold. 

15 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION FOR ALTERNATIVE FUELED

16 AUTOMOBILES.—Paragraph (1) shall not apply to 

17 any alternative fueled automobile. 

18 ‘‘(b) APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE.—For purposes of 

19 subsection (a), the applicable percentage shall be deter20 mined in accordance with the following table: 

‘‘Passenger automobiles sold in calendar year: 

The applicable percentage is: 

2007 .............................................................................................. 5 percent

2008 .............................................................................................. 10 percent

2009 .............................................................................................. 20 percent

2010 .............................................................................................. 40 percent

2011 or thereafter ........................................................................ 80 percent. 


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1 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of subsection 

2 (a)— 

3 ‘‘(1) PASSENGER AUTOMOBILE.—The term 

4 ‘passenger automobile’ has the meaning given such 

5 term by section 32901(a)(16) of title 49, United 

6 States Code, except that such term includes in the 

7 case of each automobile parts or accessories therefor 

8 sold on or in connection therewith or with the sale 

9 thereof. 

10 ‘‘(2) ALTERNATIVE FUELED AUTOMOBILE.— 

11 The term ‘alternative fueled automobile’ means an 

12 alternative fueled automobile, as defined by section 

13 32901(a)(2) of title 49, United States Code, that 

14 uses a fuel that has greenhouse gas emissions less 

15 than 80 percent of those from petroleum-derived 

16 transportation fuel, calculated over the full fuel cycle 

17 (as weighted by global warming potential and using 

18 the emissions per kilowatt-hour from a natural gas 

19 combined cycle power plant as the basis for crediting 

20 any electricity co-produced with the transportation 

21 fuel). 

22 ‘‘(3) APPLICATION OF SECTION 32901 OF TITLE

23 49.—Section 32901(a) of title 49, United States 

24 Code, shall be applied— 

25 ‘‘(A) in paragraph (3)— 


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1 ‘‘(i) by substituting ‘10,000 pounds’ 

2 for ‘6,000 pounds’ in subparagraph (A) 

3 thereof, and 

4 ‘‘(ii) without regard to subparagraph 

5 (B) thereof, and 

6 ‘‘(B) in paragraph (16)(B) by substituting 

7 ‘10,000 pounds’ for ‘6,000 pounds’.’’. 

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

9 (1) The heading for part I of subchapter A of 

10 chapter 32 of such Code is amended to read as fol11 lows: 

12 ‘‘PART I—NON-ALTERNATIVE FUEL VEHICLES 

13 AND GAS GUZZLERS’’. 

14 (2) The item in the table of parts for sub15 chapter A of chapter 32 of such Code relating to 

16 part I is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘PART I. NON-ALTERNATIVE FUEL VEHICLES AND GAS GUZZLERS.’’. 

17 (3) The table of sections for part I of sub18 chapter A of chapter 32 of such Code is amended to 

19 read as follows: 

‘‘Sec. 4061. Automobiles that are not alternative fueled automobiles.’’. 

20 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

21 this section shall apply to automobiles sold after December 

22 31, 2006. 


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1 SEC. 4. USE OF FUNDS FROM TAX. 

2 (a) REFUELING INFRASTRUCTURE GRANTS.—The 

3 Secretary of Energy shall obligate such sums as are avail4 able in the trust fund to make grants to fueling stations 

5 owned by entities which own or control 10 or fewer such 

6 businesses for alternative fuel refueling infrastructure 

7 projects, including new dispensing facilities and additional 

8 equipment or upgrades and improvements to existing re9 fueling sites for alternative fuel vehicles. 

10 (b) TRUST FUND.— 

11 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in 

12 the Treasury of the United States a trust fund. The 

13 trust fund shall consist of such amounts as are de14 posited into the trust fund under paragraph (2) and 

15 any interest earned on investment of amounts in the 

16 trust fund, and may be used only for the purposes 

17 described in subsection (a). 

18 (2) SOURCE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary of the 

19 Treasury shall deposit into the trust fund all 

20 amounts collected pursuant to the tax imposed 

21 under section 4061 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

22 1986, as added by section 3of this Act. 

23 (c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section— 

24 (1) the term ‘‘alternative fuel’’ means an alter25 native fuel, as defined in section 301(2) of the En26 ergy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13211(2)) that 


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1 has greenhouse gas emissions less than 80 percent 

2 of those from petroleum-derived transportation fuel, 

3 calculated over the full fuel cycle (as weighted by 

4 global warming potential and using the emissions 

5 per kilowatt-hour from a natural gas combined cycle 

6 power plant as the basis for crediting any electricity 

7 co-produced with the transportation fuel); 

8 (2) the term ‘‘E–85 fuel’’ means a transpor9 tation fuel consisting of 85 percent ethanol and gas10 oline; and 

11 (3) the term ‘‘trust fund’’ means the trust fund 

12 established under subsection (b). 

13 SEC. 5. INFORMATION DISCLOSURE RELATED TO ALTER14 NATIVE FUELED AUTOMOBILES. 

15 Section 3 of the Automobile Information Disclosure 

16 Act (15 U.S.C. 1232) is amended by redesignating sub17 sections (b) through (h) as subsections (c) through (i), re18 spectively, and inserting after subsection (a) the following: 

19 ‘‘(b) whether such automobile is an alternative 

20 fueled automobile (as defined in section 32901(a)(2) 

21 of title 49, United States Code) and the type or 

22 types of fuel on which the automobile is capable of 

23 operating;’’. 

Æ 


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