59–010 

Calendar No. 356 

110TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 1st Session 110–158 

ALTERNATIVE SULFUR DIOXIDE REMOVAL MEASUREMENT FOR COAL GASIFICATION PROJECT GOALS 

SEPTEMBER 17, 2007.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. BINGAMAN, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 645] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the bill (S. 645) to amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 

to provide an alternate sulfur dioxide removal measurement for 

certain coal gasification project goals, having considered the same, 

reports favorably thereon without amendment and recommends 

that the bill do pass. 

PURPOSE

The purpose of S. 645 is to amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 

to provide an alternative sulfur dioxide removal measurement for 

certain coal gasification project goals. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

The Clean Coal Power Initiative (‘‘CCPI’’) authorized in section 

404 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (‘‘EPACT’’), Public Law 109– 

58, requires the Secretary of Energy to establish goals and milestones for emissions from such projects so that by year 2020 they 

will be able to remove, among other criteria pollutant reductions, 

at least 99% of sulfur dioxide from coal fired electricity generation. 

Thus, under current law, projects seeking CCPI funding are reviewed based on their ability to achieve 99% removal of sulfur dioxide regardless of the original levels of sulfur in their coal feedstock. 

Because western coals have significantly lower sulfur content than 

other coals, it is prohibitively more expensive to remove 99% of 

that sulfur than it is to do so for other coals that contain more sulfur to begin with. This bill provides an alternative goal based on 


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emissions of sulfur dioxide per unit of energy to account for this 

variation in sulfur content. This alternative criterion for low sulfur 

coals will achieve an emission standard that is no less than and, 

in some cases, greater than that which is achieved with a 99% 

standard using other coals. This alternative is also consistent with 

language found in Internal Revenue Code section 48A(f)(1)(B). 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 645 was introduced by Senator Thomas on February 15, 2007. 

During the 109th Congress, the Committee considered similar legislation, S. 4076. The Subcommittee on Energy held a hearing on 

S. 645 on May 22, 2007. At its business meeting on July 25, 2007, 

the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 645 to 

be favorably reported. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open business session on July 25, 2007, by a voice vote of a quorum present, 

recommends that the Senate pass S. 645. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 amends the Clean Coal Power Initiative emissions 

goals in Section 402 to add an alternative goal for emissions of sulfur dioxide of .04 pounds per million Btu, based on a 30-day average. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of costs of this measure has been provided 

by the Congressional Budget Office: 

AUGUST 14, 2007. 

Hon. JEFF BINGAMAN, 

Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 645, a bill to amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to provide an alternate sulfur dioxide removal measurement for certain coal gasification project goals. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. 

The CBO staff contact is Megan Carroll. 

Sincerely, 

PETER R. ORSZAG. 

Enclosure. 

S. 645—A bill to amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to provide 

an alternate sulfur dioxide removal measurement for certain 

coal gasification project goals 

Through the Clean Coal Power Initiative (CCPI), the Department 

of Energy (DOE) provides financial support for projects to develop 

and demonstrate the use of clean coal technologies in facilities that 

generate electric power. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 specifies eligibility criteria for such projects, including requirements related to 


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controlling emissions of pollutants such as sulfur dioxide. S. 645 

would amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to allow an alternative 

measure of reductions in sulfur dioxide emissions. According to 

DOE, the proposed alternative would be slightly less stringent than 

the existing requirement. 

CBO estimates that implementing S. 645 would have no significant effect on the federal budget. Although the proposed change 

could affect the types of technologies used in projects that receive 

federal assistance through the CCPI, it would not affect total federal spending for such projects, all of which is subject to appropriation. Enacting S. 645 would not affect direct spending or revenues. 

S. 645 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates 

as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carroll. The estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Assistant Director for 

Budget Analysis. 

REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation 

of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out 

S. 645. The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing Government-established standards or significant economic responsibilities on private individuals and businesses. 

No personal information would be collected in administering the 

program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy. 

Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of S. 645, as ordered reported. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

STATEMENT OF DAVID R. HILL, GENERAL COUNSEL, 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Chairman Dorgan, Senator Murkowski, and members of 

the Committee, my name is David Hill, and I am the General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Energy (Department or DOE). I want to thank you for the opportunity to 

appear today and offer preliminary comments on five energy-related bills that Congress is considering. The bills 

before the Committee today each make valuable contributions to our national discussion on energy security, but in 

some cases could benefit from further review, discussion 

and modification. The Department looks forward to working with the Committee to resolve these issues. I would 

like to discuss elements of each bill, as well as present 

some of the DOE activities that are already underway in 

the areas addressed by the bills. 

S. 645

S. 645 modifies the technical criteria in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 for the Clean Coal Power Initiative. The 

Department supports the proposed change because it 

would reduce a bias in the current requirement that favors 


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a particular coal type, while still maintaining a stringent 

sulfur dioxide emission standard for the R&D program. 

The practical effect of the change will be to allow slightly 

less strict SO2 requirements for power plants burning low 

sulfur coals. Nevertheless, even with the proposed change, 

the SO2 emission requirement for these lower sulfur coalfueled power plants would remain as stringent, or more 

stringent, than the allowable emissions rate for higher sulfur coals. 

* * * * * * * 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by S. 645, as ordered reported, are shown as follows (existing law proposed to be 

omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is printed in 

italic, existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in 

roman): 

ENERGY POLICY ACT OF 2005 

(Public Law 109–58; Approved August 8, 2005) 

AN ACT To ensure jobs for our future with secure, affordable, and reliable energy 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 

United States of America Congress assembled, 

* * * * * * * 

SEC. 402. PROJECT CRITERIA. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive assistance under this 

subtitle, a project shall advance efficiency, environmental performance, and cost competitiveness well beyond the level of technologies 

that are in commercial service or have been demonstrated on a 

scale that the Secretary determines is sufficient to demonstrate 

that commercial service is viable as of the date of enactment of this 

Act. 

(b) TECHNICAL CRITERIA FOR CLEAN COAL POWER INITIATIVE.— (1) GASIFICATION PROJECTS.—

* * * * * * * 

(B) TECHNICAL MILESTONES.—

* * * * * * * 

(ii) 2020 GOALS.—The Secretary shall establish the 

periodic milestones so as to achieve by the year 2020 

coal gasification projects able—

ø(I) to remove at least 99 percent of sulfur dioxide;¿ 

(I)(aa) to remove at least 99 percent of sulfur dioxide; or (bb) to emit not more than 0.04 pound 

SO2 per million Btu, based on a 30-day average; 

* * * * * * * 

Æ 


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