II 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1627 

To improve choices for consumers for vehicles and fuel, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 6, 2009 

Mr. HARKIN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To improve choices for consumers for vehicles and fuel, 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 ‘‘Consumer Fuels and 

5 Vehicle Choice Act of 2009’’. 

6 SEC. 2. ENSURING THE AVAILABILITY OF DUAL FUELED 

7 AUTOMOBILES AND LIGHT DUTY TRUCKS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 329 of title 49, United 

9 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 32902 

10 the following: 


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1 ‘‘§ 32902A. Requirement to manufacture dual fueled 

2 automobiles and light duty trucks 

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For each model year listed in the 

4 following table, each manufacturer shall ensure that the 

5 percentage of automobiles and light duty trucks manufac6 tured by the manufacturer for sale in the United States 

7 that are dual fueled automobiles and light duty trucks is 

8 not less than the percentage set forth for that model year 

9 in the following table: 

‘‘Model Year Percentage 

Model years 2011 and 2012 ....................... 50 percent 

Model year 2013 and each subsequent 

model year.

90 percent. 

10 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to 

11 automobiles or light duty trucks that operate only on elec12 tricity.’’. 

13 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

14 for chapter 329 of title 49, United States Code, is amend15 ed by inserting after the item relating to section 32902 

16 the following: 

‘‘32902A. Requirement to manufacture dual fueled automobiles and light duty 

trucks.’’. 

17 (c) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 1 year after the 

18 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Trans19 portation shall prescribe regulations to carry out the 

20 amendments made by this Act. 


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1 SEC. 3. BLENDER PUMP PROMOTION. 

2 (a) BLENDER PUMP GRANT PROGRAM.— 

3 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

4 (A) BLENDER PUMP.—The term ‘‘blender 

5 pump’’ means an automotive fuel dispensing 

6 pump capable of dispensing at least 3 different 

7 blends of gasoline and ethanol, as selected by 

8 the pump operator, including blends ranging 

9 from 0 percent ethanol to 85 percent denatured 

10 ethanol, as determined by the Secretary. 

11 (B) E–85 FUEL.—The term ‘‘E–85 fuel’’ 

12 means a blend of gasoline approximately 85 

13 percent of the content of which is ethanol. 

14 (C) ETHANOL FUEL BLEND.—The term 

15 ‘‘ethanol fuel blend’’ means a blend of gasoline 

16 and ethanol, with a minimum of 0 percent and 

17 maximum of 85 percent of the content of which 

18 is denatured ethanol. 

19 (D) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

20 means the Secretary of Energy. 

21 (2) GRANTS.—The Secretary shall make grants 

22 under this subsection to eligible facilities (as deter23 mined by the Secretary) to pay the Federal share 

24 of— 

25 (A) installing blender pump fuel infra26 structure, including infrastructure necessary— 


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1 (i) for the direct retail sale of ethanol 

2 fuel blends (including E–85 fuel), includ3 ing blender pumps and storage tanks; and 

4 (ii) to directly market ethanol fuel 

5 blends (including E–85 fuel) to gas retail6 ers, including inline blending equipment, 

7 pumps, storage tanks, and loadout equip8 ment; and 

9 (B) providing subgrants to direct retailers 

10 of ethanol fuel blends (including E–85 fuel) for 

11 the purpose of installing fuel infrastructure for 

12 the direct retail sale of ethanol fuel blends (in13 cluding E–85 fuel), including blender pumps 

14 and storage tanks. 

15 (3) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 

16 the cost of a project carried out under this sub17 section shall be 50 percent of the total cost of the 

18 project. 

19 (4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

20 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec21 retary to carry out this subsection, to remain avail22 able until expended— 

23 (A) $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; 

24 (B) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2011; 

25 (C) $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2012; 


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1 (D) $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2013; 

2 and 

3 (E) $350,000,000 for fiscal year 2014. 

4 (b) INSTALLATION OF BLENDER PUMPS BY MAJOR

5 FUEL DISTRIBUTORS AT OWNED STATIONS AND BRAND6 ED STATIONS.—Section 211(o) of the Clean Air Act (42 

7 U.S.C. 7545(o)) is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(13) INSTALLATION OF BLENDER PUMPS BY

10 MAJOR FUEL DISTRIBUTORS AT OWNED STATIONS

11 AND BRANDED STATIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(i) E–85 FUEL.—The term ‘E–85 

14 fuel’ means a blend of gasoline approxi15 mately 85 percent of the content of which 

16 is ethanol. 

17 ‘‘(ii) ETHANOL FUEL BLEND.—The 

18 term ‘ethanol fuel blend’ means a blend of 

19 gasoline and ethanol, with a minimum of 0 

20 percent and maximum of 85 percent of the 

21 content of which is denatured ethanol. 

22 ‘‘(iii) MAJOR FUEL DISTRIBUTOR.— 

23 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The term 

24 ‘major fuel distributor’ means any 

25 person that owns a refinery and diVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:45 Aug 07, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1627.IS S1627

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1 rectly markets the output of a refin2 ery. 

3 ‘‘(II) EXCLUSION.—The term 

4 ‘major fuel distributor’ does not in5 clude any person that owns less than 

6 50 retail fueling stations. 

7 ‘‘(iv) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Sec8 retary’ means the Secretary of Energy, 

9 acting in consultation with the Adminis10 trator of the Environmental Protection 

11 Agency and the Secretary of Agriculture. 

12 ‘‘(B) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall 

13 promulgate regulations to ensure that each 

14 major fuel distributor that sells or introduces 

15 gasoline into commerce in the United States 

16 through majority-owned stations or branded 

17 stations installs or otherwise makes available 1 

18 or more blender pumps that dispense E–85 fuel 

19 and ethanol fuel blends (including any other 

20 equipment necessary, such as tanks, to ensure 

21 that the pumps function properly) for a period 

22 of not less than 5 years at not less than the ap23 plicable percentage of the majority-owned sta24 tions and the branded stations of the major fuel 

25 distributor specified in subparagraph (C). 


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1 ‘‘(C) APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE.—For the 

2 purpose of subparagraph (B), the applicable 

3 percentage of the majority-owned stations and 

4 the branded stations shall be determined in ac5 cordance with the following table: 

‘‘Applicable percentage of majority-owned stations and branded 

stations 

Calendar year: Percent: 

2011 ............................................................................................. 10

2013 ............................................................................................. 20

2015 ............................................................................................. 35

2017 and each calendar year thereafter ...................................... 50. 

6 ‘‘(D) GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION.— 

7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause 

8 (ii), in promulgating regulations under 

9 subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall en10 sure that each major fuel distributor de11 scribed in that subparagraph installs or 

12 otherwise makes available 1 or more blend13 er pumps that dispense E–85 fuel and eth14 anol fuel blends at not less than a min15 imum percentage (specified in the regula16 tions) of the majority-owned stations and 

17 the branded stations of the major fuel dis18 tributors in each State. 

19 ‘‘(ii) REQUIREMENT.—In specifying 

20 the minimum percentage under clause (i), 

21 the Secretary shall ensure that each major 


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1 fuel distributor installs or otherwise makes 

2 available 1 or more blender pumps de3 scribed in that clause in each State in 

4 which the major fuel distributor operates. 

5 ‘‘(E) FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY.—In 

6 promulgating regulations under subparagraph 

7 (B), the Secretary shall ensure that each major 

8 fuel distributor described in that subparagraph 

9 assumes full financial responsibility for the 

10 costs of installing or otherwise making available 

11 the blender pumps described in that subpara12 graph and any other equipment necessary (in13 cluding tanks) to ensure that the pumps func14 tion properly. 

15 ‘‘(F) PRODUCTION CREDITS FOR EXCEED16 ING BLENDER PUMPS INSTALLATION REQUIRE17 MENT.— 

18 ‘‘(i) EARNING AND PERIOD FOR AP19 PLYING CREDITS.—If the percentage of the 

20 majority-owned stations and the branded 

21 stations of a major fuel distributor at 

22 which the major fuel distributor installs 

23 blender pumps in a particular calendar 

24 year exceeds the percentage required under 

25 subparagraph (C), the major fuel disVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:45 Aug 07, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1627.IS S1627

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1 tributor shall earn credits under this para2 graph, which may be applied to any of the 

3 3 consecutive calendar years immediately 

4 after the calendar year for which the cred5 its are earned. 

6 ‘‘(ii) TRADING CREDITS.—Subject to 

7 clause (iii), a major fuel distributor that 

8 has earned credits under clause (i) may 

9 sell the credits to another major fuel dis10 tributor to enable the purchaser to meet 

11 the requirement under subparagraph (C). 

12 ‘‘(iii) EXCEPTION.—A major fuel dis13 tributor may not use credits purchased 

14 under clause (ii) to fulfill the geographic 

15 distribution requirement in subparagraph 

16 (D).’’. 

Æ 


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