II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 949 

To amend the National Oilheat Research Alliance Act of 2000 to reauthorize 

and improve that Act, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 11, 2011 

Mrs. SHAHEEN (for herself, Ms. SNOWE, Mr. REED, Mr. BURR, and Mr. 

SANDERS) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To amend the National Oilheat Research Alliance Act of 

2000 to reauthorize and improve that Act, 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 ‘‘National Oilheat Reau5 thorization Act of 2011’’. 

6 SEC. 2. RENAMING OF NATIONAL OILHEAT RESEARCH AL7 LIANCE ACT OF 2000. 

8 Section 701 of the National Oilheat Research Alli9 ance Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 6201 note; Public Law 106– 


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1 469) is amended by striking ‘‘National Oilheat Research 

2 Alliance Act of 2000’’ and inserting ‘‘National Oilheat Re3 search, Consumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 

4 2011’’. 

5 SEC. 3. DEFINITION OF OILHEAT FUEL. 

6 Section 703 of the National Oilheat Research, Con7 sumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 

8 6201 note; Public Law 106–469) is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through 

10 (7) and (8) through (15) as paragraphs (4) through 

11 (8) and (10) through (17), respectively; 

12 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(3) COST-EFFECTIVE.—The term ‘cost-effec15 tive’, with respect to a program or activity conducted 

16 as part of the heating oil efficiency and upgrade pro17 gram under section 707(f)(3), means that the pro18 gram or activity meets a total resource cost test 

19 under which— 

20 ‘‘(A) the net present value of economic 

21 benefits over the life of the program or activity, 

22 including avoided supply and delivery costs and 

23 deferred or avoided investments; is greater than 

24 ‘‘(B) the net present value of the economic 

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1 cluding program costs and incremental costs 

2 borne by the energy consumer.’’; and 

3 (3) by inserting after paragraph (8) (as so re4 designated) the following: 

5 ‘‘(9) OILHEAT FUEL.—The term ‘oilheat fuel’ 

6 means fuel that— 

7 ‘‘(A) is— 

8 ‘‘(i) No. 1 distillate; 

9 ‘‘(ii) No. 2 dyed distillate; 

10 ‘‘(iii) a liquid blended with No. 1 dis11 tillate or No. 2 dyed distillate; or 

12 ‘‘(iv) a biobased liquid; and 

13 ‘‘(B) is used as a fuel for nonindustrial 

14 commercial or residential space or hot water 

15 heating.’’. 

16 SEC. 4. MEMBERSHIP. 

17 (a) SELECTION.—Section 705 of the National Oilheat 

18 Research, Consumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 

19 2011 (42 U.S.C. 6201 note; Public Law 106–469) is 

20 amended by striking subsection (a) and inserting the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(a) SELECTION.— 

23 ‘‘(1) LIST.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Alliance shall 

2 provide to the Secretary a list of qualified nomi3 nees for membership in the Alliance. 

4 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENT.—Except as provided 

5 in subsection (c)(1)(C), members of the Alliance 

6 shall be representatives of the oilheat industry 

7 in a State, selected from a list of nominees sub8 mitted by the qualified State association in the 

9 State. 

10 ‘‘(2) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Alliance 

11 shall be filled in the same manner as the original se12 lection. 

13 ‘‘(3) SECRETARIAL ACTION.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

15 have 60 days to review nominees provided 

16 under paragraph (1). 

17 ‘‘(B) FAILURE TO ACT.—If the Secretary 

18 takes no action during the 60-day period de19 scribed in subparagraph (A), the nominees shall 

20 be considered to be members of the Alliance.’’. 

21 (b) REPRESENTATION.—Section 705(b) of the Na22 tional Oilheat Research, Consumer Education, and Effi23 ciency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 6201 note; Public Law 

24 106–469) is amended in the matter preceding paragraph 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘qualified industry organization’’ and in2 serting ‘‘the Alliance’’. 

3 (c) NUMBER OF MEMBERS.—Section 705(c) of the 

4 National Oilheat Research, Consumer Education, and Ef5 ficiency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 6201 note; Public Law 

6 106–469) is amended— 

7 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Alliance shall be com10 posed of the following members: 

11 ‘‘(A) One member representing each State 

12 participating in the Alliance. 

13 ‘‘(B) Five representatives of retail market14 ers, of whom one shall be selected by each of 

15 the qualified State associations of the 5 States 

16 with the highest volume of annual oilheat fuel 

17 sales. 

18 ‘‘(C) Five additional representatives of re19 tail marketers. 

20 ‘‘(D) Twenty-one representatives of whole21 sale distributors. 

22 ‘‘(E) Six public members, who shall be rep23 resentatives of significant users of oilheat fuel, 

24 the oilheat fuel research community, State en25 ergy officials, or other groups with expertise in 


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1 oilheat fuel, including consumer and low-income 

2 advocacy groups.’’; and 

3 (2) in paragraph 2, by striking ‘‘the qualified 

4 industry organization or’’. 

5 SEC. 5. BIENNIAL BUDGETS. 

6 Section 706(e) of the National Oilheat Research, 

7 Consumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 

8 U.S.C. 6201 note; Public Law 106–469) is amended— 

9 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

10 following: 

11 ‘‘(1) PUBLICATION OF PROPOSED BUDGET.— 

12 Not later than August 1, 2011, and every 2 years 

13 thereafter, the Alliance shall, in consultation with 

14 the Secretary, develop and publish for public review 

15 and comment a proposed biennial budget for the 

16 next 2 calendar years, including the probable oper17 ating and planning costs of all programs, projects, 

18 and contracts and other agreements.’’; and 

19 (2) by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘(4) IMPLEMENTATION.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Alliance shall not 

23 implement a proposed budget until the expira24 tion of 60 days after submitting the proposed 

25 budget to the Secretary. 


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1 ‘‘(B) RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CHANGES

2 BY SECRETARY.— 

3 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

4 may recommend to the Alliance changes to 

5 the budget programs and activities of the 

6 Alliance that the Secretary considers ap7 propriate. 

8 ‘‘(ii) RESPONSE BY ALLIANCE.—Not 

9 later than 30 days after the receipt of any 

10 recommendations made under clause (i), 

11 the Alliance shall submit to the Secretary 

12 a final budget for the next 2 calendar 

13 years that incorporates or includes a de14 scription of the response of the Alliance to 

15 any changes recommended under clause 

16 (i). 

17 ‘‘(C) EFFECT OF DISAPPROVAL.—If the 

18 Secretary disapproves a proposed budget of the 

19 Alliance, the Alliance shall operate under the 

20 terms and conditions of the previous budget.’’. 

21 SEC. 6. DATA COLLECTION SYSTEM. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 706(f)(1)(A) of the Na23 tional Oilheat Research, Consumer Education, and Effi24 ciency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 6201 note; Public Law 

25 106–469) is amended by inserting ‘‘(including, to the 


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1 maximum extent practicable, a data collection process es2 tablished, in collaboration with the Secretary, to track 

3 equipment, service, and related safety issues under this 

4 title)’’ after ‘‘the Alliance’’. 

5 (b) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—Section 706(f)(2)(b) 

6 of the National Oilheat Research, Consumer Education, 

7 and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 6201 note; Public 

8 Law 106–469) is amended by striking ‘‘the members of 

9 the Alliance, and the qualified industry organization’’ and 

10 inserting ‘‘and the members of the Alliance’’. 

11 SEC. 7. BIENNIAL REPORTS BY SECRETARY. 

12 Section 706 of the National Oilheat Research, Con13 sumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 

14 6201 note; Public Law 106–469) is amended by adding 

15 at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(i) BIENNIAL REPORTS BY SECRETARY.—Not later 

17 than April 30, 2013, and every 2 years thereafter, the Sec18 retary shall submit to Congress a report containing— 

19 ‘‘(1) a description of activities of the Alliance 

20 relating to— 

21 ‘‘(A) research, development, and dem22 onstration; 

23 ‘‘(B) consumer education, safety and train24 ing; and 

25 ‘‘(C) development of alternative fuels; 


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1 ‘‘(2) an evaluation of the consumer savings, 

2 cost-effectiveness of, efficiency gains, and the life3 time and annual energy savings achieved by, energy 

4 efficiency programs carried out under this title; and 

5 ‘‘(3) recommendations for more effectively 

6 achieving consumer savings, cost-effectiveness, and 

7 lifetime and annual energy savings through effi8 ciency programs for home heating oil for residential 

9 or commercial purposes, including an estimate of— 

10 ‘‘(A) the amount of investment required to 

11 implement all energy efficiency programs and 

12 heating system upgrades and modifications that 

13 are cost-effective; 

14 ‘‘(B) the total amount of funds that con15 sumers will save from the investments; and 

16 ‘‘(C) the total number of jobs that will be 

17 created from the investments.’’. 

18 SEC. 8. PAYMENT OF ASSESSMENTS. 

19 Section 707(b) of the National Oilheat Research, 

20 Consumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 

21 U.S.C. 6201 note; Public Law 106–469) is amended by 

22 adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(8) PROHIBITION ON PASS THROUGH.—None 

24 of the assessments collected under this title may be 

25 passed through or otherwise required to be paid by 


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1 the retail purchasers or ultimate consumers of 

2 oilheat.’’. 

3 SEC. 9. FUNDS MADE AVAILABLE TO QUALIFIED STATE AS4 SOCIATIONS. 

5 Section 707(e)(2) of the National Oilheat Research, 

6 Consumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 

7 U.S.C. 6201 note; Public Law 106–469) is amended by 

8 adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(B) SEPARATE ACCOUNTS.—As a condi10 tion of receipt of funds made available to a 

11 qualified State association under this Act, the 

12 qualified State association shall deposit the 

13 funds in an account that is separate from other 

14 funds of the qualified State association.’’. 

15 SEC. 10. USE OF ASSESSMENTS. 

16 Section 707 of the National Oilheat Research, Con17 sumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 

18 6201 note; Public Law 106–469) is amended by adding 

19 at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(f) USE OF ASSESSMENTS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

22 provision of this title, the Secretary and the Alliance 

23 shall ensure that assessments collected for each cal24 endar year under this title are allocated and used in 

25 accordance with this subsection. 


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1 ‘‘(2) RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, AND DEM2 ONSTRATION.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Alliance shall en4 sure that not less than 40 percent of the assess5 ments collected for each calendar year under 

6 this title are used by qualified State associa7 tions or the Alliance to conduct research, devel8 opment, and demonstration activities relating to 

9 oilheat, including— 

10 ‘‘(i) the development of energy-effi11 cient heating systems and biofuel heating 

12 oil blends; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) the transition and facilitation of 

14 the entry of energy efficient heating sys15 tems and biofuels into the marketplace. 

16 ‘‘(B) PRIORITIES.—The Alliance shall co17 ordinate with the Secretary to develop priorities 

18 for the use of assessments under this para19 graph. 

20 ‘‘(C) PLAN.—The Alliance shall develop a 

21 coordinated research plan to carry out research 

22 programs and activities under this section. 

23 ‘‘(D) DOCUMENTATION.—The Alliance 

24 shall document activities conducted under this 

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1 cedures developed in coordination with the Sec2 retary. 

3 ‘‘(3) HEATING OIL EFFICIENCY AND UPGRADE

4 PROGRAM.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Alliance shall en6 sure that not less than 20 percent of the assess7 ments collected for each calendar year under 

8 this title are used by qualified State associa9 tions or the Alliance to carry out programs to 

10 assist consumers— 

11 ‘‘(i) to make cost-effective upgrades to 

12 more fuel efficient heating oil systems or 

13 otherwise make cost-effective modifications 

14 to an existing heating system to improve 

15 the efficiency of the system; or 

16 ‘‘(ii) to improve energy efficiency or 

17 reduce energy consumption through cost18 effective energy efficiency programs for 

19 consumers. 

20 ‘‘(B) PLAN.—The Alliance shall— 

21 ‘‘(i) develop a coordinated heating oil 

22 efficiency and upgrade plan with States to 

23 carry out cost-effective efficiency programs 

24 and activities under this section; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) to the maximum extent prac2 ticable, coordinate, develop, and implement 

3 the programs and activities of the Alliance 

4 in conjunction with existing State energy 

5 efficiency program administrators; and 

6 ‘‘(iii) submit the plan to the Sec7 retary. 

8 ‘‘(C) ADMINISTRATION.— 

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out 

10 this paragraph, the Alliance shall, to the 

11 maximum extent practicable, ensure that 

12 heating system conversion assistance is co13 ordinated with, and developed after con14 sultation with, persons or organizations re15 sponsible for administering— 

16 ‘‘(I) the low-income home energy 

17 assistance program established under 

18 the Low-Income Home Energy Assist19 ance Act of 1981 (42 U.S.C. 8621 et 

20 seq.); 

21 ‘‘(II) the Weatherization Assist22 ance Program for Low-Income Per23 sons established under part A of title 

24 IV of the Energy Conservation and 


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1 Production Act (42 U.S.C. 6861 et 

2 seq.); or 

3 ‘‘(III) other energy efficiency 

4 programs administered by the State 

5 or other parties in the State. 

6 ‘‘(ii) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.—The 

7 Alliance shall ensure that funds distributed 

8 to carry out this paragraph are— 

9 ‘‘(I) distributed equitably to 

10 States based on the proportional con11 tributions of the States through col12 lected assessments; 

13 ‘‘(II) used to supplement (and 

14 not supplant) State or alternative 

15 sources of funding for energy effi16 ciency programs; and 

17 ‘‘(III) used only to carry out this 

18 paragraph. 

19 ‘‘(4) CONSUMER EDUCATION, SAFETY, AND

20 TRAINING.—The Alliance shall ensure that not more 

21 than 35 percent of the assessments collected for 

22 each calendar year under this title are used— 

23 ‘‘(A) to conduct consumer education activi24 ties relating to oilheat, including providing in25 formation to consumers on— 


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1 ‘‘(i) energy conservation strategies; 

2 ‘‘(ii) safety; 

3 ‘‘(iii) new technologies that reduce 

4 consumption or improve safety and com5 fort; 

6 ‘‘(iv) the use of biofuels blends; and 

7 ‘‘(v) Federal, State, and local pro8 grams designed to assist oilheat con9 sumers; 

10 ‘‘(B) to conduct worker safety and training 

11 activities relating to oilheat, including energy 

12 efficiency training (including classes to obtain 

13 Building Performance Institute or Residential 

14 Energy Services Network certification); or 

15 ‘‘(C) to carry out other activities rec16 ommended by the Secretary. 

17 ‘‘(5) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—The Alliance 

18 shall ensure that not more than 5 percent of the as19 sessments collected for each calendar year under this 

20 title are used for overhead or administrative costs. 

21 ‘‘(6) REPORTS.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each qualified State 

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1 ministration of this section, and yearly expendi2 tures under this section. 

3 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each report shall in4 clude— 

5 ‘‘(i) a description of the use of pro6 ceeds under this section, including a de7 scription of— 

8 ‘‘(I) advancements made in en9 ergy-efficient heating systems and 

10 biofuel heating oil blends; and 

11 ‘‘(II) heating system upgrades 

12 and modifications and energy effi13 ciency programs funded under this 

14 section; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) a demonstration of the consumer 

16 savings, cost-effectiveness of, and the life17 time and annual energy savings achieved 

18 by heating system upgrades and modifica19 tions and energy efficiency programs fund20 ed through this section. 

21 ‘‘(C) AVAILABILITY.— 

22 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Each report, and 

23 any subsequent changes to the report, de24 scribed in subparagraph (A) shall be made 


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1 publically available, with notice of avail2 ability provided to the Secretary. 

3 ‘‘(ii) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The 

4 Secretary shall make the reports prepared 

5 under this paragraph available to the pub6 lic, including by publishing the reports on 

7 the Internet. 

8 ‘‘(D) VERIFICATION.— 

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Alliance shall 

10 ensure that an independent third-party re11 views each report described in subpara12 graph (A), and verifies the accuracy of the 

13 report, biennially. 

14 ‘‘(ii) COUNCILS.—If a State has a 

15 stakeholder efficiency oversight council, the 

16 council shall be the entity that reviews and 

17 verifies the report of the State association 

18 or Alliance for the State under clause (i).’’. 

19 SEC. 11. MARKET SURVEY AND CONSUMER PROTECTION. 

20 The National Oilheat Research, Consumer Edu21 cation, and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 6201 note; 

22 Public Law 106–469) is amended by striking section 708. 

23 SEC. 12. LOBBYING RESTRICTIONS. 

24 Section 710 of the National Oilheat Research, Con25 sumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 


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1 6201 note; Public Law 106–469) is amended by inserting 

2 ‘‘or to lobby’’ after ‘‘elections’’. 

3 SEC. 13. NONCOMPLIANCE. 

4 Section 712 of the National Oilheat Research, Con5 sumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 

6 6201 note; Public Law 106–469) is amended by adding 

7 at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(g) NONCOMPLIANCE.—If the Alliance, a qualified 

9 State association, or any other entity or person violates 

10 this Act, the Secretary may impose a fine or take other 

11 appropriate action to ensure compliance with this Act, in12 cluding referral to an appropriate law enforcement author13 ity.’’. 

14 SEC. 14. SUNSET. 

15 Section 713 of the National Oilheat Research, Con16 sumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 2011 (42 U.S.C. 

17 6201 note; Public Law 106–469) is amended by striking 

18 ‘‘9 years’’ and inserting ‘‘19 years’’. 

Æ 


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