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[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 547 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

  1st Session
                                H. R. 547

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 12, 2007

                                Received

                           February 17, 2007

  Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public 
                                 Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 
  To facilitate the development of markets for biofuels and Ultra Low 
     Sulfur Diesel fuel through research and development and data 
                              collection.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Advanced Fuels Infrastructure 
Research and Development Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) in order to lessen United States dependence on foreign 
        sources of petroleum, and decrease demand for petroleum in the 
        transportation sector, the Nation must diversify its fuel 
        supply to include domestically produced biofuels including 
        hydrogen;
            (2) while ethanol has been successful in the market place 
        as a fuel additive, newer biofuels may present unique 
        challenges that may render the fuels incompatible with the 
        current fuel transportation and delivery infrastructure, 
        placing the burden of costly refurbishment and construction on 
        fuel distributors and retailers;
            (3) chemical additives to the fuels may mitigate the 
        negative impacts of some biofuels on existing infrastructure 
        and preclude costly retrofitting or installation of new biofuel 
        compatible infrastructure and transportation systems;
            (4) in order to mitigate air pollution and comply with 
        Federal mandates, Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel fuel was introduced 
        into the marketplace in 2006;
            (5) fuel labeled Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel may accumulate 
        more than the statutory limit of 15 parts per million of sulfur 
        when transported through multiple pipelines, tanks, and trucks 
        to the final point of sale;
            (6) fuel distributors and retailers may inadvertently take 
        delivery of fuel labeled Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel with more than 
        15 parts per million of sulfur without a practical means of 
        verifying sulfur content; and
            (7) fuel distributors and retailers may transform their 
        business by dispensing hydrogen, reformed on site from various 
        feedstocks, or delivered by pipeline or tube trucks, resulting 
        in new storage, handling, and equipment challenges.

SEC. 3. BIOFUEL INFRASTRUCTURE AND ADDITIVES RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.

    The Assistant Administrator of the Office of Research and 
Development of the Environmental Protection Agency (in this Act 
referred to as the ``Assistant Administrator''), in consultation with 
the Secretary of Energy and the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology, shall carry out a program of research and development of 
materials to be added to biofuels to make them more compatible with 
existing infrastructure used to store and deliver petroleum-based fuels 
to the point of final sale. The Assistant Administrator is encouraged 
to utilize Land Grant Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and 
Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, and other minority-serving 
institutions among other resources to undertake research for this 
program. The program shall address--
            (1) materials to prevent or mitigate--
                    (A) corrosion of metal, plastic, rubber, cork, 
                fiberglass, glues, or any other material used in pipes 
                and storage tanks;
                    (B) dissolving of storage tank sediments;
                    (C) clogging of filters;
                    (D) contamination from water or other adulterants 
                or pollutants;
                    (E) poor flow properties related to low 
                temperatures;
                    (F) oxidative and thermal instability in long-term 
                storage and use;
                    (G) microbial contamination; and
                    (H) problems associated with electrical 
                conductivity;
            (2) alternatives to conventional methods for refurbishment 
        and cleaning of gasoline and diesel tanks, including tank 
        lining applications;
            (3) strategies to minimize emissions from infrastructure;
            (4) issues with respect to certification by a nationally 
        recognized testing laboratory of components for fuel dispensing 
        devises that specifically reference compatibility with alcohol 
        blended and other biofuels that contain greater than 15 percent 
        alcohol;
            (5) challenges for design, reforming, storage, handling, 
        and dispensing hydrogen fuel from various feedstocks, including 
        biomass, from neighborhood fueling stations, including codes 
        and standards development necessary beyond that carried out 
        under section 809 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 
        16158);
            (6) issues with respect to where in the fuel supply chain 
        additives optimally should be added to fuels; and
            (7) other problems as identified by the Assistant 
        Administrator, in consultation with the Secretary of Energy and 
        the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

SEC. 4. SULFUR TESTING FOR DIESEL FUELS.

    (a) Program.--The Assistant Administrator, in consultation with the 
National Institute of Standards and Technology, shall carry out a 
research, development, and demonstration program on portable, low-cost, 
and accurate methods and technologies for testing of sulfur content in 
fuel, including Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel and Low Sulfur Diesel.
    (b) Schedule of Demonstrations.--Not later than 1 year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Assistant Administrator shall begin 
demonstrations of technologies under subsection (a).

SEC. 5. STANDARD REFERENCE MATERIALS AND DATA BASE DEVELOPMENT.

    Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the National Institute of Standards and Technology shall develop a 
physical properties data base and standard reference materials for 
biofuels. Such data base and standard reference materials shall be 
maintained and updated as appropriate as additional biofuels become 
available.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS SUBJECT TO PAY AS YOU GO.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Environmental 
Protection Agency $10,000,000 for carrying out this Act, to be derived 
from amounts otherwise appropriated to the Environmental Protection 
Agency for energy research, development, and demonstration activities 
related to fuels or environmental research and development activities 
related to fuels.

SEC. 7. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

    Not later than 1 year after the establishment of the program under 
this Act, the Secretary of Energy shall transmit a report to Congress 
containing suggestions for any Federal incentives that could help such 
program be more successful.

SEC. 8. ADDITIONAL FINDING.

    The Congress also finds that in order to lessen United States 
dependence on foreign sources of petroleum, and decrease demand for 
petroleum in aircraft, such as passenger planes with 42 business class 
seats capable of transcontinental flights, the Nation must diversify 
its fuel supply for aircraft to include domestically produced 
alternative fuels.

SEC. 9. ADDITIONAL ISSUES.

    Research and development under this Act shall address issues with 
respect to increased volatile emissions or increased nitrogen oxide 
emissions.

            Passed the House of Representatives February 8, 2007.

            Attest:

                                                 KAREN L. HAAS,

                                                                 Clerk.
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