II 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3266 

To require Congress and Federal departments and agencies to reduce the 

annual consumption of gasoline of the Federal Government. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 15, 2008 

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

to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

A BILL 

To require Congress and Federal departments and agencies 

to reduce the annual consumption of gasoline of the 

Federal Government. 

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 ‘‘Immediate Steps to 

5 Conserve Gasoline Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FEDERAL CONSERVATION OF GASOLINE. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

8 (1) each day, as Americans contend with rising 

9 gasoline prices, personal stories reflect the ways in 

10 which Americans are altering their family budgets, 


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1 including food budgets, to cope with record high gas2 oline costs; 

3 (2) as a consequence of economic pressures, 

4 Americans are taking initiatives to reduce consump5 tion of gasoline, such as— 

6 (A) driving less frequently; 

7 (B) altering daily routines; and 

8 (C) changing, or even cancelling, family va9 cation plans; 

10 (3) the conservation efforts being taken by 

11 Americans, on their own initiative, bring hardships 

12 but save funds that can be redirected— 

13 (A) to meet essential family needs; and 

14 (B) to relieve, to some extent, the demand 

15 for gasoline; 

16 (4) just as individuals are taking initiatives to 

17 reduce gasoline consumption, the Federal Govern18 ment, including Congress, should take initiatives to 

19 conserve gasoline; 

20 (5) such Government-wide initiatives to con21 serve gasoline would send a signal to Americans that 

22 the Federal Government— 

23 (A) recognizes the burdens imposed by un24 precedented gasoline costs; and 


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1 (B) will participate in activities to reduce 

2 gasoline consumption; 

3 (6) an overall reduction of gasoline consumption 

4 by the Federal Government by even 3 percentage 

5 points would send a strong signal that, as a nation, 

6 the United States is working to conserve energy; 

7 (7) in 2005, policies directed at reducing the 

8 usage of energy in Federal agency and department 

9 buildings by 20 percent by 2015, at a rate of a 2- 

10 percent reduction per calendar year, were enacted by 

11 the President and Congress; 

12 (8) in 2007, policies increasing the energy re13 duction goal to 30 percent by 2015, at a rate of a 

14 3-percent reduction per calendar year, were enacted 

15 by the President and Congress; and 

16 (9) Congress and the President should extend 

17 the precedent of those mandatory conservation ini18 tiatives taken in 2005 and 2007 to usage by the 

19 Federal Government of gasoline. 

20 (b) REDUCTION OF GASOLINE USAGE BY FEDERAL

21 DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES.—For fiscal year 2009, 

22 each Federal department and agency shall develop and 

23 carry out initiatives to reduce by not less than 3 percent 

24 the annual consumption of gasoline by the department or 

25 agency. 


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1 (c) CONGRESSIONAL CONSERVATION OF GASO2 LINE.—For fiscal year 2009, Congress shall develop and 

3 carry out initiatives to reduce by not less than 3 percent 

4 the annual consumption of gasoline by Congress. 

5 SEC. 3. STUDIES AND REPORTS ON NATIONAL SPEED LIMIT 

6 AND FUTURE GASOLINE CONSERVATION. 

7 (a) NATIONAL SPEED LIMIT.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after 

9 the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

10 of the Energy Information Administration shall con11 duct, and submit to Congress a report describing the 

12 results of, a study of the potential transportation 

13 fuel savings of imposing a national speed limit on 

14 highways on the Interstate System of 60 miles per 

15 hour. 

16 (2) INCLUSIONS.—The study under paragraph 

17 (1) shall include— 

18 (A) an examination of the fuel efficiency of 

19 automobiles in use as of the date on which the 

20 study is conducted; 

21 (B) a description of the range at which 

22 those automobiles are most fuel-efficient on 

23 highways on the Interstate System; 

24 (C) an analysis of actions carried out by 

25 the Federal Government, with the full support 


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1 of Congress, during the 1973–1974 energy cri2 sis, resulting in a national speed limit on high3 ways on the Interstate System of 55 miles per 

4 hour, which remained in effect until 1995; 

5 (D) a recognition that in 1974, when fewer 

6 than 137,000,000 cars traveled in the United 

7 States (as compared to 250,000,000 cars in 

8 2006) and only 30 percent of United States oil 

9 was imported from foreign sources (as com10 pared to 60 percent of oil so imported on the 

11 date of enactment of this Act), 167,000 barrels 

12 of oil per day were saved by the imposition of 

13 a national speed limit, such that greater savings 

14 are possible on the date of enactment of this 

15 Act than the savings realized in 1974; and 

16 (E) a determination of whether a limita17 tion on the national speed limit on highways on 

18 the Interstate System similar to the limitation 

19 described in subparagraph (C) could serve as a 

20 model to generate gasoline savings, through a 

21 national speed limit on highways on the Inter22 state System of 60 miles per hour, given the 

23 improved fuel efficiency of automobile engines 

24 in use on the date of enactment of this Act. 

25 (b) FUTURE GASOLINE CONSERVATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after 

2 the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller 

3 General of the United States shall conduct, and sub4 mit to the Committees on Homeland Security and 

5 Governmental Affairs, Environment and Public 

6 Works, and Energy and Natural Resources of the 

7 Senate and the Committees on House Administra8 tion, Transportation and Infrastructure, and Energy 

9 and Commerce of the House of Representatives a re10 port describing the results of, a study to determine 

11 whether additional gasoline reduction measures by 

12 Federal departments and agencies and Congress are 

13 technically feasible. 

14 (2) INCLUSION.—The report under paragraph 

15 (1) shall include a proposed schedule of future gaso16 line reduction measures, if the measures are deter17 mined to be technically feasible. 

Æ 


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