I 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5745 

To amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to direct Federal research in 

fossil energy and to promote the development and demonstration of 

environmentally responsible coal and natural gas technologies, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 10, 2018 

Mr. VEASEY (for himself, Mr. MCKINLEY, and Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON

of Texas) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, and Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 

case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 

the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to direct Federal 

research in fossil energy and to promote the development 

and demonstration of environmentally responsible coal 

and natural gas technologies, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Fossil Energy Research and Development Act of 2018’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

Sec. 3. Repeal of clean coal power initiative. 

Sec. 4. Fossil energy objectives. 

Sec. 5. Carbon capture technologies for power systems. 

Sec. 6. Carbon storage validation and testing. 

Sec. 7. Carbon utilization. 

Sec. 8. Advanced energy systems. 

Sec. 9. Rare earth elements. 

Sec. 10. Interagency task force on carbon dioxide pipelines. 

Sec. 11. Methane hydrates research amendments. 

Sec. 12. Carbon removal. 

Sec. 13. Methane leak detection and mitigation. 

Sec. 14. National energy technology laboratory reforms. 

3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

4 For purposes of this Act: 

5 (1) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

6 means the Department of Energy. 

7 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

8 the Secretary of Energy. 

9 SEC. 3. REPEAL OF CLEAN COAL POWER INITIATIVE. 

10 (a) REPEAL.—Subtitle A of title IV of the Energy 

11 Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15801 note) is repealed. 

12 (b) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

13 for the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15801 note) 

14 is amended by striking the items related to subtitle A of 

15 title IV. 

16 SEC. 4. FOSSIL ENERGY OBJECTIVES. 

17 Section 961 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 

18 U.S.C. 16291) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a), by adding at the end the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(8) Improving the conversion, use, and storage 

4 of carbon dioxide produced from fossil fuels. 

5 ‘‘(9) Lowering greenhouse gas emissions for all 

6 fossil fuel production, generation, delivery, and utili7 zation, to the maximum extent possible. 

8 ‘‘(10) Preventing, predicting, monitoring, and 

9 mitigating the unintended leaking of methane, car10 bon dioxide, or other fossil fuel-related emissions 

11 into the atmosphere. 

12 ‘‘(11) Reducing water use, improving water 

13 reuse, and minimizing the surface and subsurface 

14 environmental impact in the development of uncon15 ventional domestic oil and natural gas resources. 

16 ‘‘(12) Developing carbon utilization tech17 nologies, products, and methods, including carbon 

18 use and reuse for commercial application.’’; 

19 (2) in subsection (b), by striking paragraphs 

20 (1) through (3) and inserting the following: 

21 ‘‘(1) $825,000,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

22 ‘‘(2) $866,250,000 for fiscal year 2020; 

23 ‘‘(3) $909,563,000 for fiscal year 2021; 

24 ‘‘(4) $955,041,000 for fiscal year 2022; and 

25 ‘‘(5) $1,002,793,000 for fiscal year 2023.’’; and 


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1 (3) by striking subsections (c) through (e) and 

2 inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION.—None of the funds authorized 

4 under this section may be used for Fossil Energy Environ5 mental Restoration or Import/Export Authorization.’’. 

6 SEC. 5. CARBON CAPTURE TECHNOLOGIES FOR POWER 

7 SYSTEMS. 

8 (a) CARBON CAPTURE PROGRAM.—Section 962 of 

9 the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16292) is 

10 amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 962. CARBON CAPTURE TECHNOLOGIES FOR POWER 

12 SYSTEMS. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall conduct a 

14 program of research, development, demonstration, and 

15 commercial application of carbon capture technologies, in16 cluding to facilitate the development and use of— 

17 ‘‘(1) carbon capture technologies for coal and 

18 natural gas; 

19 ‘‘(2) innovations to improve the efficiency of, 

20 and decrease emissions at, existing power plants; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(3) advanced separation technologies. 

23 ‘‘(b) PRIORITIZATION.—The Secretary shall maintain 

24 robust investments in carbon capture technologies for coal 

25 applications. 


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1 ‘‘(c) LARGE-SCALE PILOTS.—In supporting tech2 nology development activities under this section, the Sec3 retary is encouraged to support pilot projects that test car4 bon capture technologies on powers systems below the 100 

5 megawatt scale, consistent with section 988(b). 

6 ‘‘(d) COST AND PERFORMANCE GOALS.—In carrying 

7 out the development, demonstration, and commercial ap8 plication activities under subsection (a), the Secretary 

9 shall consider cost and performance goals to assist in the 

10 transfer of carbon capture research to commercially viable 

11 technologies. 

12 ‘‘(e) CARBON CAPTURE PILOT TEST CENTERS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

14 the date of the enactment of the Fossil Energy Re15 search and Development Act of 2018, the Secretary 

16 shall award grants to one or more eligible entities 

17 for the operation of not less than three Carbon Cap18 ture Test Centers (in this subsection, known as the 

19 ‘Centers’) to provide unique testing capabilities for 

20 innovative carbon capture technologies for power 

21 systems. 

22 ‘‘(2) PURPOSE.—The Centers shall— 

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1 bon capture technologies for power systems; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(B) test technologies that represent the 

4 scale of technology development beyond labora5 tory testing, but not yet advanced to testing 

6 under operational conditions at commercial 

7 scale. 

8 ‘‘(3) APPLICATION.—An entity seeking to oper9 ate a Center under this subsection shall submit to 

10 the Secretary an application at such time and in 

11 such manner as the Secretary may require. 

12 ‘‘(4) CRITERIA.—In selecting applications to 

13 operate the Centers under this subsection, the Sec14 retary shall prioritize applicants that meet one or 

15 more of the following criteria: 

16 ‘‘(A) Applicants with access to existing or 

17 planned research facilities with modular tech18 nology capabilities. 

19 ‘‘(B) Institutions of higher education with 

20 established expertise in engineering and design 

21 for carbon capture technologies, or partnerships 

22 with such institutions. 

23 ‘‘(C) Applicants with access to existing re24 search and test facilities for pre-combustion, 


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1 post-combustion, or oxy-combustion tech2 nologies. 

3 ‘‘(D) Applicants with test capabilities to 

4 address scaling challenges of integrating carbon 

5 capture technologies with utility scale power 

6 plants. 

7 ‘‘(5) CONSIDERATIONS.—In awarding funds for 

8 the operation of the Centers under this subsection, 

9 the Secretary shall ensure that— 

10 ‘‘(A) the portfolio of Centers includes a di11 verse representation of regional and resource 

12 characteristics; and 

13 ‘‘(B) each new Center established using 

14 such funds demonstrates unique research capa15 bilities, unique regional benefits, or new tech16 nology development opportunities. 

17 ‘‘(6) SCHEDULE.—Each grant to operate a 

18 Center under this subsection shall be awarded for a 

19 term of not more than 5 years, subject to the avail20 ability of appropriations. The Secretary may renew 

21 such 5-year term without limit, subject to a rigorous 

22 merit review. 

23 ‘‘(7) COST SHARING.—The Secretary shall re24 quire cost sharing under this subsection in accord25 ance with section 988. 


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1 ‘‘(8) TERMINATION.—To the extent otherwise 

2 authorized by law, the Secretary may eliminate a 

3 Center during any 5-year term described in para4 graph (6) if such Center is underperforming. 

5 ‘‘(f) DEMONSTRATIONS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may fund 

7 large-scale demonstration projects for power systems 

8 that test the scale of technology necessary to gain 

9 the operational data needed to understand the tech10 nical and performance risks of the technology before 

11 the application of the technology at commercial 

12 scale, in accordance with this subsection. 

13 ‘‘(2) ENGINEERING AND DESIGN STUDIES.— 

14 The Secretary is authorized to fund front-end engi15 neering and design studies in addition to, or in ad16 vance of, issuing an award for a demonstration 

17 project under this subsection. 

18 ‘‘(3) APPLICATION.—An entity seeking an 

19 award to conduct a demonstration project under this 

20 subsection shall submit to the Secretary an applica21 tion at such time and in such manner as the Sec22 retary may require. 

23 ‘‘(4) LIMITATIONS.—The Secretary shall only 

24 provide an award under this subsection after review25 ing each applicant and application regarding— 


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1 ‘‘(A) financial strength; 

2 ‘‘(B) construction schedule; 

3 ‘‘(C) market risk; and 

4 ‘‘(D) contractor history. 

5 ‘‘(5) REQUIREMENTS.—A demonstration project 

6 funded under this subsection shall— 

7 ‘‘(A) utilize technologies that have com8 pleted pilot-scale testing or the equivalent, as 

9 determined by the Secretary; 

10 ‘‘(B) secure and maintain agreements for 

11 the utilization or sequestration of captured car12 bon dioxide; and 

13 ‘‘(C) upon completion, demonstrate carbon 

14 capture technologies on a power system pro15 ducing not less than 100 megawatts of power. 

16 ‘‘(6) COST SHARING.—The Secretary shall re17 quire cost sharing under this subsection in accord18 ance with section 988. 

19 ‘‘(g) DEFINITION OF POWER SYSTEM.—In this sec20 tion, the term ‘power system’ means any electricity gener21 ating unit that utilizes fossil fuels to generate electricity 

22 provided to the electric grid or directly to a consumer. 

23 ‘‘(h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For ac24 tivities under this section, there are authorized to be ap25 propriated to the Secretary— 


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1 ‘‘(1) $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

2 ‘‘(2) $315,000,000 for fiscal year 2020; 

3 ‘‘(3) $330,750,000 for fiscal year 2021; 

4 ‘‘(4) $347,288,000 for fiscal year 2022; and 

5 ‘‘(5) $364,652,000 for fiscal year 2023.’’. 

6 (b) GAO STUDY.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of 

8 the United States shall conduct a study of the De9 partment’s successes, failures, practices, and im10 provements in carrying out demonstration projects 

11 for carbon capture technologies for power systems. 

12 In conducting the study, the Comptroller General 

13 shall consider, at a minimum— 

14 (A) applicant and contractor qualifications; 

15 (B) project management practices at the 

16 Department; 

17 (C) economic or market changes and other 

18 factors impacting project viability; 

19 (D) completion of third-party agreements, 

20 including power purchase agreements and car21 bon dioxide offtake agreements; 

22 (E) regulatory challenges; and 

23 (F) construction challenges. 

24 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

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1 eral of the United States shall submit to the Com2 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 

3 House of Representatives and the Committee on En4 ergy and Natural Resources of the Senate a report 

5 on the results of the study required under paragraph 

6 (1). 

7 (3) CONSIDERATION.—The Secretary shall con8 sider any relevant recommendations, as determined 

9 by the Secretary, provided in the study required 

10 under paragraph (1), and shall adopt such rec11 ommendations as the Secretary considers appro12 priate. 

13 (4) POWER SYSTEM DEFINED.—In this section, 

14 the term ‘‘power system’’ means any electricity gen15 erating unit that utilizes fossil fuels to generate elec16 tricity provided to the electric grid or directly to a 

17 consumer. 

18 SEC. 6. CARBON STORAGE VALIDATION AND TESTING. 

19 Section 963 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 

20 U.S.C. 16293) is amended to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 963. CARBON STORAGE VALIDATION AND TESTING. 

22 ‘‘(a) CARBON STORAGE.—The Secretary shall carry 

23 out a program of research, development, and demonstra24 tion for carbon storage. The program shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) in coordination with relevant Federal agen2 cies, develop and maintain mapping tools and re3 sources that assess the capacity of geologic storage 

4 formations in the United States; 

5 ‘‘(2) develop monitoring tools, modeling of geo6 logic formations, and analyses to predict and verify 

7 carbon dioxide containment and account for seques8 tered carbon dioxide in geologic storage sites; 

9 ‘‘(3) research potential environmental, safety, 

10 and health impacts in the event of a leak to the at11 mosphere or to an aquifer, and any corresponding 

12 mitigation actions or responses to limit harmful con13 sequences; 

14 ‘‘(4) evaluate the interactions of carbon dioxide 

15 with formation solids and fluids, including the pro16 pensity of injections to induce seismic activity; 

17 ‘‘(5) assess and ensure the safety of operations 

18 related to geologic sequestration of carbon dioxide; 

19 ‘‘(6) determine the fate of carbon dioxide con20 current with and following injection into geologic 

21 formations; and 

22 ‘‘(7) provide information to State, local, and 

23 Tribal governments, the Environmental Protection 

24 Agency, and other appropriate entities, to support 

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1 cial-scale sequestration operations that ensure the 

2 protection of human health and the environment. 

3 ‘‘(b) GEOLOGIC SETTINGS.—In carrying out research 

4 activities under this section, the Secretary shall consider 

5 a variety of candidate geologic settings, including— 

6 ‘‘(1) operating oil and gas fields; 

7 ‘‘(2) depleted oil and gas fields; 

8 ‘‘(3) residual oil zones; 

9 ‘‘(4) unconventional reservoirs and rock types; 

10 ‘‘(5) unmineable coal seams; 

11 ‘‘(6) deep saline formations; 

12 ‘‘(7) deep geologic systems that may be used as 

13 engineered reservoirs to extract economical quan14 tities of brine from geothermal resources of low per15 meability or porosity; and 

16 ‘‘(8) deep geologic systems containing in situ 

17 carbon dioxide mineralization formations. 

18 ‘‘(c) REGIONAL CARBON SEQUESTRATION PARTNER19 SHIPS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry 

21 out large-scale carbon sequestration demonstrations 

22 for geologic containment of carbon dioxide to collect 

23 and validate information on the cost and feasibility 

24 of commercial deployment of technologies for the 

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1 retary may fund new demonstrations or expand the 

2 work completed at one or more of the existing re3 gional carbon sequestration partnerships. 

4 ‘‘(2) DEMONSTRATION COMPONENTS.—Each 

5 demonstration described in paragraph (1) shall in6 clude longitudinal tests involving carbon dioxide in7 jection and monitoring, mitigation, and verification 

8 operations. 

9 ‘‘(3) CLEARINGHOUSE.—The National Energy 

10 Technology Laboratory shall act as a clearinghouse 

11 of shared information and resources for the regional 

12 carbon sequestration partnerships and any new dem13 onstrations funded under this section. 

14 ‘‘(4) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

15 date of enactment of the Fossil Energy Research 

16 and Development Act of 2018, the Secretary shall 

17 provide to the Committee on Science, Space, and 

18 Technology of the House of Representatives and the 

19 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the 

20 Senate a report that— 

21 ‘‘(A) assesses the progress of all regional 

22 carbon sequestration partnerships; 

23 ‘‘(B) identifies the remaining challenges in 

24 achieving carbon sequestration that is reliable 


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1 and safe for the environment and public health; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(C) creates a roadmap to integrate geo4 logic sequestration sites and carbon utilization 

5 with large sources of carbon dioxide in the 

6 United States economy. 

7 ‘‘(5) LARGE-SCALE CARBON SEQUESTRATION.— 

8 For purposes of this subsection, ‘large-scale carbon 

9 sequestration’ means the injection of more than 

10 1,000,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually or a scale 

11 that demonstrates the ability to inject and sequester 

12 several million metric tons carbon dioxide for at 

13 least 10 years. 

14 ‘‘(d) INTEGRATED STORAGE PROJECTS.—The Sec15 retary may carry out a program for purposes of transition16 ing the large-scale storage demonstrations under sub17 section (c) into integrated, commercial storage complexes. 

18 The program shall focus on— 

19 ‘‘(1) qualifying geologic storage sites in order to 

20 accept large volumes of carbon dioxide acceptable for 

21 commercial contracts; 

22 ‘‘(2) understanding the technical and commer23 cial viability of storage sites; 


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1 ‘‘(3) developing the qualification processes that 

2 will be necessary for a diverse range of geologic stor3 age sites to commercially accept carbon dioxide; and 

4 ‘‘(4) any other activities the Secretary deems 

5 necessary to transition the large scale demonstration 

6 storage projects into commercial ventures. 

7 ‘‘(e) COST SHARING.—The Secretary shall require 

8 cost sharing under this section in accordance with section 

9 988. 

10 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For ac11 tivities under this section, there are authorized to be ap12 propriated to the Secretary— 

13 ‘‘(1) $105,000,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

14 ‘‘(2) $110,250,000 for fiscal year 2020; 

15 ‘‘(3) $115,763,000 for fiscal year 2021; 

16 ‘‘(4) $121,551,000 for fiscal year 2022; and 

17 ‘‘(5) $127,628,000 for fiscal year 2023.’’. 

18 SEC. 7. CARBON UTILIZATION. 

19 (a) PROGRAM.—Subtitle F of title IX of the Energy 

20 Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16291 et seq.) is amended 

21 by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 969. CARBON UTILIZATION. 

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out a 

24 program of research, development, and demonstration for 

25 carbon utilization. The program shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) assess and monitor potential changes in 

2 life cycle carbon dioxide emissions, and other envi3 ronmental safety indicators of new technologies, 

4 practices, processes, or methods, used in enhanced 

5 hydrocarbon recovery; 

6 ‘‘(2) identify and evaluate novel uses for car7 bon, including the conversion of carbon dioxide for 

8 commercial and industrial products, such as— 

9 ‘‘(A) chemicals; 

10 ‘‘(B) plastics; 

11 ‘‘(C) building materials; 

12 ‘‘(D) fuels; 

13 ‘‘(E) cement; or 

14 ‘‘(F) products of coal utilization in power 

15 systems (as such term is defined in section 

16 962(e)), or other applications; and 

17 ‘‘(3) identify and develop alternative uses for 

18 coal, including products derived from carbon engi19 neering, carbon fiber, and coal conversion methods. 

20 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For ac21 tivities under this section, there are authorized to be ap22 propriated to the Secretary— 

23 ‘‘(1) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

24 ‘‘(2) $26,250,000 for fiscal year 2020; 

25 ‘‘(3) $27,562,500 for fiscal year 2021; 


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1 ‘‘(4) $28,940,625 for fiscal year 2022; and 

2 ‘‘(5) $30,387,656 for fiscal year 2023.’’. 

3 (b) STUDY.—The Secretary shall enter into an agree4 ment with the National Academies to conduct a study as5 sessing the barriers and opportunities related to commer6 cializing carbon dioxide in the United States. Such study 

7 shall— 

8 (1) analyze the technical feasibility and related 

9 challenges to commercializing carbon dioxide, includ10 ing— 

11 (A) creating a national system of carbon 

12 dioxide pipelines; 

13 (B) mitigating environmental impacts; and 

14 (C) regional economic challenges and op15 portunities; 

16 (2) identify potential markets, industries, or 

17 sectors that may benefit from greater access to com18 mercial carbon dioxide; 

19 (3) assess the current state of infrastructure 

20 and any necessary updates to allow for the integra21 tion of safe and reliable carbon dioxide transpor22 tation, utilization, and storage; 

23 (4) estimate the economic impact of a well-inte24 grated national carbon dioxide pipeline system; 


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1 (5) assess the global status and progress of car2 bon utilization technologies (both chemical and bio3 logical) in practice today that utilize waste carbon 

4 (including carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, meth5 ane, and biogas) from power generation, biofuels 

6 production, and other industrial processes; 

7 (6) identify emerging technologies and ap8 proaches for carbon utilization that show promise 

9 for scale-up, demonstration, deployment, and com10 mercialization; 

11 (7) analyze the factors associated with making 

12 carbon utilization technologies viable at a commer13 cial scale, including carbon waste stream availability, 

14 economics, market capacity, energy and lifecycle re15 quirements; 

16 (8) assess the major technical challenges associ17 ated with increasing the commercial viability of car18 bon reuse technologies, and identify the research and 

19 development questions that will address those chal20 lenges; 

21 (9) assess current research efforts, including 

22 basic, applied, engineering, and computational, that 

23 are addressing these challenges and identify gaps in 

24 the current research portfolio; and 


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1 (10) develop a comprehensive research agenda 

2 that addresses both long- and short-term research 

3 needs and opportunities. 

4 SEC. 8. ADVANCED ENERGY SYSTEMS. 

5 Subtitle F of title IX of the Energy Policy Act of 

6 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16291 et seq.) is further amended by 

7 adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 969A. ADVANCED ENERGY SYSTEMS. 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall conduct a 

10 program of research, development, demonstration, and 

11 commercial application to improve the efficiency and reli12 ability of, and to reduce emissions from, fossil fuel power 

13 generation in the following areas: 

14 ‘‘(1) High-efficiency turbines for any advanced 

15 power system that will lead to natural gas turbine 

16 combined cycle efficiency of 67 percent or combus17 tion turbine efficiency of 50 percent. 

18 ‘‘(2) Supercritical and ultrasupercritical carbon 

19 dioxide, with an emphasis on developing directly20 fired and indirectly fired cycles in the next 10 years. 

21 ‘‘(3) Advanced combustion systems, including 

22 oxy-combustion systems and chemical looping. 

23 ‘‘(4) Fuel cell technologies for low-cost, high-ef24 ficiency, fuel-flexible, modular power systems, includ25 ing solid oxide fuel cell technology for commercial, 


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1 residential, and distributed generation systems, 

2 using improved manufacturing production and proc3 esses. 

4 ‘‘(5) Gasification systems to enable carbon cap5 ture, improve efficiency, and reduce capital and op6 erating costs. 

7 ‘‘(6) Thermal cycling with ramping or rapid 

8 black start capabilities that do not compromise effi9 ciency or environmental performance. 

10 ‘‘(7) Small-scale and modular coal-fired tech11 nologies with reduced carbon outputs or carbon cap12 ture that can support incremental power generation 

13 capacity additions. 

14 ‘‘(b) PRIORITY.—In carrying out the program under 

15 subsection (a), the Secretary is encouraged to prioritize 

16 transformational technologies that enable a step change 

17 in performance, efficiency, or cost of electricity as com18 pared to the technology in existence on the date of enact19 ment of this section. 

20 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For ac21 tivities under this section, there are authorized to be ap22 propriated to the Secretary— 

23 ‘‘(1) $118,000,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

24 ‘‘(2) $123,900,000 for fiscal year 2020; 

25 ‘‘(3) $130,095,000 for fiscal year 2021; 


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1 ‘‘(4) $136,600,000 for fiscal year 2022; and 

2 ‘‘(5) $143,430,000 for fiscal year 2023.’’. 

3 SEC. 9. RARE EARTH ELEMENTS. 

4 Subtitle F of title IX of the Energy Policy Act of 

5 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16291 et seq.) is further amended by 

6 adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 969B. RARE EARTH ELEMENTS. 

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In coordination with the relevant 

9 Federal agencies, the Secretary shall conduct research to 

10 develop and assess methods to separate and recover rare 

11 earth elements and other strategic minerals and coprod12 ucts from coal and coal byproduct streams. The program 

13 shall— 

14 ‘‘(1) develop advanced rare earth element sepa15 ration and extraction processes using coal-based re16 sources as feedstock materials; and 

17 ‘‘(2) assess the technical and economic feasi18 bility of recovering rare earth elements from coal19 based resources and validate such feasibility with 

20 prototype systems producing salable, high-purity 

21 rare earth elements from coal-based resources. 

22 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For ac23 tivities under this section, there are authorized to be ap24 propriated to the Secretary— 

25 ‘‘(1) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2019; 


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1 ‘‘(2) $21,000,000 for fiscal year 2020; 

2 ‘‘(3) $22,050,000 for fiscal year 2021; 

3 ‘‘(4) $23,153,000 for fiscal year 2022; and 

4 ‘‘(5) $24,310,000 for fiscal year 2023.’’. 

5 SEC. 10. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE ON CARBON DIOXIDE 

6 PIPELINES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

8 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall convene 

9 an interagency task force to assess the potential for a na10 tional system of carbon dioxide pipelines. 

11 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The task force described in sub12 section (a) shall include representation from each of the 

13 following: 

14 (1) The Department of Energy. 

15 (2) The Department of the Interior. 

16 (3) The Environmental Protection Agency. 

17 (4) The Department of Transportation. 

18 (5) The Federal Energy Regulatory Commis19 sion. 

20 (6) Other Federal agencies identified by the 

21 Secretary. 

22 (7) State, local, or Tribal governments. 

23 (c) DUTIES.—The task force described in subsection 

24 (a) shall— 


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1 (1) conduct annual workshops with relevant 

2 Federal agencies to discuss the potential of and 

3 progress toward an accessible and functioning na4 tional system of carbon dioxide pipelines, open to 

5 representatives from— 

6 (A) industry; 

7 (B) State, local, and Tribal governments; 

8 (C) academic researchers; 

9 (D) environmental organizations; and 

10 (E) other stakeholders as identified by the 

11 Secretary; 

12 (2) the Secretary shall provide public notice not 

13 less than 60 days before conducting each workshop 

14 under paragraph (1), to ensure all interested parties 

15 can attend; 

16 (3) provide to the Committee on Science, Space, 

17 and Technology of the House of Representatives and 

18 the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 

19 the Senate an annual report summarizing the activi20 ties and progress of the task force; and 

21 (4) in place of the final such annual report, 

22 submit to the relevant congressional committees a 

23 report laying out a roadmap for the successful estab24 lishment of a national carbon dioxide pipeline sys25 tem, including aspects related to— 


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1 (A) engineering, building, siting, and main2 tenance of the system; 

3 (B) permitting and insuring pipelines; 

4 (C) Federal and State policy challenges; 

5 (D) incentives or resources to encourage 

6 the utilization of the most advanced leak detec7 tion and mitigation technologies and monitoring 

8 capabilities; 

9 (E) regulating the national system to en10 sure safety and minimal environmental impacts; 

11 and 

12 (F) possible integrations into the current 

13 pipeline systems. 

14 (d) SUNSET.—The authority for the task force under 

15 this section expires on the date that is 5 years after the 

16 date on which the task force first convenes. 

17 SEC. 11. METHANE HYDRATES RESEARCH AMENDMENTS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4(b) of the Methane Hy19 drate Research and Development Act of 2000 (30 U.S.C. 

20 2003(b)) is amended to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘(b) GRANTS, CONTRACTS, COOPERATIVE AGREE22 MENTS, INTERAGENCY FUNDS TRANSFER AGREEMENTS, 

23 AND FIELD WORK PROPOSALS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) ASSISTANCE AND COORDINATION.—In car25 rying out the program of methane hydrate research 


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1 and development authorized by this section, the Sec2 retary may award grants, or enter into contracts or 

3 cooperative agreements to— 

4 ‘‘(A) conduct basic and applied research— 

5 ‘‘(i) to identify and assess deposits of 

6 methane hydrate; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) to identify the environmental, 

8 health, and safety impacts of methane hy9 drate development; 

10 ‘‘(B) assess and develop technologies to 

11 mitigate environmental impacts of the commer12 cial development of methane hydrate as an en13 ergy resource and to reduce the public health 

14 and safety risks of drilling through methane hy15 drates; 

16 ‘‘(C) conduct basic and applied research to 

17 assess and mitigate the environmental impact of 

18 hydrate degassing (including natural degassing 

19 and degassing associated with commercial de20 velopment); or 

21 ‘‘(D) expand education and training pro22 grams in methane hydrate resource research 

23 and resource development through fellowships 

24 or other means for graduate education and 

25 training. 


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1 ‘‘(2) ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND RE2 SEARCH.—The Secretary shall conduct a long-term 

3 environmental monitoring and research program to 

4 study the effects of production from methane hy5 drate reservoirs. 

6 ‘‘(3) COMPETITIVE PEER REVIEW.—Funds 

7 made available to carry out paragraphs (1) and (2) 

8 shall be made available based on a competitive proc9 ess using external scientific peer review of proposed 

10 research.’’. 

11 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 4(e) of 

12 such Act (30 U.S.C. 2003(e)) is amended in the matter 

13 preceding paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘subsection (b)(1)’’ 

14 and inserting ‘‘paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (b)’’. 

15 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

16 7 of such Act (30 U.S.C. 2006) is amended to read as 

17 follows: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

19 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec20 retary to carry out this Act $15,000,000, to remain avail21 able until expended, for each of fiscal years 2019 through 

22 2023.’’. 


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1 SEC. 12. CARBON REMOVAL. 

2 Subtitle F of title IX of the Energy Policy Act of 

3 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16291 et seq.) is further amended by 

4 adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 969C. CARBON REMOVAL. 

6 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, in coordina7 tion with the appropriate Federal agencies, shall establish 

8 a research, development, and demonstration program to 

9 test, validate, or improve technologies and strategies to re10 move carbon dioxide from the atmosphere on a large scale. 

11 The program may include activities in— 

12 ‘‘(1) direct air capture technologies; 

13 ‘‘(2) bioenergy with carbon capture and seques14 tration; 

15 ‘‘(3) enhanced geological weathering; 

16 ‘‘(4) agricultural and grazing practices; 

17 ‘‘(5) forest management and afforestation; and 

18 ‘‘(6) planned or managed carbon sinks, includ19 ing natural and artificial. 

20 ‘‘(b) CONSIDERATIONS.—The program under this 

21 section shall identify and develop carbon removal tech22 nologies and strategies that consider the following: 

23 ‘‘(1) Land use changes. 

24 ‘‘(2) Ocean acidification. 

25 ‘‘(3) Net greenhouse gas emissions. 

26 ‘‘(4) Commercial viability. 


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1 ‘‘(5) Potential for near-term impact. 

2 ‘‘(6) Potential for carbon reductions on a 

3 gigaton scale. 

4 ‘‘(7) Economic co-benefits. 

5 ‘‘(c) PRIORITIZATION.—In carrying out the program 

6 under this section, the Secretary shall prioritize tech7 nologies and strategies that have the potential to meet 

8 emissions reduction goals in the agreement of the twenty9 first session of the Conference of the Parties to the United 

10 Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. 

11 ‘‘(d) ACCOUNTING.—The Department shall collabo12 rate with the Environmental Protection Agency and other 

13 relevant agencies to develop and improve accounting 

14 frameworks and tools to accurately measure carbon re15 moval and sequestration methods and technologies across 

16 the Federal Government. 

17 ‘‘(e) AIR CAPTURE TECHNOLOGY PRIZE.—Not later 

18 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, as 

19 part of the program carried out under this section, the 

20 Secretary shall carry out a program to award competitive 

21 technology prizes for carbon dioxide capture from media 

22 in which the concentration of carbon dioxide is less than 

23 1 percent by volume (in this subsection, known as ‘dilute 

24 media’). In carrying out this subsection, the Secretary 

25 shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) in accordance with section 24 of the Ste2 venson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980, 

3 develop requirements for— 

4 ‘‘(A) the prize competition process; 

5 ‘‘(B) minimum performance standards for 

6 projects eligible to participate in the prize com7 petition; and 

8 ‘‘(C) monitoring and verification proce9 dures for projects selected to receive a prize 

10 award; 

11 ‘‘(2) establish minimum levels for the capture of 

12 carbon dioxide from dilute media that are required 

13 to qualify for a prize award; and 

14 ‘‘(3) offer prize awards for any of the following: 

15 ‘‘(A) A design for a promising capture 

16 technology that will— 

17 ‘‘(i) be operated on a demonstration 

18 scale; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) have the potential to achieve sig20 nificant reduction in the level of carbon di21 oxide in the atmosphere. 

22 ‘‘(B) A successful bench-scale demonstra23 tion of a capture technology. 

24 ‘‘(C) An operational capture technology on 

25 a commercial scale. 


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1 ‘‘(f) INTRA-AGENCY RESEARCH.—The Secretary 

2 shall encourage and promote crosscutting research and de3 velopment in bioenergy with carbon capture and seques4 tration within the Department. 

5 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For ac6 tivities under this section, there are authorized to be ap7 propriated to the Secretary— 

8 ‘‘(1) $45,000,000 for fiscal year 2018, 

9 $15,000,000 of which are authorized to carry out 

10 subsection (e); 

11 ‘‘(2) $31,500,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

12 ‘‘(3) $33,075,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

13 ‘‘(4) $34,729,000 for fiscal year 2019; and 

14 ‘‘(5) $36,465,000 for fiscal year 2020.’’. 

15 SEC. 13. METHANE LEAK DETECTION AND MITIGATION. 

16 (a) PROGRAM.—Subtitle F of title IX of the Energy 

17 Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16291 et seq.) is further 

18 amended by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 969D. METHANE LEAK DETECTION AND MITIGATION. 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in coordination 

21 with the appropriate Federal agencies, shall carry out a 

22 program of methane leak detection and mitigation re23 search, development, demonstration, and commercial ap24 plication for technologies and methods that significantly 


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1 reduce emissions. In carrying out the program, the Sec2 retary shall— 

3 ‘‘(1) develop cooperative agreements with State 

4 or local governments or private entities to provide 

5 technical assistance to— 

6 ‘‘(A) prevent or respond to methane leaks, 

7 including detection, mitigation, and identifica8 tion of leaks throughout the natural gas infra9 structure (which includes natural gas storage, 

10 pipelines, and natural gas production sites); and 

11 ‘‘(B) protect public health in the event of 

12 a major methane leak; 

13 ‘‘(2) promote demonstration and adoption of ef14 fective methane emissions-reduction technologies in 

15 the private sector; 

16 ‘‘(3) in coordination with representatives from 

17 private industry, State and local governments, and 

18 institutions of higher education, create a publicly ac19 cessible resource for best practices in the design, 

20 construction, maintenance, performance, monitoring, 

21 and incident response for— 

22 ‘‘(A) pipeline systems; 

23 ‘‘(B) wells; 

24 ‘‘(C) compressor stations; 

25 ‘‘(D) storage facilities; and 


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1 ‘‘(E) other vulnerable infrastructure; 

2 ‘‘(4) identify high-risk characteristics of pipe3 lines, wells, and materials, geologic risk factors, or 

4 other key factors that increase the likelihood of 

5 methane leaks; and 

6 ‘‘(5) in collaboration with private entities and 

7 institutions of higher education, quantify and map 

8 significant methane leaks across the United States. 

9 ‘‘(b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In carrying out the pro10 gram under this section, the Secretary shall consider the 

11 following: 

12 ‘‘(1) Historical data of methane leaks. 

13 ‘‘(2) Public health consequences. 

14 ‘‘(3) Public safety. 

15 ‘‘(4) Novel materials and designs for pipelines, 

16 compressor stations, components, and well casings. 

17 ‘‘(5) Regional geologic traits. 

18 ‘‘(6) Induced and natural seismicity. 

19 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For ac20 tivities under this section, there are authorized to be ap21 propriated to the Secretary— 

22 ‘‘(1) $20,000,000 for fiscal years 2019; 

23 ‘‘(2) $21,000,000 for fiscal years 2020; 

24 ‘‘(3) $22,050,000 for fiscal years 2021; 

25 ‘‘(4) $23,153,000 for fiscal years 2022; and 


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1 ‘‘(5) $24,310,000 for fiscal years 2023.’’. 

2 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

3 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in coordination 

4 with the Secretary of Transportation, shall submit to the 

5 Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, the Com6 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and the 

7 Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of 

8 Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Nat9 ural Resources and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

10 and Transportation of the Senate a report on mitigating 

11 natural gas storage leaks. The report shall include the fol12 lowing: 

13 (1) A quantitative study to evaluate the key un14 certainties related to the costs and benefits of 

15 downhole safety valves for the natural gas storage 

16 industry in the United States, including— 

17 (A) malfunction and failure rates of mod18 ern downhole safety valve designs; 

19 (B) the frequency of well failures; and 

20 (C) alternative emergency valve designs. 

21 (2) A systematic assessment of casing wall 

22 thickness assessment tools, which shall— 

23 (A) consider multiple tool types and ref24 erence wells; and 


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1 (B) rigorously test and compare the ability 

2 of these tools and techniques to identify, locate, 

3 and characterize corroded well casings. 

4 SEC. 14. NATIONAL ENERGY TECHNOLOGY LABORATORY 

5 REFORMS. 

6 (a) SPECIAL HIRING AUTHORITY FOR SCIENTIFIC, 

7 ENGINEERING, AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT PER8 SONNEL.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the National 

10 Energy Technology Laboratory shall have the au11 thority to— 

12 (A) make appointments to positions in the 

13 Laboratory to assist in meeting a specific 

14 project or research need, without regard to civil 

15 service laws, of individuals who— 

16 (i) have an advanced scientific or en17 gineering background; or 

18 (ii) have a business background and 

19 can assist in specific technology-to-market 

20 needs; 

21 (B) fix the basic pay of any employee ap22 pointed under this section at a rate not to ex23 ceed level II of the Executive Schedule; and 

24 (C) pay any employee appointed under this 

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1 cept that the total amount of additional pay2 ments paid to an employee under this sub3 section for any 12-month period shall not ex4 ceed the least of— 

5 (i) $25,000; 

6 (ii) the amount equal to 25 percent of 

7 the annual rate of basic pay of that em8 ployee; and 

9 (iii) the amount of the limitation that 

10 is applicable for a calendar year under sec11 tion 5307(a)(1) of title 5, United States 

12 Code. 

13 (2) LIMITATIONS.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term of any em15 ployee appointed under this section shall not ex16 ceed 3 years. 

17 (B) FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES.—Not more 

18 than 10 full-time employees appointed under 

19 this subsection may be employed at the Na20 tional Energy Technology Laboratory at any 

21 given time. 

22 (b) DISCRETIONARY RESEARCH AND DEVELOP23 MENT.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 

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1 tional Energy Technology Laboratory may use an 

2 amount of funds equal to an amount that is not less 

3 than 2 percent and not more than 4 percent of all 

4 funds available to the Laboratory for the following 

5 purposes: 

6 (A) To fund innovative research that is 

7 conducted at the Laboratory and supports the 

8 mission of the Department. 

9 (B) To fund technology development pro10 grams that support the transition of tech11 nologies developed by the Laboratory into the 

12 commercial market. 

13 (C) To fund workforce development activi14 ties to strengthen external engineering and 

15 manufacturing partnerships to ensure safe, effi16 cient, productive, and useful fossil energy tech17 nology production. 

18 (D) To fund the revitalization, recapitaliza19 tion, or minor construction of the Laboratory 

20 infrastructure. 

21 (2) PRIORITIZATION.—The Director shall 

22 prioritize innovative experiments and proposals pro23 posed by scientists and researchers at the National 

24 Energy Technology Laboratory. 


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1 (3) ANNUAL REPORT ON USE OF AUTHORITY.— 

2 Not later than March 1 of each year, the Secretary 

3 shall submit to the Committee on Science, Space, 

4 and Technology of the House of Representatives and 

5 the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 

6 the Senate a report on the use of the authority 

7 under this subsection during the preceding fiscal 

8 year. 

9 (c) REVIEW.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

10 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to 

11 the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 

12 House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy 

13 and Natural Resources of the Senate a report assessing 

14 the National Energy Technology Laboratory’s manage15 ment and research. The report shall include— 

16 (1) an assessment of the quality of science and 

17 research at the National Energy Technology Labora18 tory relative to similar work at other national lab19 oratories; 

20 (2) a review of the effectiveness of authorities 

21 provided in subsections (a) and (b); and 

22 (3) recommendations for policy changes within 

23 the Department and legislative changes to provide 

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1 essary tools and resources to advance its research 

2 mission. 

Æ 


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