II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2762 

To prevent future propane shortages, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 31, 2014 

Mr. FRANKEN (for himself, Mr. PORTMAN, and Ms. BALDWIN) introduced the 

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

A BILL 

To prevent future propane shortages, 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 ‘‘Propane Supply and 

5 Security Act of 2014’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis9 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Energy In10 formation Administration. 


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1 (2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

2 means the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. 

3 (3) INTERSTATE COMMERCE.—The term ‘‘inter4 state commerce’’ has the meaning given the term in 

5 section 2 of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717a). 

6 (4) PROPANE PIPELINE.—The term ‘‘propane 

7 pipeline’’ means a pipeline used to transport propane 

8 in interstate commerce. 

9 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

10 the Secretary of Energy. 

11 SEC. 3. INFORMATION COLLECTION. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall publish, 

13 to the maximum extent practicable and consistent with 

14 confidentiality requirements, data on— 

15 (1) propane storage, including— 

16 (A) weekly inventory data disaggregated 

17 below the level of the Petroleum Administration 

18 for Defense Districts (PADD), including— 

19 (i) data at the State level; and 

20 (ii) data from the collective storage 

21 facilities at market hubs, including storage 

22 facilities in and around Mont Belvieu, 

23 Texas, Conway, Kansas, and any future 

24 market hubs of significant regional scope; 

25 and 


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1 (B) weekly data to separately account for 

2 non-fuel propylene and propane for PADD 3 

3 and other regions if the Administrator deter4 mines that inclusion of the nonfuel propylene 

5 supply data significantly distorts propane sup6 ply and pricing data, and the Administrator de7 termines it is feasible to collect separate data 

8 on nonfuel propylene and propane; and 

9 (2) propane markets, including pricing data for 

10 residential customers in States that voluntarily 

11 choose to participate in the State Heating Oil and 

12 Propane Program (SHOPP) of the Energy Informa13 tion Administration. 

14 (b) BIANNUAL WORKING AND NET AVAILABLE

15 STORAGE CAPACITY REPORT.—The Administrator shall 

16 publish data on— 

17 (1) storage at— 

18 (A) major market centers, including the re19 gions around Conway, Kansas and Mont 

20 Belvieu, Texas; and 

21 (B) to the extent practicable based on ex22 isting surveys and consistent with confiden23 tiality requirements, the regions reported in the 

24 weekly and monthly inventory data under sub25 section (a); and 


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1 (2) pipeline fill requirements and pipeline oper2 ational storage capacity. 

3 (c) WOOD PILOT.—The Administrator shall work 

4 with the States participating in SHOPP to develop a pro5 gram comparable to SHOPP to collect data on wood pel6 lets, firewood, and other biomass. 

7 SEC. 4. COORDINATED RESPONSE TO EMERGENCIES. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall lead Federal 

9 and State emergency response efforts with respect to pro10 pane supply emergencies in any State or region of the 

11 United States that are characterized, as determined by the 

12 Secretary, by— 

13 (1) sudden increases in consumer prices for 

14 propane; or 

15 (2) propane supply shortages that threaten pub16 lic safety or livestock safety. 

17 (b) DUTIES.—In carrying out subsection (a), the Sec18 retary shall— 

19 (1) establish criteria to determine when an 

20 emergency response action would be triggered; 

21 (2) establish a system for forecasting and track22 ing the availability of propane, with an emphasis on 

23 predicting supply shortages; 


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1 (3) establish a system for alerting other Federal 

2 agencies, States, industry groups, and appropriate 

3 stakeholders of the crisis— 

4 (A) before an emergency; and 

5 (B) when the Secretary determines that an 

6 emergency has occurred; 

7 (4) establish a plan for coordinated response to 

8 an emergency by Federal and State agencies; and 

9 (5) establish criteria to determine when the 

10 emergency has ended. 

11 (c) ACTIONS.—An emergency response carried out 

12 under this section may include— 

13 (1) actions to protect consumers from unfair 

14 pricing; 

15 (2) actions to expedite the distribution of pro16 pane through available transportation modes, includ17 ing provisions— 

18 (A) to exempt motor carriers of propane 

19 from hours-of-service restrictions; 

20 (B) to prioritize propane shipments by rail; 

21 and 

22 (C) to prioritize propane shipments over 

23 other shipments in batched pipelines; 

24 (3) expedited release of energy assistance funds; 

25 and 


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1 (4) other actions to relieve price spikes and 

2 supply shortages. 

3 (d) EFFECT.—Nothing in this section limits any ex4 isting authority of any Federal agency. 

5 SEC. 5. DEFINITION OF CONSUMER PROPANE PRICES. 

6 (a) FUNCTIONS OF PROPANE EDUCATION AND RE7 SEARCH COUNCIL.—Section 5(f) of the Propane Edu8 cation and Research Act of 1996 (15 U.S.C. 6404(f)) is 

9 amended in the first sentence by inserting ‘‘to train pro10 pane distributors and consumers in strategies to mitigate 

11 negative effects of future propane price spikes,’’ after ‘‘to 

12 enhance consumer and employee safety and training,’’. 

13 (b) MARKET SURVEY AND CONSUMER PROTECTION

14 PRICE ANALYSIS.—Section 9(a) of the Propane Education 

15 and Research Act of 1996 (15 U.S.C. 6408(a)) is amend16 ed in the first sentence by striking ‘‘only data provided 

17 by the Energy Information Administration’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘the refiner price to end users of consumer grade propane, 

19 as published by the Energy Information Administration’’. 

20 SEC. 6. REGIONAL PROPANE RESERVE. 

21 (a) STUDY.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

22 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall conduct a 

23 study to determine the effectiveness and feasibility of es24 tablishing 1 or more propane storage facilities, to be oper25 ated separately from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve esVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:45 Aug 13, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2762.IS S2762

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1 tablished under part B of title I of the Energy Policy and 

2 Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6231 et seq.). 

3 (b) PLAN.—Following completion of the study under 

4 subsection (a), the Secretary may submit to Congress and 

5 the President a plan describing— 

6 (1) the proposed acquisition of storage and re7 lated facilities or storage services for, including— 

8 (A) the potential use of storage facilities 

9 not currently in use; and 

10 (B) a determination of the combination of 

11 primary, secondary, and tertiary storage facili12 ties that will be used; 

13 (2) the proposed acquisition of propane for 

14 storage; 

15 (3) the proposed methods of disposition of pro16 pane; 

17 (4) the estimated costs of establishment, main18 tenance, and operation; 

19 (5) the efforts the Secretary will make— 

20 (A) to minimize any potential need for fu21 ture drawdowns; and 

22 (B) to ensure that distributors and import23 ers are not discouraged from maintaining and 

24 increasing supplies of propane; 


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1 (6) the proposed actions to ensure the quality 

2 of the propane; and 

3 (7) the proposed accounts and funding struc4 tures required for acquisition of propane and pro5 pane storage facilities. 

6 SEC. 7. STORAGE FACILITY LOANS FOR PROPANE STOR7 AGE. 

8 Section 1614(a) of the Food, Conservation, and En9 ergy Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 8789(a)) is amended by insert10 ing ‘‘, including facilities for propane that is used for dry11 ing and heating’’ before the period at the end. 

12 SEC. 8. STUDY OF JURISDICTION. 

13 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

14 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

15 shall complete a study of facilities appurtenant to propane 

16 pipelines (such as terminals and storage facilities) that are 

17 not subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission (as of 

18 the date on which the study commences) to determine— 

19 (1) whether the nonjurisdictional nature of the 

20 facilities is injurious to shippers or consumers; and 

21 (2)(A) whether the facilities can be placed 

22 under the jurisdiction of the Commission; or 


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1 (B) if not, whether changes in law to place the 

2 facilities under the jurisdiction of the Commission 

3 are in the public interest. 

Æ 


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