110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1680 

AN ACT 

To authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security to regulate 

the sale of ammonium nitrate to prevent and deter the 

acquisition of ammonium nitrate by terrorists, 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, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Secure Handling of 

3 Ammonium Nitrate Act of 2007’’. 

4 SEC. 2. SECURE HANDLING OF AMMONIUM NITRATE. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title VIII of the Homeland Secu6 rity Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 361 et seq.) is amended by 

7 adding at the end the following new subtitle: 

8 ‘‘Subtitle J—Secure Handling of 

9 Ammonium Nitrate 

10 ‘‘SEC. 899A. DEFINITIONS. 

11 ‘‘In this subtitle, the following definitions apply: 

12 ‘‘(1) The term ‘ammonium nitrate’ means— 

13 ‘‘(A) solid ammonium nitrate that is chief14 ly the ammonium salt of nitric acid and con15 tains not less than 33 percent nitrogen by 

16 weight; and 

17 ‘‘(B) any mixture containing a percentage 

18 of ammonium nitrate that is equal to or greater 

19 than the percentage determined by the Sec20 retary under section 899B(b). 

21 ‘‘(2) The term ‘ammonium nitrate facility’ 

22 means any entity that produces, sells, or otherwise 

23 transfers ownership of, or provides application serv24 ices for, ammonium nitrate. 

25 ‘‘(3) The term ‘ammonium nitrate purchaser’ 

26 means any person who buys and takes possession of 
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1 ammonium nitrate from an ammonium nitrate facil2 ity. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 899B. REGULATION OF THE SALE AND TRANSFER OF 

4 AMMONIUM NITRATE. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall regulate the 

6 sale and transfer of ammonium nitrate by an ammonium 

7 nitrate facility in accordance with this subtitle to prevent 

8 the misappropriation or use of ammonium nitrate in an 

9 act of terrorism. 

10 ‘‘(b) AMMONIUM NITRATE MIXTURES.—The Sec11 retary, in consultation with the heads of appropriate Fed12 eral departments and agencies, including the Secretary of 

13 Agriculture, shall, through notice and comment and by no 

14 later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this 

15 subtitle, establish a threshold percentage for ammonium 

16 nitrate in a substance. If a substance contains a percent17 age of ammonium nitrate that is equal to or greater than 

18 the percentage established by the Secretary, the substance 

19 shall be treated as ammonium nitrate for the purposes of 

20 this subtitle. 

21 ‘‘(c) REGISTRATION OF OWNERS OF AMMONIUM NI22 TRATE FACILITIES.— 

23 ‘‘(1) REGISTRATION.—The Secretary shall es24 tablish a process by which— 
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1 ‘‘(A) any person who is the owner of an 

2 ammonium nitrate facility is required to reg3 ister with the Department; and 

4 ‘‘(B) upon such registration, such person 

5 is issued a registration number for purposes of 

6 this subtitle. 

7 ‘‘(2) REGISTRATION INFORMATION.—The Sec8 retary shall require that each applicant for registra9 tion as the owner of an ammonium nitrate facility 

10 must submit to the Secretary— 

11 ‘‘(A) the name, address, and telephone 

12 number of each ammonium nitrate facility 

13 owned by the applicant; 

14 ‘‘(B) the name of the person designated by 

15 the owner of the ammonium nitrate facility as 

16 the point of contact of such facility, for pur17 poses of this subtitle; 

18 ‘‘(C) for each such facility, the amount of 

19 ammonium nitrate that is sold or transferred 

20 during each year; and 

21 ‘‘(D) such other information as the Sec22 retary may determine is appropriate. 

23 ‘‘(d) REGISTRATION OF AMMONIUM NITRATE PUR24 CHASERS.— 
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1 ‘‘(1) REGISTRATION.—The Secretary shall es2 tablish a process by which— 

3 ‘‘(A) any person who seeks to be an ammo4 nium nitrate purchaser is required to register 

5 with the Department; and 

6 ‘‘(B) upon such registration, such person 

7 is issued a registration number for purposes of 

8 this subtitle. 

9 ‘‘(2) REGISTRATION INFORMATION.—The Sec10 retary shall require that each applicant for registra11 tion under this subsection as a prospective ammo12 nium nitrate purchaser must submit to the Sec13 retary the name, address, and telephone number of 

14 the applicant and the intended use of ammonium ni15 trate to be purchased by the applicant. 

16 ‘‘(e) RECORDS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) MAINTENANCE OF RECORDS.—The Sec18 retary shall require the owner of an ammonium ni19 trate facility engaged in selling or transferring am20 monium nitrate to— 

21 ‘‘(A) maintain a record of each sale or 

22 transfer of ammonium nitrate, during the two23 year period beginning on the date of such sale 

24 or transfer; and 
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1 ‘‘(B) include in such record the informa2 tion described in paragraph (2). 

3 ‘‘(2) SPECIFIC INFORMATION REQUIRED.—For 

4 each such sale or transfer, the Secretary shall re5 quire the owner of an ammonium nitrate facility 

6 to— 

7 ‘‘(A) record the name, address, telephone 

8 number, and registration number issued under 

9 subsection (c) or (d) of each person that takes 

10 possession of ammonium nitrate from the owner 

11 of an ammonium nitrate facility, in a manner 

12 prescribed by the Secretary; 

13 ‘‘(B) if applicable, record the name, ad14 dress, and telephone number of each individual 

15 who takes possession of the ammonium nitrate 

16 on behalf of the person referred to in subpara17 graph (A), at the point of sale; 

18 ‘‘(C) record the date and quantity of am19 monium nitrate sold or transferred; and 

20 ‘‘(D) verify the identity of the persons re21 ferred to in subparagraphs (A) and (B), as ap22 plicable, in accordance with a procedure estab23 lished by the Secretary. 

24 ‘‘(3) PROTECTION OF INFORMATION.—In main25 taining records in accordance with paragraph (1), 
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1 the owner of an ammonium nitrate facility shall take 

2 reasonable actions to ensure the protection of the in3 formation included in such records. 

4 ‘‘(f) EXEMPTION FOR EXPLOSIVE PURPOSES.—The 

5 Secretary may exempt from this subtitle a person pro6 ducing, selling, or purchasing ammonium nitrate exclu7 sively for use as an explosive material under a license 

8 issued under chapter 40 of title 18, United States Code. 

9 ‘‘(g) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out this section, 

10 the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of Agri11 culture, States, and appropriate private sector entities, to 

12 ensure that the access of agricultural producers to ammo13 nium nitrate is not unduly burdened. 

14 ‘‘(h) DATA CONFIDENTIALITY.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 

16 552 of title 5, United States Code, or the USA PA17 TRIOT ACT (Public Law 107–56; 115 Stat. 272), 

18 and except as provided in paragraph (2), the Sec19 retary may not disclose to any person any informa20 tion obtained under this subtitle. 

21 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary may disclose 

22 any information obtained by the Secretary under 

23 this subtitle to an officer or employee of the United 

24 States, or a person that has entered into a contract 

25 with the United States, who has a need to know the 
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1 information to perform the duties of the officer, em2 ployee, or person, or to a State agency pursuant to 

3 section 899D, under appropriate arrangements to 

4 ensure the protection of the information. 

5 ‘‘(i) REGISTRATION PROCEDURES AND CHECK OF

6 TERRORIST WATCH LIST.— 

7 ‘‘(1) REGISTRATION PROCEDURES.— 

8 ‘‘(A) GENERALLY.—The Secretary shall 

9 establish procedures to efficiently receive appli10 cations for registration numbers under this sub11 title, conduct the checks required under para12 graph (2), and promptly issue or deny a reg13 istration number. 

14 ‘‘(B) INITIAL SIX-MONTH REGISTRATION

15 PERIOD.—The Secretary shall take steps to 

16 maximize the number of registration applica17 tions that are submitted and processed during 

18 the six-month period provided for in section 

19 899F(e). 

20 ‘‘(2) CHECK OF TERRORIST WATCH LIST.— 

21 ‘‘(A) CHECK REQUIRED.—The Secretary 

22 shall conduct a check of appropriate identifying 

23 information of any person seeking to register 

24 with the Department under subsection (c) or 
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1 (d) against identifying information that appears 

2 on the terrorist watch list. 

3 ‘‘(B) AUTHORITY TO DENY REGISTRATION

4 NUMBER.—If the person’s identifying informa5 tion appears on the terrorist watch list and the 

6 Secretary determines such person may pose a 

7 threat to national security, the Secretary may 

8 deny issuance of a registration number under 

9 this subtitle. 

10 ‘‘(3) EXPEDITED REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Following the six12 month period provided for in section 899F(e), 

13 the Secretary shall, to the extent practicable, 

14 issue or deny registration numbers under this 

15 subtitle not later than 72 hours after the time 

16 the Secretary receives a complete registration 

17 application, unless the Secretary determines, in 

18 the interest of national security, that additional 

19 time is necessary to review an application. 

20 ‘‘(B) NOTICE OF APPLICATION STATUS.— 

21 In all cases, the Secretary shall notify persons 

22 of the status of their application not later than 

23 72 hours after the time the Secretary receives 

24 a complete registration application. 

25 ‘‘(4) EXPEDITED APPEALS PROCESS.— 
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1 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENT.— 

2 ‘‘(i) APPEALS PROCESS.—The Sec3 retary shall establish an expedited appeals 

4 process for persons denied a registration 

5 number under this subtitle. 

6 ‘‘(ii) TIME PERIOD FOR RESOLU7 TION.—The Secretary shall, to the extent 

8 practicable, resolve appeals not later than 

9 72 hours after receiving a complete request 

10 for appeal unless the Secretary determines, 

11 in the interest of national security, that 

12 additional time is necessary to resolve an 

13 appeal. 

14 ‘‘(B) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary, in 

15 developing the appeals process under subpara16 graph (A), shall consult with appropriate stake17 holders. 

18 ‘‘(C) GUIDANCE.—The Secretary shall pro19 vide guidance regarding the procedures and in20 formation required for an appeal under sub21 paragraph (A) to persons denied registration 

22 numbers under this subtitle. 

23 ‘‘(5) RESTRICTIONS ON USE AND MAINTENANCE

24 OF INFORMATION.— 
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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Information obtained 

2 by the Secretary under this section may not be 

3 made available to the public. 

4 ‘‘(B) USE OF CERTAIN INFORMATION.— 

5 Any information constituting grounds for denial 

6 of a registration number under this section 

7 shall be maintained confidentially by the Sec8 retary and may be used only for making deter9 minations under this section. Notwithstanding 

10 any other provision of this subtitle, the Sec11 retary may share any such information with 

12 Federal, State, local, and tribal law enforce13 ment agencies, as appropriate. 

14 ‘‘(6) REGISTRATION INFORMATION.— 

15 ‘‘(A) AUTHORITY TO REQUIRE INFORMA16 TION.—The Secretary may require a person ap17 plying for a registration number under this sub18 title to submit such information as may be nec19 essary to carry out the requirements of this sec20 tion. 

21 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENT TO UPDATE INFORMA22 TION.—The Secretary may require persons 

23 issued a registration under this subtitle to up24 date registration information submitted to the 

25 Secretary under this subtitle, as appropriate. 
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1 ‘‘(7) RE-CHECKS AGAINST TERRORIST WATCH

2 LIST.— 

3 ‘‘(A) RE-CHECKS.—The Secretary shall, as 

4 appropriate, re-check persons provided a reg5 istration number pursuant to this subtitle 

6 against the terrorist watch list, and may revoke 

7 such registration number if the Secretary deter8 mines such person may pose a threat to na9 tional security. 

10 ‘‘(B) NOTICE OF REVOCATION.—The Sec11 retary shall, as appropriate, provide prior notice 

12 to a person whose registration number is re13 voked under this section and such person shall 

14 have an opportunity to appeal, as provided in 

15 paragraph (4). 

16 ‘‘SEC. 899C. INSPECTION AND AUDITING OF RECORDS. 

17 ‘‘The Secretary shall establish a process for the peri18 odic inspection and auditing of the records maintained by 

19 owners of ammonium nitrate facilities for the purpose of 

20 monitoring compliance with such section or for the pur21 pose of deterring or preventing the misappropriation or 

22 use of ammonium nitrate in an act of terrorism. 

23 ‘‘SEC. 899D. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS. 

24 ‘‘(a) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary— 
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1 ‘‘(1) may enter into a cooperative agreement 

2 with the Secretary of Agriculture, or the head of any 

3 State department of agriculture or its designee in4 volved in agricultural regulation, in consultation with 

5 the State agency responsible for homeland security, 

6 to carry out the provisions of this subtitle; and 

7 ‘‘(2) wherever possible, shall seek to cooperate 

8 with State agencies or their designees that oversee 

9 ammonium nitrate facility operations when seeking 

10 cooperative agreements to implement the registra11 tion and enforcement provisions of this subtitle. 

12 ‘‘(b) DELEGATION.— 

13 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may delegate 

14 to a State the authority to assist the Secretary in 

15 the administration and enforcement of this subtitle. 

16 ‘‘(2) DELEGATION REQUIRED.—At the request 

17 of a Governor of a State, the Secretary shall dele18 gate to the State the authority to carry out func19 tions under sections 899B and 899C, if the Sec20 retary determines that the State is capable of satis21 factorily carrying out such functions. 

22 ‘‘(3) FUNDING.—Subject to the availability of 

23 appropriations, if the Secretary enters into an agree24 ment with a State under this subsection to delegate 

25 functions to the State, the Secretary shall provide to 
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1 the State sufficient funds to carry out the delegated 

2 functions. 

3 ‘‘(c) PROVISION OF GUIDANCE AND NOTIFICATION

4 MATERIALS TO AMMONIUM NITRATE FACILITIES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) GUIDANCE.—The Secretary shall make 

6 available to each owner of an ammonium nitrate fa7 cility registered under section 899B(c)(1) guidance 

8 on— 

9 ‘‘(A) the identification of suspicious ammo10 nium nitrate purchases or transfers or at11 tempted purchases or transfers; 

12 ‘‘(B) the appropriate course of action to be 

13 taken by the ammonium nitrate facility owner 

14 with respect to such a purchase or transfer or 

15 attempted purchase or transfer, including— 

16 ‘‘(i) exercising the right of the owner 

17 of the ammonium nitrate facility to decline 

18 sale of ammonium nitrate; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) notifying appropriate law en20 forcement entities; and 

21 ‘‘(C) any such additional subjects as the 

22 Secretary determines are appropriate to prevent 

23 the misappropriation or use of ammonium ni24 trate in an act of terrorism. 
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1 ‘‘(2) USE OF MATERIALS AND PROGRAMS.—In 

2 providing guidance under this subsection, the Sec3 retary shall, to the extent practicable, leverage any 

4 relevant materials and programs. 

5 ‘‘(3) NOTIFICATION MATERIALS.— 

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

7 make available materials suitable for posting at 

8 ammonium nitrate facilities where ammonium 

9 nitrate is sold. 

10 ‘‘(B) DESIGN OF MATERIALS.—Such mate11 rials shall be designed to notify prospective am12 monium nitrate purchasers of— 

13 ‘‘(i) the record-keeping requirements 

14 under section 899B; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) the penalties for violating such 

16 requirements. 

17 ‘‘SEC. 899E. THEFT REPORTING REQUIREMENT. 

18 ‘‘Any person who is required to comply with section 

19 899B(e) who has knowledge of the theft or unexplained 

20 loss of ammonium nitrate shall report such theft or loss 

21 to the appropriate Federal law enforcement authorities 

22 within one calendar day of the date on which the person 

23 becomes aware of such theft or loss. Upon receipt of such 

24 report, the relevant Federal authorities shall inform State, 

25 local, and tribal law enforcement entities as appropriate. 
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1 ‘‘SEC. 899F. PROHIBITIONS AND PENALTY. 

2 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITIONS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) TAKING POSSESSION.—No person shall 

4 take possession of ammonium nitrate from an am5 monium nitrate facility unless such person is reg6 istered under subsection (c) or (d) of section 899B, 

7 or is an agent of a person registered under sub8 section (c) or (d) of that section. 

9 ‘‘(2) TRANSFERRING POSSESSION.—An owner 

10 of an ammonium nitrate facility shall not transfer 

11 possession of ammonium nitrate from the ammo12 nium nitrate facility to any person who is not reg13 istered under subsection (c) or (d) of section 899B, 

14 unless such person is an agent of a person registered 

15 under subsection (c) or (d) of that section. 

16 ‘‘(3) OTHER PROHIBITIONS.—No person shall— 

17 ‘‘(A) buy and take possession of ammo18 nium nitrate without a registration number re19 quired under subsection (c) or (d) of section 

20 899B; 

21 ‘‘(B) own or operate an ammonium nitrate 

22 facility without a registration number required 

23 under section 899B(c); or 

24 ‘‘(C) fail to comply with any requirement 

25 or violate any other prohibition under this sub26 title. 
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1 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITIONS.—No person shall— 

2 ‘‘(1) buy and take possession of ammonium ni3 trate without a registration number required under 

4 subsection (c) or (d) of section 899B; 

5 ‘‘(2) own or operate an ammonium nitrate facil6 ity without a registration number required under 

7 section 899B(c); or 

8 ‘‘(3) fail to comply with any requirement or vio9 late any other prohibition under this subtitle. 

10 ‘‘(c) CIVIL PENALTY.—A person that violates this 

11 subtitle may be assessed a civil penalty by the Secretary 

12 of not more than $50,000 per violation. 

13 ‘‘(d) PENALTY CONSIDERATIONS.—In determining 

14 the amount of a civil penalty under this section, the Sec15 retary shall consider— 

16 ‘‘(1) the nature and circumstances of the viola17 tion; 

18 ‘‘(2) with respect to the person who commits 

19 the violation, any history of prior violations, the abil20 ity to pay the penalty, and any effect the penalty is 

21 likely to have on the ability of such person to do 

22 business; and 

23 ‘‘(3) any other matter that the Secretary deter24 mines that justice requires. 
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1 ‘‘(e) NOTICE AND OPPORTUNITY FOR A HEARING.— 

2 No civil penalty may be assessed under this subtitle unless 

3 the person liable for the penalty has been given notice and 

4 an opportunity for a hearing on the violation for which 

5 the penalty is to be assessed in the county, parish, or in6 corporated city of residence of that person. 

7 ‘‘(f) DELAY IN APPLICATION OF PROHIBITION.— 

8 Paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (a) shall apply be9 ginning 6 months after the issuance by the Secretary of 

10 a final rule implementing this subtitle. 

11 ‘‘SEC. 899G. PROTECTION FROM CIVIL LIABILITY. 

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro13 vision of law, an owner of an ammonium nitrate facility 

14 who in good faith refuses to sell or transfer ammonium 

15 nitrate to any person, or who in good faith discloses to 

16 the Department or to appropriate law enforcement au17 thorities an actual or attempted purchase or transfer, 

18 based upon a reasonable belief that the person seeking 

19 purchase or transfer of ammonium nitrate may use the 

20 ammonium nitrate to create an explosive device to be em21 ployed in an act of terrorism (as defined in section 3077 

22 of title 18, United States Code), or to use ammonium ni23 trate for any other unlawful purpose, shall be immune 

24 from civil liability arising from that refusal to sell ammo25 nium nitrate or from making that disclosure. 
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1 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—Subsection (a) shall not be con2 strued to apply with respect to any refusal to sell or disclo3 sure— 

4 ‘‘(1) that violates— 

5 ‘‘(A) title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 

6 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq); or 

7 ‘‘(B) the Americans with Disabilities Act 

8 of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.); or 

9 ‘‘(2) made on the basis that the person seeking 

10 purchase or transfer of ammonium nitrate is a vet11 eran or member of the armed forces of the United 

12 States. 

13 ‘‘SEC. 899H. PREEMPTION OF OTHER LAWS. 

14 ‘‘(a) OTHER FEDERAL REGULATIONS.—Except as 

15 provided in section 899G, nothing in this subtitle affects 

16 any regulation issued by any agency other than an agency 

17 of the Department. 

18 ‘‘(b) STATE LAW.—Subject to section 899G, this sub19 title preempts the laws of any State to the extent that 

20 such laws are inconsistent with this subtitle, except that 

21 this subtitle shall not preempt any State law that provides 

22 additional protection against the acquisition of ammonium 

23 nitrate by terrorists or the use of ammonium nitrate in 

24 explosives in acts of terrorism or for other illicit purposes, 

25 as determined by the Secretary. 
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1 ‘‘SEC. 899I. DEADLINES FOR REGULATIONS. 

2 ‘‘The Secretary— 

3 ‘‘(1) shall issue a proposed rule implementing 

4 this subtitle within six months after the date of the 

5 enactment of this subtitle; and 

6 ‘‘(2) issue a final rule implementing this sub7 title within one year after such date of enactment. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 899J. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

9 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec10 retary such sums as may be necessary to carry out this 

11 subtitle for fiscal years 2007 through 2011.’’. 

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

13 in section 1(b) of such Act is amended by adding at the 

14 end of the items relating to title VIII the following new 

15 items: 

‘‘Subtitle J—Secure Handling of Ammonium Nitrate 

‘‘Sec. 899A. Definitions. 

‘‘Sec. 899B. Regulation of the sale and transfer of ammonium nitrate. 

‘‘Sec. 899C. Inspection and auditing of records. 

‘‘Sec. 899D. Administrative provisions. 

‘‘Sec. 899E. Theft reporting requirement. 

‘‘Sec. 899F. Prohibitions and penalty. 

‘‘Sec. 899G. Protection from civil liability. 

‘‘Sec. 899H. Preemption of other laws. 
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‘‘Sec. 899I. Deadlines for regulations. 

‘‘Sec. 899J. Authorization of appropriations.’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives October 23, 

2007. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 
110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1680 

AN ACT 

To authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security to 

by terrorists, and for other purposes. and deter the acquisition of ammonium nitrate regulate the sale of ammonium nitrate to prevent