111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2751 

AN ACT 

To accelerate motor fuel savings nationwide and provide incentives to registered owners of high polluting automobiles to replace such automobiles with new fuel efficient and less polluting automobiles. 

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 ‘‘Consumer Assistance 

3 to Recycle and Save Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. TEMPORARY VEHICLE TRADE-IN PROGRAM. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

6 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration a vol7 untary program to be known as the ‘‘Consumer Assistance 

8 to Recycle and Save Program’’ through which the Sec9 retary of Transportation (hereinafter in this section re10 ferred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’), in accordance with this Act 

11 and the regulations promulgated under subsection (d), 

12 shall— 

13 (1) authorize the issuance of an electronic 

14 voucher, subject to the specifications set forth in 

15 subsection (c), to offset the purchase price or lease 

16 price for a qualifying lease of a new fuel efficient 

17 automobile upon the surrender of an eligible trade18 in vehicle to a dealer participating in the Program; 

19 (2) register dealers for participation in the Pro20 gram and require all registered dealers— 

21 (A) to accept vouchers as provided in this 

22 section as partial payment or down payment for 

23 the purchase or qualifying lease of any new fuel 

24 efficient automobile offered for sale or lease by 

25 that dealer; and 
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1 (B) in accordance with subsection (c)(2), 

2 to transfer each eligible trade-in vehicle surren3 dered to the dealer under the Program to an 

4 entity for disposal; 

5 (3) in consultation with the Secretary of the 

6 Treasury, make electronic payments to dealers for 

7 eligible transactions accepted by such dealers, in ac8 cordance with the regulations issued under sub9 section (d); and 

10 (4) in consultation with the Secretary of Treas11 ury and the Inspector General of the Department of 

12 Transportation, establish and provide for the en13 forcement of measures to prevent and penalize fraud 

14 under the Program. 

15 (b) QUALIFICATIONS FOR AND VALUE OF VOUCH16 ERS.—A voucher issued under the Program shall have a 

17 value that may be applied to offset the purchase price or 

18 lease price for a qualifying lease of a new fuel efficient 

19 automobile as follows: 

20 (1) $3,500 VALUE.—The voucher may be used 

21 to offset the purchase price or lease price of the new 

22 fuel efficient automobile by $3,500 if— 

23 (A) the new fuel efficient automobile is a 

24 passenger automobile and the combined fuel 

25 economy value of such automobile is at least 4 
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1 miles per gallon higher than the combined fuel 

2 economy value of the eligible trade-in vehicle; 

3 (B) the new fuel efficient automobile is a 

4 category 1 truck and the combined fuel econ5 omy value of such truck is at least 2 miles per 

6 gallon higher than the combined fuel economy 

7 value of the eligible trade-in vehicle; 

8 (C) the new fuel efficient automobile is a 

9 category 2 truck that has a combined fuel econ10 omy value of at least 15 miles per gallon and— 

11 (i) the eligible trade-in vehicle is a 

12 category 2 truck and the combined fuel 

13 economy value of the new fuel efficient 

14 automobile is at least 1 mile per gallon 

15 higher than the combined fuel economy 

16 value of the eligible trade-in vehicle; or 

17 (ii) the eligible trade-in vehicle is a 

18 category 3 truck of model year 2001 or 

19 earlier; or 

20 (D) the new fuel efficient automobile is a 

21 category 3 truck and the eligible trade-in vehi22 cle is a category 3 truck of model year of 2001 

23 or earlier and is of similar size or larger than 

24 the new fuel efficient automobile as determined 

25 in a manner prescribed by the Secretary. 
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1 (2) $4,500 VALUE.—The voucher may be used 

2 to offset the purchase price or lease price of the new 

3 fuel efficient automobile by $4,500 if— 

4 (A) the new fuel efficient automobile is a 

5 passenger automobile and the combined fuel 

6 economy value of such automobile is at least 10 

7 miles per gallon higher than the combined fuel 

8 economy value of the eligible trade-in vehicle; 

9 (B) the new fuel efficient automobile is a 

10 category 1 truck and the combined fuel econ11 omy value of such truck is at least 5 miles per 

12 gallon higher than the combined fuel economy 

13 value of the eligible trade-in vehicle; or 

14 (C) the new fuel efficient automobile is a 

15 category 2 truck that has a combined fuel econ16 omy value of at least 15 miles per gallon and 

17 the combined fuel economy value of such truck 

18 is at least 2 miles per gallon higher than the 

19 combined fuel economy value of the eligible 

20 trade-in vehicle and the eligible trade-in vehicle 

21 is a category 2 truck. 

22 (c) PROGRAM SPECIFICATIONS.— 

23 (1) LIMITATIONS.— 

24 (A) GENERAL PERIOD OF ELIGIBILITY.—A 

25 voucher issued under the Program shall be used 
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1 only in connection with the purchase or quali2 fying lease of new fuel efficient automobiles 

3 that occur between— 

4 (i) the date of enactment of this Act; 

5 and 

6 (ii) the date that is 1 year after the 

7 date on which the regulations promulgated 

8 under subsection (d) are implemented. 

9 (B) NUMBER OF VOUCHERS PER PERSON

10 AND PER TRADE-IN VEHICLE.—Not more than 

11 1 voucher may be issued for a single person and 

12 not more than 1 voucher may be issued for the 

13 joint registered owners of a single eligible trade14 in vehicle. 

15 (C) NO COMBINATION OF VOUCHERS.— 

16 Only 1 voucher issued under the Program may 

17 be applied toward the purchase or qualifying 

18 lease of a single new fuel efficient automobile. 

19 (D) CAP ON FUNDS FOR CATEGORY 3

20 TRUCKS.—Not more than 7.5 percent of the 

21 total funds made available for the Program 

22 shall be used for vouchers for the purchase or 

23 qualifying lease of category 3 trucks. 

24 (E) COMBINATION WITH OTHER INCEN25 TIVES PERMITTED.—The availability or use of a 
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1 Federal, State, or local incentive or a State2 issued voucher for the purchase or lease of a 

3 new fuel efficient automobile shall not limit the 

4 value or issuance of a voucher under the Pro5 gram to any person otherwise eligible to receive 

6 such a voucher. 

7 (F) NO ADDITIONAL FEES.—A dealer par8 ticipating in the program may not charge a per9 son purchasing or leasing a new fuel efficient 

10 automobile any additional fees associated with 

11 the use of a voucher under the Program. 

12 (G) NUMBER AND AMOUNT.—The total 

13 number and value of vouchers issued under the 

14 Program may not exceed the amounts appro15 priated for such purpose. 

16 (2) DISPOSITION OF ELIGIBLE TRADE-IN VEHI17 CLES.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—For each eligible trade19 in vehicle surrendered to a dealer under the 

20 Program, the dealer shall certify to the Sec21 retary, in such manner as the Secretary shall 

22 prescribe by rule, that the dealer— 

23 (i) will arrange for the vehicle’s title 

24 to be transferred to the United States and 
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1 will accept possession of the vehicle on be2 half of the United States; 

3 (ii) has not and will not sell, lease, ex4 change, or otherwise dispose of the vehicle 

5 for use as an automobile in the United 

6 States or in any other country; and 

7 (iii) will transfer, on behalf of the 

8 United States, the vehicle (including the 

9 engine block) and the vehicle’s title, in 

10 such manner as the Secretary prescribes, 

11 to an entity that will ensure that the vehi12 cle— 

13 (I) will be crushed or shredded 

14 within such period and in such man15 ner as the Secretary prescribes; and 

16 (II) has not been, and will not 

17 be, sold, leased, exchanged, or other18 wise disposed of for use as an auto19 mobile in the United States or in any 

20 other country. 

21 (B) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Nothing in sub22 paragraph (A) may be construed to preclude a 

23 person who is responsible for ensuring that the 

24 vehicle is crushed or shredded from— 
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1 (i) selling any parts of the disposed 

2 vehicle other than the engine block and 

3 drive train (unless the transmission, drive 

4 shaft, or rear end are sold as separate 

5 parts); or 

6 (ii) retaining the proceeds from such 

7 sale. 

8 (C) COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall 

9 coordinate with the Attorney General to ensure 

10 that the National Motor Vehicle Title Informa11 tion System and other publicly accessible sys12 tems are appropriately updated on a timely 

13 basis to reflect the crushing or shredding of ve14 hicles under this Act and appropriate re-classi15 fication of the vehicles’ titles. The commercial 

16 market shall also have electronic and commer17 cial access to the vehicle identification numbers 

18 of vehicles that have been disposed of on a 

19 timely basis. 

20 (d) REGULATIONS.—Notwithstanding the require21 ments of section 553 of title 5, United States Code, the 

22 Secretary shall promulgate final regulations to implement 

23 the Program not later than 30 days after the date of the 

24 enactment of this Act. Such regulations shall— 
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1 (1) provide for a means of registering dealers 

2 for participation in the program; 

3 (2) establish procedures for the reimbursement 

4 of dealers participating in the Program to be made 

5 through electronic transfer of funds for the amount 

6 of the vouchers as soon as practicable but no longer 

7 than 10 days after the submission of information 

8 supporting the eligible transaction, as determined 

9 appropriate by the Secretary; 

10 (3) require the dealer to use the voucher in ad11 dition to any other rebate or discount advertised by 

12 the dealer or offered by the manufacturer for the 

13 new fuel efficient automobile and prohibit the dealer 

14 from using the voucher to offset any such other re15 bate or discount; 

16 (4) require dealers to disclose to the person 

17 trading in an eligible trade in vehicle the best esti18 mate of the scrappage value of such vehicle; 

19 (5) require dealers to accept on behalf of the 

20 United States, and Transfer to the Secretary of the 

21 Treasury, the amount paid for scrappage of the ve22 hicle up to $60; 

23 (6) permit the dealer to retain any amounts 

24 paid to the dealer for scrappage of the automobile 

25 in excess of the $60 amount referred to in para-
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1 graph (5) and designate $50 of such excess as pay2 ment for any administrative costs to the dealer asso3 ciated with participation in the Program; 

4 (7) clarify that dealers will not be reimbursed 

5 for any storage fees or other costs associated with 

6 their custodial handling of the eligible trade-in vehi7 cle; 

8 (8) consistent with subsection (c)(2), establish 

9 requirements and procedures for the disposal of eli10 gible trade-in vehicles and provide such information 

11 as may be necessary to entities engaged in such dis12 posal to ensure that such vehicles are disposed of in 

13 accordance with such requirements and procedures, 

14 including— 

15 (A) requirements for the removal and ap16 propriate disposition of refrigerants, antifreeze, 

17 lead products, mercury switches, and such other 

18 toxic or hazardous vehicle components prior to 

19 the crushing or shredding of an eligible trade20 in vehicle, in accordance with rules established 

21 by the Secretary in consultation with the Ad22 ministrator of the Environmental Protection 

23 Agency, and in accordance with other applicable 

24 Federal or State requirements; 
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1 (B) a mechanism for dealers to certify to 

2 the Secretary that each eligible trade-in vehicle 

3 will be transferred by the dealer on behalf of 

4 the United States to an entity that will ensure 

5 that the vehicle is disposed of, in accordance 

6 with such requirements and procedures, and to 

7 submit the vehicle identification numbers of the 

8 vehicles disposed of and the new fuel efficient 

9 automobile purchased with each voucher; 

10 (C) a mechanism for obtaining such other 

11 certifications as determined necessary by the 

12 Secretary from entities engaged in vehicle dis13 posal; and 

14 (D) a list of entities to which dealers may 

15 transfer eligible trade-in vehicles for disposal; 

16 and 

17 (9) provide for the enforcement of the penalties 

18 described in subsection (e). 

19 (e) ANTI-FRAUD PROVISIONS.— 

20 (1) VIOLATION.—It shall be unlawful for any 

21 person to violate any provision under this Act or any 

22 regulations issued pursuant to subsection (d) (other 

23 than by making a clerical error). 

24 (2) PENALTIES.—Any person who commits a 

25 violation described in paragraph (1) shall be liable to 
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1 the United States Government for a civil penalty of 

2 not more than $15,000 for each violation. The Sec3 retary shall have the authority to assess and com4 promise such penalties, and shall have the authority 

5 to require from any entity the records and inspec6 tions necessary to enforce this program. In deter7 mining the amount of the civil penalty, the severity 

8 of the violation and the intent of the person commit9 ting the violation shall be taken into account. 

10 (f) INFORMATION TO CONSUMERS AND DEALERS.— 

11 Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this 

12 Act, and promptly upon the update of any relevant infor13 mation, the Secretary, in consultation with the Adminis14 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency, shall 

15 make available on an Internet website and through other 

16 means determined by the Secretary information about the 

17 Program, including— 

18 (1) how to determine if a vehicle is an eligible 

19 trade-in vehicle; 

20 (2) how to participate in the Program, includ21 ing how to determine participating dealers; and 

22 (3) a comprehensive list, by make and model, of 

23 new fuel efficient automobiles meeting the require24 ments of the Program. 
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1 Once such information is available, the Secretary shall 

2 conduct a public awareness campaign to inform consumers 

3 about the Program and where to obtain additional infor4 mation. 

5 (g) RECORD KEEPING AND REPORT.— 

6 (1) DATABASE.—The Secretary shall maintain 

7 a database of the vehicle identification numbers of 

8 all new fuel efficient vehicles purchased or leased 

9 and all eligible trade-in vehicles disposed of under 

10 the Program. 

11 (2) REPORT ON THE EFFICACY OF THE PRO12 GRAM.—Not later than 60 days after the termi13 nation date described in subsection (c)(1)(A)(ii), the 

14 Secretary shall submit a report to the Committee on 

15 Energy and Commerce of the House of Representa16 tives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

17 Transportation of the Senate describing the efficacy 

18 of the Program, including— 

19 (A) a description of program results, in20 cluding— 

21 (i) the total number and amount of 

22 vouchers issued for purchase or lease of 

23 new fuel efficient automobiles by manufac24 turer (including aggregate information 
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1 concerning the make, model, model year) 

2 and category of automobile; 

3 (ii) aggregate information regarding 

4 the make, model, model year, and manu5 facturing location of vehicles traded in 

6 under the Program; and 

7 (iii) the location of sale or lease; 

8 (B) an estimate of the overall increase in 

9 fuel efficiency in terms of miles per gallon, total 

10 annual oil savings, and total annual greenhouse 

11 gas reductions, as a result of the Program; and 

12 (C) an estimate of the overall economic 

13 and employment effects of the Program. 

14 (h) TREATMENT OF PAYMENT.— 

15 (1) FOR FEDERAL AND STATE PROGRAMS.—A 

16 voucher under this Act or any payment made for 

17 such a voucher pursuant to subsection (a)(3) shall 

18 not be considered income and shall not be considered 

19 as a resource for the month of receipt and the fol20 lowing 12 months, for purposes of determining the 

21 eligibility of the recipient (or the recipient’s spouse 

22 or other family or household members) for benefits 

23 or assistance, or the amount or extent of benefits or 

24 assistance, under any Federal or State program. 
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1 (2) FOR PURPOSES OF TAXATION.—A voucher 

2 under this Act, or any payment made for such a 

3 voucher pursuant to subsection (a)(3), shall not be 

4 considered as gross income of the purchaser of a ve5 hicle under this Act for purposes of the Internal 

6 Revenue Code of 1986. 

7 (i) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this Act— 

8 (1) the term ‘‘passenger automobile’’ means a 

9 passenger automobile, as defined in section 

10 32901(a)(18) of title 49, United States Code, that 

11 has a combined fuel economy value of at least 22 

12 miles per gallon; 

13 (2) the term ‘‘category 1 truck’’ means a non14 passenger automobile, as defined in section 

15 32901(a)(17) of title 49, United States Code, that 

16 has a combined fuel economy value of at least 18 

17 miles per gallon, except that such term does not in18 clude a category 2 truck; 

19 (3) the term ‘‘category 2 truck’’ means a large 

20 van or a large pickup, as categorized by the Sec21 retary using the method used by the Environmental 

22 Protection Agency and described in the report enti23 tled ‘‘Light-Duty Automotive Technology and Fuel 

24 Economy Trends: 1975 through 2008’’; 
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1 (4) the term ‘‘category 3 truck’’ means a work 

2 truck, as defined in section 32901(a)(19) of title 49, 

3 United States Code; 

4 (5) the term ‘‘combined fuel economy value’’ 

5 means— 

6 (A) with respect to a new fuel efficient 

7 automobile, the number, expressed in miles per 

8 gallon, centered below the words ‘‘Combined 

9 Fuel Economy’’ on the label required to be af10 fixed or caused to be affixed on a new auto11 mobile pursuant to subpart D of part 600 of 

12 title 40 Code of Federal Regulations; 

13 (B) with respect to an eligible trade-in ve14 hicle, the equivalent of the number described in 

15 subparagraph (A), and posted under the words 

16 ‘‘Estimated New EPA MPG’’ and above the 

17 word ‘‘Combined’’ for vehicles of model year 

18 1985 through 2007, or posted under the words 

19 ‘‘New EPA MPG’’ and above the word ‘‘Com20 bined’’ for vehicles of model year 2008 or later 

21 on the fueleconomy.gov website of the Environ22 mental Protection Agency for the make, model, 

23 and year of such vehicle; or 

24 (C) with respect to an eligible trade-in ve25 hicle manufactured between model years 1978 
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1 through 1984, the equivalent of the number de2 scribed in subparagraph (A) as determined by 

3 the Secretary (and posted on the website of the 

4 National Highway Traffic Safety Administra5 tion) using data maintained by the Environ6 mental Protection Agency for the make, model, 

7 and year of such vehicle; 

8 (6) the term ‘‘dealer’’ means a person licensed 

9 by a State who engages in the sale of new auto10 mobiles to ultimate purchasers; 

11 (7) the term ‘‘eligible trade-in vehicle’’ means 

12 an automobile or a work truck (as such terms are 

13 defined in section 32901(a) of title 49, United 

14 States Code) that, at the time it is presented for 

15 trade-in under this Act— 

16 (A) is in drivable condition; 

17 (B) has been continuously insured con18 sistent with the applicable State law and reg19 istered to the same owner for a period of not 

20 less than 1 year immediately prior to such 

21 trade-in; 

22 (C) was manufactured in model year 1984 

23 or later; and 
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1 (D) in the case of an automobile, has a 

2 combined fuel economy value of 18 miles per 

3 gallon or less; 

4 (8) the term ‘‘new fuel efficient automobile’’ 

5 means an automobile described in paragraph (1), 

6 (2), (3), or (4)— 

7 (A) the equitable or legal title of which has 

8 not been transferred to any person other than 

9 the ultimate purchaser; 

10 (B) that carries a manufacturer’s sug11 gested retail price of $45,000 or less; 

12 (C) that— 

13 (i) in the case of passenger auto14 mobiles, category 1 trucks, or category 2 

15 trucks, is certified to applicable standards 

16 under section 86.1811–04 of title 40, Code 

17 of Federal Regulations; or 

18 (ii) in the case of category 3 trucks, 

19 is certified to the applicable vehicle or en20 gine standards under section 86.1816–08, 

21 86–007–11, or 86.008–10 of title 40, Code 

22 of Federal Regulations; and 

23 (D) that has the combined fuel economy 

24 value of at least— 
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1 (i) 22 miles per gallon for a passenger 

2 automobile; 

3 (ii) 18 miles per gallon for a category 

4 1 truck; or 

5 (iii) 15 miles per gallon for a category 

6 2 truck; 

7 (9) the term ‘‘Program’’ means the Consumer 

8 Assistance to Recycle and Save Program established 

9 by this Act; 

10 (10) the term ‘‘qualifying lease’’ means a lease 

11 of an automobile for a period of not less than 5 

12 years; 

13 (11) the term ‘‘scrappage value’’ means the 

14 amount received by the dealer for a vehicle upon 

15 transferring title of such vehicle to the person re16 sponsible for ensuring the dismantling and destroy17 ing the vehicle; 

18 (12) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

19 of Transportation acting through the National High20 way Traffic Safety Administration; 

21 (13) the term ‘‘ultimate purchaser’’ means, 

22 with respect to any new automobile, the first person 

23 who in good faith purchases such automobile for 

24 purposes other than resale; 
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1 (14) the term ‘‘voucher’’ means an electronic 

2 transfer of funds to a dealer based on an eligible 

3 transaction under this program; and 

4 (15) the term ‘‘vehicle identification number’’ 

5 means the 17-character number used by the auto6 mobile industry to identify individual automobiles. 

7 (j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

8 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Trans9 portation $4,000,000,000 to carry out this Act. 

Passed the House of Representatives June 9, 2009. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 
111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2751 

AN ACT 

To accelerate motor fuel savings nationwide and 

mobiles. with new fuel efficient and less polluting autopolluting automobiles to replace such automobiles provide incentives to registered owners of high