I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 6409 
To amend the Clean Air Act to clarify standards for emissions emanating 
from outside of the United States, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 3, 2025 
Mr. PFLUGER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Clean Air Act to clarify standards for emis-
sions emanating from outside of the United States, and 
for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Foreign Emissions and 
Nonattainment Clarification for Economic Stability Act’’ 
or the ‘‘FENCES Act’’. 
SEC. 2. EMISSIONS BEYOND CONTROL. 
(a) CLARIFICATION OF EMISSIONS COVERED.—Sec-
tion 179B of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7509a) is 
amended— 
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(1) by inserting ‘‘(regardless of whether such 
emissions result from human activity)’’ after ‘‘but 
for emissions emanating from outside of the United 
States’’ each place it appears; and 
(2) in subsection (d), by inserting ‘‘(regardless 
of whether such emissions result from human activ-
ity)’’ after ‘‘but for emissions emanating from out-
side the United States’’. 
(b) DESIGNATIONS.—Section 179B of the Clean Air 
Act (42 U.S.C. 7509a) is further amended by adding at 
the end the following: 
‘‘(e) DESIGNATIONS.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, an area within a State may not be des-
ignated as a nonattainment area with respect to any new 
or revised primary or secondary national ambient air qual-
ity standard for a pollutant if such State establishes to 
the satisfaction of the Administrator that such area would 
be in attainment with such national ambient air quality 
standard for such pollutant but for emissions emanating 
from outside of the United States (regardless of whether 
such emissions result from human activity).’’. 
(c) APPLICABILITY
OF SANCTIONS
AND FEES
IF 
EMISSIONS BEYOND CONTROL.—The Clean Air Act (42 
U.S.C. 7401 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 
179B the following new section: 
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‘‘SEC. 179C. APPLICABILITY OF SANCTIONS AND FEES IF 
EMISSIONS BEYOND CONTROL. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro-
vision of this Act, with respect to any nonattainment area 
that is classified under section 181 as a Severe Area or 
an Extreme Area for ozone or under section 188 as a Seri-
ous Area for particulate matter, no sanction or fee under 
section 179 or 185 shall apply with respect to a State (or 
an area or source therein) on the basis of a deficiency de-
scribed in section 179(a), or the failure to attain a na-
tional ambient air quality standard for ozone or particu-
late matter by the applicable attainment date, if the State 
demonstrates that the State would have avoided such defi-
ciency, or such standard would have been attained, but 
for one or more of the following: 
‘‘(1) Emissions emanating from outside the 
nonattainment area. 
‘‘(2) Emissions from an exceptional event (as 
defined in section 319(b)(1)). 
‘‘(3) Emissions from mobile sources to the ex-
tent the State demonstrates that— 
‘‘(A) such emissions are beyond the control 
of the State to reduce or eliminate; and 
‘‘(B) the State is fully implementing such 
measures as are within the authority of the 
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State to control emissions from the mobile 
sources. 
‘‘(b) NO EFFECT ON UNDERLYING STANDARDS.— 
The inapplicability of sanctions or fees with respect to a 
State (or an area or source therein) pursuant to sub-
section (a) does not affect the obligation of a State, area, 
source, or other entity under other provisions of this Act 
to establish and implement measures to attain a national 
ambient air quality standard for ozone or particulate mat-
ter. 
‘‘(c) PERIODIC RENEWAL
OF DEMONSTRATION.— 
For subsection (a) to continue to apply with respect to 
a State (or an area or source therein), the State involved 
shall renew the demonstration required by subsection (a) 
at least once every 5 years.’’. 
Æ 
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