721
(4) Congress was aware that gasoline and its
component additives can and do leak from storage
tanks;
(5) the fuel industry responded to the fuel oxy-
genate standard established by Public Law 101–549
by making substantial investments in—
(A) MTBE production capacity; and
(B) systems to deliver MTBE-containing
gasoline to the marketplace;
(6) having previously required oxygenates like
MTBE for air quality purposes, Congress has—
(A) reconsidered the relative value of
MTBE in gasoline;
(B) decided to establish a date certain for
action by the Environmental Protection Agency
to prohibit the use of MTBE in gasoline; and
(C) decided to provide for the elimination
of the oxygenate requirement for reformulated
gasoline and to provide for a renewable fuels
content requirement for motor fuel; and
(7) it is appropriate for Congress to provide
some limited transition assistance—
(A) to merchant producers of MTBE who
produced MTBE in response to a market cre-
722
ated by the oxygenate requirement contained in
the Clean Air Act; and
(B) for the purpose of mitigating any fuel
supply problems that may result from the elimi-
nation of the oxygenate requirement for refor-
mulated gasoline and from the decision to es-
tablish a date certain for action by the Environ-
mental Protection Agency to prohibit the use of
MTBE in gasoline.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purpose of this section is to
provide assistance to merchant producers of MTBE in
making the transition from producing MTBE to producing
other fuel additives.
(c) MTBE MERCHANT PRODUCER CONVERSION AS-
SISTANCE.—Section 211(c) of the Clean Air Act (42
U.S.C. 7545(c)) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing:
‘‘(5) MTBE MERCHANT
PRODUCER
CONVER-
SION ASSISTANCE.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—
‘‘(i) GRANTS.—The Secretary of En-
ergy, in consultation with the Adminis-
trator, may make grants to merchant pro-
ducers of methyl tertiary butyl ether (here-
inafter in this subsection referred to as
723
‘MTBE’) in the United States to assist the
producers in the conversion of eligible pro-
duction facilities described in subpara-
graph (C) to the production of iso-octane,
iso-octene, alkylates, or renewable fuels.
‘‘(ii) DETERMINATION.—The Admin-
istrator, in consultation with the Secretary
of Energy, may determine that transition
assistance for the production of iso-octane,
iso-octene, alkylates, or renewable fuels is
inconsistent with the provisions of sub-
paragraph (B) and, on that basis, may
deny applications for grants authorized by
this paragraph.
‘‘(B) FURTHER
GRANTS.—The Secretary
of Energy, in consultation with the Adminis-
trator, may also further make grants to mer-
chant producers of MTBE in the United States
to assist the producers in the conversion of eli-
gible production facilities described in subpara-
graph (C) to the production of such other fuel
additives (unless the Administrator determines
that such fuel additives may reasonably be an-
ticipated to endanger public health or the envi-
ronment) that, consistent with this subsection—
724
‘‘(i) have been registered and have
been tested or are being tested in accord-
ance with the requirements of this section;
and
‘‘(ii) will contribute to replacing gaso-
line volumes lost as a result of amend-
ments made to subsection (k) of this sec-
tion by section 1504(a) and 1506 of the
Energy Policy Act of 2005.
‘‘(C) 
ELIGIBLE
PRODUCTION
FACILI-
TIES.—A production facility shall be eligible to
receive a grant under this paragraph if the pro-
duction facility—
‘‘(i) is located in the United States;
and
‘‘(ii) produced MTBE for consump-
tion before April 1, 2003 and ceased pro-
duction at any time after the date of en-
actment of this paragraph.
‘‘(D) 
AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIA-
TIONS.—There are authorized to be appro-
priated 
to 
carry 
out 
this 
paragraph
$250,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005
through 2012, to remain available until ex-
pended.’’.