I
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1684
To amend the Petroleum Marketing Practices Act to provide consumers
with additional information concerning octane ratings and requirements,
and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 2, 1993
Mr. SCHUMER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Energy and Commerce
A BILL
To amend the Petroleum Marketing Practices Act to provide
consumers with additional information concerning octane
ratings and requirements, 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. WARNING STATEMENT.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 202(c) of the Petroleum
Marketing Practices Act (15 U.S.C. 2822(c)) is amend-
ed—
(1) by striking out ‘‘(c) Each’’ and inserting in
lieu thereof ‘‘(c)(1) Each’’;
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), and
(3) as subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), respectively;
and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(2) Each automotive fuel retailer shall also display
in a clear and conspicuous manner, at the point of sale
to the ultimate purchaser of automotive gasoline, the fol-
lowing warning statement:
‘‘WARNING! Most cars are designed to operate
on low-octane gasoline. Check your owner’s manual
to see what grade of gasoline is best for your car.
‘‘(3) The warning statement required by paragraph
(2) shall appear on each automotive gasoline dispenser
with the word ‘Warning’ in capital letters and all the let-
ters in the statement at least 3⁄8 of an inch in height and
of a thickness and type face which assures that they will
be legible, prominent, and conspicuous.’’.
(b) DEFINITION.—Section 201 of such Act is amend-
ed by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(19) The term ‘automotive gasoline’ means
gasoline of a type distributed for use as a fuel in any
motor vehicle.’’.
(c) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 203(b)(1) of such Act
is amended—
(1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting the fol-
lowing before the semicolon: ‘‘and making findings
with respect to the warning statement required by
section 202(c)(2)’’; and
(2) in subparagraph (C), by inserting after
‘‘rating’’ the following: ‘‘or the warning statement
required by section 202(c)(2)’’.
(d) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section
203(c)(2)(B) of the Petroleum Marketing Practices Act
(15 U.S.C. 2823(c)(2)(B)) is amended by striking
‘‘202(c)’’ and inserting ‘‘202(c)(1)’’.
(e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—(1) The Federal Trade Com-
mission shall, within 60 days after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, prescribe rules for the purpose of carry-
ing out the amendment made by subsection (a).
(2) The amendments made by this section shall be-
come effective 120 days after the date of the enactment
of this Act.
SEC. 2. CONFORMING AMENDMENT TO ENERGY POLICY
ACT OF 1992.
Section 1503(b)(2) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992
(Public Law 102–486) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(2) In carrying out the study to determine the na-
ture of a uniform national label under subsection
(a)(2)(B), the Federal Trade Commission shall weigh the
consumer, environmental, and energy saving benefits of
any element of such label against the necessity for a con-
cise, practical, and cost-efficient label.’’.
SEC. 3. DISPLAY OF AUTOMOTIVE FUEL REQUIREMENT ON
MOTOR VEHICLES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 202(d) of the Petroleum
Marketing Practices Act (15 U.S.C. 2822(d)) is amend-
ed—
(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ and inserting ‘‘and’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Such
rules shall require that the display on each such
motor vehicle be located near the fuel tank fill inlet
of the motor vehicle.’’.
(b) DEADLINE FOR PRESCRIBING RULES.—Not later
than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act,
the Federal Trade Commission shall prescribe the rules
required by section 202(d) of the Petroleum Marketing
Practices Act (15 U.S.C. 2822(d)), as amended by this
Act.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Rules prescribed under sec-
tion 202(d) of the Petroleum Marketing Practices Act (15
U.S.C. 2822(d)), as amended by this Act, shall take effect
beginning on the first day of the first model year which
begins more than 12 months after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act.