In the House of Representatives, U. S., 
September 25, 2013. 
Resolved, That the House agree to the amendment of the 
Senate to the bill (H.R. 527) entitled ‘‘An Act to amend the 
Helium Act to complete the privatization of the Federal he-
lium reserve in a competitive market fashion that ensures 
stability in the helium markets while protecting the interests 
of American taxpayers, and for other purposes.’’, with the fol-
lowing 
HOUSE AMENDMENT TO SENATE AMENDMENT: 
In lieu of the matter proposed to be inserted by the 
amendment of the Senate to the text of the bill, insert 
the following: 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Helium Stewardship 
Act of 2013’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
Section 2 of the Helium Act (50 U.S.C. 167) is amend-
ed to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
‘‘In this Act: 
‘‘(1) CLIFFSIDE
FIELD.—The term ‘Cliffside 
Field’ means the helium storage reservoir in which 
the Federal Helium Reserve is stored.
‘‘(7) PERSON.—The term ‘person’ means any in-
dividual, corporation, partnership, firm, association, 
trust, estate, public or private institution, or State or 
political subdivision. 
‘‘(8) PRIORITY
PIPELINE
ACCESS.—The term 
‘priority pipeline access’ means the first priority of 
delivery of crude helium under which the Secretary 
schedules and ensures the delivery of crude helium to 
a helium refinery through the Federal Helium Sys-
tem. 
‘‘(9) QUALIFIED BIDDER.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘qualified bid-
der’ means a person the Secretary determines is 
seeking to purchase helium for their own use, re-
fining, or redelivery to users. 
‘‘(B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘qualified bid-
der’ does not include a person who was pre-
viously determined to be a qualified bidder if the 
Secretary determines that the person did not 
meet the requirements of a qualified bidder 
under this Act. 
‘‘(10) QUALIFYING
DOMESTIC
HELIUM
TRANS-
ACTION.—The term ‘qualifying domestic helium 
transaction’ means any agreement entered into or re-
negotiated agreement during the preceding 1-year pe-
riod in the United States for the purchase or sale of 
at least 15,000,000 standard cubic feet of crude or 
pure helium to which any holder of a contract with 
the Secretary for the acceptance, storage, delivery, or 
redelivery of crude helium from the Federal Helium 
System is a party. 
‘‘(11) REFINER.—The term ‘refiner’ means a 
person with the ability to take delivery of crude he-
lium from the Federal Helium Pipeline and refine the 
crude helium into pure helium. 
‘‘(12) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means 
the Secretary of the Interior.’’. 
SEC. 3. AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY. 
Section 3 of the Helium Act (50 U.S.C. 167a) is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(c) EXTRACTION OF HELIUM FROM DEPOSITS ON 
FEDERAL LAND.—All amounts received by the Secretary 
from the sale or disposition of helium on Federal land shall 
be credited to the Helium Production Fund established 
under section 6(e).’’. 
SEC. 4. STORAGE, WITHDRAWAL AND TRANSPORTATION. 
Section 5 of the Helium Act (50 U.S.C. 167c) is 
amended to read as follows:
‘‘SEC. 5. STORAGE, WITHDRAWAL AND TRANSPORTATION. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary provides helium 
storage, withdrawal, or transportation services to any per-
son, the Secretary shall impose a fee on the person that ac-
curately reflects the economic value of those services. 
‘‘(b) MINIMUM FEES.—The fees charged under sub-
section (a) shall be not less than the amount required to 
reimburse the Secretary for the full costs of providing stor-
age, withdrawal, or transportation services, including cap-
ital investments in upgrades and maintenance at the Fed-
eral Helium System. 
‘‘(c) SCHEDULE OF FEES.—Prior to sale or auction 
under subsection (a), (b), or (c) of section 6, the Secretary 
shall annually publish a standardized schedule of fees that 
the Secretary will charge under this section. 
‘‘(d) TREATMENT.—All fees received by the Secretary 
under this section shall be credited to the Helium Produc-
tion Fund established under section 6(e). 
‘‘(e) STORAGE AND DELIVERY.—In accordance with 
this section, the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(1) allow any person or qualified bidder to 
which crude helium is sold or auctioned under section 
6 to store helium in the Federal Helium Reserve; and 
‘‘(2) establish a schedule for the transportation 
and delivery of helium using the Federal Helium Sys-
tem that—
‘‘(A) ensures timely delivery of helium auc-
tioned pursuant to section 6(b)(2); 
‘‘(B) ensures timely delivery of helium ac-
quired from the Secretary from the Federal He-
lium Reserve by means other than an auction 
under section 6(b)(2), including nonallocated 
sales; and 
‘‘(C) provides priority access to the Federal 
Helium Pipeline for in-kind sales for Federal 
users. 
‘‘(f) NEW PIPELINE ACCESS.—The Secretary shall con-
sider any applications for access to the Federal Helium 
Pipeline in a manner consistent with the schedule for phas-
ing out commercial sales and disposition of assets pursuant 
to section 6.’’. 
SEC. 5. SALE OF CRUDE HELIUM. 
Section 6 of the Helium Act (50 U.S.C. 167d) is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 6. SALE OF CRUDE HELIUM. 
‘‘(a) PHASE A: ALLOCATION TRANSITION.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall offer 
crude helium for sale in such quantities, at such 
times, at not less than the minimum price established 
under subsection (b)(7), and under such terms and 
conditions as the Secretary determines necessary to
carry out this subsection with minimum market dis-
ruption. 
‘‘(2) FEDERAL PURCHASES.—Federal users may 
purchase refined helium with priority pipeline access 
under this subsection from persons who have entered 
into enforceable contracts to purchase an equivalent 
quantity of crude helium at the in-kind price from 
the Secretary. 
‘‘(3) DURATION.—This subsection applies dur-
ing— 
‘‘(A) the period beginning on the date of en-
actment of the Helium Stewardship Act of 2013 
and ending on September 30, 2014; and 
‘‘(B) any period during which the sale of 
helium under subsection (b) is delayed or sus-
pended. 
‘‘(b) PHASE B: AUCTION IMPLEMENTATION.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall offer 
crude helium for sale in quantities not subject to auc-
tion under paragraph (2), after completion of each 
auction, at not less than the minimum price estab-
lished under paragraph (7), and under such terms 
and conditions as the Secretary determines nec-
essary—
‘‘(A) to maximize total recovery of helium 
from the Federal Helium Reserve over the long 
term; 
‘‘(B) to maximize the total financial return 
to the taxpayer; 
‘‘(C) to manage crude helium sales accord-
ing to the ability of the Secretary to extract and 
produce helium from the Federal Helium Re-
serve; 
‘‘(D) to give priority to meeting the helium 
demand of Federal users in the event of any dis-
ruption to the Federal Helium Reserve; and 
‘‘(E) to carry out this subsection with min-
imum market disruption. 
‘‘(2) AUCTION QUANTITIES.—For the period de-
scribed in paragraph (4) and consistent with the con-
ditions described in paragraph (8), the Secretary 
shall annually auction to any qualified bidder a 
quantity of crude helium in the Federal Helium Re-
serve equal to— 
‘‘(A) for fiscal year 2015, 10 percent of the 
total volume of crude helium made available for 
that fiscal year; 
‘‘(B) for each of fiscal years 2016 through 
2019, a percentage of the total volume of crude
helium that is 15 percentage points greater than 
the percentage made available for the previous 
fiscal year; and 
‘‘(C) for fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal 
year thereafter, 100 percent of the total volume 
of crude helium made available for that fiscal 
year. 
‘‘(3) FEDERAL PURCHASES.—Federal users may 
purchase refined helium with priority pipeline access 
under this subsection from persons who have entered 
into enforceable contracts to purchase an equivalent 
quantity of crude helium at the in-kind price from 
the Secretary. 
‘‘(4) DURATION.—This subsection applies during 
the period— 
‘‘(A) beginning on October 1, 2014; and 
‘‘(B) ending on the date on which the vol-
ume of recoverable crude helium at the Federal 
Helium Reserve (other than privately owned 
quantities of crude helium stored temporarily at 
the Federal Helium Reserve under section 5 and 
this section) is 3,000,000,000 standard cubic feet. 
‘‘(5) SAFETY VALVE.—The Secretary may adjust 
the quantities specified in paragraph (2)—
‘‘(A) downward, if the Secretary determines 
the adjustment necessary— 
‘‘(i) to minimize market disruptions 
that pose a threat to the economic well-being 
of the United States; and 
‘‘(ii) only after submitting a written 
justification of the adjustment to the Com-
mittee on Energy and Natural Resources of 
the Senate and the Committee on Natural 
Resources of the House of Representatives; 
or 
‘‘(B) upward, if the Secretary determines 
the adjustment necessary to increase participa-
tion in crude helium auctions or returns to the 
taxpayer. 
‘‘(6) AUCTION
FORMAT.—The Secretary shall 
conduct each auction using a method that maximizes 
revenue to the Federal Government. 
‘‘(7) PRICES.—The Secretary shall annually es-
tablish, as applicable, separate sale and minimum 
auction prices under subsection (a)(1) and para-
graphs (1) and (2) using, if applicable and in the fol-
lowing order of priority: 
‘‘(A) The sale price of crude helium in auc-
tions held by the Secretary under paragraph (2).
‘‘(B) 
Price 
recommendations 
and 
disaggregated data from a qualified, independent 
third party who has no conflict of interest, who 
shall conduct a confidential survey of qualifying 
domestic helium transactions. 
‘‘(C) The volume-weighted average price of 
all crude helium and pure helium purchased, 
sold, or processed by persons in all qualifying 
domestic helium transactions. 
‘‘(D) The volume-weighted average cost of 
converting gaseous crude helium into pure he-
lium. 
‘‘(8) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall re-
quire all persons that are parties to a contract 
with the Secretary for the withdrawal, accept-
ance, storage, transportation, delivery, or rede-
livery of crude helium to disclose, on a strictly 
confidential basis— 
‘‘(i) the volumes and associated prices 
in dollars per thousand cubic feet of all 
crude and pure helium purchased, sold, or 
processed by persons in qualifying domestic 
helium transactions;
‘‘(ii) the volumes and associated costs 
in dollars per thousand cubic feet of con-
verting crude helium into pure helium; and 
‘‘(iii) refinery capacity and future ca-
pacity estimates. 
‘‘(B) CONDITION.—As a condition of sale or 
auction to a refiner under subsection (a)(1) and 
paragraphs (1) and (2), effective beginning 90 
days after the date of enactment of the Helium 
Stewardship Act of 2013, the refiner shall make 
excess refining capacity of helium available at 
commercially reasonable rates to— 
‘‘(i) any person prevailing in auctions 
under paragraph (2); and 
‘‘(ii) any person that has acquired 
crude helium from the Secretary from the 
Federal Helium Reserve by means other 
than an auction under paragraph (2) after 
the date of enactment of the Helium Stew-
ardship Act of 2013, including nonallocated 
sales. 
‘‘(9) USE OF INFORMATION.—The Secretary may 
use the information collected under this Act— 
‘‘(A) to approximate crude helium prices; 
and
‘‘(B) to ensure the recovery of fair value for 
the taxpayers of the United States from sales of 
crude helium. 
‘‘(10) PROTECTION
OF
CONFIDENTIALITY.—The 
Secretary shall adopt such administrative policies 
and procedures as the Secretary considers necessary 
and reasonable to ensure the confidentiality of infor-
mation submitted pursuant to this Act. 
‘‘(11) FORWARD AUCTIONS.—Effective beginning 
in fiscal year 2016, the Secretary may conduct a for-
ward auction once each fiscal year of a quantity of 
helium that is equal to up to 10 percent of the volume 
of crude helium to be made available at auction dur-
ing the following fiscal year if the Secretary deter-
mines that the forward auction will— 
‘‘(A) not cause a disruption in the supply 
of helium from the Reserve; 
‘‘(B) represent a cost-effective action; 
‘‘(C) generate greater returns for taxpayers; 
and 
‘‘(D) increase the effectiveness of price dis-
covery. 
‘‘(12) SALE SCHEDULE AND FREQUENCY.—For 
fiscal year 2015 the Secretary shall conduct only one 
auction, which shall precede, and one sale, which
shall take place no later than August 1, 2014, with 
full and final payment for the sale being made no 
later than September 26, 2014. Consistent with the 
annual volumes established under paragraph (2), ef-
fective beginning in fiscal year 2016, the Secretary 
may conduct auctions twice during each fiscal year 
if the Secretary determines that the auction frequency 
will— 
‘‘(A) not cause a disruption in the supply 
of helium from the Reserve; 
‘‘(B) represent a cost-effective action; 
‘‘(C) generate greater returns for taxpayers; 
and 
‘‘(D) increase the effectiveness of price dis-
covery. 
‘‘(13) ONE-TIME SALE.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding para-
graph (4)(A), the Secretary shall hold a one-time 
sale of helium, no later than August 1, 2014 
from amounts available in fiscal year 2016 pur-
suant to this section. Full and final payment for 
the sale must be made no later than 45 days 
after the date the sale takes place. 
‘‘(B) VOLUME SOLD.—The volume of helium 
sold under this paragraph—
‘‘(i) shall be at least 250 million cubic 
feet; and 
‘‘(ii) shall be made available for sale 
consistent with paragraph (2)(B). 
‘‘(c) PHASE C: CONTINUED ACCESS FOR FEDERAL 
USERS.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall offer 
crude helium for sale to Federal users in such quan-
tities, at such times, at such prices required to reim-
burse the Secretary for the full costs of the sales, and 
under such terms and conditions as the Secretary de-
termines necessary to carry out this subsection. 
‘‘(2) FEDERAL PURCHASES.—Federal users may 
purchase refined helium with priority pipeline access 
under this subsection from persons who have entered 
into enforceable contracts to purchase an equivalent 
quantity of crude helium at the in-kind price from 
the Secretary. 
‘‘(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This subsection applies 
beginning on the day after the date described in sub-
section (b)(4)(B). 
‘‘(d) PHASE D: DISPOSAL OF ASSETS.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not earlier than 2 years 
after the date of commencement of Phase C described 
in subsection (c) and not later than September 30,
2021, the Secretary shall designate as excess property 
and dispose of all facilities, equipment, and other real 
and personal property, and all interests in the same, 
held by the United States in the Federal Helium Sys-
tem. 
‘‘(2) APPLICABLE
LAW.—The disposal of the 
property described in paragraph (1) shall be in ac-
cordance with subtitle I of title 40, United States 
Code. 
‘‘(3) PROCEEDS.—All proceeds accruing to the 
United States by reason of the sale or other disposal 
of the property described in paragraph (1) shall be 
treated as funds received under this Act for purposes 
of subsection (e). 
‘‘(4) COSTS.—All costs associated with the sale 
and disposal (including costs associated with termi-
nation of personnel) and with the cessation of activi-
ties under this subsection shall be paid from amounts 
available in the Helium Production Fund established 
under subsection (e). 
‘‘(e) HELIUM PRODUCTION FUND.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—All amounts received under 
this Act, including amounts from the sale or auction 
of crude helium, shall be credited to the Helium Pro-
duction Fund, which shall be available without fiscal
shall be paid to the general fund of the Treasury and 
used to reduce the annual Federal budget deficit. 
‘‘(3) RETIREMENT
OF
PUBLIC
DEBT.—Out of 
amounts paid to the general fund of the Treasury 
under paragraph (2), the Secretary of the Treasury 
shall use $51,000,000 to retire public debt. 
‘‘(4) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 
date of enactment of the Helium Stewardship Act of 
2013 and annually thereafter, the Secretary of the In-
terior shall submit to the Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee 
on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives 
a report describing all expenditures by the Bureau of 
Land Management to carry out this Act. 
‘‘(f) MINIMUM QUANTITY.—The Secretary shall offer 
for sale or auction during each fiscal year under subsections 
(a), (b), and (c) a quantity of crude helium that is the lesser 
of— 
‘‘(1) the quantity of crude helium offered for sale 
by the Secretary during fiscal year 2012; or 
‘‘(2) the maximum total production capacity of 
the Federal Helium System.’’. 
SEC. 6. INFORMATION, ASSESSMENT, RESEARCH, AND 
STRATEGY. 
The Helium Act (50 U.S.C. 167 et seq.) is amended—
(1) by repealing section 15 (50 U.S.C. 167m); 
(2) by redesignating section 17 (50 U.S.C. 167 
note) as section 20; and 
(3) by inserting after section 14 (50 U.S.C. 167l) 
the following: 
‘‘SEC. 15. INFORMATION. 
‘‘(a) TRANSPARENCY.—The Secretary, acting through 
the Bureau of Land Management, shall make available on 
the Internet information relating to the Federal Helium 
System that includes— 
‘‘(1) continued publication of an open market 
and in-kind price; 
‘‘(2) aggregated projections of excess refining ca-
pacity; 
‘‘(3) ownership of helium held in the Federal He-
lium Reserve; 
‘‘(4) the volume of helium delivered to persons 
through the Federal Helium Pipeline; 
‘‘(5) pressure constraints of the Federal Helium 
Pipeline; 
‘‘(6) an estimate of the projected date when 
3,000,000,000 standard cubic feet of crude helium will 
remain in the Federal Helium Reserve and the final 
phase described in section 6(c) will begin;
‘‘(7) the amount of the fees charged under section 
5; 
‘‘(8) the scheduling of crude helium deliveries 
through the Federal Helium Pipeline; and 
‘‘(9) other factors that will increase trans-
parency. 
‘‘(b) REPORTING.—Not later than 90 days after the 
date of enactment of the Helium Stewardship Act of 2013, 
to provide the market with appropriate and timely infor-
mation affecting the helium resource, the Director of the Bu-
reau of Land Management shall establish a timely and pub-
lic reporting process to provide data that affects the helium 
industry, including— 
‘‘(1) annual maintenance schedules and quar-
terly updates, that shall include— 
‘‘(A) the date and duration of planned shut-
downs of the Federal Helium Pipeline; 
‘‘(B) the nature of work to be undertaken on 
the Federal Helium System, whether routine, ex-
tended, or extraordinary; 
‘‘(C) the anticipated impact of the work on 
the helium supply; 
‘‘(D) the efforts being made to minimize 
any impact on the supply chain; and
‘‘(E) any concerns regarding maintenance 
of the Federal Helium Pipeline, including the 
pressure of the pipeline or deviation from nor-
mal operation of the pipeline; 
‘‘(2) for each unplanned outage, a description 
of— 
‘‘(A) the beginning of the outage; 
‘‘(B) the expected duration of the outage; 
‘‘(C) the nature of the problem; 
‘‘(D) the estimated impact on helium sup-
ply; 
‘‘(E) a plan to correct problems, including 
an estimate of the potential timeframe for correc-
tion and the likelihood of plan success within the 
timeframe; 
‘‘(F) efforts to minimize negative impacts 
on the helium supply chain; and 
‘‘(G) updates on repair status and the an-
ticipated online date; 
‘‘(3) monthly summaries of meetings and com-
munications between the Bureau of Land Manage-
ment and the Cliffside Refiners Limited Partnership, 
including a list of participants and an indication of 
any actions taken as a result of the meetings or com-
munications; and
‘‘(4) current predictions of the lifespan of the 
Federal Helium System, including how much longer 
the crude helium supply will be available based on 
current and forecasted demand and the projected 
maximum production capacity of the Federal Helium 
System for the following fiscal year. 
‘‘SEC. 16. HELIUM GAS RESOURCE ASSESSMENT. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after the 
date of enactment of the Helium Stewardship Act of 2013, 
the Secretary, acting through the Director of the United 
States Geological Survey, shall— 
‘‘(1) in coordination with appropriate heads of 
State geological surveys— 
‘‘(A) complete a national helium gas assess-
ment that identifies and quantifies the quantity 
of helium, including the isotope helium-3, in 
each reservoir, including assessments of the con-
stituent gases found in each helium resource, 
such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and natural 
gas; and 
‘‘(B) make available the modern seismic 
and geophysical log data for characterization of 
the Bush Dome Reservoir; 
‘‘(2) in coordination with appropriate inter-
national agencies and the global geology community,
complete a global helium gas assessment that identi-
fies and quantifies the quantity of the helium, includ-
ing the isotope helium-3, in each reservoir; 
‘‘(3) in coordination with the Secretary of En-
ergy, acting through the Administrator of the Energy 
Information Administration, complete— 
‘‘(A) an assessment of trends in global de-
mand for helium, including the isotope helium- 
3; 
‘‘(B) a 10-year forecast of domestic demand 
for helium across all sectors, including scientific 
and medical research, commercial, manufac-
turing, space technologies, cryogenics, and na-
tional defense; and 
‘‘(C) an inventory of medical, scientific, in-
dustrial, commercial, and other uses of helium in 
the United States, including Federal uses, that 
identifies the nature of the helium use, the 
amounts required, the technical and commercial 
viability of helium recapture and recycling in 
that use, and the availability of material sub-
stitutes wherever possible; and 
‘‘(4) submit to the Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee 
on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives