II
Calendar No. 506
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 2884
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
APRIL 13, 2000
Received; read twice and placed on the calendar
AN ACT
To extend energy conservation programs under the Energy
Policy and Conservation Act through fiscal year 2003.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. ENERGY POLICY AND CONSERVATION ACT
AMENDMENTS.
The Energy Policy and Conservation Act is
amended—
(1) by amending section 166 (42 U.S.C. 6246)
to read as follows:
‘‘AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS
‘‘SEC. 166. There are authorized to be appropriated
for fiscal years 2000 through 2003 such sums as may be
necessary to implement this part.’’;
(2) in section 181 (42 U.S.C. 6251) by striking
‘‘March 31, 2000’’ both places it appears and insert-
ing ‘‘September 30, 2003’’; and
(3) in section 281 (42 U.S.C. 6285) by striking
‘‘March 31, 2000’’ both places it appears and insert-
ing ‘‘September 30, 2003’’.
SEC. 2. PURCHASE OF OIL FROM MARGINAL WELLS.
(a) PURCHASE OF OIL FROM MARGINAL WELLS.—
Part B of Title I of the Energy Policy and Conservation
Act (42 U.S.C. 6232 et seq.) is amended by adding the
following new section after section 168:
‘‘PURCHASE OF OIL FROM MARGINAL WELLS
‘‘SEC. 169. (a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts au-
thorized under section 166, in any case in which the price
of oil decreases to an amount less than $15.00 per barrel
(an amount equal to the annual average well head price
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per barrel for all domestic crude oil), adjusted for infla-
tion, the Secretary may purchase oil from a marginal well
at $15.00 per barrel, adjusted for inflation.
‘‘(b) DEFINITION OF MARGINAL WELL.—The term
‘‘marginal well’’ means a well that—
‘‘(1) has an average daily production of 15 bar-
rels or less;
‘‘(2) has an average daily production of 25 bar-
rels or less with produced water accounting for 95
percent or more of total production; or
‘‘(3) produces heavy oil with an API gravity
less than 20 degrees.’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con-
tents for the Energy Policy and Conservation Act is
amended by inserting after the item relating to section
168 the following:
‘‘Sec. 169. Purchase of oil from marginal wells.’’.
SEC. 3. NORTHEAST HOME HEATING OIL RESERVE.
(a) AMENDMENT.—Title I of the Energy Policy and
Conservation Act is amended by—
(1) redesignating part D as part E;
(2) redesignating section 181 as section 191;
and
(3) inserting after part C the following new
part D:
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‘‘PART D—NORTHEAST HOME HEATING OIL RESERVE
‘‘ESTABLISHMENT
‘‘SEC. 181. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision
of this Act, the Secretary may establish, maintain, and
operate in the Northeast a Northeast Home Heating Oil
Reserve. A Reserve established under this part is not a
component of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve established
under part B of this title. A Reserve established under
this part shall contain no more than 2 million barrels of
petroleum distillate.
‘‘(b) For the purposes of this part—
‘‘(1) the term ‘Northeast’ means the States of
Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts,
Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, Pennsylvania,
and New Jersey; and
‘‘(2) the term ‘petroleum distillate’ includes
heating oil and diesel fuel.
‘‘AUTHORITY
‘‘SEC. 182. To the extent necessary or appropriate
to carry out this part, the Secretary may—
‘‘(1) purchase, contract for, lease, or otherwise
acquire, in whole or in part, storage and related fa-
cilities, and storage services;
‘‘(2) use, lease, maintain, sell, or otherwise dis-
pose of storage and related facilities acquired under
this part;
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‘‘(3) acquire by purchase, exchange (including
exchange of petroleum product from the Strategic
Petroleum Reserve or received as royalty from Fed-
eral lands), lease, or otherwise, petroleum distillate
for storage in the Northeast Home Heating Oil Re-
serve;
‘‘(4) store petroleum distillate in facilities not
owned by the United States;
‘‘(5) sell, exchange, or otherwise dispose of pe-
troleum distillate from the Reserve established under
this part; and
‘‘(6) notwithstanding paragraph (5), on terms
the Secretary considers reasonable, sell, exchange, or
otherwise dispose of petroleum distillate from the
Reserve established under this part in order to
maintain the quality or quantity of the petroleum
distillate in the Reserve or to maintain the oper-
ational capability of the Reserve.
‘‘CONDITIONS FOR RELEASE; PLAN
‘‘SEC. 183. (a) The Secretary may release petroleum
distillate from the Reserve under section 182(5) only in
the event of—
‘‘(1) a severe energy supply disruption;
‘‘(2) a severe price increase; or
‘‘(3) another emergency affecting the North-
east,
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which the President determines to merit a release from
the Reserve.
‘‘(b) Within 45 days of the date of the enactment of
this section, the Secretary shall transmit to the President
and, if the President approves, to the Congress a plan
describing—
‘‘(1) the acquisition of storage and related fa-
cilities or storage services for the Reserve;
‘‘(2) the acquisition of petroleum distillate for
storage in the Reserve;
‘‘(3) the anticipated methods of disposition of
petroleum distillate from the Reserve; and
‘‘(4) the estimated costs of establishment, main-
tenance, and operation of the Reserve.
The storage of petroleum distillate in a storage facility
that meets existing environmental requirements is not a
‘major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of
the human environment’ as that term is used in section
102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969.
‘‘NORTHEAST HOME HEATING OIL RESERVE ACCOUNT
‘‘SEC. 184. (a) Upon a decision of the Secretary of
Energy to establish a Reserve under this part, the Sec-
retary of the Treasury shall establish in the Treasury of
the United States an account know as the ‘Northeast
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Home Heating Oil Reserve Account’ (referred to in this
section as the ‘Account’).
‘‘(b) The Secretary of the Treasury shall deposit in
the Account any amounts appropriated to the Account and
any receipts from the sale, exchange, or other disposition
of petroleum distillate from the Reserve.
‘‘(c) The Secretary of Energy may obligate amounts
in the Account to carry out activities under this part with-
out the need for further appropriation, and amounts avail-
able to the Secretary of Energy for obligation under this
section shall remain available without fiscal year limita-
tion.
‘‘EXEMPTIONS
‘‘SEC. 185. An action taken under this part—
‘‘(1) is not subject to the rulemaking require-
ments of section 523 of this Act, section 501 of the
Department of Energy Organization Act, or section
553 of title 5, United States Code; and
‘‘(2) is not subject to laws governing the Fed-
eral procurement of goods and services, including
the Federal Property and Administrative Services
Act of 1949 (including the Competition in Con-
tracting Act) and the Small Business Act.’’.
(b) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There
are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be
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necessary to carry out part D of title I of the Energy Pol-
icy and Conservation Act.
Passed the House of Representatives April 12, 2000.
Attest:
JEFF TRANDAHL,
Clerk.