I
107TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4611
To amend the Clean Air Act to establish an inventory, registry, and informa-
tion system of United States greenhouse gas emissions to inform the
public and private sectors concerning, and encourage voluntary reductions
in, greenhouse gas emissions.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 25, 2002
Mr. OLVER (for himself, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. INSLEE, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr.
GILCHREST, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, and Mr. FARR of Cali-
fornia) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Energy and Commerce
A BILL
To amend the Clean Air Act to establish an inventory, reg-
istry, and information system of United States green-
house gas emissions to inform the public and private
sectors concerning, and encourage voluntary reductions
in, greenhouse gas emissions.
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 ‘‘National Greenhouse
Gas Emissions Inventory Act of 2002’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following:
(1) Human activities have caused rapid in-
creases in atmospheric concentrations of carbon di-
oxide and other greenhouse gases in the last century.
(2) According to the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change and the National Research
Council—
(A) the Earth has warmed in the last cen-
tury; and
(B) the majority of the observed warming
is attributable to human activities, including
fossil fuel-generated carbon dioxide emissions.
(3) Despite the fact that many uncertainties in
climate science remain, the potential impacts from
human-induced climate change pose a substantial
risk that should be managed in a responsible man-
ner.
(4) To begin to manage climate change risks,
public and private entities will need a comprehen-
sive, accurate inventory, registry, and information
system of the sources and quantities of United
States greenhouse gas emissions.
(5) Assurances that early action to reduce
greenhouse gases will not be penalized in any future
emission reduction program would encourage more
companies and other entities to make investments to
reduce those emissions.
(6) The United States has ratified the
UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change), which states, in part, ‘‘the Par-
ties to the Convention are to implement policies with
the aim of returning to their 1990 levels anthropo-
genic emissions of carbon dioxide and other green-
house gases.
(7) According to the Department of Energy’s
Energy Information Administration, United States
anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions increased
by 13.6 percent between 1990 and 2000.
(8) Global climate change poses a significant
threat to national security, the American economy,
public health and welfare, and the global environ-
ment.
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to estab-
lish a mandatory greenhouse gas inventory, registry, and
information system that—
(1) is complete, consistent, transparent, and ac-
curate;
(2) will create accurate data that can be used
by public and private entities to design efficient and
effective greenhouse gas emission reduction strate-
gies;
(3) will encourage greenhouse gas emission re-
ductions; and
(4) will avoid penalizing early action to reduce
emissions by providing assurances that any future
emission reduction program—
(A) will not assign emissions control re-
sponsibility by reference to an entity’s emissions
during a baseline period; or
(B) if a baseline period is used will not use
a period ending later than the first year for
which emissions reporting is required under this
Act.
SEC. 3. GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS.
The Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) is amend-
ed by adding at the end the following:
‘‘TITLE VII—GREENHOUSE GAS
EMISSIONS
‘‘SEC. 701. DEFINITIONS.
‘‘In this title:
‘‘(1) 
CARBON
DIOXIDE
EQUIVALENT.—The
term ‘carbon dioxide equivalent’ means, for each
greenhouse gas, the amount of each such greenhouse
gas that makes the same contribution to global
warming as one metric ton of carbon dioxide.
‘‘(2) DIRECT
EMISSIONS.—The term ‘direct
emissions’ means greenhouse gas emissions from
sources that are owned or controlled by the report-
ing entity
‘‘(3) DOE LISTED PRODUCT.—The term ‘DOE
listed product means a product for which the Sec-
retary of Energy has published a final rule estab-
lishing a standard for energy conservation, energy
efficiency, maximum energy use, thermal efficiency,
fuel utilization efficiency, or energy consumption, or
any similar standard, including standards authorized
under section 325 of the Energy Policy and Con-
servation Act of 1975 (42 U.S.C. 6295).
‘‘(4) EMISSIONS.—The term ‘emissions’ in-
cludes any of the following:
‘‘(A) Stationary combustion source emis-
sions, which are emitted as a result of combus-
tion of fuels in stationary equipment such as
boilers, furnaces, burners, turbines, heaters, in-
cinerators, engines, flares, and other similar
sources.
‘‘(B) Process emissions, which consist of
emissions from chemical or physical processes
other than combustion.
‘‘(C) Fugitive emissions, which consist of
intentional and unintentional emissions from
equipment leaks such as joints, seals, packing,
and gaskets, or from piles, pits, cooling towers,
and other similar sources.
‘‘(D) Mobile source emissions, which are
emitted as a result of combustion of fuels in
transportation equipment such as automobiles,
trucks, trains, airplanes, and vessels.
‘‘(5) ENTITY.—The term ‘entity’ means a per-
son (including a firm, a corporation, an association,
a partnership, a Federal, state, or local govern-
mental agency or any other public or private entity)
located in or operating in the United States.
‘‘(6) FACILITY.—The term ‘facility’ means all
sources located on any one or more of contiguous or
adjacent property or properties under common own-
ership or control of the same entity.
‘‘(7) GREENHOUSE GAS.—The term ‘greenhouse
gas’ means—
‘‘(A) carbon dioxide;
‘‘(B) methane;
‘‘(C) nitrous oxide;
‘‘(D) hydrofluorocarbons;
‘‘(E) perfluorocarbons;
‘‘(F) sulfur hexafluoride; and
‘‘(G) any other chemical or physical sub-
stance not controlled under title VI of this Act
which is emitted into the air and which the Ad-
ministrator determines, by rule, may reasonably
be anticipated to cause or contribute to global
warming.
‘‘(8) GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS.—The term
‘greenhouse gas emissions’ means emissions of a
greenhouse gas from any source located in the
United States.
‘‘(9) GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS RECORD.—
The term ‘greenhouse gas emissions record’ means
all of the greenhouse gas reports submitted by an
entity under this title, including any adjustments to
such data under section 703(c).
‘‘(10) GREENHOUSE GAS REPORT.—The term
‘greenhouse gas report’ means an annual list of—
‘‘(A) the direct greenhouse gas emissions
of a reporting entity,
‘‘(B) the indirect greenhouse gas emissions
of a reporting entity,
‘‘(C) greenhouse gas emissions from prod-
ucts manufactured or imported by the reporting
entity.
‘‘(D) emissions of greenhouse gases manu-
factured or imported by the reporting entity,
and
‘‘(E) greenhouse gas emissions from the
combustion of fossil fuels distributed by the re-
porting entity
and the sources of those emissions.
‘‘(11) INDIRECT EMISSIONS.—The term ‘indi-
rect emissions’ means greenhouse gas emissions—
‘‘(A) associated with the production of
electricity, heat, or steam acquired or purchased
by the reporting entity, and
‘‘(B) that are the consequence of activities
of reporting entity but are emitted by sources
owned or controlled by an entity other than the
reporting entity.
‘‘(12) NATIONAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS
INFORMATION SYSTEM.—The term ‘national green-
house gas emissions information system’ means the
information system established under section 702(a).
‘‘(13) NATIONAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS
INVENTORY.—The term ‘national greenhouse gas
emissions inventory’ means the national inventory of
greenhouse gas emissions established under section
704.
‘‘(14) 
PROJECT
REDUCTION.—The 
term
‘project reduction’ means—
‘‘(A) a greenhouse gas emission reduction
achieved by carrying out a greenhouse gas
emission reduction project in the United States,
provided that the emissions reduction did not
occur at a source included in the greenhouse
gas report of any reporting entity; and
‘‘(B) sequestration achieved by carrying
out a sequestration project in the United
States, provided that the sequestration did not
occur at a site included in the greenhouse gas
report of any reporting entity.
‘‘(15) REPORTING ENTITY.—The term ‘report-
ing entity’ means an entity that reports to the Ad-
ministrator under section 703.
‘‘(16) SEQUESTRATION.—The term ‘sequestra-
tion’ means the capture, long-term separation, isola-
tion, or removal of greenhouse gases from the at-
mosphere, including through a biological or geologic
method such as reforestation or an underground res-
ervoir.
‘‘(17) SOURCE.—The term ‘source’ means any
building, structure, installation, unit, point, oper-
ation, vehicle, land area, or other item that emits or
may emit a greenhouse gas.
‘‘(18) VERIFICATION.—The term ‘verification’
means the objective and independent assessment of
whether a greenhouse gas report submitted by a re-
porting entity accurately reflects the greenhouse gas
impact of the reporting entity.
‘‘SEC. 702. NATIONAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS INFOR-
MATION SYSTEM.
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—In consultation with the
Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Agriculture, the
Secretary of Energy, States, the private sector, and non-
governmental organizations concerned with establishing
standards for reporting of greenhouse gas emissions, the
Administrator shall establish and administer a national
greenhouse gas emissions information system to collect in-
formation reported under section 703(a), including a na-
tional greenhouse gas reduction registry to collect infor-
mation reported under section 703(a)(7).
‘‘(b) SUBMISSION
TO CONGRESS
OF DRAFT DE-
SIGN.—Not later than 180 days after the date of enact-
ment of this title, the Administrator shall submit to Con-
gress a draft design of the national greenhouse gas emis-
sions information system.
‘‘(c) AVAILABILITY OF DATA TO THE PUBLIC.—The
Administrator shall publish all information in the national
greenhouse gas emissions information system through the
website of the Environmental Protection Agency, except
in any case in which publishing the information would dis-
close information vital to national security. Emission data,
including data relating to project reductions, shall have
the same meaning as in section 114 of title I of this Act
and regulations promulgated thereunder prior to the date
of enactment of this title.
‘‘(d) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER GREENHOUSE GAS
DATABASES.—To the extent practicable, the Adminis-
trator shall ensure coordination between the national
greenhouse gas emissions information system and existing
and developing Federal and State greenhouse gas data-
bases and registries. Nothing in this title shall alter any
existing requirements for reporting of greenhouse gas
emissions data or other data relevant to calculating such
emissions.
‘‘(e) INTEGRATION WITH OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL
INFORMATION.—To the extent practicable, the Adminis-
trator shall integrate information in the national green-
house gas emissions information system with other envi-
ronmental information managed by the Administrator.
‘‘SEC. 703. REPORTING.
‘‘(a) MANDATORY REPORTING OF GREENHOUSE GAS
EMISSIONS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than April 30 of
each year after the date of enactment of this title,
in accordance with this paragraph and the regula-
tions promulgated under section 705, each entity
that exceeds the threshold for reporting in para-
graph (2) shall submit to the Administrator, for in-
clusion in the national greenhouse gas emissions in-
formation system, the greenhouse gas report of the
entity with respect to the preceding calendar year.
Once an entity has exceeded the threshold for re-
porting, it shall continue to submit reports for sub-
sequent years.
‘‘(2) THRESHOLD
FOR
REPORTING.—(A) An
entity shall submit a report under paragraph (1) for
greenhouse gas emissions if in the relevant calendar
year—
‘‘(i) one of the following exceeds 10,000
metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent:
‘‘(I) The total direct emissions of the
entity.
‘‘(A) SEPARATE REPORTING.—Each green-
house gas report submitted under paragraph
(1) shall include and separately quantify each
of the following:
‘‘(i) All direct emissions of greenhouse
gases.
‘‘(ii) All indirect emissions of green-
house gases.
‘‘(iii) All emissions of greenhouse
gases from motor vehicles manufactured or
imported by the entity.
‘‘(iv) All emissions of greenhouse
gases from DOE listed products manufac-
tured or imported by the reporting entity.
‘‘(v) All emissions of greenhouse gases
from the combustion of fossil fuels distrib-
uted by the entity.
‘‘(vi) All emissions of greenhouse
gases manufactured or imported by the re-
porting entity.
‘‘(B) 
OTHER
REPORTING
REQUIRE-
MENTS.—Each greenhouse gas report under
paragraph (1)—
‘‘(i) shall express greenhouse gas
emissions in metric tons of each such
greenhouse gas and in metric tons of the
carbon dioxide equivalent of each green-
house gas;
‘‘(ii) shall be reported on an entity
wide basis and on a facility wide basis;
‘‘(iii) shall specify the sources of di-
rect emissions at each facility included in
the greenhouse gas report;
‘‘(iv) in the case of a reporting entity
that owns more than 250,000 acres of
timberland, shall include estimates, by
State, of the timber and carbon stocks of
such land, which estimates shall be up-
dated at least every 5 years; and.
‘‘(v) to the maximum extent prac-
ticable, shall be reported electronically to
the Administrator in such form as the Ad-
ministrator may require.
‘‘(4) METHOD OF REPORTING OF ENTITY WIDE
EMISSIONS, PRODUCTION, OR IMPORTATION.—Under
paragraph (1)(C), entity wide emissions, production,
or importation of greenhouse gases shall be reported
on the bases of financial control and equity share in
a manner consistent with the financial reporting
practices of the entity. If ownership or control of a
facility (or portion thereof) whose emissions were in-
cluded in a prior report under this section is trans-
ferred to another entity, then any entity subse-
quently having ownership or control of such facility
shall submit a greenhouse gas report regarding the
transferred facility, even if such entity does not oth-
erwise exceed the threshold for reporting under
paragraph (2).
‘‘(5) VOLUNTARY
REPORTING
OF
EARLIER
EMISSIONS.—Any entity may submit to the Adminis-
trator, for inclusion in the national greenhouse gas
emissions information system, a greenhouse gas re-
port for the entity with respect to one or more years
prior to 2002, provided that such report substan-
tially meets the data quality requirements for re-
ports required for 2002 and thereafter.
‘‘(6) VOLUNTARY REPORTING BY OTHER ENTI-
TIES.—Any entity that does not exceed the threshold
for reporting under paragraph (2) may elect to sub-
mit a greenhouse gas report under paragraph (1).
Such an entity shall be a reporting entity from that
time forward.
‘‘(7) VOLUNTARY REPORTING OF PROJECT RE-
DUCTIONS.—Any entity may voluntarily submit to
the Administrator, for inclusion in a registry main-
tained within the national greenhouse gas informa-
tion system, a report with respect to the preceding
calendar year on any project reductions, provided
that the emissions or sequestrations associated with
such project reductions are not included in the
greenhouse gas emissions report submitted to the
Administrator by any reporting entity. The reporting
entity shall demonstrate that the project and its re-
ported reductions or sequestrations would not have
occurred anyway in the business-as-usual case, and
shall account for any changes in emissions outside
boundaries of the project. Each report shall provide
such further information on the emission reduction
or carbon sequestration project as required by regu-
lations promulgated by the Administrator under sec-
tion 705(e). If the project reductions are associated
with a farm or forestland owned or operated by an
entity, the entity shall account for all emissions and
reductions on all farmland or forestland under own-
ership or control of the entity.
‘‘(8) VOLUNTARY REPORTING OF OTHER INDI-
RECT PRODUCT EMISSIONS.—Any entity may volun-
tarily submit to the Administrator, for inclusion in
a registry maintained within the national greenhouse
gas information system, a report with respect to any
calendar year on indirect emissions from any prod-
uct manufactured by that entity for which a report
is not required under clause (iii) of subsection
(a)(3)(A).
‘‘(b) ADJUSTMENT FACTORS.—
‘‘(1) CALCULATION CHANGES AND ERRORS.—
The greenhouse gas emissions record of a reporting
entity for preceding years shall be adjusted for—
‘‘(A) changes in calculation methodologies;
or
‘‘(B) errors that significantly affect the
quantity of greenhouse gases in the greenhouse
gas emissions record.
‘‘(2) EXPLANATIONS OF ADJUSTMENTS.—A re-
porting entity shall explain, in a statement included
in the greenhouse gas report of the reporting entity
for a year—
‘‘(A) any significant adjustment in the
greenhouse gas emissions record of the report-
ing entity; and
‘‘(B) any significant change between the
greenhouse gas emissions record for the pre-
ceding year and the greenhouse gas emissions
reported for the current year.
‘‘(c) QUANTIFICATION AND VERIFICATION PROTO-
COLS AND TOOLS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, and the
Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Agri-
culture, and the Secretary of Energy shall jointly
work with the States, the private sector, and non-
governmental organizations to develop—
‘‘(A) protocols for quantification and
verification of greenhouse gas emissions;
‘‘(B) electronic methods for quantification
and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions, in-
cluding a mechanism by which a reporting enti-
ty may, at its option, electronically transfer in-
formation from its data system to the national
greenhouse gas emissions information system;
and
‘‘(C) greenhouse gas accounting and re-
porting standards.
‘‘(2) BEST
PRACTICES.—The protocols and
methods developed under paragraph (1) shall con-
form, to the maximum extent practicable, to the best
practice protocols that have the greatest support of
experts in the field.
‘‘(3) INCORPORATION
INTO
REGULATIONS.—
The Administrator shall incorporate the protocols
developed under paragraph (1)(A) into the regula-
tions promulgated under subsections (c), (d), and (e)
of section 705.
‘‘(4) 
OUTREACH
PROGRAM.—The 
Adminis-
trator, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of
Agriculture, and the Secretary of Energy shall joint-
ly conduct an outreach program to provide informa-
tion to all reporting entities and the public on the
protocols and methods developed under this sub-
section.
‘‘(d) VERIFICATION.—
‘‘(1) PROVISION OF INFORMATION BY REPORT-
ING ENTITIES.—Each reporting entity shall provide
information sufficient for the Administrator to
verify, in accordance with greenhouse gas accounting
and reporting standards developed under subsection
(c)(1)(C), that the greenhouse gas report of the re-
porting entity has been accurately reported.
‘‘(2) 
INDEPENDENT
THIRD-PARTY
VERIFICATION.—A reporting entity may—
‘‘(A) 
obtain 
independent 
third-party
verification; and
‘‘(B) present the results of the third-party
verification to the Administrator for consider-
ation by the Administrator in carrying out
paragraph (1).
‘‘(3) CERTIFICATION OF REPORTS.—Each re-
port submitted by a reporting entity shall include an
appropriate certification, signed by a senior official
with management responsibility for the person or
persons completing the report, regarding the accu-
racy and completeness of the report.
‘‘(e) ENFORCEMENT.—The Administrator may bring
a civil action in United States district court against an
entity that fails to comply with a requirement of this sec-
tion, or a regulation promulgated under section 705, to
impose a civil penalty of not more than $25,000 for each
day that the failure to comply continues.
‘‘SEC. 704. NATIONAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS INVEN-
TORY.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than April 30 of each
year after the date of enactment of this title, the Adminis-
trator shall publish a national greenhouse gas emissions
inventory that includes—
‘‘(1) comprehensive estimates of the quantity of
United States greenhouse gas emissions for the sec-
ond preceding calendar year, including—
‘‘(A) for each greenhouse gas, an estimate
of the quantity of emissions contributed by each
key source category;
‘‘(B) a detailed analysis of trends in the
quantity, composition, and sources of United
States greenhouse gas emissions; and
‘‘(C) a detailed explanation of the method-
ology used in developing the national green-
house gas emissions inventory; and
‘‘(2) a detailed analysis of the information re-
ported to the national greenhouse gas emissions in-
formation system and the national greenhouse gas
registry.
If total direct emissions reported in a given year are re-
duced in comparison with the amount reported in the pre-
ceding year, the analysis referred to in paragraph (2) shall
include a detailed assessment of what proportion of such
reduction is a consequence of activities by entities that re-
ported reductions in indirect emissions.
(b) ENERGY STAR COMPARISONS.—The Adminis-
trator shall include in the analysis under subsection (a)(2)
a comparison of the indirect emissions associated with
each manufactured product for which a report is required
under clause (iii) of section 703(a)(3)(A) and the indirect
emissions of comparable products entitled to the Adminis-
trator’s Energy Star label.
‘‘SEC. 705. REGULATIONS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may promul-
gate such regulations as are necessary to carry out this
title.
‘‘(b) BEST PRACTICES.—In developing regulations
under this section, the Administrator shall seek to leverage
leading protocols for the measurement, accounting, report-
ing, and verification of greenhouse gas emissions.
‘‘(c) NATIONAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS IN-
FORMATION SYSTEM.—Not later than one year after the
date of enactment of this title, the Administrator shall
promulgate such regulations as are necessary to establish
the national greenhouse gas emissions information system.
‘‘(d) MANDATORY REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—
Not later than one year after the date of enactment of
this title, the Administrator shall promulgate such regula-
tions as are necessary to implement the mandatory report-
ing requirements under section 703(a)(1).
‘‘(e) VOLUNTARY
REPORTING
PROVISIONS.—Not
later than two years after the date of enactment of this
title, the Administrator shall promulgate such regulations
and issue such guidance as are necessary to implement
the voluntary reporting provisions under paragraphs (5)
through (7) of section 703(a).
‘‘(f) ADJUSTMENT FACTORS.—Not later than two
years after the date of enactment of this title, the Admin-
istrator shall promulgate such regulations as are necessary
to implement the adjustment factors under section
703(b).’’.
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