A bill to establish certain requirements for the small refineries exemption of the renewable fuels provisions under the Clean Air Act, and for other purposes.
Bill: S.1792 | Sponsor: Sen. Fischer, Deb (R-NE)
Policy area: Environmental Protection

Summary:
This bill revises requirements for exemptions given to small refineries of crude oil under the renewable fuel program, which requires transportation fuel to contain a minimum volume of renewable fuel.

To establish certain requirements for the small refineries exemption of 
 the renewable fuels provisions under the Clean Air Act, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
            (2) Petition.--The term ``petition'' means a petition for 
        an exemption from the requirements of paragraph (2) of section 
        211(o) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(o)) under paragraph 
        (9) of that section for a calendar year.

SEC. 2. ANNUAL DEADLINE FOR PETITIONS BY SMALL REFINERIES FOR 
              EXEMPTIONS FROM RENEWABLE FUEL REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Deadline.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a 
petition shall be submitted to the Administrator not later than June 1 
of the year preceding the year in which an exemption under the 
petition, if the petition were granted, would be in effect.
    (b) Effect of Failure To Meet Deadline.--If a petition described in 
subsection (a) is not submitted by the deadline described in that 
subsection, the petition shall be ineligible for consideration or 
approval.

SEC. 3. TRANSPARENCY.

    (a) Information in Petition Subject to Public Disclosure.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), information 
        submitted to the Administrator by a person, including a small 
        refinery, in a petition--
                    (A) shall not be a trade secret or confidential 
                information; and
                    (B) notwithstanding section 552(b) of title 5, 
                United States Code, and any other Federal law 
                (including regulations), shall be subject to public 
                disclosure.
            (2) Applicability.--Paragraph (1) applies only with respect 
        to information submitted under a petition for calendar year 
        2021 or subsequent calendar years.
    (b) Decision.--The Administrator shall, at the same time that the 
Administrator informs the petitioner of a decision of whether to grant 
the petition--
            (1) make publicly available--
                    (A) the name of the petitioner;
                    (B) the name and location of the facility for which 
                relief under the petition was requested;
                    (C) the time period for which relief under the 
                petition was requested; and
                    (D) the extent to which the Administrator granted 
                or denied the petition; and
            (2) submit to Congress a report--
                    (A) describing the nature of the relief requested 
                in the petition, including the factors identified by 
                the petitioner to demonstrate disproportionate economic 
                hardship under section 211(o)(9)(B)(i) of the Clean Air 
                Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(o)(9)(B)(i)); and
                    (B) that includes the detailed discussion required 
                by section 80.1441(e)(2) of title 40, Code of Federal 
                Regulations (as in effect on the date of enactment of 
                this Act), submitted by the petitioner describing the 
                hardship the refinery would encounter in producing 
                transportation fuel (as defined in section 211(o)(1) of 
                the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(o)(1)) that meets the 
                requirements of section 80.1405 of title 40, Code of 
                Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of 
                enactment of this Act).

SEC. 4. ANNUAL RENEWABLE FUEL STANDARDS.

    When determining the annual value of the renewable fuel standard 
for a calendar year under section 80.1105 of title 40, Code of Federal 
Regulations (as in effect on the date of enactment of this Act), the 
Administrator shall, for the variable GE<INF>i </INF>referenced in that 
section, which is the quantity of gasoline projected to be produced by 
exempt small refineries and small refiners in gallons for a calendar 
year, use the number that is the sum of the total number of gallons 
waived as a result of all petitions granted by the Administrator for 
that calendar year.
                                 <all>