Title: Energy Consumer Protection Act of 2022
Policy area: Energy

Summary:
Energy Consumer Protection Act of 2022
This bill expands enforcement provisions under the Federal Power Act and the Natural Gas Act, including by allowing the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to temporarily or permanently ban any person from trading in energy markets if the person (1) violates those acts by manipulating the electricity or natural gas markets, or (2) files false information regarding those markets.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4679 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4679

To amend the Federal Power Act and the Natural Gas Act with respect to 
     the enforcement of certain provisions, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 28, 2022

    Ms. Cortez Masto (for herself and Ms. Cantwell) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                      Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Federal Power Act and the Natural Gas Act with respect to 
     the enforcement of certain provisions, 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. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Energy Consumer Protection Act of 
2022''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITIONS AND SUSPENSIONS FOR VIOLATIONS.

    (a) Amendments to the Federal Power Act.--
            (1) Enforcement of certain provisions.--Section 316A of the 
        Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 825o-1) is amended by adding at 
        the end the following:
    ``(c) Prohibition or Suspension for Violations.--The Commission may 
prohibit, conditionally or unconditionally, permanently or for such 
period of time as the Commission determines to be appropriate, any 
person who is engaged or has engaged in practices constituting a 
violation of section 221 or 222 (and related rules and regulations) 
from engaging, directly or indirectly, in the business of purchasing or 
selling--
            ``(1) electric energy;
            ``(2) electric energy products, including financial 
        transmission rights; or
            ``(3) transmission services subject to the jurisdiction of 
        the Commission.''.
            (2) Conforming amendments.--Section 314(d) of the Federal 
        Power Act (16 U.S.C. 825m(d)) is amended--
                    (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)--
                            (i) by striking ``individual'' and 
                        inserting ``person''; and
                            (ii) by inserting ``or 222'' after 
                        ``section 221'';
                    (B) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``with respect 
                to a person who is an individual,'' before ``acting''; 
                and
                    (C) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) in the matter preceding subparagraph 
                        (A), by inserting ``, directly or indirectly,'' 
                        after ``engaging'';
                            (ii) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``; 
                        or'' and inserting a semicolon;
                            (iii) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as 
                        subparagraph (C); and
                            (iv) by inserting after subparagraph (A) 
                        the following:
                    ``(B) electric energy products, including financial 
                transmission rights; or''.
    (b) Amendments to Natural Gas Act.--
            (1) Prohibition on filing false information.--The Natural 
        Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717 et seq.) is amended by inserting after 
        section 4A the following:

``SEC. 4B. PROHIBITION ON FILING FALSE INFORMATION.

    ``No person shall willfully and knowingly report to a Federal 
agency or private-sector price-reporting agency, with intent to 
fraudulently affect the data being compiled by the Federal agency or 
private-sector price-reporting agency, any information relating to the 
transportation or sale of natural gas subject to the jurisdiction of 
the Commission (including information relating to the availability and 
prices of natural gas sold at wholesale and in interstate commerce and 
information relating to the operation of facilities for the 
transportation and sale of natural gas at wholesale and in interstate 
commerce) that the person knows to be false at the time of the 
reporting.''.
            (2) Civil penalty authority.--Section 22 of the Natural Gas 
        Act (15 U.S.C. 717t-1) is amended by adding at the end the 
        following:
    ``(d) Prohibition or Suspension for Violations.--The Commission may 
prohibit, conditionally or unconditionally, permanently or for such 
period of time as the Commission determines to be appropriate, any 
person who is engaged or has engaged in practices constituting a 
violation of section 4A or 4B (including related rules and regulations) 
from engaging, directly or indirectly, in the business of purchasing or 
selling--
            ``(1) natural gas; or
            ``(2) transmission services subject to the jurisdiction of 
        the Commission.''.
            (3) Conforming amendments.--Section 20(d) of the Natural 
        Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717s(d)) is amended--
                    (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 
                striking ``individual'' and inserting ``person'';
                    (B) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``with respect 
                to a person who is an individual,'' before ``acting''; 
                and
                    (C) in paragraph (2), in the matter preceding 
                subparagraph (A), by inserting ``, directly or 
                indirectly,'' after ``engaging''.
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