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: 116-s-1840
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Fischer, Deb [R-NE]
Introduced: 2019-06-13
Policy area: Environmental Protection
Subjects: Administrative remedies

Air quality

Alternative and renewable resources

Congressional oversight

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Government information and archives

Motor fuels

Oil and gas
Latest action: action_date: 2019-06-13
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.

Summaries:
action_date: 2019-06-13
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p>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.</p>

tv_txt: II 116th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 1840 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES June 13, 2019 Mrs. Fischer (for herself, Ms. Duckworth , Mr. Thune , Ms. Ernst , and Mr. Grassley ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works 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.

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. 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. 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). 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 i 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.