zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Transparency and Honesty in Energy Regulations Act of 2016

This bill prohibits the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from considering the social cost of carbon or methane as part of any cost benefit analysis, unless a federal law is enacted authorizing such consideration.

The EPA must report on the number of proposed and final rulemakings, guidance documents, and agency actions since January 2009 that use either of those social costs, including as part of any cost benefit analysis required under Executive Order 12866 and other relevant authorities.

Date: 2016-07-07
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Diesel Emissions Reduction Act of 2016 

This bill amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to reauthorize through FY2021 a diesel emissions reduction program. The program authorizes the Environmental Protection Agency to provide grants, rebates, or loans for reducing diesel emissions from certain diesel vehicles or fleets by retrofitting or replacing their engines.

Date: 2016-07-18
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Climate Solutions Commission Act of 2016

This bill establishes a bipartisan National Climate Solutions Commission that must:

 undertake a comprehensive review of economically viable actions or policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the United States; make recommendations for reducing greenhouse gas emissions to the President, Congress, and the states; and use as its goals for emissions reductions those estimated rates of reduction that reflect the latest scientific findings of what is needed to avoid serious human health and environmental consequences of a changing climate. In order to be eligible for membership on the Commission, an individual must be a representative from: (1) nongovernmental organizations with expertise in the economy, energy, climate, or public health; or (2) industry organizations from relevant sectors.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) must conduct a study of programs, financial tools, and institutions that are focused on: (1) reducing the level of greenhouse gas emissions; or (2) encouraging the research, development, prototyping, and deployment of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies. The GAO must then report on: (1) the study results; and (2) an assessment of those financial tools, policies, and institutions that are most successful at reducing greenhouse gas emissions while protecting economic growth and employment.

Date: 2016-09-28
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
CO2 Regulatory Certainty Act 

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise requirements for the secure geological storage of carbon dioxide for the purpose of the tax credit for carbon dioxide sequestration.

The bill establishes a December 31, 2016, deadline and requirements for regulations that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is required, under current law, to establish for determining adequate security measures for the geological storage of the carbon dioxide such that carbon dioxide does not escape into the atmosphere.

The IRS regulations must consider the carbon dioxide to be disposed of in secure geological storage if it is stored in compliance with specified rules promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Air Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act for the geologic sequestration of carbon dioxide, the injection of carbon dioxide, and the criteria and standards for underground injection control programs that are applicable to Class II Wells.

Date: 2016-09-28
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Taxation
Neighborhood Noise Barriers Act of 2016

This bill amends the National Highway System Designation Act of 1995 to allow the use of funds out of the Highway Trust Fund to construct a Type II noise barrier along a federal-aid highway, if it:

 is part of a project approved by the Department of Transportation before November 28, 1995; or separates a highway or other noise corridor from a group of structures of which the majority of those closest to the highway or noise corridor are residential in nature, and either were constructed before the construction or most recent widening of the highway or noise corridor, or are at least 10 years old. The bill makes the planning, design, or construction of a Type II noise barrier eligible for surface transportation block grant program funding.

Date: 2016-11-17
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Drinking Water Affordability Act of 2016

This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to revise requirements concerning national primary drinking water regulations, including by:

 removing a requirement that the Environmental Protection Agency maintain, or provide greater, protection of human health when revising those regulations; extending the repayment schedule for loans from the drinking water state revolving funds (SRF); removing certain SRF matching fund requirement for states; authorizing states to protect public drinking water source areas; and removing federal reporting requirements if state or local requirements are at least equally stringent as federal requirements.

Date: 2016-12-01
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
This bill prohibits the head of any federal agency from implementing or enforcing any regulations, proposals, or actions establishing any carbon dioxide or greenhouse gas emissions reductions until the Environmental Protection Agency, the Energy Information Administration, and Department of Commerce certify in writing that China, India, and Russian have proposed, implemented, and enforced measures requiring substantially similar reductions.

Any regulation, proposal, or action that requires those emission reductions and that is in effect before this certification is made is nullified.

Date: 2015-01-07
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
General Duty Clarification Act of 2015

This bill amends the Clean Air Act to revise the general duty clause, which addresses the prevention of accidental releases of hazardous air substances. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must: (1) promulgate regulations defining the terms "extremely hazardous substance," "appropriate hazard assessment techniques," and "design and maintain a safe facility"; and (2) issue guidelines to ensure enforcement of those provisions by EPA's regional offices in a uniform and appropriate manner across all regions of the United States. (The general duty clause requires owners and operators of stationary sources that produce, process, handle, or store hazardous substances to identify those substances at their facilities and take the necessary steps to prevent and minimize accidental releases of those substances.)

This bill excludes an emission resulting from an act intended to cause harm from the definition of "accidental release." Under the revised definition, the EPA may not use the general duty clause to regulate accidental release due to terrorist attacks.

In exercising its authority under the clause, the EPA is prohibited from requiring a stationary source to consider or implement particular designs, approaches, or technologies relating to manufacturing, processing, handling, or storage of hazardous substances.

Date: 2015-01-07
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Advanced Clean Coal Technology Investment in Our Nation Act of 2015 or the ACCTION Act of 2015

This bill amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to require the Department of Energy (DOE) to implement a program to demonstrate the integration of systems for the capture, transportation, and injection of carbon dioxide from industrial sources for long-term geological storage or enhanced oil recovery at a commercial scale.

The types of activities that must be undertaken under the existing coal and related technologies program are expanded. DOE may carry out a Transformational Coal Technology Program.

DOE must establish an advisory committee to report on the carbon capture and sequestration program and the coal and related technologies program.

Projects under the Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program are eligible to receive other forms of federal assistance. Within two years, DOE has to give final approval to applications for loan guarantees and make loans for advanced fossil energy technology projects under the Program.

DOE must take steps to streamline and expedite review of federal authorizations for clean coal generating projects. This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow accelerated amortization of any mechanical or electronic system which is installed on a coal-fired electric generation unit and which reduces carbon dioxide emissions by specified means; (2) allow a new credit for investment in carbon dioxide capture, transport, and storage property; and (3) create a clean energy coal bond.

This bill establishes the Enhanced Recovery Program, a variable price support program, to accelerate the construction and operation of advanced coal-fueled projects that capture carbon dioxide emissions and sell or use the carbon dioxide for enhanced recovery.

Date: 2015-02-26
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Energy
Commonsense Legislative Exceptional Events Reforms Act of 2015

This bill amends the Clean Air Act to revise the requirements for regulations that govern the review and handling of air quality monitoring data influenced by exceptional events. (The Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] may exclude monitored exceedances of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards from consideration when designating an area as nonattainment, redesignating an area as nonattainment, or reclassifying an existing nonattainment area to a higher classification if a state demonstrates that an exceptional event caused the exceedances.)

 The criteria used to determine if an exceptional event was demonstrated must be specific in order to minimize the discretion of the EPA in approving or disapproving the demonstration.

 The EPA must make a determination within 90 days after the submission of a petition by a state of an exceptional event demonstration. The demonstration is approved if the EPA does not make a determination by that deadline.

 A determination must be based on a preponderance of the evidence and give substantial deference to the findings of the state exceptional event demonstration. An appeal process for reviewing a disapproval of a demonstration is established.

Date: 2015-03-03
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Agency PAYGO for Greenhouse Gases Act

This bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to include an offset in any proposed rule that limits greenhouse gas emissions and imposes increased costs on other agencies. The offset must be from funds available to the EPA and be for all projected increased costs imposed on other agencies.

Agencies may not pass on the cost imposed by the rule on to any rate payer of the agencies.

Date: 2015-03-03
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Ozone Regulatory Delay and Extension of Assessment Length Act of 2015 or the ORDEAL Act of 2015

This bill amends the Clean Air Act to lengthen from 5 years to 10 years the intervals at which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is required to review and revise air quality criteria and primary and secondary national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS). This bill eliminates the EPA's authority to review and revise criteria or promulgate new standards for ozone concentrations earlier or more frequently than required. The EPA may not review and revise NAAQS for ozone concentrations before February 1, 2018. The EPA must complete a thorough review of the NAAQS for ozone concentrations and make revisions no later December 31, 2018.

The intervals at which an independent scientific review committee is required to review air quality criteria and NAAQS and recommend any new standards or revisions to existing criteria and standards are lengthened from 5 years to 10 years. The bill delays the review by an independent scientific review committee of NAAQS for ozone concentrations until February 1, 2018.

Date: 2015-03-03
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Clean Air, Strong Economies Act or the Case Act

This bill prohibits the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from lowering its national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for ozone until at least 85% of counties that are in nonattainment areas (counties that are exceeding the limit) have attained the standard.

In promulgating a primary or secondary NAAQS for ozone, the EPA must:

 only consider a county to be a nonattainment area on the basis of direct air quality monitoring (rather than modeling); take into consideration feasibility and cost; and include in the regulatory impact analysis for the proposed and final rule at least one analysis that does not include any calculation of benefits resulting from reducing emissions of any pollutant other than ozone.

Date: 2015-03-17
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
This bill amends the Clean Air Act to apply limitations on Reid vapor pressure (a measure of gasoline's volatility) applicable to gasoline blended with 10% ethanol (E10) to gasoline blended with more than 10% ethanol. Limitations on Reid vapor pressure are placed on gasoline during the summer ozone season.

Date: 2015-05-07
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
This bill amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to require the Department of Energy to consider the objective of improving the conversion, use, and storage of carbon dioxide produced from fossil fuels when carrying out certain research, development, demonstration, and commercial application programs in fossil energy.

Date: 2015-05-11
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Energy
This bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency, when taking an action regarding air emissions from an energy source or facility that uses forest biomass, to assume that forest biomass emissions do not increase overall carbon accumulations in the atmosphere if: (1) a Department of Agriculture's Forest Inventory and Analysis that is current at the time the action is taken shows that forest carbon stocks in the United States are stable or increasing; or (2) the forest biomass is derived from mill residuals, harvest residuals, or forest management activities.

Date: 2015-05-11
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

Affordable Reliable Electricity Now Act of 2015

(Sec. 3) This bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to meet certain conditions prior to issuing, implementing, or enforcing a rule under the Clean Air Act that: (1) establishes a performance standard for greenhouse gas emissions from new, modified, or reconstructed fossil fuel-fired power plants (new power plants); and (2) addresses carbon dioxide emissions from existing fossil fuel-fired power plants (existing power plants).

In issuing those rules for new power plants, the EPA must: (1) place power plants fueled with coal and natural gas into separate categories, and (2) establish a separate subcategory for power plants using coal below a specified average heat content. The EPA must base greenhouse gas standards for new power plans on existing carbon capture and storage technology. Before the EPA can establish a greenhouse gas standard based on the best system of emission reduction for new power plants, the standard must first be achieved for at least one year at representative power plants throughout the country. The EPA may not use results obtained from demonstration projects when setting the standard.

(Sec. 4) In order to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants, the EPA must:

 report on the quantity of projected greenhouse gas emission reductions, assess the impacts of a rule to EPA's climate indicators, and issue state-specific model plans demonstrating how each state can meet the required greenhouse gas emission reductions. States need not adopt or implement a state plan, or be subject to a federal plan, that addresses carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants if the plan would negatively affect: (1) economic growth, competitiveness, and jobs; (2) the reliability of its electricity system; or (3) electricity ratepayers by causing rate increases.

The bill extends the compliance dates of those rules for existing power plants pending final judicial review.

(Sec. 5) State noncompliance with any of those rules for new or existing power plants does not constitute a reason for imposing a highway project sanction.

(Sec. 6) The bill nullifies specified rules under the Clean Air Act concerning greenhouse gases from power plants.

(Sec. 7) The EPA may regulate an existing power plant for either hazardous air pollutants or non-hazardous pollution, but not both.

Date: 2015-05-13
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
American Opportunity Carbon Fee Act of 2015

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose fees on: (1) fossil fuel products producing carbon dioxide emissions, including coal, petroleum products, and natural gas; (2) fluorinated greenhouse gases; (3) emissions of any greenhouse gas from any greenhouse gas emissions source; and (4) methane emissions.

Directs the Department of the Treasury to: (1) establish, implement, and report on a program to collect data on methane emissions by major non-natural sources, including emissions attributable to the extraction and distribution of coal, petroleum products, and natural gas; (2) pay a refund of fees imposed by this Act to exporters of energy-intensive manufactured goods; (3) make one $500 payment each calendar year to certain social security beneficiaries, veterans, and disabled individuals; (4) make cost mitigation grants to states to assist low-income and rural households and provide job training and worker transition assistance; and (5) establish a website to make regular disclosures concerning revenue, tax savings, and benefits attributable to this Act.

Reduces the maximum income tax rate on corporations to 29% of taxable income over $75,000.

Allows a new carbon fee offset tax credit for the lesser of: (1) 6.2% of earned income, or (2) $500.

Date: 2015-06-10
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Taxation
Forest Incentives Program Act of 2015

This bill directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish a forest incentives program to achieve supplemental greenhouse gas emission reductions and carbon sequestration on U.S. private forest land (eligible land) through:

 carbon incentives contracts, and conservation easement agreements. In selecting projects under such program, USDA shall give priority to contracts and agreements that:

 sequester the most carbon on a per acre basis; and create forestry jobs or protect habitats and achieve significant other environmental, economic, and social benefits. To participate in such program, an owner of eligible land must enter into a carbon incentives contract.

USDA shall make financial incentive payments to owners of eligible land for:

 certain forestry practices that measurably increase carbon sequestration and storage over a designated period on eligible land, and conservation easements on eligible land covered under a conservation easement agreement. The Department of the Interior may set aside a portion of program funds to develop specified forest carbon modeling and methodologies and for other specified purposes.

Interior shall establish a greenhouse gas incentives program to achieve supplemental greenhouse gas emission reductions from material choices in buildings.

Interior shall provide owners of nonresidential buildings used for commercial or state or local government purposes incentive payments for the use of commercial or industrial products composed of biological products for sequestering carbon in those buildings. Program participants shall receive their payments upon the completion of the construction or renovation of the applicable building.

Date: 2015-07-09
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
This bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish an Early Action Compact Program, which allows an area that is not attaining the eight-hour ozone national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS) to obtain a deferment of a nonattainment designation upon the relevant state, local, and tribal government voluntarily developing an early action compact plan. The eight-hour ozone NAAQS measures ozone levels over eight-hour periods to determine the amount of ground-level ozone (i.e., smog) in the environment.

 The EPA: (1) must issue a decision on each early action compact plan no later than one year after it is submitted, and (2) may not designate an area as a nonattainment area until it has issued a decision to approve or deny a plan.

 The EPA must establish separate requirements relating to winter ozone levels for each early action compact plan.

Date: 2015-09-24
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Super Pollutants Act of 2015

This bill requires the President to establish the Interagency Task Force on Short-Lived Climate Pollutant Mitigation. The Task Force must report on federal agencies' plans for reducing those pollutants, including: (1) black carbon (soot emissions), (2) methane, and (3) hydrofluorocarbons with high global warming potential (high-GWP HFC).

The Department of State must develop a comprehensive plan to reduce black carbon emissions from international shipping, which must include a roadmap toward helping countries reduce fine-particle emissions from shipping. While acting as chairperson of the Arctic Council, the Secretary of State must: (1) lead an effort to reduce black carbon through an Arctic-wide aspirational black carbon goal, and (2) encourage observers of that Council to adopt national black carbon emissions reduction goals and mitigation plans.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) must: (1) prioritize black carbon mitigation activities as part of aid distribution activities; (2) give special emphasis to projects that produce substantial environmental, gender, livelihood, and public health benefits; and (3) work with the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves to help developing nations establish thriving markets for clean and efficient cooking solutions.

The State Department must provide technical assistance to aid international efforts in reducing black carbon emissions from diesel trucks, 2-stroke engines, diesel generators, and industrial processes.

The Department of Energy (DOE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must: (1) evaluate the availability of high-GWP HFC alternatives, and (2) report on a plan for revising regulatory barriers that prevent the use of those alternatives.

The bill amends the Clean Air Act to prohibit the manufacture of any uncharged hydrochlorofluorocarbon-22 air-conditioning condensing equipment for residential use. The EPA must study and report on the most effective method to minimize the inadvertent release of HFC-134a from automotive air conditioning recharge kits when the recharge container is not being used.

The State Department, DOE, the EPA, and the Department of Commerce must provide to other countries technical guidance on containing emissions from gas drilling, landfills, coal mining, and agriculture.

The Government Accountability Office must identify: (1) the types of equipment throughout the production value chain that are most likely to have high leak rates, and (2) voluntary efforts on replacing or monitoring those types of equipment.

Date: 2015-09-24
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Carbon Capture Improvement Act of 2015

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to authorize the issuance of tax-exempt facility bonds for the financing of qualified carbon dioxide capture facilities A qualified carbon dioxide capture facility is a facility that captures or stores carbon dioxide from coal, natural gas, biomass, and other industrial sources.

Date: 2015-11-19
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Taxation
Climate Protection and Justice Act of 2015

 This bill amends the Clean Air Act to address greenhouse gas emissions. Specifically, the bill:

 states as U.S. policy greenhouse gas emission targets for 2020, 2030, 2040, and 2050 that will result in reducing the emissions 80% below 1990 levels by 2050; establishes a fee for manufacturing, producing, or importing certain carbon polluting substances (coal, petroleum, and natural gas) that increases over time; establishes the Interagency Climate Council to evaluate whether the targets are being met; requires the Environmental Protection Agency to issue regulations to ensure the targets are met if the council finds the targets are not being met; requires those fees to be deposited in the Carbon Fee Rebate Fund established by this bill; establishes the Carbon Fee Rebate Program, which will distribute proceeds from the fees to eligible U.S. residents; establishes a Climate Justice Resiliency Grant Program to fund projects that mitigate climate impacts on communities that are unable to afford the management or mitigation of those impacts; expands the definition of solid waste under the Clean Air Act and applies air pollution emission limits to those wastes; and establishes a fee on carbon pollution-intensive goods imported into the United States, requires the fees to be deposited in the Carbon Equivalency Fee Fund established by this bill, and requires the fund to be used for certain purposes, including improving industrial energy efficiency. The bill provides funding for the Weatherization Assistance Program, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, and the Rural Energy for America Program.

 The bill revises the Food Security Act of 1985 by providing incentives for farmers to use no-till cultivation practices and sustainable fertilizer application practices.

 The bill revises the Federal Power Act to enable access on the electric grid for demand response programs (programs that enable customers to reduce or shift their power use during peak demand periods).

Date: 2015-12-10
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports Act of 2016 or the RPM Act of 2016

This bill amends the Clean Air Act to allow the modification of a vehicle's air emission controls if the vehicle is used solely for competition.

Date: 2016-03-09
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

Diesel Emissions Reduction Act of 2016 

(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to reauthorize through FY2021 a diesel emissions reduction program. The program authorizes the Environmental Protection Agency to provide grants, rebates, or loans for reducing diesel emissions from certain diesel vehicles or fleets by retrofitting or replacing their engines.

Date: 2016-04-19
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Title X Amendments Act of 2016

This bill reauthorizes the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992 and revises the purpose for grants for lead-based paint hazard reduction in target housing.

Such grants shall be made instead for reduction of lead-based paint hazards and correction of other housing-related hazards, including any condition of residential real property that poses a risk of biological, physical, radiological, or chemical exposure that can adversely affect human health.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development may establish a process by which, in order to verify a family's income level, a grantee may first obtain and use income and program participation information from an entity administering:

 the HOME Investment Partnerships program under the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act; the special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants, and children established under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966; reduced price or free lunches under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act; the weatherization assistance program for low-income persons established under the Energy Conservation and Production Act; the temporary assistance for needy families program under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSAct); the supplemental security income program under SSAct title XVI; or any other program consistent with the family income requirements of the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992. An Indian tribe and a private nonprofit organization shall be eligible to apply for such a grant, in addition to certain state or local governments, for specified activities relating to lead-based paint hazards.

A private nonprofit organization shall also be eligible to apply for a grant to reduce housing-related health hazards.

The bill revises grantee selection criteria for a grant to carry out activities relating to lead-based paint hazards, and prescribes criteria for activities relating to housing-related hazards.

The bill also prescribes an allocation of funds for grants to assess and correct housing-related health hazards and evaluate the effectiveness of such assessments and corrections.

Date: 2016-04-19
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Housing and community development
Climate Change Adapt America Bond Act of 2016

This bill requires the Department of the Treasury to issue Climate Change Bonds. The proceeds from the bonds must be deposited in the Adapt America Fund established by this bill within the Department of Commerce.

Commerce must carry out an investment program to fund projects, using bond revenue, that aid in adaption to climate change.

The bill establishes the Climate Change Advisory Commission to: (1) establish recommendations, frameworks, and guidelines for the program; and (2) identify categories of the most cost-effective investments and projects that emphasize multiple benefits to commerce, human health, and ecosystems.

Date: 2016-04-27
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Ozone Standards Implementation Act of 2016

This bill amends the Clean Air Act by revising the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) program.

The bill delays the implementation of the ozone NAAQS that were published in 2015. The bill extends until: (1) October 26, 2024, the deadline for states to submit designations to implement the 2015 ozone NAAQS; and (2) October 26, 2025, the deadline for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to designate state areas as attainment, nonattainment, or unclassifiable areas with respect to the 2015 ozone NAAQS. States must submit a state implementation plan (SIP) by October 26, 2026, to implement, maintain, and enforce the 2015 ozone NAAQS.

The bill also changes the review cycle for criteria pollutant NAAQS from a 5-year review cycle to a 10-year review cycle. The EPA may not complete its next review of ozone NAAQS before October 26, 2025.

Prior to establishing or revising NAAQS, the EPA must obtain advice from its scientific advisory committee regarding potential adverse public health, welfare, social, economic, or energy effects which may result from attaining and maintaining NAAQS.

The EPA must publish regulations and guidance for implementing NAAQS concurrently with the issuance of a new or revised standard. New or revised NAAQS must not apply to preconstruction permits for constructing or modifying a major emitting facility or major stationary source of air pollutants until those regulations and guidance have been published.

The bill revises requirements concerning SIPs for extreme ozone nonattainment areas and particulate matter nonattainment areas.

Date: 2016-04-28
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Gold King Accountability and Compensation for Taxpayers or the Gold King ACT

This bill allows a person to bring a compensation claim for allowable damages (i.e., property, business, or financial losses) under the Federal Tort Claims Act if the claim is related to an injury resulting from the spill in Cement Creek from the Gold King Mine near Silverton, Colorado. The spill occurred on August 5, 2015. The bill prohibits certain exemptions and limitations on tort claims against the United States under the Act from applying to claims for injuries resulting from the spill.

The EPA must receive, process, and pay under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 claims related to the Gold King Mine spill, including claims that otherwise would be ineligible under that Act or the national oil and hazardous substances pollution contingency plan if the response action carried out by the claimant is not inconsistent with the plan. The EPA must pay claims from unobligated balances in its accounts.

The EPA must develop and implement a program for long-term water quality monitoring of the Animas River.

Date: 2016-05-18
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Climate Change Education Act 

 This bill declares that the evidence for human-induced climate change is overwhelming and undeniable.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) must establish a Climate Change Education Program to:

 broaden the understanding of human-induced climate change, possible consequences, and potential solutions; apply the latest scientific and technological discoveries to provide learning opportunities to people of all ages; conduct a national information campaign to help people understand and promote implementation of new technologies, programs, and incentives related to energy conservation, renewable energy, and greenhouse gas reduction; and inform the public of impacts to human health and safety as a result of climate change. NOAA must establish a grant program for climate change education. This grant program must be included in the climate change program.

Date: 2016-06-16
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage Act 

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend and modify the tax credit for carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration. The bill modifies the credit to:

 allow certain new industrial facilities or equipment to qualify for the credit if construction begins before January 1, 2024; allow qualified projects to claim the credit for 12 years, beginning on the date the equipment was originally placed in service; increase the separate credit amounts, with respect to projects placed in service upon or after the enactment of this bill, that apply to captured CO2 that is: (1) disposed of in secure geological storage, and (2) used as a tertiary injectant in an enhanced oil or natural gas recovery project and disposed of in secure geological storage; expand the purposes for which captured CO2 may be used; establish separate CO2 capture thresholds based on whether the facility is an electricity generating facility or used for other purposes; specify that the 75 million metric ton cap on the CO2 that may qualify for the credit applies only to projects placed in service before the enactment of this bill; and allow the credit to be transferred from the entity that owns and uses the capture equipment to the entity that disposes of or uses the CO2.

Date: 2016-07-13
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Taxation
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise requirements for the secure geological storage of carbon dioxide for the purpose of the tax credit for carbon dioxide sequestration.

The bill establishes a December 31, 2016, deadline and requirements for regulations that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is required, under current law, to establish for determining adequate security measures for the geological storage of the carbon dioxide such that carbon dioxide does not escape into the atmosphere.

The IRS regulations must consider the carbon dioxide to be disposed of in secure geological storage if it is stored in compliance with specified rules promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Air Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act for the geologic sequestration of carbon dioxide, the injection of carbon dioxide, and the criteria and standards for underground injection control programs that are applicable to Class II Wells.

Date: 2016-09-28
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Taxation
Transparency and Honesty in Energy Regulations Act of 2016

This bill prohibits the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from considering the social cost of carbon, methane, nitrous oxide, or greenhouse gas as part of any cost benefit analysis, unless a federal law is enacted authorizing such consideration.

The EPA must report on the number of proposed and final rulemakings, guidance documents, and agency actions since January 2009 that use those social costs, including as part of any cost benefit analysis required under Executive Order 12866 or other relevant authority.

Date: 2016-12-06
Topic: Environment (Air Pollution)
Subject: Environmental protection
Violent Crime Reduction Act of 2007 - Amends the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to: (1) authorize the Attorney General to designate certain areas in states with a high level of gang crime activity as high-intensity interstate gang activity areas and provide assistance to such areas; (2) provide for community-based justice grants to state and local prosecutors to hire additional prosecutors to process more violent crime cases and to fund technology, equipment, and training for prosecutors and law enforcement officials; and (3) require the Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs to award grants to establish state-wide databases to track criminals, arrests, prosecutions, and convictions.

Date: 2007-01-23
Topic: Law and Crime (Crime Control)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Rape Prevention and Education Grant Program Act of 2007 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize appropriations for FY2008-FY2012 for grants to states for rape prevention and education programs conducted by rape crisis centers, state sexual assault coalitions, and other public and private nonprofit entities. Earmarks a portion of such funds for the provision of resource information, policy, training, and technical assistance to federal, state, local, and Indian tribal agencies, state sexual assault coalitions, local sexual assault programs, and other professionals and interested parties on issues relating to sexual assault, including maintenance of a central resource library to collect, prepare, analyze, and disseminate information, statistics, and analyses relating to the incidence and prevention of sexual assault.

Date: 2007-01-31
Topic: Law and Crime (Crime Control)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Gang Deterrence and Community Protection Act of 2007 - Amends the federal criminal code to modify and expand prohibitions against criminal street gang activity, including forfeiture provisions.Revises penalties for: (1) interstate or foreign travel or transportation in aid of racketeering enterprises; (2) carjacking; (3) using interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire and other felony crimes of violence; (4) violent crimes in aid of racketeering activity; (5) murder and other violent crimes committed during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime; (6) using interstate commerce facilities to commit multiple murder; and (7) the use of firearms in crimes of violence and drug trafficking.Amends: (1) the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) to expand the definition of "racketeering activity" to cover interstate murder; and (2) the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to authorize the use of community-based justice grants to hire additional prosecutors to reduce backlogs and to fund technology, equipment, and training for specified purposes, including to increase the accurate identification and successful prosecution of young violent offendersExpands: (1) the rebuttable presumption against release of persons charged with firearms offenses; (2) venue in capital cases; and (3) the authority to prosecute juveniles as adults. Sets a 15-year statute of limitations for non-capital felony crimes of violence.Authorizes the Attorney General to designate specific areas that are located within one or more states as high intensity interstate gang activity areas.

Date: 2007-02-07
Topic: Law and Crime (Crime Control)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Mynisha's Law - Authorizes any local or tribal government to submit an application to the Attorney General for designation as a Comprehensive Gang Prevention and Relief Area. Directs the Attorney General to: (1) establish criteria for reviewing such applications; and (2) establish an Interagency Gang Prevention Task Force. Directs the Task Force to: (1) coordinate government activities to create a comprehensive gang prevention response, focusing on early childhood intervention, at-risk youth intervention, literacy, employment, community policing, and comprehensive community-based programs such as Operation Cease Fire; (2) coordinate with local and regional gang prevention efforts; and (3) prioritize the needs of such Areas for funding under specified federal community assistance and grant programs.

Date: 2007-02-15
Topic: Law and Crime (Crime Control)
Subject: Health
School Safety Enhancements Act of 2007 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to: (1) allow the placement and use of surveillance equipment in schools under the matching grant program for school security; (2) allow the use of grant funds to establish hotlines or tiplines for reporting potentially dangerous students and situations and for making capital improvements to make school facilities more secure; (3) set the federal matching share of program costs at 80%; and (4) revise application requirements for school security grants.Requires the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance and the Secretary of Education to establish an interagency task force to develop and promulgate advisory school safety guidelines.

Date: 2007-02-15
Topic: Law and Crime (Crime Control)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Gang Abatement and Prevention Act of 2007 - Amends the federal criminal code to define "criminal street gang" and "gang crime" and to prohibit: (1) the commission of a gang crime or crime of violence to further the activities of a criminal street gang ; and (2) the recruitment of another person to join a criminal street gang. Increases criminal penalties for: (1) certain violent crimes in aid of racketeering activity; (2) possession of firearms by repeat offenders; and (3) crimes of violence and drug trafficking crimes committed by illegal aliens. Provides for criminal forfeiture of any property used to commit a gang crime Amends the Controlled Substances Act to impose criminal penalties for murder and other violent crimes committed in the course of a drug trafficking crime.Authorizes the Attorney General to: (1) designate certain areas in states as high intensity interstate gang activity areas and to provide assistance to such areas; (2) expand the Project Safe Neighborhoods program to require U.S. attorneys to prosecute criminal street gangs operating in their districts; (3) require the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to increase funding for the Safe Streets Programs and support criminal street gang enforcement teams; (4) conduct media campaigns in high intensity interstate gang activity areas to educate the public about efforts to combat criminal gang activities; and (5) make grants to states to prevent abductions of children by family members.Amends the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to authorize grants for technology and training to increase accurate identification of gang members and violent offenders.Establishes in the U.S. Marshals Service a Short-Term Witness Protection Section to provide protection for witnesses in state and local trials involving homicide or other violent crimes. Expands the federal witness relocation and protection program to include protection against criminal street gangs.

Date: 2007-03-20
Topic: Law and Crime (Crime Control)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Fighting Gangs and Empowering Youth Act of 2007 - Reauthorizes programs for combating criminal gangs, including after-school programs, programs for safe and drug-free schools and communities, gang resistance education and training programs, and adult and juvenile offender state and local reentry demonstration projects.Establishes or increases funding for criminal gang-related programs, including: (1) demonstration grants to public and private entities for innovative approaches to combat gang activity; (2) programs that target certain at-risk youth and juvenile offenders ages 11 to 19; (3) state studies of parole or post-incarceration supervision violations and revocations; (4) substance abuse treatment; (5) mentoring grants to nonprofit organizations; (6) transition training for incarcerated youth offenders; (7) gang activity policing grants; (8) grants to prosecutors and law enforcement officials to combat violent crime and protect witnesses; and (9) the National Youth Gang Survey.Public and Assisted Housing Gang Elimination Act of 2007 - Authorizes the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to make grants to public housing agencies and private, for-profit and nonprofit owners of federally assisted low-income housing for use in eliminating gang-related crime.Authorizes the Attorney General to: (1) designate and provide assistance to high-intensity gang activity areas; and (2) expand the Project Safe Neighborhoods program to require U.S. attorneys to identify and prosecute criminal street gangs in their respective districts.Amends the federal criminal code to: (1) expand the definition of "criminal street gang"; (2) prohibit the recruitment or solicitation of persons to participate in a criminal street gang; (3) impose enhanced penalties for committing violent crimes in furtherance or in aid of a criminal street gang and for use of firearms by felons with multiple felony convictions for violent crimes and drug offenses; (4) increase penalties for use of interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire or other felony crimes of violence; and (5) increase penalties for violent crimes in aid of racketeering activities.Extends the limitation period for prosecuting certain noncapital violent crimes. Requires the U.S. Sentencing Commission to review and revise guidelines relating to violent gang-related crimes.Provides for certain studies and reports relating to criminal gangs, including reports distinguishing criminal offenses committed by juveniles.

Date: 2007-03-26
Topic: Law and Crime (Crime Control)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Hate Crimes Against the Homeless Enforcement Act - Amends the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to revise the definition of "hate crime" to include a crime against an individual based on such individual's actual or perceived homeless status.

Date: 2007-05-08
Topic: Law and Crime (Crime Control)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Enhanced Participation in Drug Courts Act of 2007 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to redefine "violent offender" for purposes of eligibility for participating in drug court programs to mean a person charged or convicted of an offense that is punishable by a prison term exceeding one year.

Date: 2007-05-14
Topic: Law and Crime (Crime Control)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Victims of Crime Act Preservation Fund Act of 2007 - Excludes receipts and disbursements of the Crime Victims Fund from executive and congressional budgets.Prohibits the consideration of any legislation in the House of Representatives or the Senate that would authorize the use of amounts in the Crime Victims Fund for a purpose not authorized by the Victims of Crime Act of 1984. Allows the Senate to waive or suspend such prohibition by a three-fifths vote.

Date: 2007-06-28
Topic: Law and Crime (Crime Control)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement