15 U.S.C. § 3803 — Duties of Secretary of Energy

Page 2085 TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE § 3803 1 See References in Text note below. mission, storage and dispensing facilities’’, and any variant thereof means such facilities which are (1) directly necessary for the con- duct of a demonstration, (2) for the exclusive use of a demonstration and (3) reasonably inci- dental to a demonstration. (Pub. L. 96–512, § 3, Dec. 12, 1980, 94 Stat. 2828.) § 3803. Duties of Secretary of Energy (a) Designation of management entity for pro- gram The Secretary shall designate prior to Feb- ruary 1, 1981, an appropriate organizational enti- ty within the Department of Energy to manage the methane vehicle research, development, and demonstration program. (b) Monitoring and management of program; agreements with other Federal departments and agencies The Secretary shall have the responsibility for monitoring and assuring proper management of the program. The Secretary may enter into agreements or arrangements with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the De- partment of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency, or any other Federal depart- ment or agency, pursuant to which such depart- ment or agency shall conduct specified parts or aspects of the program as the Secretary deems necessary or appropriate and within the par- ticular competence of such agency, to the extent that such agency has capabilities which would enable it to contribute to the success of the pro- gram and attainment of the purposes of this chapter. (c) Assurances respecting scope of program ac- tivities In assuring the effective management of this program, the Secretary shall have specific re- sponsibility to ascertain that the program in- cludes activities to— (1) promote basic and applied research on methane-fueled vehicle construction, modi- fication, and safety; (2) conduct research and development on op- timum overall specifications for methane- fueled vehicles; (3) determine appropriate means and facili- ties for safely and economically storing, trans- porting, and dispensing methane for use as a vehicular fuel; (4) conduct demonstration projects with re- spect to the feasibility of methane-fueled vehi- cles and methane transmission, storage and dispensing facilities (A) by providing nec- essary financial or technical assistance for the construction, modification, or operation of motor vehicles to be methane-fueled for prac- tical use or of methane transmission, storage and dispensing facilities, and (B) by entering into agreements or arrangements with other entities, governmental and nongovernmental, for the demonstration of such vehicles and fa- cilities; (5) gather performance data, including but not limited to emissions data, on methane- fueled vehicles and related transmission and storage facilities; (6) determine that the participants in each demonstration assisted under this chapter have made satisfactory arrangements to ob- tain an adequate supply of methane for vehic- ular use in the project; (7) ascertain the need for modifications in available methane-fueled vehicles to improve their efficiency and performance and to facili- tate their widespread use by fleet owners; and (8) ascertain any changes in fuel supply pat- terns, tax policies, and standards governing the manufacture of vehicles which are needed to facilitate the manufacture and use of meth- ane-fueled vehicles. (d) Implementation of program; administrative procedures, etc., applicable (1) The Secretary of Energy shall insure that the conduct of the research and development program of this chapter— (A) supplements the automotive propulsion system research and development efforts of in- dustry; (B) is not formulated in a manner that will supplant private industry research and devel- opment or displace or lessen industry’s re- search and development; and (C) avoids duplication of private research and development. (2) To that end, the Secretary of Energy shall issue administrative regulations, within 60 days after December 12, 1980, which shall specify pro- cedures, standards, and criteria for the timely review for compliance of each new contract, grant, Department of Energy project, or other agency project funded or to be funded under the authority of this chapter. Such regulations shall require that the Secretary of Energy or his des- ignee shall certify that each such contract, grant, or project satisfies the requirement of this subsection, and shall include in such certifi- cation a discussion of the relationship of any re- lated or comparable industry research and de- velopment, in terms of this subsection, to the proposed research and development under the authority of this chapter. The discussion shall also address related issues, such as cost sharing and patent rights. (3) Such certifications shall be available to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives and the Com- mittee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate. The provisions of chapter 5 of title 5 shall not apply to such certifications and no court shall have any jurisdiction to review the preparation or adequacy of such certifications; but section 553 of title 5 and section 5916 of title 42 shall apply to public disclosure of such cer- tifications. (4) The Secretary of Energy also shall include in the report required by section 3808 1 of this title a detailed discussion of how each research and development contract, grant, or project funded under the authority of this chapter satis- fies the requirement of this subsection. (5) Further, the Secretary of Energy in each annual budget submission to the Congress, or amendment thereto, for the programs author- ized by this chapter shall describe how each identified research and development effort in such submission satisfies the requirements of this subsection. Page 2086 TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE § 3804 (6) The provisions and requirements of this subsection shall not apply with respect to any contract, grant, or project which was entered into, made, or formally approved and initiated prior to the enactment of this chapter, or with respect to any renewal or extension thereof. (Pub. L. 96–512, § 4, Dec. 12, 1980, 94 Stat. 2828; Pub. L. 97–375, title I, § 106(c), Dec. 21, 1982, 96 Stat. 1820; Pub. L. 103–437, § 5(b)(5), Nov. 2, 1994, 108 Stat. 4582.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT Section 3808 of this title, referred to in subsec. (d)(4), was repealed by Pub. L. 104–66, title I, § 1051(p), Dec. 21, 1995, 109 Stat. 717. AMENDMENTS 1994—Subsec. (d)(3). Pub. L. 103–437 substituted ‘‘Com- mittee on Science, Space, and Technology’’ for ‘‘Com- mittee on Science and Technology’’. 1982—Subsec. (c)(8). Pub. L. 97–375 struck out ‘‘and re- port to the Congress on’’ after ‘‘ascertain’’. § 3804. Coordination with other Federal depart- ments and agencies (a) Related responsibilities and regulatory activi- ties In carrying out the programs established under sections 3803 and 3806 of this title, the Secretary shall assure, to the maximum extent practicable, that the functions of this program are coordinated with related regulatory activi- ties and other responsibilities of the Depart- ment of Energy and any other Federal depart- ments or agencies. (b) Scope of assistance Each department, agency, and instrumen- tality of the executive branch of the Federal Government shall carefully consider any written request from the Secretary, the head of any or- ganizational entity designated by the Secretary pursuant to section 3803(a) of this title, or the head of any agency which is party to an agree- ment or arrangement pursuant to section 3803(b) of this title, to furnish such assistance, on a re- imbursable basis, as the Secretary or such head deems necessary to carry out the program and to achieve the purposes of this chapter. Such as- sistance may include transfer of personnel with their consent and without prejudice to their po- sition and rating. (Pub. L. 96–512, § 5, Dec. 12, 1980, 94 Stat. 2830.) § 3805. Research and development activities The Secretary, acting through appropriate agencies and contractors, shall initiate and pro- vide for the conduct of research and develop- ment in areas relating to methane-fueled vehi- cles, including but not limited to— (1) flammability and combustibility of meth- ane under conditions likely to develop in stor- age or during vehicular use; (2) handling, storage, and distribution of methane for vehicular propulsion purposes; (3) comprehensive assessment of the relative hazards under identical circumstances of methane, propane, gasoline, and diesel fuel; (4) feasibility, economy, and efficiency of technologies for the production and recovery of methane from unconventional and supple- mental sources, as provided for in other au- thorization Acts; (5) engine and fuel tank design including, but not limited to, optimum design for dual fuel capacity vehicles; (6) total vehicle construction and design; (7) the nature and quantities of emissions, and alterations in or alternatives to emission control systems presently in use; and (8) overcoming institutional barriers to widespread use including but not limited to re- strictions on the transportation of methane for vehicular use through tunnels, and the po- tential expansion of the distribution of meth- ane for vehicular purposes. (Pub. L. 96–512, § 6, Dec. 12, 1980, 94 Stat. 2830.) § 3806. Demonstrations (a) Development of data assessing current state- of-the-art Not later than January 1, 1982, the Secretary shall develop data assessing the current state- of-the-art with respect to vehicles fueled by methane to serve as baseline data to be utilized in evaluating improvements in methane-fueled vehicle technologies. (b) Guidelines; promulgation, criteria, scope, etc. Not later than April 1, 1982, the Secretary shall have promulgated necessary and appro- priate guidelines for demonstrations and issued an initial request for proposals for technical and financial assistance to support public and pri- vate entities in developing and implementing demonstration projects to gather data on the operation of methane-fueled vehicles and meth- ane transmission, storage, and dispensing facili- ties, under differing climatic, atmospheric, and operating conditions and on design and tech- nical modifications of those vehicles and facili- ties: (1) In the case of public entities, the Sec- retary is authorized to provide— (A) technical assistance reasonably associ- ated with the modification or acquisition of vehicles to be fueled by methane or with dual fuel capacity, the installation of meth- ane transmission, storage and dispensing fa- cilities, and compliance with data acquisi- tion and reporting requirements under this chapter; and (B) grants to cover up to 50 per centum of reasonable and necessary costs associated with the installation of methane trans- mission, storage and dispensing facilities: Provided, That the Secretary shall be au- thorized to direct and require recipients of assistance under this section to enter into cooperative agreements for the planning and use of such facilities with other recipients of assistance under this section, under a cost- sharing agreement where appropriate and economical. (2)(A) In the case of private entities, the Sec- retary is authorized to provide— (i) technical assistance reasonably associ- ated with the modification or acquisition of