S. 3815 — Introduced in Senate

II 117th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3815 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES March 10 (legislative day, March 7), 2022Mr. Markey (for himself and Mr. Heinrich) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources A BILL To amend the Emergency Energy Conservation Act of 1979 to allow the President to provide short-term relief to the American people as the United States works to impose a necessary ban on all oil imports from Russia and to restore the ability of the President to set energy efficiency targets for States during an energy supply emergency, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Strategic reserve, Appliance, Vehicle, and Energy efficiency for Consumers Act of 2022 or the SAVE Consumers Act of 2022. 2. Findings Congress finds that— (1) according to the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation, 36 percent of all revenue of the Government of the Russian Federation in 2021 came from the oil and gas sector, funding the war of aggression against Ukraine; (2) from January through December 2021, the United States imported 245,194,000 barrels of oil from the Russian Federation, which, at an annual average of $71 per barrel, equals approximately $17,400,000,000 in oil imports; (3) in order to cut off funding to Russian oil companies, the United States will need to cut off Russian oil imports; (4) as of March 4, 2022, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve crude oil inventory totals approximately 577,500,000 barrels, which are intended by law for use to minimize short-term energy supply disruptions and protect United States consumers from economic damage; (5) since 2015, Congress has enacted 8 laws that mandate the sale of 303,600,000 barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve between 2022 and 2031; (6) selling the barrels described in paragraph (5) earlier could address the immediate economic damage caused by ongoing energy supply disruptions related to the war in Ukraine; (7) in addition to immediate use of existing oil stockpiles, energy supply disruptions can be mitigated by reducing demand for fossil fuel products through energy efficiency; (8) energy efficiency reduces demand without disrupting energy services delivered to the consumer; (9) clean energy deployment and energy efficiency not only reduce United States demand for fossil fuels, but also provide additional benefits by reducing air pollution, health impacts, and greenhouse gas emissions, while creating thousands of jobs in the United States and bolstering the economy; and (10) the Emergency Energy Conservation Act of 1979 (42 U.S.C. 8501 et seq.) was enacted to address severe energy supply disruptions and provide an emergency response plan. 3. Emergency energy conservation (a) Definitions Section 202 of the Emergency Energy Conservation Act of 1979 (42 U.S.C. 8502) is amended— (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking For purposes of this title— and inserting In this title:; (2) in each of paragraphs (1) through (8), by inserting a paragraph heading, the text of which comprises the term defined in that paragraph; (3) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (5) and (7) as paragraphs (7), (3), (4), (5), (9), and (2), respectively; (4) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as so redesignated) the following: (1) Energy conservation The term energy conservation means, with respect to heating, cooling, use of an appliance, or a vehicle— (A) energy efficiency, including electrification; or (B) a minimum level of energy efficiency or a maximum quantity of energy use, determined in accordance with test procedures or industry analysis, as determined by the Secretary, the Secretary of Transportation, or the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, as applicable, that provides health, climate, or environmental benefits. ; and (5) in paragraph (9) (as so redesignated), by striking means and all that follows through highways and inserting the following: means— (A) a motor vehicle; (B) a motor vehicle engine; (C) a nonroad vehicle or engine; and (D) aircraft . (b) Standby Federal conservation plan Section 213(i) of the Emergency Energy Conservation Act of 1979 (42 U.S.C. 8513(i)) is amended— (1) in paragraph (1), by striking between Friday noon and Sunday midnight; (2) by striking paragraph (2); and (3) in paragraph (1), by striking the paragraph designation and all that follows through the plan and inserting The plan. (c) Administration Section 251 of the Emergency Energy Conservation Act of 1979 (42 U.S.C. 8541) is amended by striking subsection (c). 4. Strategic Petroleum Reserve drawdown and sale (a) Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 Section 403(a) of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (Public Law 114–74; 129 Stat. 589) is amended— (1) in paragraph (5), by adding and after the semicolon; (2) by striking paragraphs (7) and (8); and (3) in paragraph (6)— (A) by striking 10,000,000 and inserting 30,000,000; and (B) by striking the semicolon at the end and inserting a period. (b) Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act Section 32204 of the FAST Act (Public Law 114–94; 129 Stat. 1740) is amended— (1) in subsection (a)(1)— (A) in subparagraph (A), by adding and after the semicolon; (B) by striking subparagraphs (C) and (D); and (C) in subparagraph (B)— (i) by striking 16,000,000 and inserting 66,000,000; and (ii) by striking the semicolon at the end and inserting a period; and (2) in subsection (c)(1), by striking (A) through (I) and inserting (A) and (B). (c) Reconciliation on the budget for 2018 Section 20003(a)(1) of Public Law 115–97 (131 Stat. 2237) is amended by striking 2026 through 2027 and inserting 2022 and 2023. (d) Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 Section 30204(a)(1) of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (Public Law 115–123; 132 Stat. 126) is amended— (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking through 2025; and inserting and 2023.; (2) by striking subparagraphs (B) and (C); and (3) beginning in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking Reserve— and all that follows through 30,000,000 in subparagraph (A) and inserting the following: Reserve 100,000,000. (e) America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 Section 3009(a)(1) of America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 (Public Law 115–270; 132 Stat. 3870) is amended by striking during fiscal year 2028 and inserting during the period of fiscal years 2022 and 2023. (f) Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act Section 90002(a) of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117–58; 135 Stat. 1342) is amended— (1) in paragraph (1), by striking 2028 through 2031 and inserting 2022 and 2023; and (2) in paragraph (2), by striking 2028 through 2031 and inserting 2022 and 2023.