Collapse to view only § 8801. Congressional findings
- § 8801. Congressional findings
- § 8802. Definitions
- § 8803. Funding
- § 8804. Coordination with other authorities and programs
§ 8801. Congressional findings
The Congress finds that—
(1) the dependence of the United States on imported petroleum and natural gas must be reduced by all economically and environmentally feasible means, including the use of biomass energy resources; and
(2) a national program for increased production and use of biomass energy that does not impair the Nation’s ability to produce food and fiber on a sustainable basis for domestic and export use must be formulated and implemented within a multiple-use framework.
(Pub. L. 96–294, title II, § 202, June 30, 1980, 94 Stat. 683.)
§ 8802. DefinitionsAs used in this chapter—
(1) The term “alcohol” means alcohol (including methanol and ethanol) which is produced from biomass and which is suitable for use by itself or in combination with other substances as a fuel or as a substitute for petroleum or petrochemical feedstocks.
(2)
(A) The term “biomass” means any organic matter which is available on a renewable basis, including agricultural crops and agricultural wastes and residues, wood and wood wastes and residues, animal wastes, municipal wastes, and aquatic plants.
(B) For purposes of subchapter I, such term does not include municipal wastes; and for purposes of subchapter III, such term does not include aquatic plants and municipal wastes.
(3) The term “biomass fuel” means any gaseous, liquid, or solid fuel produced by conversion of biomass.
(4) The term “biomass energy” means—
(A) biomass fuel; or
(B) energy or steam derived from the direct combustion of biomass for the generation of electricity, mechanical power, or industrial process heat.
(5) The term “biomass energy project” means any facility (or portion of a facility) located in the United States which is primarily for—
(A) the production of biomass fuel (and byproducts); or
(B) the combustion of biomass for the purpose of generating industrial process heat, mechanical power, or electricity (including cogeneration).
(6) The term “Btu” means British thermal unit.
(7) The term “cogeneration” means the combined generation by any facility of—
(A) electrical or mechanical power, and
(B) steam or forms of useful energy (such as heat) which are used for industrial, commercial, heating, or cooling purposes.
(8) The term “cooperative” means any agricultural association, as that term is defined in section 1141j(a) of title 12.
(9)
(A) The term “construction” means—
(i) the construction or acquisition of any biomass energy project;
(ii) the conversion of any facility to a biomass energy project; or
(iii) the expansion or improvement of any biomass energy project which increases the capacity or efficiency of that facility to produce biomass energy.
(B) Such term includes—
(i) the acquisition of equipment and machinery for use in or at the site of a biomass energy project; and
(ii) the acquisition of land and improvements thereon for the construction, expansion, or improvement of such a project, or the conversion of a facility to such a project.
(C) Such term does not include the acquisition of any facility which was operated as a biomass energy project before the acquisition.
(10) The term “Federal agency” means any Executive agency, as defined in section 105 of title 5.
(11)
(A) The term “financial assistance” means any of the following forms of financial assistance provided under this chapter, or any combination of such forms:
(i) loans,
(ii) loan guarantees,
(iii) price guarantees, and
(iv) purchase agreements.
(B) Such term includes any commitment to provide such assistance.
(12) The term “Indian tribe” means any Indian tribe, band, nation, or other organized group or community, including any Alaska Native village or regional or village corporation as defined in or established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act [43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.] which is recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians.
(13) The term “motor fuel” means gasoline, kerosene, and middle distillates (including diesel fuel).
(14)
(A) The term “municipal waste” means any organic matter, including sewage, sewage sludge, and industrial or commercial waste, and mixtures of such matter and inorganic refuse—
(i) from any publicly or privately operated municipal waste collection or similar disposal system, or
(ii) from similar waste flows (other than such flows which constitute agricultural wastes or residues, or wood wastes or residues from wood harvesting activities or production of forest products).
(B) Such term does not include any hazardous waste, as determined by the Secretary of Energy for purposes of this chapter.
(15)
(A) The term “municipal waste energy project” means any facility (or portion of a facility) located in the United States primarily for—
(i) the production of biomass fuel (and byproducts) from municipal waste; or
(ii) the combustion of municipal waste for the purpose of generating steam or forms of useful energy, including industrial process heat, mechanical power, or electricity (including cogeneration).
(B) Such term includes any necessary transportation, preparation, and disposal equipment and machinery for use in or at the site of the facility involved.
(16) The term “Office of Alcohol Fuels” means the Office of Alcohol Fuels established under section 8820 of this title.
(17) The term “person” means any individual, company, cooperative, partnership, corporation, association, consortium, unincorporated organization, trust, estate, or any entity organized for a common business purpose, any State or local government (including any special purpose district or similar governmental unit) or any agency or instrumentality thereof, or any Indian tribe or tribal organization.
(18) The term “State” means any of the fifty States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands of the United States, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.
(19) The term “small scale biomass energy project” means a biomass energy project with an anticipated annual production capacity of not more than 1,000,000 gallons of ethanol per year, or its energy equivalent of other forms of biomass energy.
(Pub. L. 96–294, title II, § 203, June 30, 1980, 94 Stat. 683.)
§ 8803. Funding
(a) Authorization of appropriationsTo the extent provided in advance in appropriation Acts, for the two year period beginning October 1, 1980, there is authorized to be appropriated and transferred $1,170,000,000 from the Energy Security Reserve established in the Treasury of the United States under title II of the Act entitled “An Act making appropriations for the Department of the Interior and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1980, and for other purposes” (Public Law 96–126; 93 Stat. 970) and made available for obligation by such Act only to the extent provided in advance in appropriation Acts, as follows:
(1) $460,000,000 to the Secretary of Agriculture for carrying out activities under subchapter I, except of the amount of the financial assistance provided by the Secretary of Agriculture under subchapter I, up to one-third shall be for small-scale biomass energy projects;
(2) $460,000,000 to the Secretary of Energy for carrying out biomass energy activities under subchapter I, of which at least $500,000,000 1
1 So in original. Pub. L. 97–35 decreased appropriation to $460,000,000 from $600,000,000 without amending sum of $500,000,000.
shall be available to the Office of Alcohol Fuels for carrying out its activities, and any amount not made available to the Office of Alcohol Fuels shall be available to the Secretary to carry out the purposes of subchapter I under available authorities of the Secretary, including authorities under subchapter I; and(3) $250,000,000 shall be available to the Secretary of Energy for carrying out activities under subchapter II.
(b) Availability of funds until expended
(c) Determinations respecting amount of appropriations remaining available
(1) For purposes of determining the amount of such appropriations which remain available for purposes of this chapter—
(A) loans shall be counted at the initial face value of the loan;
(B) loan guarantees shall be counted at the initial face value of such loan guarantee;
(C) price guarantees and purchase agreements shall be counted at the value determined by the Secretary concerned as of the date of each such contract based upon the Secretary’s determination of the maximum potential liability of the United States under the contract; and
(D) any increase in the liability of the United States pursuant to any amendment or other modification to a contract for a loan, loan guarantee, price guarantee, or purchase agreement, shall be counted to the extent of such increase.
(2) Determinations under paragraph (1) shall be made in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, consistently applied.
(3) If more than one form of financial assistance is to be provided to any one project, the obligations and commitments thereunder shall be counted at the maximum potential exposure of the United States on such project at any time during the life of such project.
(4) Any commitment to provide financial assistance shall be treated the same as such assistance for purposes of this subsection; except that any such commitment which is nullified or voided for any reason shall not be considered for purposes of this subsection.
(d) Financial assistance provided only to extent advanced in appropriation Acts
(Pub. L. 96–294, title II, § 204, June 30, 1980, 94 Stat. 685; Pub. L. 97–35, title X, §§ 1061–1063, Aug. 13, 1981, 95 Stat. 622.)
§ 8804. Coordination with other authorities and programs
The authorities in this chapter are in addition to and do not modify (except to the extent expressly provided for in this chapter) authorities and programs of the Department of Energy and of the Department of Agriculture under other provisions of law.
(Pub. L. 96–294, title II, § 205, June 30, 1980, 94 Stat. 686.)