View all text of Part A [§ 7401 - § 7438]
In addition to amounts otherwise available, there is appropriated to the Administrator for fiscal year 2022, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, $700,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2028, for activities described in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (a) at marginal conventional wells.
The Administrator shall impose and collect a charge on methane emissions that exceed an applicable waste emissions threshold under subsection (f) from an owner or operator of an applicable facility that reports more than 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent of greenhouse gases emitted per year pursuant to subpart W of part 98 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, regardless of the reporting threshold under that subpart.
With respect to imposing and collecting the charge under subsection (c) for an applicable facility in an industry segment listed in paragraph (3), (6), (7), or (8) of subsection (d), the Administrator shall impose and collect the charge on the reported metric tons of methane emissions that exceed 0.05 percent of the natural gas sent to sale from or through such facility.
With respect to imposing and collecting the charge under subsection (c) for an applicable facility in an industry segment listed in paragraph (4), (5), or (9) of subsection (d), the Administrator shall impose and collect the charge on the reported metric tons of methane emissions that exceed 0.11 percent of the natural gas sent to sale from or through such facility.
In calculating the total emissions charge obligation for facilities under common ownership or control, the Administrator shall allow for the netting of emissions by reducing the total obligation to account for facility emissions levels that are below the applicable thresholds within and across all applicable segments identified in subsection (d).
Charges shall not be imposed pursuant to paragraph (1) on emissions that exceed the waste emissions threshold specified in such paragraph if such emissions are caused by unreasonable delay, as determined by the Administrator, in environmental permitting of gathering or transmission infrastructure necessary for offtake of increased volume as a result of methane emissions mitigation implementation.
If the conditions in clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph (A) cease to apply after the Administrator has made the determination in that subparagraph, the applicable facility will again be subject to the charge under subsection (c) beginning in the first calendar year in which the conditions in either clause (i) or (ii) of that subparagraph are no longer met.
Charges shall not be imposed with respect to the emissions rate from any well that has been permanently shut-in and plugged in the previous year in accordance with all applicable closure requirements, as determined by the Administrator.
The charge under subsection (c) shall be imposed and collected beginning with respect to emissions reported for calendar year 2024 and for each year thereafter.
Not later than 2 years after August 16, 2022, the Administrator shall revise the requirements of subpart W of part 98 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, to ensure the reporting under such subpart, and calculation of charges under subsections (e) and (f) of this section, are based on empirical data, including data collected pursuant to subsection (a)(4), accurately reflect the total methane emissions and waste emissions from the applicable facilities, and allow owners and operators of applicable facilities to submit empirical emissions data, in a manner to be prescribed by the Administrator, to demonstrate the extent to which a charge under subsection (c) is owed.
In this section, the term “greenhouse gas” means the air pollutants carbon dioxide, hydrofluorocarbons, methane, nitrous oxide, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride.