Recent Federal Bills

Below are summaries of Bills Introduced, Committee Reports, Chamber Actions, and Public Laws reported in the most recent issue of ELR's Weekly Update.

would exempt any road, highway, or bridge damaged by a natural disaster, including a flood, from duplicative environmental document reviews if the road, highway, or bridge is reconstructed in the same location.

would designate certain National Forest System lands and public lands under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior in the states of Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming as wilderness and wild and scenic rivers, and would provide for the establishment of a Northern Rockies Wildlife Habitat and Corridors Information System and Program.

would require an accounting for financial support made to promote the production or use of renewable energy.

would direct the Secretary of Transportation to issue categorical exclusions from environmental assessment requirements for certain highway construction activities.

would amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to terminate certain energy tax subsidies and lower the corporate income tax rate.

would amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend the renewable energy credit.

would direct the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to establish a program allowing small-volume vehicle manufacturers to produce not more than 1,000 vehicles annually within a regulatory system that addresses the unique safety and financial issues associated with limited production, and would direct EPA to allow low-volume vehicle manufacturers to rely upon certificates of conformity issued to engines from certified vehicles.

would amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide by imposing a tax on primary fossil fuels based on their carbon content.

would amend the Federal Nonnuclear Energy Research and Development Act of 1974 to provide for the prioritization, coordination, and streamlining of energy research, development, and demonstration programs to meet current and future energy needs.

would prohibit the Administrator of EPA from rejecting or otherwise determining to be inadequate a SIP in any case in which the state submitting the plan has not been given a reasonable time to develop and submit the plan in accordance with a certain provision of the CAA.