What This Bill Does
This bill requires the Secretary of Transportation to create a grant program that gives money to eligible organizations for purchasing and installing hydrogen- or ammonia-powered equipment at ports. The bill also requires a study examining whether hydrogen and ammonia are safe and practical fuels for ships and other maritime (water-based) activities.
Who It Affects
State governments, local governments, port authorities, Native American tribal governments, Alaska Native entities, Native Hawaiian entities, and private companies that own or operate port facilities.
Key Provisions
• The Secretary of Transportation must establish a competitive grant program within 180 days to fund the purchase, installation, planning, design or construction of fuel cell equipment (equipment powered by hydrogen or ammonia) at ports, including cargo-handling equipment, trucks, ships, locomotives, power systems and port infrastructure for fuel supply (Sec. 2(b))
• Grant recipients must run hydrogen leakage monitoring programs and leak detection repair programs for all eligible fuel they use (Sec. 2(h))
• When selecting grant recipients, the Secretary must prioritize projects that benefit low-income or disadvantaged communities, combine both land-side and vessel-side uses of eligible fuel, create or keep jobs in the United States, and provide high-quality jobs (Sec. 2(f))
• The Secretary of the department containing the Coast Guard must complete a study within 270 days examining the safety, feasibility and environmental impacts of using hydrogen and ammonia as ship fuels, including storage options and the potential for a strategic hydrogen or ammonia reserve (Sec. 3(a))
• Grant recipients must provide training to ship crews and port workers on safely handling hydrogen and ammonia fuel and maintaining equipment that uses these fuels (Sec. 2(b)(2))
What Changes
If this becomes law, the federal government will fund new hydrogen and ammonia-powered equipment at ports for the first time through competitive grants. The government will also conduct an official study on whether these fuels can be safely used in maritime applications. Organizations at ports will be required to monitor and report on hydrogen leaks if they receive grant money.
Important Definitions
• "Eligible fuel" means hydrogen or ammonia (Sec. 2(a)(2))
• "Low-income or disadvantaged community" means a city, town, county or part of a municipality where the yearly income of the typical household is less than 100 percent of the statewide average household income (Sec. 2(a)(3))
• "Tribal government" means the recognized governing body of any Native American or Alaska Native tribe, band, nation, village or community that appears on the official federal list of recognized tribes (Sec. 2(a)(6))
Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 647
To require the Secretary of Transportation to establish a grant program
to support the use of hydrogen- or ammonia-fueled equipment at ports
and to require the Secretary of the department in which the Coast
Guard is operating to conduct a study, together with the Secretary
of Energy and the Secretary of Transportation, regarding the feasibility
and safety of using hydrogen and ammonia as fuels in maritime applica-
tions.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
MARCH 2, 2023
Mr. CORNYN (for himself, Mr. COONS, Mr. CASSIDY, Mr. HICKENLOOPER, Ms.
MURKOWSKI, Mr. HEINRICH, and Mr. LUJA´N) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Transportation to establish a
grant program to support the use of hydrogen- or ammo-
nia-fueled equipment at ports and to require the Sec-
retary of the department in which the Coast Guard is
operating to conduct a study, together with the Secretary
of Energy and the Secretary of Transportation, regard-
ing the feasibility and safety of using hydrogen and
ammonia as fuels in maritime applications.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
1
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hydrogen for Ports
2
Act of 2023’’.
3
SEC. 2. MARITIME FUEL MODERNIZATION GRANT PRO-
4
GRAM.
5
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
6
(1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti-
7
ty’’ means an entity described in subsection (d).
8
(2) ELIGIBLE FUEL.—The term ‘‘eligible fuel’’
9
means—
10
(A) hydrogen; or
11
(B) ammonia.
12
(3) LOW-INCOME OR DISADVANTAGED COMMU-
13
NITY.—The term ‘‘low-income or disadvantaged
14
community’’ means a community (including a city, a
15
town, a county, and any reasonably isolated and di-
16
visible segment of a larger municipality) with an an-
17
nual median household income that is less than 100
18
percent of the statewide annual median household
19
income for the State in which the community is lo-
20
cated, according to the most recent decennial census.
21
(4) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means
22
the program established under subsection (b).
23
(5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
24
the Secretary of Transportation.
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•S 647 IS
(6) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘‘Tribal
1
government’’ means the recognized governing body
2
of any Indian or Alaska Native Tribe, band, nation,
3
pueblo, village, community, component band, or com-
4
ponent reservation, individually identified (including
5
parenthetically) on the list published most recently
6
as of the date of enactment of this Act pursuant to
7
section 104 of the Federally Recognized Indian
8
Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131).
9
(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—Not later than
10
180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec-
11
retary, in coordination with the Secretary of Energy, shall
12
establish a program under which the Secretary shall pro-
13
vide grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities
14
for—
15
(1) the purchase, installation, planning, design,
16
or construction of, as appropriate—
17
(A) fuel cell cargo-handling equipment that
18
uses an eligible fuel;
19
(B) fuel cell drayage or long-haul trucks
20
that—
21
(i) use an eligible fuel; and
22
(ii) are for use at ports;
23
(C) fuel cell ferries, tugboats, dredging ves-
24
sels, container ships, bulk carriers, fuel tankers,
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•S 647 IS
commercial fishing vessels, cruise ships, or
1
other marine vessels that use an eligible fuel;
2
(D) fuel cell locomotives that—
3
(i) use an eligible fuel; and
4
(ii) are for use at ports;
5
(E) fuel cell shore power systems that—
6
(i) use an eligible fuel; and
7
(ii) are used for ships while docked at
8
port;
9
(F) onsite fuel cell power plants that—
10
(i) use an eligible fuel; and
11
(ii) are located at port facilities; or
12
(G) port infrastructure for establishing or
13
expanding the supply of eligible fuel for import,
14
export, storage, bunkering, or fueling; and
15
(2) the training of ship crew and shore per-
16
sonnel—
17
(A) to safely handle eligible fuel; and
18
(B) to perform operation and maintenance
19
on equipment that uses an eligible fuel.
20
(c) GOALS.—The goals of the program shall be—
21
(1) to demonstrate hydrogen, ammonia, or fuel
22
cell technologies in maritime and associated logistics
23
applications;
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•S 647 IS
(2) to assist in the development and validation
1
of technical targets for hydrogen, ammonia, and fuel
2
cell systems for maritime and associated logistics ap-
3
plications;
4
(3) to benchmark the conditions required for
5
broad commercialization of hydrogen, ammonia, and
6
fuel cell technologies in maritime and associated lo-
7
gistics applications;
8
(4) to assess the operational and technical con-
9
siderations for—
10
(A) installing, constructing, and using
11
hydrogen- or ammonia-fueled equipment; and
12
(B) supporting infrastructure at ports; and
13
(5) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and im-
14
prove air quality in areas located in and around
15
ports.
16
(d) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—
17
(1) IN GENERAL.—An entity eligible to receive
18
a grant under the program is—
19
(A) a State;
20
(B) a political subdivision of a State;
21
(C) a local government;
22
(D) a public agency or publicly chartered
23
authority established by 1 or more States;
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•S 647 IS
(E) a special purpose district with a trans-
1
portation function;
2
(F) a Tribal government or a consortium
3
of Tribal governments;
4
(G) a port authority for a port;
5
(H) an Alaska Native or Native Hawaiian
6
entity that has jurisdiction over a port author-
7
ity or a port;
8
(I) a multistate or multijurisdictional
9
group of entities described in any of subpara-
10
graphs (A) through (H); or
11
(J) subject to paragraph (2), a private en-
12
tity or group of private entities, including the
13
owners or operators of 1 or more facilities at a
14
port.
15
(2) JOINT
ELIGIBILITY
WITH
PRIVATE
ENTI-
16
TIES.—A private entity or group of private entities
17
is eligible for a grant under the program if—
18
(A) the private entity or group of private
19
entities partners with an entity described in any
20
of subparagraphs (A) through (I) of paragraph
21
(1) for purposes of applying for, and carrying
22
out activities under, the grant; and
23
(B) the entity described in the applicable
24
subparagraph of paragraph (1) is the lead enti-
25
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•S 647 IS
ty with respect to the application and those ac-
1
tivities.
2
(e) APPLICATIONS.—
3
(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity desiring a
4
grant under the program shall submit to the Sec-
5
retary an application at such time, in such manner,
6
and containing such information as the Secretary
7
may require.
8
(2) REQUIREMENT.—The application of an eli-
9
gible entity described in subparagraph (J) of sub-
10
section (d)(1) shall be submitted jointly with an en-
11
tity described in subparagraphs (A) through (I) of
12
that subsection.
13
(f) CONSIDERATIONS.—In providing grants under the
14
program, the Secretary, to the maximum extent prac-
15
ticable, shall select projects that—
16
(1) will generate the greatest benefit to low-in-
17
come or disadvantaged communities;
18
(2) represent a combination of land-side and
19
vessel-side end-uses of eligible fuel;
20
(3) maximize the creation or retention of jobs
21
in the United States; and
22
(4) provide the highest job quality.
23
(g) PRIORITY.—In selecting eligible entities to receive
24
grants under the program, the Secretary shall give priority
25
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to projects that will provide greater net impact in avoiding
1
or reducing emissions of greenhouse gases.
2
(h) LEAK DETECTION.—Each eligible entity that re-
3
ceives a grant under the program shall conduct—
4
(1) a hydrogen leakage monitoring, reporting,
5
and verification (also known as ‘‘MRV’’) program
6
for all eligible fuel used by the eligible entity; and
7
(2) a hydrogen leak detection and repair (also
8
known as ‘‘LDAR’’) program for all eligible fuel
9
used by the eligible entity.
10
(i) FUNDING.—
11
(1) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.—
12
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
13
retary to carry out the program $100,000,000 for
14
each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028.
15
(2) HUMAN-OPERATED
EQUIPMENT
REQUIRE-
16
MENT.—In carrying out the program, the Secretary
17
shall ensure that funding is made available for each
18
fiscal year for cargo-handling equipment that uses
19
an eligible fuel and is human-operated.
20
SEC. 3. STUDY ON FEASIBILITY AND SAFETY OF USING HY-
21
DROGEN AND AMMONIA AS FUELS IN MARI-
22
TIME APPLICATIONS.
23
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 270 days after the
24
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the depart-
25
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•S 647 IS
ment in which the Coast Guard is operating, in consulta-
1
tion with the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of Trans-
2
portation, and the heads of other Federal departments and
3
agencies, as appropriate, shall conduct, and submit to the
4
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of
5
the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and In-
6
frastructure of the House of Representatives a report de-
7
scribing the results of, a study—
8
(1) to fully address the challenges to ensure the
9
safe use and handling of hydrogen, ammonia, and
10
other hydrogen-based fuels on vessels and in ports;
11
(2) to identify, compare, and evaluate the feasi-
12
bility of, the safety, environmental, and health im-
13
pacts of, and best practices with respect to, the use
14
of hydrogen-derived fuels, including ammonia, as a
15
shipping fuel;
16
(3) to identify and evaluate considerations for
17
hydrogen and ammonia storage, including—
18
(A) at ports;
19
(B) on board vessels; and
20
(C) for subsea hydrogen storage; and
21
(4) to assess the cost and value of a hydrogen
22
or ammonia strategic reserve, either as a new facility
23
or as a modification to the Strategic Petroleum Re-
24
serve established under part B of title I of the En-
25
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•S 647 IS
ergy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6231
1
et seq.).
2
(b) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out subsection (a),
3
the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard
4
is operating shall—
5
(1) consult with entities in the private sector
6
with experience in the hydrogen or ammonia indus-
7
try;
8
(2) take into account lessons learned from dem-
9
onstration projects in other industries, including—
10
(A) projects carried out in the United
11
States;
12
(B) projects carried out in other countries;
13
and
14
(C) projects relating to the automotive in-
15
dustry, buses, petroleum refining, chemical pro-
16
duction, fertilizer production, and stationary
17
power; and
18
(3) evaluate the applicability of the lessons de-
19
scribed in paragraph (2) to the use of hydrogen in
20
maritime and associated logistics applications.
21
Æ
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