Zero-Emission Vehicles Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2764 To amend the Clean Air Act to create a national zero-emission vehicle standard, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 15, 2019 Mr. LEVIN of California (for himself and Mr. NEGUSE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To amend the Clean Air Act to create a national zero- emission vehicle standard, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Zero-Emission Vehicles 4 Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. NATIONAL ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE STANDARD. 6 (a) NATIONAL ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE STAND- 7 ARD.—Part A of title II of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 8 7521 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol- 9 lowing: 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2764 IH ‘‘SEC. 220. NATIONAL ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE STANDARD. 1 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 2 ‘‘(1) BASE QUANTITY OF NEW PASSENGER VE- 3 HICLES.—The term ‘base quantity of new passenger 4 vehicles’ means the total quantity of new passenger 5 vehicles delivered for sale by a vehicle manufacturer 6 during the most recent model year. 7 ‘‘(2) PASSENGER VEHICLE.—The term ‘pas- 8 senger vehicle’ has the meaning given the term ‘pas- 9 senger motor vehicle’ in section 32101 of title 49, 10 United States Code. 11 ‘‘(3) QUALIFIED ELECTRIC VEHICLE.—The 12 term ‘qualified electric vehicle’ means a passenger 13 vehicle that is— 14 ‘‘(A) a new qualified plug-in electric drive 15 motor vehicle (as defined in section 30D(d) of 16 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986); or 17 ‘‘(B) a new qualified fuel cell motor vehicle 18 (as defined in section 30B(d)(3) of the Internal 19 Revenue Code of 1986). 20 ‘‘(4) RETIRE.—The term ‘retire’, with respect 21 to a zero-emission vehicle credit, means to disqualify 22 the zero-emission vehicle credit for any subsequent 23 use under this section, including sale, transfer, ex- 24 change, or submission in satisfaction of a compliance 25 obligation. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2764 IH ‘‘(5) VEHICLE MANUFACTURER.— 1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘vehicle 2 manufacturer’ means an entity that— 3 ‘‘(i) engaged in the manufacturing of 4 new passenger vehicles; and 5 ‘‘(ii) sold not fewer than 100 new pas- 6 senger vehicles to ultimate purchasers in 7 the United States within the current or 8 previous calendar year, either directly or 9 through an affiliate, such as a dealer. 10 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘vehicle 11 manufacturer’ does not include— 12 ‘‘(i) a motor vehicle parts supplier; or 13 ‘‘(ii) a dealer. 14 ‘‘(6) ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE.—The term 15 ‘zero-emission vehicle’ means a passenger vehicle 16 that produces zero exhaust emissions of any criteria 17 pollutant, precursor pollutant, or greenhouse gas, 18 other than water vapor, in any mode of operation or 19 condition, as determined by the Administrator. 20 ‘‘(b) COMPLIANCE.—For model year 2030 and each 21 model year thereafter, each vehicle manufacturer shall 22 meet the requirements of subsections (c) and (d) by sub- 23 mitting to the Administrator, not later than April 1 of 24 the following calendar year, as applicable— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2764 IH ‘‘(1) for a vehicle manufacturer that fails to 1 meet the minimum required percentage of zero-emis- 2 sion vehicle sales for the applicable model year, as 3 determined under subsection (c), a quantity of zero- 4 emission vehicle credits sufficient to offset that ex- 5 cess, as determined by the Administrator; or 6 ‘‘(2) for a vehicle manufacturer that meets or 7 exceeds the minimum required percentage of zero- 8 emission vehicle sales for the applicable model year, 9 as determined under subsection (c), a certification of 10 that compliance, as the Administrator determines to 11 be appropriate. 12 ‘‘(c) MINIMUM REQUIRED ANNUAL PERCENTAGE OF 13 ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE CREDITS.—For model years 14 2030 through 2040, in annual increments, the minimum 15 annual percentage of the base quantity of new passenger 16 vehicles of a vehicle manufacturer delivered for sale that 17 are equivalent to zero-emission vehicles, based on the 18 issuance of zero-emission vehicle credits, shall be the appli- 19 cable percentage specified in the following table: 20 ‘‘Minimum Required Annual Percentage of Zero-Emission Vehicle Credits Model Year Percentage 2030 ................................................................................................ 50.0 2031 ................................................................................................ 55.0 2032 ................................................................................................ 60.0 2033 ................................................................................................ 65.0 2034 ................................................................................................ 70.0 2035 ................................................................................................ 75.0 2036 ................................................................................................ 80.0 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2764 IH ‘‘Minimum Required Annual Percentage of Zero-Emission Vehicle Credits—Continued Model Year Percentage 2037 ................................................................................................ 85.0 2038 ................................................................................................ 90.0 2039 ................................................................................................ 95.0 2040 ................................................................................................ 100.0. ‘‘(d) REQUIREMENT FOR 2040 AND THEREAFTER.— 1 For model year 2040 and each model year thereafter, a 2 vehicle manufacturer shall sell only zero-emission vehicles. 3 ‘‘(e) ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE CREDITS.— 4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A vehicle manufacturer 5 may satisfy the requirements of subsection (b) 6 through the submission of zero-emission vehicle 7 credits— 8 ‘‘(A) issued to the vehicle manufacturer 9 under subsection (f); or 10 ‘‘(B) obtained by purchase, transfer, or ex- 11 change under subsection (g). 12 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—A zero-emission vehicle 13 credit may be counted toward compliance with sub- 14 section (b) only once. 15 ‘‘(f) ISSUANCE OF ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE CRED- 16 ITS.— 17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years 18 after the date of enactment of this section, the Ad- 19 ministrator shall establish by rule a program— 20 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 2764 IH ‘‘(A) to verify and issue zero-emission vehi- 1 cle credits to vehicle manufacturers; 2 ‘‘(B) to track the sale, transfer, exchange, 3 carry over, and retirement of zero-emission ve- 4 hicle credits; and 5 ‘‘(C) to enforce the requirements of this 6 section. 7 ‘‘(2) APPLICATION.— 8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A vehicle manufac- 9 turer that delivered for sale, either directly or 10 through an affiliate, such as a dealer, a new 11 zero-emission vehicle or a qualified electric vehi- 12 cle in the United States may apply to the Ad- 13 ministrator for the issuance of a zero-emission 14 vehicle credit. 15 ‘‘(B) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible for the 16 issuance of a zero-emission vehicle credit, a ve- 17 hicle manufacturer shall demonstrate to the Ad- 18 ministrator that the vehicle manufacturer deliv- 19 ered for sale 1 or more zero-emission vehicles or 20 qualified electric vehicles in the previous model 21 year. 22 ‘‘(C) CONTENTS.—The application shall 23 indicate— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 2764 IH ‘‘(i) the type of zero-emission vehicle 1 or qualified electric vehicle that was deliv- 2 ered for sale; 3 ‘‘(ii) the State in which the zero-emis- 4 sion vehicle or qualified electric vehicle was 5 delivered for sale; and 6 ‘‘(iii) any other information deter- 7 mined to be appropriate by the Adminis- 8 trator. 9 ‘‘(D) AGGREGATION.—An application for a 10 zero-emission vehicle credit under subparagraph 11 (A) may aggregate information on all zero-emis- 12 sion vehicles and qualified electric vehicles deliv- 13 ered for sale by the vehicle manufacturer in the 14 applicable model year. 15 ‘‘(3) QUANTITY OF ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE 16 CREDITS.— 17 ‘‘(A) ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLES.—The Ad- 18 ministrator shall issue to a vehicle manufac- 19 turer the application under paragraph (2) of 20 which is approved 1 zero-emission vehicle credit 21 for each zero-emission vehicle delivered for sale 22 in the United States. 23 ‘‘(B) QUALIFIED ELECTRIC VEHICLES.— 24 For a qualified electric vehicle delivered for sale 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 2764 IH by a vehicle manufacturer the application under 1 paragraph (2) of which is approved, the Admin- 2 istrator shall issue a partial zero-emission vehi- 3 cle credit based on the estimated proportion of 4 the mileage driven on the battery of the quali- 5 fied electric vehicle, as determined by the Ad- 6 ministrator. 7 ‘‘(C) CREDIT BANKING.—A zero-emission 8 vehicle credit issued for any model year that is 9 not submitted to comply with the minimum an- 10 nual percentage of zero-emission vehicles under 11 subsection (c) during that model year may be 12 carried forward for use pursuant to subsection 13 (b)(1) within the next 5 years, but not later 14 than model year 2040. 15 ‘‘(g) ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE CREDIT TRADING.— 16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A zero-emission vehicle 17 credit for any model year before 2040 that is not 18 submitted to the Administrator to comply with the 19 minimum annual percentage of zero-emission vehi- 20 cles under subsection (c) for that model year may be 21 sold, transferred, or exchanged by the vehicle manu- 22 facturer to which the credit is issued or by any other 23 entity that acquires the zero-emission vehicle credit. 24 ‘‘(2) DELEGATION.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 2764 IH ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 1 may delegate to an appropriate market-making 2 entity the administration of a national tradeable 3 zero-emission vehicle credit market for purposes 4 of creating a transparent national market for 5 the sale or trade of zero-emission vehicle cred- 6 its. 7 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC REPORT.—If the Adminis- 8 trator makes a delegation under subparagraph 9 (A), the entity to which the Administrator made 10 the delegation shall annually submit to Con- 11 gress and make available to the public a report 12 describing the status of the zero-emission vehi- 13 cle credit market. 14 ‘‘(h) ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE CREDIT RETIRE- 15 MENT.— 16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any entity that obtains 17 legal rights to a zero-emission vehicle credit may re- 18 tire the zero-emission vehicle credit in any model 19 year. 20 ‘‘(2) USE OF RETIRED ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLE 21 CREDIT.—A zero-emission vehicle credit retired 22 under paragraph (1) may not be used for compliance 23 with subsection (b) in— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 2764 IH ‘‘(A) the model year in which the zero- 1 emission vehicle credit is retired; or 2 ‘‘(B) any subsequent model year. 3 ‘‘(i) INFORMATION COLLECTION.—The Adminis- 4 trator may collect the information necessary to verify and 5 audit— 6 ‘‘(1) the model year sales of passenger vehicles 7 of any vehicle manufacturer; 8 ‘‘(2) a zero-emission vehicle credit submitted by 9 a vehicle manufacturer pursuant to subsection 10 (b)(1); 11 ‘‘(3) the validity of a zero-emission vehicle cred- 12 it submitted for compliance by a vehicle manufac- 13 turer to the Administrator; and 14 ‘‘(4) the quantity of passenger vehicles delivered 15 for sale in the United States of all vehicle manufac- 16 turers. 17 ‘‘(j) STATE PROGRAMS.— 18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this section 19 shall preempt the authority of a State or political 20 subdivision of a State to adopt or enforce any law 21 (including regulations) relating to motor vehicles, in- 22 cluding the authority to set standards for motor ve- 23 hicle emissions and zero-emission vehicle require- 24 ments under section 177 and section 209. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 2764 IH ‘‘(2) COMPLIANCE WITH SECTION.—No law or 1 regulation of a State or political subdivision of a 2 State shall relieve any vehicle manufacturer from 3 compliance with any requirement otherwise applica- 4 ble under this section. 5 ‘‘(k) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 6 gress that vehicle manufacturers should diversify vehicle 7 technologies and models to ensure consumer choice and 8 access. 9 ‘‘(l) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 540 days after 10 the date of enactment of this section, the Administrator 11 shall promulgate regulations to implement this section. 12 ‘‘(m) ENFORCEMENT.— 13 ‘‘(1) CIVIL PENALTY.— 14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A vehicle manufac- 15 turer that fails to comply with subsection (b) 16 shall be liable for a civil penalty, assessed by 17 the Administrator, in an amount that is equal 18 to twice the average value of the aggregate 19 quantity of zero-emission vehicle credits that 20 the vehicle manufacturer failed to submit in vio- 21 lation of that subsection, as determined by the 22 Administrator. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:25 May 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2764.IH H2764 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 2764 IH ‘‘(B) ENFORCEMENT.—The Administrator 1 shall assess any civil penalty under subpara- 2 graph (A). 3 ‘‘(C) DEPOSIT.—With respect to any civil 4 penalty paid to the Administrator pursuant to 5 subparagraph (A), the Administ [Text truncated for display. 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