Karen Bass: “H.R. 724 makes a technical correction to the Energy Policy and Conservation Act that is necessary for Congress to…”

“H.R. 724 makes a technical correction to the Energy Policy and Conservation Act that is necessary for Congress to authorize future appropriations for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. It contains a date correction that was incorrectly referenced when EPCA was reauthorized during the 106th Congress. In the last EPCA reauthorization, Congress instructed the Department of Energy to continue operating the Strategic Petroleum Reserve through September 30, 2003. However, we failed to make a conforming date change to a related section of the act. This was a technical error and H.R. 724 corrects this situation. EPCA authorizes the Department of Energy to operate the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The SPR contains approximately 541 million barrels of oil stored along the Gulf Coast. It costs about $165 million a year to operate the Reserve. As a practical matter, last year's Interior appropriations bill appropriated funds to operate the SPR through fiscal year 2001. Given that more than half of our demand for oil is met through imports, the importance of a Strategic Petroleum Reserve to protect against supply disruptions is now greater than ever.”