42 U.S. Code § 7277 - Report concerning review of United States coal imports

(a) In general

The Energy Information Administration shall issue a report quarterly, and provide an annual summary of the quarterly reports to the Congress, on the status of United States coal imports. Such quarterly reports may be published as a part of the Quarterly Coal Report published by the Energy Information Administration.

(b) Contents

Each report required by this section shall—

(1) include current and previous year data on the quantity, quality (including heating value, sulfur content, and ash content), and delivered price of all coals imported by domestic electric utility plants that imported more than 10,000 tons during the previous calendar year into the United States;

(2) identify the foreign nations exporting the coal, the domestic electric utility plants receiving coal from each exporting nation, the domestically produced coal supplied to such plants, and the domestic coal production, by State, displaced by the imported coal;

(3) identify (to the extent allowed under disclosure policy), at regional and State levels of aggregation, transportation modes and costs for delivery of imported coal from the exporting country port of origin to the point of consumption in the United States; and

(4) specifically highlight and analyze any significant trends of unusual variations in coal imports.

(c) Date of reports

The first report required by this section shall be submitted to Congress in March 1986. Subsequent reports shall be submitted within 90 days after the end of each quarter.

(d) Limitation

Information and data required for the purpose of this section shall be subject to the law regarding the collection and disclosure of such data.

(Pub. L. 99–58, title II, § 202, July 2, 1985, 99 Stat. 107.)

Editorial Notes

Codification

Section was enacted as part of the Energy Policy and Conservation Amendments Act of 1985, and also as part of the National Coal Imports Reporting Act of 1985, and not as part of the Department of Energy Organization Act which comprises this chapter.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Short Title

Pub. L. 99–58, title II, § 201, July 2, 1985, 99 Stat. 107, provided that:

“This title [enacting this section and provisions set out as a note below] may be cited as the ‘National Coal Imports Reporting Act of 1985’.”

Termination of Reporting Requirements

For termination, effective May 15, 2000, of provisions in this section requiring submittal of reports to Congress, see section 3003 of Pub. L. 104–66, as amended, set out as a note under section 1113 of Title 31, Money and Finance, and the 14th item on page 90 of House Document No. 103–7.

Analysis of United States Coal Import Market; Report by Secretary of Energy to Congress

Pub. L. 99–58, title II, § 203, July 2, 1985, 99 Stat. 108, provided that:

“(a) In General.—

The Secretary of Energy shall, through the Energy Information Administration, conduct a comprehensive analysis of the coal import market in the United States and report the findings of such analysis to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the appropriate committees of the House of Representatives, within nine months of the date of enactment of this Act [July 2, 1985].

“(b) Contents.—

The report required by this section shall—

“(1) contain a detailed analysis of potential domestic markets for foreign coals, by producing nation, between 1985 and 1995;

“(2) identify potential domestic consuming sectors of imported coal and evaluate the magnitude of any potential economic disruptions for each impacted State, including analysis of direct and indirect employment impact in the domestic coal industry and resulting income loss to each State;

“(3) identify domestically produced coal that potentially could be replaced by imported coal;

“(4) identify contractual commitments of domestic utilities expiring between 1985 and 1995 and describe spot buying practices of domestic utilities, fuel cost patterns, plant modification costs required to burn foreign coals, proximity of navigable waters to utilities, demand for compliance coal, availability of less expensive purchased power from Canada, and State and local considerations;

“(5) evaluate increased coal consumption by domestic electric utilities resulting from increased power sales and analyze the potential coal import market represented by this increased coal consumption, including consumption by existing coal-fired plants, new coal-fired plants projected up to the year 1995, and plants planning to convert to coal by 1995;

“(6) identify existing authorities available to the Federal Government relating to coal imports, assess the potential impact of exercising each of these authorities, and describe executive branch plans and strategies to address coal imports;

“(7) identify and characterize the coal export policies of all major coal exporting nations, including the United States, Australia, Canada, Colombia, Poland, and South Africa, with specific analysis of—

“(A) direct or indirect Government subsidies to coal exporters;

“(B) health, safety, and environmental regulations imposed on each coal producer; and

“(C) trade policies relating to coal exports;

“(8) evaluate the excess capacity of foreign producers, potential development of new export-oriented coal mines in foreign nations, operating costs of foreign coal mines, capacity of ocean vessels to transport foreign coal, and constraints on importing coal into the United States because of port and harbor availability;

“(9) identify specifically the participation of all United States corporations involved in mining and exporting coal from foreign nations; and

“(10) identify the policies governing coal imports of all coal-importing industrialized nations (including the United States, Japan, and European nations) by considering such factors as import duties or tariffs, import quotas, and other governmental restrictions or trade policies impacting coal imports.”