Aviation Emissions Reduction Opportunity Act or the AERO Act
This bill requires the Department of Transportation to award competitive grants for projects in the United States that support the production and deployment of sustainable aviation fuel or the development of low-emission aviation technologies. Eligible grantees include, among others, state or local governments, air carriers, and research institutions.
None of the funds made available may be used for a project unless all of the iron, steel, manufactured products, and construction materials used in the project are produced in the United States, subject to waivers where inconsistent with the public interest, where not produced in sufficient quantities or satisfactory quality, or where such inclusion will increase the cost of the project by more than 25%.
The bill also reauthorizes through FY2027 the Continuous Lower Energy, Emissions, and Noise Program of the Federal Aviation Administration.
[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8727 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8727
To establish an alternative fuel and low-emission aviation technology
program, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 16, 2022
Ms. Williams of Georgia (for herself, Mr. Larsen of Washington, Mr.
Fitzpatrick, Ms. Brownley, Ms. Titus, Mr. Payne, Mr. Lynch, and Mr.
Carson) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, for a period to be
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration
of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee
concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish an alternative fuel and low-emission aviation technology
program, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Aviation Emissions Reduction
Opportunity Act'' or the ``AERO Act''.
SEC. 2. ALTERNATIVE FUEL AND LOW-EMISSION AVIATION TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Transportation, in
consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of
Energy, and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency,
shall establish a competitive grant program to provide grants to
eligible entities to carry out projects located in the United States
that produce, transport, blend, or store sustainable aviation fuel, or
develop, demonstrate, or apply low-emission aviation technologies.
(b) Considerations.--In carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary
shall consider, with respect to a proposed project--
(1) the capacity for the eligible entity to increase the
domestic production and deployment of sustainable aviation fuel
or the use of low-emission aviation technologies among the
United States commercial aviation and aerospace industry;
(2) the projected greenhouse gas emissions from such
project, including emissions resulting from the development of
the project, and the potential the project has to reduce or
displace, on a lifecycle basis, United States greenhouse gas
emissions associated with air travel;
(3) the capacity to create new jobs and develop supply
chain partnerships in the United States;
(4) for projects related to the production of sustainable
aviation fuel, the projected lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions
benefits from the proposed project, which shall include
feedstock and fuel production and potential direct and indirect
greenhouse gas emissions (including resulting from changes in
land use); and
(5) the benefits of ensuring a diversity of feedstocks for
sustainable aviation fuel, including the use of waste carbon
oxides and direct air capture.
(c) Fuel Emissions Reduction Test.--For purposes of clause (ii) of
subsection (f)(7)(E), the Secretary shall, not later than 1 year after
the date of enactment of this section, adopt at least 1 methodology for
testing lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions that meets the requirements
of such clause.
(d) Funding.--
(1) Authorization of appropriations.--Out of any money in
the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, there are authorized
to be appropriated for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2027,
$200,000,000 to carry out the purposes of this section, to
remain available until expended.
(2) Funding distribution.--Subject to paragraph (4), of any
amount made available under paragraph (1)--
(A) 30 percent of such amount shall be awarded for
projects that develop, demonstrate, or apply low-
emission aviation technologies; and
(B) 70 percent of such amount shall be awarded for
projects that produce, transport, blend, or store
sustainable aviation fuel.
(3) Federal share.--The Federal share of the cost of a
project carried out using a grant provided under this section
may not exceed 90 percent of the total cost of the project. The
Secretary shall consider the extent to which a proposed project
meets the considerations described in subsection (b) in
determining the Federal share under this paragraph.
(4) Administration.--The Secretary may reserve not more
than 2 percent of the amount appropriated under paragraph (1)
for expenses related to administering this section.
(e) Application of Law.--
(1) Buy america.--None of the funds made available under
this section may be obligated for a project unless all of the
iron, steel, manufactured products, and construction materials
used in the project are produced in the United States, as such
term is defined in section 70912 of the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58).
(2) Waiver.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply in any case or
category of cases in which the Secretary finds that--
(A) applying paragraph (1) would be inconsistent
with the public interest;
(B) types of iron, steel, manufactured products, or
construction materials are not produced in the United
States in sufficient and reasonably available
quantities or of a satisfactory quality, or
(C) the inclusion of iron, steel, manufactured
products, or construction materials produced in the
United States will increase the cost of the overall
project by more than 25 percent.
(3) Written justification.--Before issuing a waiver under
paragraph (2), the Secretary shall--
(A) make publicly available in an easily accessible
location on a website designated by the Office of
Management and Budget and on the website of the Federal
agency a detailed written explanation for the proposed
determination to issue the waiver; and
(B) provide a period of not less than 15 days for
public comment on the proposed waiver.
(4) Prevailing wages.--The Secretary shall take such action
as may be necessary to ensure that all laborers and mechanics
employed by contractors or subcontractors on a project assisted
in whole or in part by funding made available under this
section shall be paid wages at rates not less than those
prevailing for the same type of work on similar projects in the
locality as determined by the Secretary of Labor, in accordance
with sections 3141-3144, 3146, and 3147 of title 40. The
Secretary of Labor shall have, with respect to the labor
standards specified in this subsection, the authority and
functions set forth in Reorganization Plan Numbered 14 of 1950
(15 F.R. 3176; 64 Stat. 1267) and section 3145 of title 40.
(5) Project defined.--In this subsection, the term
``project'' means construction, alteration, maintenance, or
repair.
(f) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
(A) a State or local government, including the
District of Columbia and any territory of the United
States, other than an airport sponsor;
(B) an air carrier;
(C) an airport sponsor;
(D) an accredited institution of higher education;
(E) a research institution;
(F) a person or entity engaged in the production,
transportation, blending, or storage of sustainable
aviation fuel in the United States or feedstocks in the
United States that could be used to produce sustainable
aviation fuel;
(G) a person or entity engaged in the development,
demonstration, or application of low-emission aviation
technologies; or
(H) nonprofit entities or nonprofit consortia with
experience in sustainable aviation fuels, low-emission
aviation technologies, or other clean transportation
research programs.
(2) Feedstock.--The term ``feedstock'' means sources of
hydrogen and carbon not originating from unrefined or refined
petrochemicals.
(3) Induced land-use change values.--The term ``induced
land-use change values'' means the greenhouse gas emissions
resulting from the conversion of land to the production of
feedstocks and from the conversion of other land due to the
displacement of crops or animals for which the original land
was previously used, as calculated using appropriate modeling
techniques such as the methods adopted by the International
Civil Aviation Organization for fuels eligible for the Carbon
Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation.
(4) Lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions.--The term
``lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions'' means the combined
greenhouse gas emissions from feedstock production, collection
of feedstock, transportation of feedstock to fuel production
facilities, conversion of feedstock to fuel, transportation and
distribution of fuel, and fuel combustion in an aircraft
engine, as well as from induced land-use change values, as
calculated using appropriate modeling techniques such as the
methods adopted by the International Civil Aviation
Organization for fuels eligible for the Carbon Offsetting and
Reduction Scheme for International Aviation.
(5) Low-emission aviation technologies.--The term ``low-
emission aviation technologies'' means technologies, produced
in the United States, that significantly--
(A) improve aircraft fuel efficiency;
(B) increase utilization of sustainable aviation
fuel; or
(C) reduce greenhouse gas emissions produced during
operation of civil aircraft.
(6) Sustainable aviation fuel.--The term ``sustainable
aviation fuel'' means liquid fuel, produced in the United
States, that--
(A) consists of synthesized hydrocarbons;
(B) meets the requirements of--
(i) ASTM International Standard D7566; or
(ii) the co-processing provisions of ASTM
International Standard D1655, Annex A1 (or such
successor standard);
(C) is derived from biomass (in a similar manner as
such term is defined in section 45K(c)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986), waste streams,
renewable energy sources, or gaseous carbon oxides;
(D) is not derived from palm fatty acid
distillates; and
(E) achieves at least a 50 percent lifecycle
greenhouse gas emissions reduction in comparison with
petroleum-based jet fuel, as determined by a test that
shows--
(i) the fuel production pathway achieves at
least a 50 percent reduction of the aggregate
attributional core lifecycle emissions and the
induced land use change values under a
lifecycle methodology for sustainable aviation
fuels similar to that adopted by the
International Civil Aviation Organization with
the agreement of the United States; or
(ii) the fuel production pathway achieves
at least a 50 percent reduction of the
aggregate attributional core lifecycle
greenhouse gas emissions values and the induced
land-use change values under another
methodology that the Secretary determines is--
(I) reflective of the latest
scientific understanding of lifecycle
greenhouse gas emissions; and
(II) as stringent as the
requirement under clause (i).
SEC. 3. CONTINUOUS LOWER ENERGY, EMISSIONS, AND NOISE PROGRAM.
Section 47511 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding
at the end the following:
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation $100,000,000 for each
of fiscal years 2023 through 2027 to carry out this section. Such sums
shall remain available until expended.''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Aviation.
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