Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 4083 - Energy Conservation Program Extensions

(House)
(Schaefer (R) CO)

The Administration supports House passage of H.R. 4083, which would reauthorize the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) through the end of FY 1997. The Administration will work in the Senate, however, to secure enactment of S. 1605, which the Administration strongly supports and is similar to the Administration's proposal to extend EPCA until September 30, 2001.

The Administration's proposal and the Senate bill would delete redundant, expired, and outdated provisions and bring the 20-year old statute into conformity with the events that have occurred since its enactment. The Administration's proposal and the Senate bill would also:

— clarify the Federal Government's authority to store foreign-owned oil in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve; and

— extend a limited anti-trust defense to U.S. oil companies when they advise the International Energy Agency on a coordinated drawdown of government owned petroleum stocks.