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ceiling prices (or manner for determining such prices). Any amendment submitted to the Congress pursuant to this subsection shall not take effect if either House of Congress disapproves such amendment in accordance with the procedures specified in section 551 of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act.

(4) If any such amendment is disapproved by either House of Congress, the President may not later than 30 days after the date of such disapproval submit one additional amendment in accordance with paragraphs (2) and (3), which amendment shall not take effect if either House of Congress disapproves such amendment in accordance with the procedures specified in section 551 of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act.

(5) If any amendment submitted by the President to the Congress pursuant to this subsection becomes effective, such amendment may thereafter be further amended by the President, subject to the procedures and requirements of paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection, except that no such further amendment shall be submitted earlier than January 1, 1978, and thereafter no earlier than 90 days after the date of any previous submission made under this paragraph. (h) In any judicial review of an amendment required by this section to be submitted to the Congress in accordance with the procedures specified in section 551 of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, the reviewing court may not hold unlawful or set aside any such amendment on the ground that any findings made by the President were not adequate to meet the requirements of this section or of subparagraph (A), (E), or (F) of section 706 (2) of title 5, United States Code.

(i) (1) The first sale price of stripper well crude oil shall be exempt from the regulation promulgated under section 4 of this Act as amended pursuant to the requirements of this section. For the purpose of this section, the President shall include in the computation of the actual weighted average first sale price for crude oil produced in the United States in any month subsequent to August 1976 the actual volume of stripper well crude oil produced in the United States in such subsequent month and such actual volume shall be deemed to have been sold at a first sale price equal to $11.63 per barrel plus the difference between the actual weighted average first sale price in August 1976, for crude oil, other than stripper well crude oil, produced in the United States, and the actual average first sale price in such subsequent month of all classifications of crude oil, other than stripper well crude oil, produced in the United States, weighted as if each such classification were produced in such subsequent month in the same proportion as such classification, or the most nearly comparable classification which existed on August 1, 1976, was produced in August 1976.

(2) For the purposes of this subsection, "stripper well crude oil" means crude oil produced and sold from a property whose maximum average daily production of crude oil per well during any consecutive 12-month period beginning after December 31, 1972, does not exceed 10 barrels.

(3) To qualify for the exemption under this subsection, a property must be producing crude oil at the maximum feasible rate through

out the 12-month qualifying period and in accordance with recognized conservation practices.

(4) The President may define terms used in this subsection consistent with the purposes thereof.

(j) (1) As soon as practicable after the date of enactment of this subsection, taking into consideration the greater flexibility provided by the amendments relating to the production incentive adjustment under section 122 of the Energy Conservation and Production Act, the President shall promulgate such amendments to the regulation under section 4(a) (relating to price) as shall (A) provide additional price incentives for bona fide tertiary enhanced recovery techniques and (B) provide for the adjustment of differentials in ceiling prices for crude oil that are the result of gravity differentials which are arbitrary, discriminatory, applied on a regional or local basis without reasonable justification, or fail substantially to reflect current relative market valuations of such differentials.

(2) As used in this subsection, the term "teritary enhanced recovery techniques" means extraordinary and high cost enhancement technologies of a type associated with tertiary applications including, to the extent that such techniques would be uneconomical without additional price incentives, miscible fluid or gas injection, chemical flooding, steam flooding, microemulsion flooding, in situ combustion, cyclic steam injection, polymer flooding, and caustic flooding and variations of the same. The President shall have authority to further define the term by rule.

PASSTHROUGHS OF PRICE DECREASES

SEC. 9. Not later than the first day of the second full calendar month following the date of enactment of this section, the regulation under section 4(a) shall provide for a dollar-for-dollar passthrough in prices at all levels of distribution from the producer through the retail level of decreases in the costs of crude oil, residual fuel oil, and refined petroleum products (including decreases in costs which result from a reduction in the price of crude oil produced in the United States because of the amendment to such regulation required under section 8 (a)).

LIMITATIONS ON PRICING AUTHORITY

SEC. 10. The President shall have no authority, under this Act, or under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, to prescribe minimum prices for crude oil (or any classification thereof), residual fuel oil, or any refined petroleum product.

REEVALUATION OF SECTION 4(a) REGULATION

SEC. 11. (a) Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this section, the President shall give appropriate notice and afford interested persons an opportunity to present written and oral data, views, and arguments respecting the appropriateness of, or the continuing need for, the application of any provision of the regulation promulgated under section 4 (a) as such provision relates to the attainment of the objectives specified in section 4(b)(1) of section 4. A

transcript shall be kept of any such oral presentations of data, views, and argument.

(b) The President shall, after consideration of such written and oral presentations and such other information as may be available to him

(1) analyze such presentations and report thereon to the Congress within 120 days after the date of enactment of this section; and

(2) shall promulgate, pursuant to the limitations and authority under section 12, such amendment, or amendments, to the regulation promulgated under section 4(a) as he determines are necessary or appropriate

(A) to modify any provisions of such regulation in a manner which is consistent with the attainment, to the maximum extent practicable, of objectives specified in section 4(b) (1);

or

(B) to eliminate any provisions of such regulation no longer necessary to provide for the attainment of such objectives.

CONVERSION MECHANISM TO STANDBY AUTHORITIES

SEC. 12. (a) The President may not amend the regulation under section 4 (a) in any manner which

(1) exempts crude oil produced in the United States from any provision of such regulation required to be made a part of such regulation by section 8; or

(2) results in making such regulation, as so amended, inconsistent with any limitation or other requirement specified in section 8.

(b) Except as provided in subsection (a), the President may amend the regulation under section 4(a) if he determines that such amendment is consistent with the attainment, to the maximum extent practicable, of the objectives specified in section 4(b)(1) and that the regulation, as amended, provides for the attainment, to the maximum extent practicable, of such objectives.

(c) (1) Any such amendment which, with respect to a class of persons or class of transactions (including transactions with respect to any market level), exempts crude oil, residual fuel oil, or any refined petroleum product or refined product category from the provisions of the regulation under section 4(a) as such provisions pertain to either (A) the allocation of amounts of any such oil or product, or (B) the specification of price or the manner for determining the price of any such oil or product, or both of the matters described in subparagraphs (A) and (B), may take effect only pursuant to the provisions of this subsection.

(2) The President shall submit any amendment referred to in paragraph (1) to the Congress in accordance with the procedures specified in section 551 of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act. Any such amendment shall be accompanied by a specific statement of the President's rationale for such amendment and the matter described in subsection (d) of this section. Such an amendment

(A) may apply only to one oil or one refined product category; (B) may apply to the matters specified in either subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (1) of this subsection, or both; and (C) may provide for scheduled or phased implementation. (3) As used in this section the term "refined product category"

means

(A) motor gasoline;

(B) Number 2 oils (Number 2 heating oil and Number 2-D diesel fuel);

(C) propane; or

(D) all or any portion of other refined petroleum products as a class (including natural gas liquids and natural gas liquid products, other than propane).

(4) Such an amendment shall not take effect if either House of Congress disapproves such amendment in accordance with the procedures specified in section 551 of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act.

(d) (1) The President shall support any amendment described in subsection (b) which is transmitted to the Congress under subsection (c) of this section with a finding that such amendment is consistent with the attainment of the objectives specified in subsection 4(b) (1) and in the case of

(A) any exemption described in subsection (c) (1) (A), with a finding that such oil or refined product category is no longer in short supply and that exempting such oil or refined product category will not have an adverse impact on the supply of any other oil or refined petroleum product subject to this Act; and

(B) any exemption described in subsection (c) (1) (B), with a finding that competition and market forces are adequate to protect consumers and that exempting such oil or refined product category will not result in inequitable prices for any class of users of such oil or product.

(2) Any amendment which the President submits to the Congress under subsection (c) of this section shall be accompanied

(A) by a statement of the President's views as to the potential economic impacts (if any) of such amendment which, where practicable, shall include his views as to

(i) the State and regional impacts of such amendment (including effects on governmental units);

(ii) the effects of such amendment on the availability of consumer goods and services; the gross national product; competition; small business; and the supply and availability of energy resources for use as fuel or as feedstock for industry; and

(iii) the effects on employment and consumer prices; and (B) in the case of an exemption described in subsection (c) (1) (B) of this section, by an analysis of the effects of such amendment on the rate of unemployment for the United States, the Consumer Price Index for the United States, and the implicit price deflator for the gross national product.

(e) In any judicial review of an amendment required by this section to be submitted to Congress in accordance with the procedures

specified in section 551 of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, the reviewing court may not hold unlawful or set aside any such amendment on the ground that any findings made by the President were not adequate to meet the requirements of subsection (c), (d), or (g) of this section or subparagraph (A), (E), or (F), of section 706 (2) of title 5, United States Code.

(f) With respect to any oil or refined product category which is exempted pursuant to the provisions of this section, the President shall have authority at any time thereafter to prescribe a regulation or issue an order respecting either the allocation of amounts, or the specification of price or the manner for determining the price, of any such oil or refined product category upon a determination by him that such regulation or order is necessary to attain, and is consistent with, the objectives specified in section 4(b)(1). Any such oil or refined product category for which allocation or price requirements are reimposed under authority of this subsection may subsequently be exempted without regard to the provisions of subsection (c) of this section.

(g) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (e) of section 4, the President may, if he determines that the exemption from payments for certain small refiners required by such subsection

(1) results in unfair economic or competitive advantage with respect to other small refiners; or

(2) otherwise has the effect of seriously impairing the President's ability to provide in the regulation under section 4(a) for the attainment of the objective specified in section 4(b) (1) (D) and for the attainment of those other objectives specified in section 4(b) (1);

submit, in accordance with the procedures specified in section 551 of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, an amendment to modify the regulation under section 4(a) with respect to the provisions of such regulation as they relate to such exemption. Such amendment shall not take effect if disapproved by either House of Congress under the procedures specified in such section 551.

TECHNICAL PURCHASE AUTHORITY

SEC. 13. (a) The President may, by amendment to the regulation under section 4 (a) of this Act, provide for and implement a procedure pursuant to which the United States may exercise the exclusive right to import and purchase all or any part of the crude oil, residual fuel oil, and refined petroleum products of foreign origin for resale in the United States.

(b) The authorities granted under this section shall not be used for the purpose, or with the effect, of providing a subsidy or preference to any importer, purchaser, or user.

(c) In exercising any authorities granted under this section, the President shall endeavor to buy and sell without profit or loss, except that the President may, in individual cases, sell, on a competitive bid basis, crude oil, residual fuel oil, or any refined petroleum product at a price above or below the cost of such oil or product if, in the judgment of the President, such sales may result in progress toward a lower price for oil sold in international commerce.

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