Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 92 Part 3.djvu/747

 PUBLIC LAW 95-621—NOV. 9, 1978

92 STAT. 3379

SEC. 206. EXEMPTIONS. (a)

SMALL EXISTING INDUSTRIAL BOILER F U E L U S E R S. — (1) I N T E R I M EXEMPTION.—During the period preceding the

15 USC 3346.

effective date of any permanent exemption under paragraph (2), the rule required under section 201 shall not apply with respect to any boiler fuel use of natural gas by any industrial boiler fuel facility in existence on the date of the enactment of this Act if such use of natural gas by such facility does not exceed an average of 300 Mcf per day during any month of a base period determined appropriate by the Commission. (2) P E R M A N E N T EXEMPTION.—

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(A) GENERAL RULE.—Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall prescribe and make effective a rule providing for the exemption of any small industrial boiler fuel facility from the rule required under section 201 (including any amendment under section 202 to such rule). (B) DEFINITION. — For purposes of this paragraph, the term "small industrial boiler fuel facility" means any industrial boiler fuel facility in existence on the date of the enactment of this Act that h a d an average per day use of n a t u r a l gas as a boiler fuel during the month of peak use during calendar year 1977 which did not exceed the lesser of— (i) 300 Mcf; or (ii) such average daily rate of use during a month of peak use as the Commission determines in such rulp is necessary to assure that the volume of natural gas estimated by the Commission to have been used for boiler fuel during calendar year 1977 by facilities which are exempted under this paragraph does not exceed 5 percent of the total volume of natural gas estimated by the Commission to have been used for boiler fuel .f transported by interstate pipelines and used during calendar year 1977 as a boiler fuel.

(b) AGRICULTURAL USERS OF NATURAL G A S. — (1) I N T E R I M EXEMPTION.—During the period

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preceding the

effective date of any permanent exemption under paragraph (2), the rule prescribed under section 201 shall not apply to any facility to the extent of any agricultural use of natural gas. (2) EXEMPTION BY RULE.—Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall prescribe and make effective a rule providing for the exemption from the rule required under section 201 (including any amendment under section 202 to such rule) any facility with respect to any agricultural use of natural gas for which the Commission determines that an alternative fuel or feedstock is not— (A) economically practicable; or (B) reasonably available. (3) AGRICULTURAL USE DEFINED.—For purposes of this subsec-

tion, the term "agricultural use", when used with respect to natural gas, means the use of natural gas to the extent such use is— (A) for agricultural production, natural fiber production, natural fiber processing, food processing, food quality maintenance, irrigation pumping, or crop d r y i n g; or (B) as a process fuel or feedstock in the production of fertilizer, agricultural chemicals, animal feed, or food.

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