Protect Domestic Oil and Gas Small Business Act of 2026

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4619 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4619

   To amend the Clean Air Act to exclude marginal wells from certain
standards of performance and other requirements under that Act, and for
                            other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 21, 2026

  Ms. Lummis (for herself, Mr. Barrasso, Mr. Cramer, Mr. Daines, Mr.
Moran, Mr. Ricketts, and Mr. Lee) introduced the following bill; which
was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public
                                 Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

   To amend the Clean Air Act to exclude marginal wells from certain
standards of performance and other requirements under that Act, 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 ``Protect Domestic Oil and Gas Small
Business Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. EXCLUSION OF MARGINAL WELLS FROM STANDARDS OF PERFORMANCE AND
              OTHER CLEAN AIR ACT REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Exclusions.--Section 111 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411)
is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(k) Exemption for Marginal Wells.--
            ``(1) Definitions.--In this subsection:
                    ``(A) Associated equipment.--The term `associated
                equipment', with respect to an oil or natural gas well
                site, includes any multiphase separator, treater,
                knockout, gun barrel, test vessel, pump, storage
                vessel, compressor, process controller, dehydrator, gas
                shack, meter, heater, methanol pump, natural gas liquid
                loadout or storage vessel, gathering line, flowline,
                dump line, transmission line, water tank, oil tank,
                gunbarrel, or storage tank, or any other equipment used
                in association with that well site.
                    ``(B) Marginal well.--The term `marginal well'
                means an oil or natural gas well site the average daily
                production of which, over the preceding calendar year,
                is--
                            ``(i) in the case of an oil well site--
                                    ``(I) 15 barrels of oil per day per
                                well or less; or
                                    ``(II) 15 barrels of oil equivalent
                                per day per well or less, using a
                                conversion factor of 6,000 cubic feet
                                per barrel of oil equivalent; or
                            ``(ii) in the case of a natural gas well
                        site, 90,000 cubic feet of natural gas per day
                        per well or less.
                    ``(C) Well site.--The term `well site' includes any
                well located at a given site, and associated equipment,
                but does not extend beyond the point of custody
                transfer of natural gas or oil produced from such a
                well.
            ``(2) Exemption.--No standard of performance or guideline
        prescribed by the Administrator under subsection (b) or (d)(2),
        including in any regulation issued by the Administrator under
        either subsection, and no requirement for monitoring,
        reporting, recordkeeping, conducting a fugitive emission
        survey, detecting or repairing leaks, estimating or measuring
        emissions, or any other related requirement prescribed in
        regulations issued by the Administrator under this section
        shall apply with respect to any marginal well or, as
        applicable, the owner or operator of a marginal well.
            ``(3) No requirement in state plans.--The Administrator may
        not require any plan submitted by a State to the Administrator
        under subsection (d)(1) to include a standard of performance
        applicable to marginal wells or, as applicable, owners or
        operators of marginal wells.
            ``(4) Expedited consideration.--
                    ``(A) In general.--If a State makes a revision to a
                plan submitted to the Administrator under subsection
                (d)(1) to make a standard of performance inapplicable
                to marginal wells or, as applicable, owners or
                operators of marginal wells, the Administrator shall,
                not later than 180 days after the date on which the
                revision is submitted, approve, disapprove, approve in
                part, or disapprove in part that revision without
                further review.
                    ``(B) Deemed approval.--If the Administrator fails
                to act on a revision described in subparagraph (A) by
                the end of the 180-day period described in that
                subparagraph, the revision shall be considered
                approved.''.
    (b) Implementation.--
            (1) Conforming revisions.--Not later than 180 days after
        the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the
        Environmental Protection Agency shall revise such regulations
        and guidance as may be necessary to implement subsection (k) of
        section 111 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411) (as added by
        subsection (a)).
            (2) Pending enforcement actions.--Any action to enforce a
        standard of performance or requirement described in subsection
        (k)(2) of section 111 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7411) (as
        added by subsection (a)) with respect to marginal wells that is
        pending on the date of enactment of this Act shall be
        terminated.
                                 <all>