[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4711 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 4711
To provide that the delivery vehicle fleet of the United States Postal
Service be replaced by electric motor vehicles.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 26, 2010
Mr. Connolly of Virginia (for himself and Ms. Norton) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide that the delivery vehicle fleet of the United States Postal
Service be replaced by electric motor vehicles.
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 ``Postal Service Electric Motor
Vehicle Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) Postal Service delivery vehicles which operate using
gasoline have an average fuel economy of 8 to 12 miles per
gallon;
(2) the Inspector General of the United States Postal
Service recently estimated that, for each delivery vehicle
converted from gasoline to electric, the Postal Service would
save approximately $1,500 in fuel costs each year;
(3) 97 percent of Postal Service delivery routes are less
than 40 miles long; and
(4) it is in the national interest to reduce American
dependence on foreign oil and to support domestic automobile
manufacturing.
SEC. 3. REQUIREMENTS.
(a) In General.--The Postmaster General shall--
(1) during each year in the 5-year period beginning on the
date of enactment of this Act, replace at least 10 percent of
the gasoline-powered motor vehicles in the Postal fleet with
electric motor vehicles;
(2) take such measures as may be necessary to ensure that,
by the end of the 5-year period described in paragraph (1), at
least 75 percent of the Postal fleet is comprised of electric
motor vehicles; and
(3) carry out the preceding provisions of this subsection,
in coordination with local electric distribution companies, in
a manner consistent with the goals of--
(A) maintaining electric grid reliability; and
(B) minimizing charging costs of electric motor
vehicles in the Postal fleet.
(b) Buy American.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
electric motor vehicles acquired to carry out this Act shall be
electric motor vehicles manufactured in the United States. The
Postmaster General shall ensure that manufacturers of electric motor
vehicles so acquired solicit competitive bids for electric drive
components and storage devices from domestic manufacturers that
participate in the Department of Energy's Electric Drive Vehicle
Battery and Component Manufacturing Initiative (or successor program,
as determined by the Postmaster General in consultation with the
Secretary of Energy).
(c) Oversight.--Not later than 30 days after the end of each fiscal
year, the Postal Service shall submit to the Postal Regulatory
Commission a report that includes a detailed accounting of the
expenditures made, savings realized, and revenues received by the
Postal Service pursuant to this section. Within 90 days after receiving
a report under the preceding sentence, the Postal Regulatory Commission
shall submit to Congress a copy of such report, together with any
findings and recommendations which the Commission considers
appropriate. In addition to any information otherwise required, each
report under this subsection shall include--
(1) an assessment of how replacing gasoline-powered motor
vehicles with electric motor vehicles meets goals or objectives
established by the Postal Service for the replacement of the
Postal fleet; and
(2) the economic and environmental impact which the actions
taken by the Postal Service under subsection (a) have had,
including with respect to--
(A) projected per vehicle operating costs per mile;
(B) projected revenues from vehicle-to-grid and
other grid-related services; and
(C) emissions reduction and other environmental
benefits.
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act--
(1) the term ``motor vehicle'' means any self-propelled
vehicle designed for transporting persons or property on a
street or highway;
(2) the term ``electric motor vehicle'' means a motor
vehicle powered solely by an electric motor that draws current
from rechargeable storage batteries, fuel cells, photovoltaic
arrays, or other sources of electric current;
(3) the term ``Postal fleet'' means that portion of the
Federal fleet (within the meaning of section 303(b) of the
Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13212(b)) which is owned,
operated, leased, or otherwise controlled by or assigned to the
Postal Service and used primarily in the delivery of mail;
(4) the term ``Postal Service'' means the United States
Postal Service; and
(5) the term ``United States'', as used in a geographical
sense, includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American
Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and
any other Commonwealth, territory, or possession of the United
States.
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