§ 6404. — Propane Education and Research Council.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 15USC6404]
TITLE 15--COMMERCE AND TRADE
CHAPTER 90--PROPANE EDUCATION AND RESEARCH
Sec. 6404. Propane Education and Research Council
(a) Selection of members
The qualified industry organizations shall select all retail
marketer, public, and producer members of the Council. The producer
organizations shall select the producer members of the Council, the
retail marketer organizations shall select retail marketer members, and
all qualified industry organizations shall jointly select the public
members. Vacancies in unfinished terms of Council members shall be
filled in the same manner as were the original appointments.
(b) Representation
In selecting members of the Council, the qualified industry
organizations shall give due regard to selecting a Council that is
representative of the industry, including representation of--
(1) gas processors and oil refiners among producers;
(2) interstate and intrastate operators among retail marketers;
(3) large and small companies among producers and retail
marketers, including agricultural cooperatives; and
(4) diverse geographic regions of the country.
(c) Membership
The Council shall consist of 21 members, with 9 members representing
retail marketers, 9 members representing producers, and 3 public
members. Other than the public members, Council members shall be full-
time employees or owners of businesses in the industry or
representatives of agricultural cooperatives. No employee of a qualified
industry organization or other industry trade association shall serve as
a member of the Council, and no member of the Council may serve
concurrently as an officer of the Board of Directors of a qualified
industry organization or other industry trade association. Only one
person at a time from any company or its affiliate may serve on the
Council.
(d) Compensation
Council members shall receive no compensation for their services,
nor shall Council members be reimbursed for expenses relating to their
service, except that public members, upon request, may be reimbursed for
reasonable expenses directly related to their participation in Council
meetings.
(e) Terms
Council members shall serve terms of 3 years and may serve not more
than 2 full consecutive terms. Members filling unexpired terms may serve
not more than a total of 7 consecutive years. Former members of the
Council may be returned to the Council if they have not been members for
a period of 2 years. Initial appointments to the Council shall be for
terms of 1, 2, and 3 years, staggered to provide for the selection of 7
members each year.
(f) Functions
The Council shall develop programs and projects and enter into
contracts or agreements for implementing this chapter, including
programs to enhance consumer and employee safety and training, to
provide for research and development of clean and efficient propane
utilization equipment, to inform and educate the public about safety and
other issues associated with the use of propane, and to provide for the
payment of the costs thereof with funds collected pursuant to this
chapter. The Council shall coordinate its activities with industry trade
association and others as appropriate to provide efficient delivery of
services and to avoid unnecessary duplication of activities.
(g) Use of funds
Not less than 5 percent of the funds collected through assessments
pursuant to this chapter shall be used for programs and projects
intended to benefit the agriculture industry in the United States. The
Council shall coordinate its activities in this regard with agriculture
industry trade associations and other organizations representing the
agriculture industry. The percentage of funds collected through
assessments pursuant to this chapter to be used for projects relating to
the use of propane as an over-the-road motor fuel shall not exceed the
percentage of the total market for odorized propane that is used as a
motor vehicle fuel, based on the historical average of such use over the
previous 3-year period.
(h) Priorities
Issues related to research and development, safety, education, and
training shall be given priority by the Council in the development of
its programs and projects.
(i) Administration
The Council shall select from among its members a Chairman and other
officers as necessary, may establish committees and subcommittees of the
Council, and shall adopt rules and bylaws for the conduct of business
and the implementation of this chapter. The Council shall establish
procedures for the solicitation of industry comment and recommendations
on any significant plans, programs, and projects to be funded by the
Council. The Council may establish advisory committees of persons other
than Council members.
(j) Administrative expenses
(1) The administrative expenses of operating the Council (not
including costs incurred in the collection of the assessment pursuant to
section 6406 of this title) plus amounts paid under paragraph (2) shall
not exceed 10 percent of the funds collected in any fiscal year.
(2) The Council shall annually reimburse the Secretary for costs
incurred by the Federal Government relating to the Council, except that
such reimbursement for any fiscal year shall not exceed the amount that
the Secretary determines is the average annual salary of two employees
of the Department of Energy.
(k) Budget
Before August 1 each year, the Council shall publish for public
review and comment a budget plan for the next calendar year, including
the probable costs of all programs, projects, and contracts and a
recommended rate of assessment sufficient to cover such costs. Following
this review and comment, the Council shall submit the proposed budget to
the Secretary and to the Congress. The Secretary may recommend programs
and activities the Secretary considers appropriate.
(l) Records; audits
The Council shall keep minutes, books, and records that clearly
reflect all of the acts and transactions of the Council and make public
such information. The books of the Council shall be audited by a
certified public accountant at least once each fiscal year and at such
other times as the Council may designate. Copies of such audit shall be
provided to all members of the Council, all qualified industry
organizations, and to other members of the industry upon request. The
Secretary shall receive notice of meetings and may require reports on
the activities of the Council, as well as reports on compliance,
violations, and complaints regarding the implementation of this chapter.
(m) Public access to Council proceedings
(1) All meetings of the Council shall be open to the public after at
least 30 days advance public notice.
(2) The minutes of all meetings of the Council shall be made
available to and readily accessible by the public.
(n) Annual report
Each year the Council shall prepare and make publicly available a
report which includes an identification and description of all programs
and projects undertaken by the Council during the previous year as well
as those planned for the coming year. Such report shall also detail the
allocation or planned allocation of Council resources for each such
program and project.
(Pub. L. 104-284, Sec. 5, Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3371.)
