Sec. 1423. UNITED STATES COMMISSION ON NORTH AMERICAN ENERGY FREEDOM

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## SEC. 1423 UNITED STATES COMMISSION ON NORTH AMERICAN ENERGY FREEDOM ###

(a)Establishment There is hereby established the United States Commission on North American Energy Freedom (in this subtitle referred to as the “Commission”). The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.), except sections 3, 7, and 12, does not apply to the Commission. ###

(b)Membership ####

(1)Appointment The Commission shall be composed of 16 members appointed by the President from among individuals described in paragraph

(2)who are knowledgeable on energy issues, including oil and gas exploration and production, crude oil refining, oil and gas pipelines, electricity production and transmission, coal, unconventional hydrocarbon resources, fuel cells, motor vehicle power systems, nuclear energy, renewable energy, biofuels, energy efficiency, and energy conservation. The membership of the Commission shall be balanced by area of expertise to the extent consistent with maintaining the highest level of expertise on the Commission. Members of the Commission may be citizens of Canada, Mexico, or the United States, and the President shall ensure that citizens of all three nations are appointed to the Commission. ####

(2)Nominations The President shall appoint the members of the Commission within 60 days after the effective date of this Act, including individuals nominated as follows: #####

(A)Four members shall be appointed from amongst individuals independently determined by the President to be qualified for appointment. #####

(B)Four members shall be appointed from a list of eight individuals who shall be nominated by the majority leader of the Senate in consultation with the chairman of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate. #####

(C)Four members shall be appointed from a list of eight individuals who shall be nominated by the Speaker of the House of Representatives in consultation with the chairmen of the Committees on Energy and Commerce and Resources of the House of Representatives. #####

(D)Two members shall be appointed from a list of four individuals who shall be nominated by the minority leader of the Senate in consultation with the ranking Member of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate. #####

(E)Two members shall be appointed from a list of four individuals who shall be nominated by the minority leader of the House in consultation with the ranking Members of the Committees on Energy and Commerce and Resources of the House of Representatives. ####

(3)Chairman The chairman of the Commission shall be selected by the President. The chairman of the Commission shall be responsible for— #####

(A)the assignment of duties and responsibilities among staff personnel and their continuing supervision; and #####

(B)the use and expenditure of funds available to the Commission. ####

(4)Vacancies Any vacancy on the Commission shall be filled in the same manner as the original incumbent was appointed. ###

(c)Resources In carrying out its functions under this section, the Commission— ####

(1)is authorized to secure directly from any Federal agency or department any information it deems necessary to carry out its functions under this Act, and each such agency or department is authorized to cooperate with the Commission and, to the extent permitted by law, to furnish such information (other than information described in section 552(b)(1)(A) of title 5, United States Code) to the Commission, upon the request of the Commission; ####

(2)may enter into contracts, subject to the availability of appropriations for contracting, and employ such staff experts and consultants as may be necessary to carry out the duties of the Commission, as provided by section 3109 of title 5, United States Code; and ####

(3)shall establish a multidisciplinary science and technical advisory panel of experts in the field of energy to assist the Commission in preparing its report, including ensuring that the scientific and technical information considered by the Commission is based on the best scientific and technical information available. ###

(d)Staffing The chairman of the Commission may, without regard to the civil service laws and regulations, appoint and terminate an executive director and such other additional personnel as may be necessary for the Commission to perform its duties. The executive director shall be compensated at a rate not to exceed the rate payable for Level IV of the Executive Schedule under chapter 5136 of title 5, United States Code. The chairman shall select staff from among qualified citizens of Canada, Mexico, and the United States of America. ###

(e)Meetings ####

(1)Administration All meetings of the Commission shall be open to the public, except that a meeting or any portion of it may be closed to the public if it concerns matters or information described in section 552b(c) of title 5, United States Code. Interested persons shall be permitted to appear at open meetings and present oral or written statements on the subject matter of the meeting. The Commission may administer oaths or affirmations to any person appearing before it. ####

(2)Notice; minutes; public availability of documents #####

(A)Notice All open meetings of the Commission shall be preceded by timely public notice in the Federal Register of the time, place, and subject of the meeting. #####

(B)Minutes Minutes of each meeting shall be kept and shall contain a record of the people present, a description of the discussion that occurred, and copies of all statements filed. Subject to section 552 of title 5, United States Code, the minutes and records of all meetings and other documents that were made available to or prepared for the Commission shall be available for public inspection and copying at a single location in the offices of the Commission. ####

(3)Initial meeting The Commission shall hold its first meeting within 30 days after all 16 members have been appointed. ###

(f)Report Within 12 months after the effective date of this Act, the Commission shall submit to Congress and the President a final report of its findings and recommendations regarding North American energy freedom. ###

(g)Administrative Procedure for Report and Review Chapter 5 and chapter 7 of title 5, United States Code, do not apply to the preparation, review, or submission of the report required by subsection (f). ###

(h)Termination The Commission shall cease to exist 90 days after the date on which it submits its final report. ###

(i)Authorization of Appropriations There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this chapter a total of $10,000,000 for the 2 fiscal-year period beginning with fiscal year 2005, such sums to remain available until expended.