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HR 4829 97th Congress House

Acid Deposition Control Act

Official title: A bill to amend the Clean Air Act to better protect against interstate transport of pollutants, to control existing and new sources of acid deposition, and for other purposes.

Introduced: July 22, 1982 See on congress.gov
Environmental Protection Acid precipitation (Meteorology)Air pollution controlElectric power productionEnergy
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Energy facilitiesFederal-state relationsPublic utilitiesStandardsStates
This bill died when the 97th Congress ended
It never became law before the 97th Congress (1981–1982) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Nov 20, 1981
Referred to Subcommittee on Health and the Environment.
Oct 22, 1981
Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Oct 22, 1981
Introduced in House
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 Latest action November 20, 1981

Referred to Subcommittee on Health and the Environment.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Acid Deposition Control Act - Amends title I (Air Pollution Prevention and Control) of the Clean Air Act to establish a new program entitled "Interstate Transport and Acid Precursor Reduction."

Establishes an "acid deposition region" consisting of 31 States (east of or bordering the Mississippi River) and the District of Columbia.

Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to: (1) study air pollution problems associated with long-range transport of pollutants in the portions of the continental United States not included in the acid deposition region; and (2) report the results to Congress within two years.

Establishes an acid deposition regional target providing for a ten-year phased schedule of reductions to achieve an annual average emission level that is 10,000,000 tons of sulfur dioxide below the 1980 baseline level.

Directs the Administrator, within six months, to compute and publish a target and a schedule for each affected State. Permits two or more States to agree to change their share of the sulfur dioxide emissions reduction ("reduction").

Requires that State reduction schedules begin within five years, be substantially complete within eight years, and reach the State target within ten years of enactment of this Act. Sets forth formulas for: (1) State reduction fractions (based on 1980 emissions from electric utility steam generating units); and (2) the 1980 baseline level for the region or any State within the region.

Requires States within the region to prepare, publish, and submit to the Administrator, within two years of enactment of this Act, State programs of reduction in accordance with the State schedules. Directs the Administrator to approve State programs, within four months of submission, if such programs: (1) were adopted after public notice, opportunity for hearing, and submission to Governors of the other States in the region; and (2) contain enforceable reduction measures, including emission limitations, monitoring requirements, and compliance schedules. Requires State programs to include enforceable continuous emission reduction measures. Lists some measures that State programs may include. Permits a State or any person subject to State program requirements to substitute a reduction of twice as many units of oxides of nitrogen emissions for each unit of required reductions of sulfur dioxide emissions.

Provides for an EPA alternative program if a State program: (1) has not been adopted by a State within two years; or (2) has not been approved by the Administrator within two years and four months.

Requires, in such cases, that any owner or operator of an electric utility steam generating unit in such State submit, within three years of enactment of this Act, a unit plan and schedule for reductions. Requires unit plans and schedules only from units which: (1) are major stationary sources; (2) are not subject to new source performance standards; and (3) actually emitted, or were permitted to emit, sulfur dioxide during 1980 in excess of a specified rate. Requires that unit plans and schedules provide for a reduction to a specified rate of emissions, according to a phased schedule (beginning within five years, substantially complete within eight years, and finally complete within ten years of the enactment of this Act). Sets forth provisions for approval of unit plans and schedules. Provides that any unit for which a plan has not been submitted and approved must comply with the specified emission limitation within five years of the enactment of this Act.

Directs the Administrator to establish a program of purchase and sale of emission reduction credits among stationary sources of sulfur dioxide in five emission reduction credit regions within the acid deposition region.

Provides that specified requirements under this Act shall be treated as emission limitation requirements of applicable State implementation plans.

Sets forth procedures for petitions for determination that programs or plans will not meet deadlines and for petitions for review of such determinations or denials.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
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APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 4829: Acid Deposition Control Act. 97th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/97-HR-4829/
MLA
"H.R. 4829: Acid Deposition Control Act." 97th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/97-HR-4829/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 4829, 97th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/97-HR-4829/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 4829: Acid Deposition Control Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/97-HR-4829/)
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