§ 6239 — Development, Operation, And Maintenance Of The Reserve

(a) (f) In order to develop, operate, or maintain the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the Secretary may— (1) issue rules, regulations, or orders; (2) acquire by purchase, condemnation, or otherwise, land or interests in land for the location of storage and related facilities; (3) construct, purchase, lease, or otherwise acquire storage and related facilities; (4) use, lease, maintain, sell or otherwise dispose of land or interests in land, or of storage and related facilities acquired under this part, under such terms and conditions as the Secretary considers necessary or appropriate; (5) acquire, subject to the provisions of section 6240 of this title, by purchase, exchange, or otherwise, petroleum products for storage in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve; (6) store petroleum products in storage facilities owned and controlled by the United States or in storage facilities owned by others if those facilities are subject to audit by the United States; (7) execute any contracts necessary to develop, operate, or maintain the Strategic Petroleum Reserve; (8) bring an action, when the Secretary considers it necessary, in any court having jurisdiction over the proceedings, to acquire by condemnation any real or personal property, including facilities, temporary use of facilities, or other interests in land, together with any personal property located on or used with the land. (g) Before any condemnation proceedings are instituted, an effort shall be made to acquire the property involved by negotiation, unless, the effort to acquire such property by negotiation would, in the judgement of the Secretary be futile or so time-consuming as to unreasonably delay the development of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, because of (1) reasonable doubt as to the identity of the owners, (2) the large number of persons with whom it would be necessary to negotiate, or (3) other reasons. (h) (j) If the Secretary determines expansion beyond 700,000,000 barrels of petroleum product inventory is appropriate, the Secretary shall submit a plan for expansion to the Congress. (k) A storage or related facility of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve owned by or leased to the United States is not subject to the Interstate Commerce Act. (l) During a drawdown and sale of Strategic Petroleum Reserve petroleum products, the Secretary may issue implementing rules, regulations, or orders in accordance with section 553 of title 5, without regard to rulemaking requirements in section 6393 of this title, and section 7191 of this title.