TITLE 50 - US CODE - CHAPTER 10 - HELIUM GAS

161 to 164. Omitted

50 USC 165 - Repealed. Aug. 26, 1954, ch. 937, title V, 542(a)(13), 68 Stat. 861

Section, acts Mar. 3, 1925, ch. 426, 4, 43 Stat. 1111; Mar. 3, 1927, ch. 355, 44 Stat. 1388; Sept. 1, 1937, ch. 895, 50 Stat. 887, related to exportation of helium gas. See section 2778 of Title 22, Foreign Relations and Intercourse.

50 USC 166 - Omitted

Section, acts Mar. 3, 1925, ch. 426, 5, 43 Stat. 1111; Mar. 3, 1927, ch. 355, 44 Stat. 1388; Sept. 1, 1937, ch. 895, 50 Stat. 887; July 26, 1947, ch. 343, title II, 205(a), 61 Stat. 501, authorized Secretaries of Army and Navy to designate representatives to cooperate with Department of the Interior to effectuate the purposes of this chapter, and gave them the right of access to plants, data, and accounts. See section 7 of act Mar. 3, 1925, as amended by Pub. L. 86–777, which is classified to section 167e of this title.

50 USC 167 - Definitions

As used in this chapter:
(1) The term Secretary means the Secretary of the Interior;
(2) The term person means any individual, corporation, partnership, firm, association, trust, estate, public or private institution, or State or political subdivision thereof; and
(3) The terms helium-bearing natural gas and helium-gas mixture mean, respectively, natural gas and gas mixtures containing three-tenths of 1 per centum or more of helium by volume.

50 USC 167a - Authority of Secretary

(a) Extraction and disposal of helium on Federal lands 

(1) In general 
The Secretary may enter into agreements with private parties for the recovery and disposal of helium on Federal lands upon such terms and conditions as the Secretary deems fair, reasonable, and necessary.
(2) Leasehold rights 
The Secretary may grant leasehold rights to any such helium.
(3) Limitation 
The Secretary may not enter into any agreement by which the Secretary sells such helium other than to a private party with whom the Secretary has an agreement for recovery and disposal of helium.
(4) Regulations 
Agreements under paragraph (1) may be subject to such regulations as may be prescribed by the Secretary.
(5) Existing rights 
An agreement under paragraph (1) shall be subject to any rights of any affected Federal oil and gas lessee that may be in existence prior to the date of the agreement.
(6) Terms and conditions 
An agreement under paragraph (1) (and any extension or renewal of an agreement) shall contain such terms and conditions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.
(7) Prior agreements 
This subsection shall not in any manner affect or diminish the rights and obligations of the Secretary and private parties under agreements to dispose of helium produced from Federal lands in existence on October 9, 1996, except to the extent that such agreements are renewed or extended after October 9, 1996.
(b) Storage, transportation, and sale 
The Secretary may store, transport, and sell helium only in accordance with this chapter.

50 USC 167b - Storage, transportation, and withdrawal of crude helium

(a) Storage, transportation, and withdrawal 
The Secretary may store, transport, and withdraw crude helium and maintain and operate crude helium storage facilities, in existence on October 9, 1996, at the Bureau of Mines Cliffside Field, and related helium transportation and withdrawal facilities.
(b) Cessation of production, refining, and marketing 
Not later than 18 months after October 9, 1996, the Secretary shall cease producing, refining, and marketing refined helium and shall cease carrying out all other activities relating to helium which the Secretary was authorized to carry out under this chapter before October 9, 1996, except activities described in subsection (a) of this section.
(c) Disposal of facilities 

(1) In general 
Subject to paragraph (5), not later than 24 months after the cessation of activities referred to in subsection (b) of this section, the Secretary shall designate as excess property and dispose of all facilities, equipment, and other real and personal property, and all interests therein, held by the United States for the purpose of producing, refining and marketing refined helium.
(2) Applicable law 
The disposal of such property shall be in accordance with the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949.[1]
(3) Proceeds 
All proceeds accruing to the United States by reason of the sale or other disposal of such property shall be treated as moneys received under this chapter for purposes of section 167d (f) of this title.
(4) Costs 
All costs associated with such sale and disposal (including costs associated with termination of personnel) and with the cessation of activities under subsection (b) of this section shall be paid from amounts available in the helium production fund established under section 167d (f) of this title.
(5) Exception 
Paragraph (1) shall not apply to any facilities, equipment, or other real or personal property, or any interest therein, necessary for the storage, transportation, and withdrawal of crude helium or any equipment, facilities, or other real or personal property, required to maintain the purity, quality control, and quality assurance of crude helium in the Bureau of Mines Cliffside Field.
(d) Existing contracts 

(1) In general 
All contracts that were entered into by any person with the Secretary for the purchase by the person from the Secretary of refined helium and that are in effect on October 9, 1996, shall remain in force and effect until the date on which the refining operations cease, as described in subsection (b) of this section.
(2) Costs 
Any costs associated with the termination of contracts described in paragraph (1) shall be paid from the helium production fund established under section 167d (f) of this title.
[1] See References in Text note below.

50 USC 167c - Fees for storage, transportation, and withdrawal

(a) In general 
Whenever the Secretary provides helium storage withdrawal or transportation services to any person, the Secretary shall impose a fee on the person to reimburse the Secretary for the full costs of providing such storage, transportation, and withdrawal.
(b) Treatment 
All fees received by the Secretary under subsection (a) of this section shall be treated as moneys received under this chapter for purposes of section 167d (f) of this title.

50 USC 167d - Sale of helium

(a) Purchase by Government agencies 
The Department of Defense, the Atomic Energy Commission, and other agencies of the Federal Government, to the extent that supplies are readily available, shall purchase all major requirements of helium from persons who have entered into enforceable contracts to purchase an equivalent amount of crude helium from the Secretary.
(b) Sales by Secretary 
The Secretary is authorized to sell crude helium for Federal, medical, scientific, and commercial uses in such quantities and under such terms and conditions as he determines. Except as may be required by reason of subsection (a) of this section, sales of crude helium under this section shall be in amounts as the Secretary determines, in consultation with the helium industry, necessary to carry out this subsection with minimum market disruption.
(c) Prices and determinations; repayable amounts 
Sales of crude helium by the Secretary shall be at prices established by him which shall be adequate to cover all costs incurred in carrying out the provisions of this chapter and to repay to the United States by deposit in the Treasury, all funds required to be repaid to the United States as of October 1, 1995 under this section (referred to in this subsection as repayable amounts). The price at which crude helium is sold by the Secretary shall not be less than the amount determined by the Secretary by
(1) dividing the outstanding amount of such repayable amounts by the volume (in million cubic feet) of crude helium owned by the United States and stored in the Bureau of Mines Cliffside Field at the time of the sale concerned, and
(2) adjusting the amount determined under paragraph (1) by the Consumer Price Index for years beginning after December 31, 1995.
(d) Extraction of helium from deposits on Federal lands 
All moneys received by the Secretary from the sale or disposition of helium on Federal lands shall be paid to the Treasury and credited against the amounts required to be repaid to the Treasury under subsection (c) of this section.
(e) Helium production fund 

(1) All moneys received under this chapter, including moneys from sale of helium or other products resulting from helium operations and from the sale of excess property shall be credited to the helium production fund, which shall be available without fiscal year limitation, for carrying out the provisions of this chapter, including any research relating to helium carried out by the Department of the Interior. Amounts accumulating in said fund in excess of amounts the Secretary deems necessary to carry out this chapter and contracts negotiated hereunder shall be paid to the Treasury and credited against the amounts required to be repaid to the Treasury under subsection (c) of this section.
(2) 
(A) Within 7 days after the commencement of each fiscal year after the disposal of the facilities referred to in section 167b (c) of this title, all amounts in such fund in excess of $2,000,000 (or such lesser sum as the Secretary deems necessary to carry out this chapter during such fiscal year) shall be paid to the Treasury and credited as provided in paragraph (1).
(B) On repayment of all amounts referred to in subsection (c) of this section, the fund established under this section shall be terminated and all moneys received under this chapter shall be deposited in the general fund of the Treasury.

50 USC 167e - Intragovernmental cooperation

The Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission may each designate representatives to cooperate with the Secretary in carrying out the purposes of this chapter, and shall have complete right of access to plants, data, and accounts.

50 USC 167f - Elimination of stockpile

(a) Stockpile sales 

(1) Commencement 
Not later than January 1, 2005, the Secretary shall commence offering for sale crude helium from helium reserves owned by the United States in such amounts as would be necessary to dispose of all such helium reserves in excess of 600,000,000 cubic feet on a straight-line basis between such date and January 1, 2015.
(2) Times of sale 
The sales shall be at such times during each year and in such lots as the Secretary determines, in consultation with the helium industry, to be necessary to carry out this subsection with minimum market disruption.
(3) Price 
The price for all sales under paragraph (1), as determined by the Secretary in consultation with the helium industry, shall be such price as will ensure repayment of the amounts required to be repaid to the Treasury under section 167d (c) of this title.
(b) Discovery of additional reserves 
The discovery of additional helium reserves shall not affect the duty of the Secretary to make sales of helium under subsection (a) of this section.

50 USC 167g - Promulgation of rules and regulations

The Secretary is authorized to establish and promulgate such rules and regulations, as are consistent with the directions of this chapter and are necessary to carry out the provisions hereof.

50 USC 167h - Administrative procedure

(a) The provisions of subchapter II of chapter 5 of title 5 shall apply to any agency proceeding and any agency action taken under this chapter, including the issuance of rules and regulations, and the terms agency proceeding and agency action shall have the meaning specified in subchapter II of chapter 5 of title 5.
(b) In any proceeding under this chapter for the granting, suspending, revoking, or amending of any license, or application to transfer control thereof, and in any proceeding for the issuance or modification of rules and regulations dealing with the activities of licensees, the Secretary shall grant a hearing upon the request of any person whose interest may be affected by the proceeding, and shall admit any such person as a party to such proceeding. Any final order entered in any such proceeding shall be subject to judicial review in the manner prescribed in chapter 158 of title 28, and to the provisions of chapter 7 of title 5.

50 USC 167i - Exclusion from Natural Gas Act provisions

The provisions of the Natural Gas Act of June 21, 1938, as amended [15 U.S.C. 717 et seq.], shall not be applicable to the sale, extraction, processing, transportation, or storage of helium either prior to or subsequent to the separation of such helium from the natural gas with which it is commingled, whether or not the provisions of such Act apply to such natural gas, and in determining the rates of a natural gas company under sections 4 and 5 of the Natural Gas Act, as amended [15 U.S.C. 717c, 717d], whenever helium is extracted from helium-bearing natural gas, there shall be excluded
(1)  all income received from the sale of helium;
(2)  all direct costs incurred in the extraction, processing, compression, transportation or storage of helium; and
(3)  that portion of joint costs of exploration, production, gathering, extraction, processing, compression, transportation or storage divided and allocated to helium on a volumetric basis.

50 USC 167j - Land conveyance in Potter County, Texas

(a) In general 
The Secretary of the Interior shall transfer all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the parcel of land described in subsection (b) of this section to the Texas Plains Girl Scout Council for consideration of $1, reserving to the United States such easements as may be necessary for pipeline rights-of-way.
(b) Land description 
The parcel of land referred to in subsection (a) of this section is all those certain lots, tracts or parcels of land lying and being situated in the County of Potter and State of Texas, and being the East Three Hundred Thirty-One (E331) acres out of Section Seventy-eight (78) in Block Nine (9), B.S. & F. Survey, (some times known as the G.D. Landis pasture) Potter County, Texas, located by certificate No. 1/39 and evidenced by letters patents Nos. 411 and 412 issued by the State of Texas under date of November 23, 1937, and of record in Vol. 66A of the Patent Records of the State of Texas. The metes and bounds description of such lands is as follows:
(1) First tract 
One Hundred Seventy-one (171) acres of land known as the North part of the East part of said survey Seventy-eight (78) aforesaid, described by metes and bounds as follows: Beginning at a stone 20 x 12 x 3 inches marked X, set by W.D. Twichell in 1905, for the Northeast corner of this survey and the Northwest corner of Section 59; Thence, South 0 degrees 12 minutes East with the West line of said Section 59, 999.4 varas to the Northeast corner of the South 160 acres of East half of Section 78; Thence, North 89 degrees 47 minutes West with the North line of the South 150 acres of the East half, 956.8 varas to a point in the East line of the West half Section 78; Thence, North 0 degrees 10 minutes West with the East line of the West half 999.4 varas to a stone 18 x 14 x 3 inches in the middle of the South line of Section 79; Thence, South 89 degrees 47 minutes East 965 varas to the place of beginning.
(2) Second tract 
One Hundred Sixty (160) acres of land known as the South part of the East part of said survey No. Seventy-eight (78) described by metes and bounds as follows: Beginning at the Southwest corner of Section 59, a stone marked X and a pile of stones; Thence, North 89 degrees 47 minutes West with the North line of Section 77, 966.5 varas to the Southeast corner of the West half of Section 78; Thence, North 0 degrees 10 minutes West with the East line of the West half of Section 78; Thence, South 89 degrees 47 minutes East 965.8 varas to a point in the East line of Section 78; Thence, South 0 degrees 12 minutes East 934.6 varas to the place of beginning. Containing an area of 331 acres, more or less.

50 USC 167k - Violations; penalties

Whoever willfully violates, attempts to violate, or conspires to violate, any provision of this chapter or any regulation or order issued or any terms of a license granted thereunder shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine of not more than $5,000 or by imprisonment for not more than two years, or both, except that whoever commits such an offense with intent to injure the United States or with intent to secure an advantage to any foreign nation, shall upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine of not more than $20,000 or by imprisonment for not more than twenty years, or both.

50 USC 167l - Injunctions

Whenever in the judgment of the Secretary any person has engaged or is about to engage in any act or practice which constitutes or will constitute a violation of any provision of this chapter, or any regulation or order issued or any term of a license granted thereunder, any such act or practice may be enjoined by any district court having jurisdiction of such person, and proper proceedings to this end may be instituted under the direction of the Attorney General of the United States.

50 USC 167m - Report on helium

(a) NAS study and report 
Not later than three years before the date on which the Secretary commences offering for sale crude helium under section 167f of this title, the Secretary shall enter into appropriate arrangements with the National Academy of Sciences to study and report on whether such disposal of helium reserves will have a substantial adverse effect on United States scientific, technical, biomedical, or national security interests.
(b) Transmission to Congress 
Not later than 18 months before the date on which the Secretary commences offering for sale crude helium under section 167f of this title, the Secretary shall transmit to the Congress
(1) the report of the National Academy under subsection (a) of this section;
(2) the findings of the Secretary, after consideration of the conclusions of the National Academy under subsection (a) of this section and after consultation with the United States helium industry and with heads of affected Federal agencies, as to whether the disposal of the helium reserve under section 167f of this title will have a substantial adverse effect on the United States helium industry, United States,[1] helium market or United States,[1] scientific, technological, biomedical, or national security interests; and
(3) if the Secretary determines that selling the crude helium reserves under the formula established in section 167f of this title will have a substantial adverse effect on the United States helium industry, the United States helium market or United States scientific, technological, biomedical, or national security interest, the Secretary shall make recommendations, including recommendations for proposed legislation, as may be necessary to avoid such adverse effects.
[1] So in original. The comma probably should not appear.

50 USC 167n - Repealed. Pub. L. 105362, title IX, 901(q), Nov. 10, 1998, 112 Stat. 3291

Section, act Mar. 3, 1925, ch. 426, 16, as added Pub. L. 86–777, § 2, Sept. 13, 1960, 74 Stat. 923, directed Secretary of the Interior to make annual reports to Congress.