[Senate Report 114-59]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 101
114th Congress} {Report
1st Session } SENATE {114-59
_______________________________________________________________________
FEDERAL VEHICLE REPAIR COSTS SAVINGS ACT
__________
R E P O R T
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND
GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
To ACCOMPANY
S. 565
TO REDUCE THE OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE COSTS ASSOCI-
ATED WITH THE FEDERAL FLEET BY ENCOURAGING THE USE
OF REMANUFACTURED PARTS, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
May 22, 2015.--Ordered to be printed
___________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
WASHINGTON: 2015
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin Chairman
JOHN McCAIN, Arizona THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware
ROB PORTMAN, Ohio CLAIRE McCASKILL, Missouri
RAND PAUL, Kentucky JON TESTER, Montana
JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin
MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming HEIDI HEITKAMP, North Dakota
KELLY AYOTTE, New Hampshire CORY A. BOOKER, New Jersey
JONI ERNST, Iowa GARY C. PETERS, Michigan
BEN SASSE, Nebraska
Keith B. Ashdown, Staff Director
Christopher R. Hixon, Chief Counsel
Patrick J. Bailey, Chief Counsel for Governmental Affairs
Gabrielle D'Adamo Singer, Deputy Chief Counsel for Governmental Affairs
Gabrielle A. Batkin, Minority Staff Director
John P. Kilvington, Minority Deputy Staff Director
Mary Beth Schultz, Minority Chief Counsel
Brian F. Papp, Jr., Minority Legislative Aide
Laura W. Kilbride, Chief Clerk
Calendar No. 101
114th Congress
SENATE
Report
1st Session 114-59
======================================================================
FEDERAL VEHICLE REPAIR COSTS SAVINGS ACT
_______
May 22, 2015.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Johnson, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 565]
The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (S. 565) to reduce the
operation and maintenance costs associated with the Federal
fleet by encouraging the use of remanufactured parts, and for
other purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably
thereon without amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
I. Purpose and Summary..............................................1
II. Background and Need for the Legislation..........................2
III. Legislative History..............................................2
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis......................................3
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................3
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................4
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............4
I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY
S. 565, the Federal Vehicle Repair Cost Savings Act of
2015, seeks to reduce the operation and maintenance costs
associated with the Federal fleet by encouraging the use of
remanufactured parts. Under existing law, agencies generally
allow vehicle operators or local fleet managers to make vehicle
maintenance and repair decisions. This bill would require the
heads of Federal agencies to encourage the use of
remanufactured parts by field level staff and provides
exceptions in instances where using remanufactured vehicle
components does not reduce costs, lowers the quality of vehicle
performance, or delays the return to service of a vehicle.
II. BACKGROUND AND THE NEED FOR LEGISLATION
In March 2013, the Government Accountability Office (GAO)
issued a report titled ``Use of Remanufactured Parts in the
Federal Vehicle Fleet is Based on a Variety of Factors.''\1\
GAO reviewed the vehicle repair process for selected agencies
and found that these processes allow field office staff to make
vehicle maintenance and repair decisions and neither prohibit
nor require the use of remanufactured parts. The GAO selected
14 agencies for review, including the General Services
Administration, the U.S. Postal Service, the Departments of
Agriculture, Homeland Security, Interior and Justice, which
accounted for 95 percent of the civilian Federal fleet vehicles
in 2011.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Government Accountability Office, Transportation: Use of
Remanufactured Parts in the Federal Vehicle Fleet Is Based on a Variety
of Factors, GAO-13-316R (2013), available at http://www.gao.gov/assets/
660/652832.pdf.
\2\Id. at 1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Officials from the 14 agencies said that they use
remanufactured parts when warranted, and GAO observed the
presence of remanufactured parts in stock rooms during visits
to repair facilities.\3\ GAO also noted in its study that
remanufactured vehicle parts tend to be less expensive than
comparable new parts. In fiscal year 2011, federal civilian
agencies reported about $975 million in maintenance and repair
costs for approximately 588,000 vehicles that the agencies
owned.\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\Id. at 2.
\4\Id. at 3.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Further, a Motor and Equipment Manufacturers Association
(MEMA) study from 2012 found that remanufacturing saves 85
percent of the energy and material used to manufacture
equivalent new parts.\5\ At the same time, the study noted,
remanufactured parts are, on average, 20 to 50 percent less
expensive with an equivalent level of quality and competitive
warranties.\6\ The principal remanufactured products in the
motor vehicle sector are engines, transmissions, starter
motors, alternators, steering racks, and clutches, according to
the U.S. International Trade Commission.\7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association. Moving America
Forward. 13, available at http://www.mema.org/Document-Vault/PDFs/2013/
2013-Industry-Study.pdf, (last accessed May 19, 2015).
\6\Id.
\7\Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Decisions regarding the use of remanufactured parts depend
on the cost, availability, and reliability of the part.
According to GAO, these factors are considered on a case-by-
case basis for each repair to yield the best value for the
Federal government.\8\ This legislation increases awareness of
the possibility of using remanufactured auto parts by requiring
the head of Federal agencies to encourage the use of
remanufactured vehicle components when appropriate as a
practical cost savings measure.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
III. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
S. 565, the Federal Vehicle Repair Cost Savings Act of
2015, was introduced on February 25, 2015, by Senators Peters
and Lankford and the bill was then referred to the Committee on
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
The Committee considered the bill at a March 4, 2015
business meeting and ordered the bill reported favorably by
voice vote. Members present for the vote were Senators Carper,
McCaskill, Baldwin, Heitkamp, Peters, Johnson, Portman,
Lankford, Ayotte and Ernst.
IV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE BILL, AS REPORTED
Section 1. Short title
This section provides the bill's short title, the ``Federal
Vehicle Repair Cost Savings Act of 2015.''
Section 2. Findings
This section cites a March 2013 Government Accountability
Office report that found in fiscal year 2011--
(1) There are approximately 588,000 vehicles in the
owned civilian Federal fleet;
(2) Federal agencies spent approximately $975 million
on repair and maintenance of the Federal fleet;
(3) Remanufactured vehicle components tend to be less
expensive than comparable new replacement parts;
(4) The U.S. Postal Service and Department of
Interior informed GAO they rely on remanufactured
vehicle components to reduce costs.
Section 3. Definitions
This section defines ``Federal agency'' and
``remanufactured vehicle component.''
Section 4. Requirements to use remanufactured vehicle components
This section requires the head of each Federal agency to
encourage the use of remanufactured vehicle components if doing
so reduces costs while maintaining quality.
This section provides exceptions in instances where using
remanufactured vehicle components does not reduce costs, lowers
the quality of vehicle performance, or delays the return to
service of a vehicle.
V. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT
Pursuant to the requirement of paragraph 11(b)(1) of rule
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate the Committee has
considered the regulatory impact of this bill. The legislation
will not result in additional regulation, increased economic
impact, adverse impact on personal privacy, or additional
paperwork on any individuals or businesses. The Congressional
Budget Office confirmed that S. 565 contains no
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
VI. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, March 16, 2015.
Hon. Ron Johnson,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S.
Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 565, the Federal
Vehicle Repair Cost Savings Act of 2015.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew
Pickford.
Sincerely,
Douglas W. Elmendorf.
Enclosure.
S. 565--Federal Vehicle Repair Cost Savings Act of 2015
S. 565 would encourage federal agencies to use
remanufactured automobile parts to maintain federally owned
vehicles if doing so would reduce costs without delaying the
return of vehicles to service, or reducing the quality of
vehicle performance. A remanufactured part is a part rebuilt in
a factory to original specifications. CBO estimates that
implementing the legislation would have no significant effect
on the federal budget. Enacting the bill would not affect
direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go
procedures do not apply.
According to information from the Government Accountability
Office, the repair of federal vehicles is decentralized and
each agency manages its own fleet. Currently, there is neither
a mandate nor a prohibition on the use of remanufactured parts
and agencies already make decisions about the use of
remanufactured parts based on several factors including cost,
availability, and reliability. CBO estimates that the
legislation would have no significant budgetary effect because
we do not expect that it would significantly change existing
procedures for repairing vehicles.
S. 565 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal
governments.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew
Pickford. The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
VII. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED
Because this legislation would not repeal or amend any
provision of current law, it would make no changes in existing
law within the meaning of clauses (a) and (b) of paragraph 12
of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate.
[all]