A bill to amend the Department of Energy Organization Act to authorize protective force personnel who guard the Strategic Petroleum Reserve or its storage and related facilities to carry firearms while discharging their official duties and in certain instances to make arrests without warrant; to establish the offense of trespass on property of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve; and for other purposes.
Public Law 100-531 · S. 836 · 100th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by Ronald Reagan (R) on Oct 25, 1988 · Energy
Sponsor: Sen. John Johnston (D-LA)
Cosponsors: None
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateVoice vote
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Amends the Department of Energy Organization Act to authorize security personnel of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to carry firearms and make warrantless arrests under guidelines prescribed by the Secretary of Energy (with the concurrence of the Attorney General).
Authorizes the Secretary to issue regulations relating to entry upon SPR property and bringing dangerous instruments or materials into such property. Declares that violations of such regulations shall be deemed misdemeanors, punishable by either a fine or imprisonment or both.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Energy and Commerce Committee · House · markup by, referred to, reported bySubcommittee: Energy Subcommittee
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 18 actions.
- Oct 25, 1988Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 100-531.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Oct 14, 1988PresidentPresident · Presented to President.
- Oct 7, 1988Resolving differencesResolving differences · Senate agreed to the House amendment by Voice Vote.
- Oct 5, 1988FloorFloor · Passed House (Amended) by Voice Vote.
- Sep 26, 1988CommitteeCommittee · Reported by House Energy and Commerce Committee
- Sep 22, 1988CommitteeCommittee · Markup by House Energy and Commerce Committee
- Aug 3, 1988CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Energy Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee
- CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Energy Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee
- Jul 13, 1987CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Energy Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee
- Jul 2, 1987CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Crime Subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee
- Jun 29, 1987CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Energy and Commerce Committee
- CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Judiciary Committee
- Jun 25, 1987FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Voice Vote.
- Jun 22, 1987CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- Jun 3, 1987CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- Mar 25, 1987CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the Senate
Data notes
Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.
Official record
The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.