S. 170 — BIG OIL from the Cabinet Act

This section establishes definitions for terms used in the Act, including "(1) covered department head," listing 19 specified high-level executive positions (e.g., Chief of Staff to the President, secretaries of Energy, Defense, Interior, Agriculture, State, and Transportation, and administrators of EPA, NOAA, NASA, and others); "(2) covered political appointee," meaning a political appointee at nine specified entities (i.e., Interior, EPA, Energy, FERC, NOAA, CEQ, OSTP, OMB, and State); "(3) executive officer," generally meaning a president, certain vice presidents, other policy-making officers, or subsidiary executives of an enterprise (excluding those in divisions principally responsible for wind, solar, or other renewable energy research, development, or deployment); "(4) fossil fuel," meaning natural gas, coal, oil, gasoline, diesel fuel, or jet fuel; "(5) fossil fuel entity," meaning an entity in the business of extracting or producing fossil fuel; "(6) fossil fuel lobbyist," meaning a lobbyist principally representing at least one fossil fuel entity or trade association on issues relating to fossil fuel extraction or production; and "(7) fossil fuel trade association," meaning a trade association principally representing one or more fossil fuel entities on such issues.

This section prohibits the appointment, or service in an acting capacity, of any individual who has served as an executive officer of a fossil fuel entity, a fossil fuel lobbyist, or an executive officer of a fossil fuel trade association for any period during the 10-year period preceding the date of appointment or service to the position of covered department head or covered political appointee.