Category: Congress

WASHINGTON, DC, Feb. 4 02/04/2015 Investments in oil and gas transportation and storage should move ahead because they are essential in continuing the US economic recovery and North American energy renaissance, witnesses told a US House Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee. “There is a growing awareness that this is a unique American moment,” American Petroleum Institute Pres. Jack N. Gerard said during the Pipelines, Railroads and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee’s Feb. 3 hearing. “It is a moment that marks the transition from endemic energy dependence to energy security and global energy leadership—both of which have been public policy goals of every president and every Congress since the 1970s. Gerard’s testimony continued, “But to be clear, to secure this unique American moment will depend heavily on our ability to build the necessary infrastructure to achieve our nation’s full energy potential.” The unexpected collapse of crude oil prices has altered the outlook for […]

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Republicans are wasting no time in taking on some of the energy issues that have been waiting in Congress for years, Alex Mills says. This opinion piece presents the opinions of the author. It does not necessarily reflect the views of Rigzone. For the first time since Barack Obama became President, Republicans took control of the U.S. House and Senate, and they wasted no time in taking on some of the energy issues that have been languishing in the Congress for years. Senate Republicans made good on a pledge to pass the long-pending Keystone XL oil pipeline on Jan. 29. Senators voted 62-36 on the bill to bypass the Obama administration’s delaying tactics on the Keystone XL, only 5 short of the number needed to override a presidential veto, which is expected. All Republicans present voted for the bill, as did nine Democrats. Approving the Keystone XL has been […]

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“The project now would simply pump American oil across the American heartland — not to… Read More Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg Senate Democrats said Tuesday they’ll push amendments to legislation approving the Keystone XL pipeline requiring that it’s built with domestically produced steel and that the oil it carries is used in the U.S. “The project now would simply pump American oil across the American heartland — not to be used here — but to be shipped overseas,” Senator Charles Schumer of New York , the Senate’s third-ranking Democrat, said at a news conference. With polls showing a majority of voters supporting Keystone, Democrats have sought to undermine its purported benefits to the U.S. They argue that the oil from Alberta is destined for overseas markets — an assertion disputed by pipeline builder TransCanada Corp. (TRP) Republicans have made circumventing President Barack Obama ’s review of the Keystone project, by […]

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ENLARGE U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) addresses the second annual Conservative Policy Summit at the Heritage Foundation Jan. 12 in Washington, DC. Getty Images For months, the nation’s oil and natural-gas industry has been urging Congress and the Obama administration to lift the decades-old ban on oil exports, arguing that doing so would bring jobs and geopolitical leverage to the U.S. Now, however, with an energy bill being debated in Congress for the first time in years, industry officials are urging lawmakers to wait, saying they want more time to lobby before senators cast votes. The issue is arising now because the Senate is debating the Keystone XL pipeline under a process in which senators are being allowed to offer a wide range of amendments on various energy issues. Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas), whose home state produces nearly 40% of all U.S. oil, is sponsoring an amendment […]

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Republican leadership on Capitol Hill advance bills to facilitate natural gas deliveries. UPI/Hamid Forotan WASHINGTON, Jan. 9 (UPI) — Republican leaders in the House of Representatives say the federal government needs to pick up the pace with reviewing permits for natural gas pipelines. "Ongoing delays because of a complex permitting process must not prohibit families in Kansas, and across the country, from obtaining reliable and economical heating for their homes in the winter and cooling for them in the summer," Rep. Mike Pompeo, R-Kan., said in a statement after introducing a pipeline bill Thursday. If approved, Pompeo’s measure would require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to approve or deny applications for new projects no later than one year after receiving an application. House leaders argue gas pipeline infrastructure additions aren’t keeping pace with increasing production. Republican leaders taking control of the 114th Congress are putting energy at the top […]

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ENLARGE The John Amos coal-fired power plant is seen behind a home in Poca, West Virginia in May. With coal production slowing due to stricter environmental controls, the availability of natural gas and a shift to surface mining, the state’s coal country has been hit hard with job losses and business closures. Reuters Legislation approving the Keystone XL pipeline , which lawmakers will take up as soon as this week , will open the first broad debate on energy policy in Congress in eight years and give the new Republican majority a chance to push for significant changes to President Barack Obama ’s agenda. GOP lawmakers, who now control the Senate and have a firmer hold on the House, are planning measures that would aim to spur greater development of fossil fuels and curtail a series of Mr. Obama’s environmental regulations, including ones cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Republicans are […]

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ByAmy Harder A sixty-foot section of pipe is lowered into a trench during construction of the Gulf Coast Project pipeline in Prague, Okla. The Gulf Coast Project is part of the Keystone XL Pipeline Project and will run from Cushing, Oklahoma to Nederland, Texas.  Bloomberg News The House is planning to vote Friday on legislation approving the Keystone XL pipeline, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.), said in an interview Monday. With Republicans holding even more seats in the lower chamber after November’s elections, the measure is sure to pass. The vote will be the tenth time since 2011 that the GOP-controlled chamber has passed measures approving the controversial oil-sands pipeline, which has been under review by the Obama administration for more than six years. The most recent vote came in November, when the House  passed it 252-161 . The Senate, now also controlled by Republicans, is expected […]

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ByAmy Harder Senate Democrats will introduce a series of amendments countering the GOP push to pass legislation approving the Keystone XL pipeline, Sen. Charles Schumer (D., N.Y.) said Sunday. The amendments are unlikely to change the ultimate outcome of the bill, which is expected to pass and face a potential veto from President Barack Obama . But the Democratic strategy will add more political tension to what’s expected to be a partisan showdown between Mr. Obama and Republicans pushing to approve the pipeline as their first item of business this upcoming Congress. Democrats will introduce at least three amendments that would make the Keystone measure “more of a jobs bill,” Mr. Schumer, the fourth-most-senior Democrat in the upper chamber, said Sunday on CBS ‘s “Face The Nation.” The amendments will require the steel used in the pipeline to be made in the U.S., ban exports of oil shipped through […]

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