Energy Policy Modernization Act Of 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I thank the distinguished chairman of the energy committee. She does a remarkable job, and she has brought many people together on this bipartisan piece of legislation. It passed the committee 18 to 4. People are energetic about this Energy bill because it is so critical and important to our communities and our economy.

As the Senate is discussing this important energy legislation, I come to the floor today because energy is one of those issues on which we should actually all be able to agree in terms of the basic idea. The basic idea and my goal for this Energy bill is that we make energy in America as clean as we can, as fast as we can, and do it in ways that don't raise costs on American families. I think most of us would consider that to be a worthy, commonsense goal. That is why the Energy bill before the Senate today is so important and why it has such broad bipartisan support. As I said, the bill passed the committee 18 to 4. And this is a bill that actually takes concrete steps to help our country produce the energy we need.

I think one of the good ideas in the bill is a provision to speed up permitting for the exportation of liquefied natural gas. Six Democrats have cosponsored this language on the LNG exports as a separate piece of legislation, which is now incorporated into this Energy bill. That is because Senators on both sides of the aisle recognize the importance of natural gas to our economy and to our national security.

America has the world's largest supply of natural gas in terms of what we are able to produce today. We also have the resources to be a major exporter of this clean and versatile fuel. It is estimated that liquefied natural gas exports can contribute up to $74 billion to America's gross domestic product by the year 2035. All we need is for Washington to give producers some regulatory certainty--certainty that is not there today.

To liquefy and to export natural gas requires special production and special export terminals, places to get it done. Under President Obama, the Department of Energy has been very slow and very unpredictable about approving these projects. The Energy bill would expedite the permit process for LNG exports to countries around the world and countries that right now do not have free-trade agreements with the United States. It opens it up to new markets, new customers, people who are friends and allies who want to buy a product we have right here for sale.

This legislation would require the Energy Secretary to make a final decision on an export application within 45 days after the environmental review process is completed. It would also provide for expedited judicial review of legal challenges to the LNG export projects because things can get tangled up in legal challenges that can go on for months and years.

Finally, the bill requires that exporters publicly disclose the countries to which the LNG is delivered so the American people know whom we are selling to.

This legislation doesn't force the administration to approve the projects, it doesn't shut down the environmental reviews, and it doesn't take away anybody's right to voice their opposition; it just says that the Obama administration should do its job in an accountable, timely, and predictable way.

This legislation would help create jobs. It would help to reduce our trade deficit, which is something President Obama has said is a priority of his. It would also help the security of America and our allies. That is something which should be a priority for all of us in this body. Speeding up American exports of liquefied natural gas will give our allies an alternative for where they can get the energy they need. It would help our allies reduce their dependence on gas from hostile places, many of whom are now getting it from Russia. Remember, Russia invaded Ukraine largely to get control of the gas pipelines there.

Now Iran wants to step up its natural gas business as well--Iran. The Iranians have been working on a liquefied natural gas export plant that is almost complete. Construction had stalled a few years ago because of the economic sanctions against Iran. Now that the Obama administration has lifted the sanctions against Iran, Iran can start construction again. The managing director of the National Iranian Gas Export Company says that it could start shipping liquefied natural gas to Europe in 2 years. That was in an article in the Wall Street Journal today. The headline is ``Iran Seeks Ways To Ship Out Gas As Sanctions Ease.'' This is today. What we are discussing on the floor of the Senate is incredibly timely. When you read through the article, it says that European companies are promising billions in new deals in Iran as Iranian President Ruhani visits Europe this week to revive trade and political ties. So Iran is on the move.

The Obama administration, as of right now, is shackling American natural gas, shackling the production, shackling the export. At the same time, the President, through his agreement with Iran, is enabling Iran to move forward and seek ways to ship out gas as sanctions ease.

If our allies are dependent on gas from Russia or from Iran or from both, how does that make the world a safer place?

This administration has been dragging its feet on approving liquefied natural gas exports. It has blocked North American energy projects in the past, such as the Keystone XL Pipeline. That would have created thousands of jobs. Then, earlier this month, the Secretary of the Interior halted all new leases on mining coal on Federal land. This action by the administration is alarming, it is drastic, and it is destructive. Forty percent of all the coal produced in the United States comes from Federal land. The Interior Secretary wants the coal to stay in the ground, wants it to become a stranded asset. With this new rule, she took one more step toward wiping out the jobs of thousands of Americans, and then she staged a press conference to brag about it. If that weren't bad enough, last week the administration announced new restrictions on oil and gas operations on Federal land and on Indian land.

The unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats of the Obama administration have been relentlessly attacking American energy producers with new rules, new regulations--costly--hurting our economy, hurting jobs. They are costing American workers and families billions of dollars, and they will do great damage to American energy reliability. Reliability is key. We need a different approach.

It is essential that we create as much energy as possible here at home, and it is essential that we be able to export American energy to our allies as well, people who want to get it from us. That is why energy is called the master resource, and that is why this Energy bill is so important.

This legislation is a good start toward making sure America has the energy we need to keep our economy growing. There are things we could do to improve this legislation. We could use this bill to protect Americans from President Obama's reckless attempt to end coal leases on Federal lands. We can also make sure the Obama administration stops its unwise new rule on natural gas and oil operations. We can actually capture more energy while we reduce waste and emissions from this kind of oil and gas production.

I have introduced bipartisan legislation that is going to expedite the permitting process of natural gas gathering lines on Federal and Indian land. These are pipelines that collect unprocessed natural gas from oil and gas wells and ship it to a processing plant and then on to interstate pipelines. Today a lot of that gas is flared off right at the well. You can see that at the well, the flames. One of the reasons that is happening is because the Obama administration has been so slow in granting the permits for the natural gas gathering lines on Federal land. People want to build them; they want to use this natural gas. The President opposes the flaring. More gathering lines would mean less flaring. It is good for energy producers, it is good for the environment, and it is good for taxpayers.

We need the energy. Keeping it in the ground is not the answer. The answer is making energy as clean as we can, as fast as we can, without raising costs on American families. I believe that is a better approach. A bipartisan group of Members of this body knows it is a better answer. It is time for the Obama administration to join us.

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