Lugar: The President Needs to Make a Decision

Press Release

Today, Senator Dick Lugar blasted Obama Administration claims that they are unable to conclude more than three years of review on Keystone XL. The White House spokesman said again today that the president didn't have enough time to make a decision.

"The President needs to make a decision on the Keystone XL permit," Lugar said. "Enough is enough. How long does it take to put America's workers first?

"It has taken 1,188 days and counting for the Obama Administration to make a decision that this is a no brainer for America's national security and job creation."

A recent Rasmussen Poll show Americans favored building the pipeline by 60-24 percent, with only 16 percent unsure, showing high knowledge of the issue.

The Keystone XL permit application was filed on September 19, 2008. Pipelines of similar scale and purpose took much less time for review and permitting: 693 days (Keystone I) and 829 days (Alberta Clipper).

The Lugar KXL legislation, introduced as S.1932 Lugar-Hoeven-Vitter North American Energy Security Act, has passed both the Senate and House of Representatives on a bipartisan basis. The legislation gives the Obama Administration's State Department 60 days to complete more than three years of review for the Keystone XL permit application.

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"The Obama Administration can try to duck its responsibility, but America's workers won't be fooled. The only way the pipeline will not be permitted under our legislation is if the President himself rejects it," Lugar said.

"The people of Nebraska can be trusted to take care of routing in their state. The President has all the information he needs to make a decision NOW."

In recent comments, White House officials have pointed to a previous State Department claim that 60 days is an insufficient amount of time to make a decision on Keystone XL. Lugar blasted that claim as "blatantly misleading." However, last week the State Department back-tracked that analysis when it acknowledged that the Lugar KXL language establishes a new expedited process for review.

The State Department had based its initial opposition to the Lugar language on the claim that 60 days was insufficient time to complete a supplemental NEPA review of the KXL route changes in Nebraska, but the Lugar KXL legislation ends all federal NEPA analysis and entrusts the State of Nebraska to conduct an analysis that is best for its citizens.

In a usual permit review, the State Department will take up to 90 days to formulate their National Interest Determination after a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is issued. Thereafter, Federal Agencies have an additional 15 days for final comments. The Keystone XL Final EIS was issued on August 26, 2011, so the State Department was already 75 days into its final review when the White House punted a decision until after the 2012 election.

"The 60 day window offered under the Lugar-Hoeven-Vitter language is more than enough time to complete the National Interest Determination process," Lugar said.

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