Heitkamp's Bipartisan Bill to Lift the Ban on Oil Exports Passes in Senate Committee

Press Release

U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) today announced her bipartisan bill to lift the ban on exporting oil is gaining momentum as a Senate Committee passed her legislation -- the final step before a vote in the full U.S. Senate.

The U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resource Committee's merged and passed key pieces of Heitkamp's bill with Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski's bill to lift the ban on exporting U.S. crude. Combined together, their bipartisan legislation is designed to give the Senate a plan that is strong and comprehensive enough lift the ban on oil exports. The Committee also passed several other provisions Heitkamp introduced, including her bills to find a viable path forward for coal, expedite exports of natural gas, and speed up approvals for new pipelines.

Over the past year, Heitkamp has been advocating lifting the ban, and emphasizing the need to end the outdated policy that prohibits the U.S. from pursuing opportunities to grow jobs and improve America's economy and security. Today's approval of her legislation in Committee comes after several months of close work with Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski from Alaska -- who chairs the Committee. Just two months ago, Heitkamp and Murkowski introduced bipartisan, complementary legislation to lift the ban on oil exports with the express intent of merging the two -- as they did today -- after separate consideration in their respective committees. Heitkamp's bill was discussed just this week in the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs -- where she helps lead a subcommittee -- during a hearing about ending the ban.

"For too long the United States has isolated itself from the global energy market by barricading the export of crude oil -- despite our potential, as the world's largest producer of oil and liquid natural gas, to rise as an energy superpower," said Heitkamp. "But today we changed that in the Senate Energy Committee -- which approved the bipartisan, complementary legislation to lift the outdated ban on exporting oil that Senator Murkowski and I carefully crafted, and introduced just two months ago. Removing a ban that hinders American job growth, long-term energy security and independence goals, and keeps our allies dependent on volatile countries just makes sense -- and I've been working to educate my colleagues on both sides of the aisle on that fact for almost a year. We need smart, diverse policies that build up our energy infrastructure and leverage our position in the global energy market -- making our nation stronger and more resilient for years to come."

Several of Heitkamp's other proposals also passed today in the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, including bills which would:

Find a Viable Path Forward for Coal: The Committee passed three of Heitkamp's provisions to strengthen clean coal power by: prioritizing clean coal research and development by establishing a program dedicated to clean coal technological innovation; solidifying clean coal technologies as a clear part of the nation's energy mix by designating it as an official U.S. Energy Department fossil energy priority; using pre-authorized funding for carbon and cost-reducing fossil energy projects.

Expedite Energy Production and Shipment: The Senate Committee passed Heitkamp's bipartisan legislation to speed up the approval process to export LNG to countries that do not have Free Trade Agreements with the U.S. Her legislation would also require the U.S. Energy Secretary to make a decision on permits within 45 days after a review is complete.

Speed up Pipeline and Gas Gathering Permitting: Heitkamp helped introduce a bipartisan bill to speed up approval timelines for federal agencies to approve new pipelines, which the Committee passed today. It builds on her bill from 2014, which the Senate unanimously passed to reauthorize and make permanent a federal program that brought multiple agencies involved in energy permitting under one roof to review oil and gas permits on public lands more efficiently and effectively.

Heitkamp has long been a vocal advocate for lifting the ban on exporting U.S. crude oil. She spoke about the need to end this antiquated policy during the national energy strategy meeting the U.S. Department of Energy held in Bismarck in August 2014 at her request. Then in September 2014, Heitkamp and John Hess, the CEO of Hess Corporation, appeared together on CNBC's "Squawk Box" where they talked about the need to lift the ban. Just last month, Heitkamp spoke again on CNBC's "Squawk Box" to discuss her plan to lift the ban on oil exports with the heads of Hess Corp., ConocoPhillips, and Continental Resources. Prior to introducing legislation with Murkowski, the two Senators first pushed together for an amendment to lift the ban to legislation that would give Congress the ability to review any nuclear deal with Iran. They then worked together on two similar amendments to the National Defense Reauthorization Act in June.

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