House passes bill to ease energy leasing

By Nick Juliano, E&E News
Wednesday, November 20, 2013

The House today approved 228-192 legislation to ease oil, natural gas and other energy companies' ability to lease federal land.

The bill, H.R. 1965, is almost certain to die in the Senate, which showed no interest in a nearly identical bill from the lower chamber in the previous session of Congress. But Republicans said the debate presented another opportunity to push their argument that federal regulations slow energy development in Western states where federal land predominates compared with states where energy-rich land is mostly privately owned (E&E Daily, Nov. 20).

After passage of the bill -- which would require the Bureau of Land Management to more quickly approve energy leases, among other provisions -- the House opened debate on a second energy bill, H.R. 2728, which would restrict BLM regulation of hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas.

Seven Democrats supported H.R. 1965: Reps. John Barrow of Georgia, Jim Costa of California, Henry Cuellar of Texas, Jim Matheson of Utah, Mike McIntyre of North Carolina, Bill Owens of New York and Colin Peterson of Minnesota. Republican Rep. Frank Wolf of Virginia was the only member of his party to oppose the bill. Wolf's press secretary, Jill Shatzen, said he opposed the measure because an amendment added last night could have opened the door to electric power lines being built through national parks in his Northern Virginia district and that he has always opposed such projects.

Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah), a senior member of the Natural Resources Committee, said he and his colleagues will keep at it, despite the dead end that currently greets them on the other end of the Capitol.

"Basing decisions on what the Senate may or may not do is the worst form of government anyone can do," Bishop said before the vote this afternoon. "Secondly, at some point the Senate is going to have an epiphany, the light bulb will go off and they'll realize that they're stupid and they'll start doing this stuff."

Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), another member of the Resources panel, dismissed today's action as a "statement vote" that would not result in enactment of a new law.

Before passing the leasing bill, the House voted down 189-232 a Democratic motion that would have denied new leases to the five largest oil companies unless they agreed not to claim the so-called Section 199 domestic manufacturing tax deduction. Opposing that motion were eight Democrats -- Reps. Pete Gallego, Gene Green and Filemon Vela of Texas; Barrow; Costa; Cuellar; Matheson and McIntyre -- and Republican Rep. Walter Jones of North Carolina.

The House also voted down five Democratic amendments to the bill that aimed to undo some of its limits on environmental lawsuits, strengthen environmental reviews, study the impacts of flooding on oil and gas development, and crack down on speculation in energy markets (E&E Daily, Nov. 19).

Also today, the House approved a rule guiding consideration of H.R. 1900, which would require Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approval of new gas pipelines. Debate and expected passage of that bill will come tomorrow. Like the two bills being debated today, that pipeline measure drew a threatened veto from the White House (E&E Daily, Nov. 20).