07.27.12

Hoeven Outlines Domestic Energy and Jobs Act of 2012 at EERC

Measure Will Jumpstart America's Energy Industry, Boost Economy, and Create Jobs

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - Senator John Hoeven today outlined his new legislation, the Domestic Energy and Jobs Act of 2012 (DEJA), at the Energy and Environmental Research Center (EERC) in Grand Forks because the cutting-edge research facility exemplifies the kind of all-of-the-above approach to energy development that the nation needs.

“The EERC is actually taking the kind of integrated approach to energy development that the Domestic Energy and Jobs Act is designed to foster,” Hoeven said. “The nation, like North Dakota, is blessed with an abundance of energy resources and the entrepreneurial talent to develop them for the benefit of our entire country. We need to take the same kind of comprehensive, step-by-step approach that we’ve used in North Dakota to the national level in order to create jobs, lift up our economy and bolster America’s energy security.”

DEJA is a wide-ranging package of 13 diverse energy bills, addressing both traditional and renewable development, designed to streamline and simplify regulations, boost domestic energy supplies, build American energy infrastructure, and safeguard America’s supply of critical minerals used in modern high-tech manufactured products such as cell phones and computers.

The EERC is a high-tech, nonprofit branch of the University of North Dakota that works to research, develop, and commercialize a broad range of both traditional and renewable energy and environmental technologies and products. Those include clean coal, CO2 sequestration for enhanced oil recovery, hydrogen technologies, renewable fuels for military applications, small-scale gasification of waste and biomass, and energy-efficient technologies. The EERC is also working on other breakthrough energy technologies related to the Bakken, including products like hydraulic fracturing proppants made from North Dakota clays.

EERC Director Dr. Gerald Groenewold said “this legislation falls in line with the EERC’s goal of facilitating the use of North Dakota’s technology, talent, and resources, which will become major components of achieving energy security in the United States. Senator Hoeven continues to provide wise and effective leadership focused on enhancing the use of our nation’s bountiful and diverse energy resources. This legislation is very supportive and complementary to the EERC’s diverse technical portfolio.”

Hoeven this week led a group of U.S. Senate and House leaders, including Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), in launching a Senate version of the DEJA, a comprehensive package of energy legislation that will not only reduce the high energy costs faced by hard-working families and small businesses, but also spur badly-needed economic growth and job creation across the U.S. economy.

Hoeven said the bicameral initiative embraces a true all-of-the-above approach to energy development that will help drive America’s overall economic recovery and enhance the nation’s energy security.

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DOMESTIC ENERGY AND JOBS ACT OF 2012

Senator John Hoeven, Congressman Kevin McCarthy

July 26, 2012

  • Establish an American Energy Development Plan: Requires the Interior Secretary to establish an “all-of-the-above” energy program for federal lands by reviewing the nation’s energy needs and then establishing goals for federal land energy production to meet those needs from all energy sources, including oil, natural gas, coal and renewables.
  • Approve of the Keystone XL Pipeline: Deems the environmental review process complete and allows TransCanada to construct the northern leg of the pipeline immediately except in Nebraska, while the state continues its routing process within the state. Keystone XL will bring 830,000 barrels of oil per day to U.S. refineries, including 100,000 barrel a day from U.S. producers.
  • Freeze and Study the Impact of EPA Rules on Gasoline Regulations: Requires an interagency task force to conduct a cumulative analysis on certain EPA rules and actions that impact the price of gasoline and diesel fuels, providing for a better understanding of the costs and consequences of these rules.
  • Provide Onshore Oil and Gas Leasing Certainty: Requires a minimum annual acreage leasing plan that makes available at least 25 percent of the lands open for leasing each year and set firm timelines for the Interior secretary to issue leases and adjudicate lease protests. It would prohibit the Secretary from withdrawing leases and adding additional lease stipulations after they have been sold.
  • Advance Offshore Wind Production: Allows weather site testing for wind, tidal, current and solar mapping to discover and catalog potential energy on or in the waters of the Outer Continental Shelf. The bill limits the size of testing to one acre on the seafloor or five acres on the surface, and sets a 30 day deadline for issuance of a permit to test.
  • Streamline Energy Permitting: Establishes a cost-recovery mechanism for permitting and protests and ensure that Bureau of Land Management (BLM) permitting offices have the personnel and resources necessary to approve energy development on federal lands. It includes hard timelines on permit approvals, cuts back on red tape, and reduces litigation. Applies to oil, natural gas, wind, coal, solar and other energy project permitting on federal lands.
  • Provide Access to the National Petroleum Reserve Alaska (NPRA): Provides for leasing in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, an area of land on the Alaska North Slope managed by the BLM. The bill would reaffirm Congress’ intent that the land’s main purpose is for oil and natural gas resources and requires at least one lease sale in areas most likely to produce oil. It also directs the Interior and Transportation secretaries to work toward the development of pipelines and roads in the reserve, in an environmentally responsible manner.
  • Hold BLM Live Internet Auctions: Gives the Interior Secretary the authority to conduct Internet-based auctions for onshore leases to ensure the best return to the federal taxpayer, reduce fraud and secure the leasing process.
  • Establish a Mining Law Program or Solid Minerals Leasing Program: Freezes the Interior Department’s attempt to shift the regulation of coal mines from the Office of Surface Mining to the BLM or Office of Natural Resources Revenue.
  • Increase State Revenue Sharing for Outer Continental Shelf Revenues: Changes the total amount a state can receive from Outer Continental Shelf revenues from $500,000 per year to $750,000 for the years 2023 to 2055.
  • Offer Lease Sales off Virginia Coast: Directs the Interior Secretary to offer minerals off the shores of Virginia in a lease sale. The area covered by the sale is about 2.9 million acres at least 50 miles offshore of Virginia in the Mid-Atlantic Planning Area. The Bureau estimates that this area may contain 130 million barrels of oil and 1.14 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. The bill protects any military activities by prohibiting any activity that would conflict with any military operation.
  • Limit New Regulations on Surface Mining: Prohibits the Interior Secretary from approving any regulation that would adversely impact employment in coal mines in the United States; cause a reduction in revenue received by the Federal Government or any State, tribal, or local government; reduce the amount of coal available for domestic consumption or for export; designate any area as unsuitable for surface coal mining and reclamation operations; or expose the United States to liability for taking the value of privately owned coal through regulation.
  • Establish a Critical Minerals Policy Act: Directs the U.S. Geological Survey to establish a list of minerals critical to the U.S. economy and sets forth a comprehensive set of policies that will bolster critical mineral production, expand manufacturing and promote recycling and alternatives – all while maintaining strong environmental protections.

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