THE DAILY WHIP: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2015

H.R. 702 – To Adapt to Changing Crude Oil Market Conditions (Rep. Barton – Energy and Commerce) (One hour of debate). H.R. 702 would remove restrictions on the export of crude oil from the United States by amending the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 (EPCA) to prohibit any federal official from imposing or enforcing any restriction on the export of crude oil.

EPCA currently restricts, but does not completely ban crude oil exports.  Current law allows for unlimited exports of petroleum products like gasoline, diesel, and heating oil, but simply requires licensing of crude oil exports.  In 2015, exports of crude oil have averaged more than 480,000 barrels per day and, recently, the Obama Administration recently allowed an increase in the export of some types of oil. H.R. 702 lifts the remaining restrictions on crude oil exports of coal, petroleum products, natural gas, or petrochemical feedstocks under section 103 of EPCA.

H.R. 702 also includes a five-year authorization of appropriations of approximately $5 million per vessel under the Maritime Security Program (MSP) for fiscal years 2017 to 2022, an increase from the authorized $3.1 million per vessel under current law and $3.5 million per vessel contained in the FY2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) conference report.  Normally authorized through the annual Defense Authorization bills, this program requires that the Secretary of Transportation, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, contract with the 60 active, U.S.- flagged, militarily useful, privately-owned vessels to transport cargo for the Armed Services.

In the Statement of Administration Policy, the President's senior advisors stated that they would recommend he veto this bill.

The Rule, which was adopted yesterday, provides for one hour of general debate and makes in order 10 amendments, debatable for 10 minutes, equally divided between the offeror and an opponent.  The amendments are:

Amash Amendment. Strikes section 6 of the bill and its related findings in section 1. The amendment would remove the provision in the underlying bill that increases the authorization of appropriations for the Maritime Security Program (MSP).
Delaney/Curbelo/Gibson Amendment. Adds an additional finding to the bill that the United States has reduced its oil consumption over the past decade, and increasing investment in clean energy technology and energy efficiency will lower energy prices, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase national security.
Huffman Amendment. Requires the Secretary of the Energy to complete a study on the net greenhouse gas emissions that will result from the repeal of the crude oil export ban.
Lawrence Amendment. Requires the Secretaries of Energy and Commerce to conduct a study of the impact of lifting crude oil export restriction on consumer energy prices, domestic manufacturing, the refining sector, employment and the economy.
Messer/Lowenthal Amendment. Adds a provision to the bill to ensure that the Administration is able to ban the export of crude oil to state sponsors of terrorism.
Messer Amendment. Clarifies that nothing in the underlying bill authorizes the export of crude oil, refined petroleum products, and petrochemical products to the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Cuellar Amendment. Provides the Department of Energy with authority to continue its ongoing work to develop partnerships in the areas of oil and gas exploration, production, transportation, and refining with minority serving institutions, including Hispanic Serving Institutions and Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Garamendi Amendment. Inserts safeguards that would allow the President to reduce crude oil exports if the Secretaries of Commerce and Energy finds that the oil exports allowed under this bill has caused domestic crude oil supply shortages, oil price increases significantly above world market levels, or resulted in the decline of domestic oil refinery capacity.
Jackson-Lee Amendment #1. Requires the Secretaries of Energy and Commerce to assess the impact of lifting oil export restrictions on U.S. energy and national security and report their findings to Congress no later than ten years after the date of enactment of this Act.
Jackson-Lee Amendment #2. Directs the Secretaries of Energy and Commerce to report within 180 days on how lifting current restrictions on crude oil exports will help create employment opportunities for veterans and women in the U.S., while promoting energy and national security.

Bill Text for H.R. 702:
PDF Version

Background for H.R. 702:
House Report (HTML Version)
House Report (PDF Version)