I 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4301 

To contribute to the growth of the American economy and the strength 

of American national security by streamlining regulatory permitting procedures and increasing domestic production from all energy sources. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 29, 2012 

Mr. DUNCAN of South Carolina (for himself, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, 

Mr. POE of Texas, Mr. HARRIS, Mr. WESTMORELAND, Mr. GOHMERT, 

Mr. GRAVES of Georgia, Mr. BROUN of Georgia, Mr. MULVANEY, Mr. 

SCOTT of South Carolina, Mr. GOWDY, and Mr. LANDRY) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, 

and in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, Transportation and Infrastructure, the Judiciary, Rules, Ways and Means, Agriculture, Armed Services, and Oversight and Government Reform, for a 

period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To contribute to the growth of the American economy and 

the strength of American national security by streamlining regulatory permitting procedures and increasing 

domestic production from all energy sources. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Energy Exploration 

3 and Production to Achieve National Demand Act’’ or the 

4 ‘‘EXPAND Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

6 The table of contents for this Act is the following: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

Sec. 3. Findings and purposes. 

Sec. 4. Statement of policy. 

Sec. 5. Definitions. 

TITLE I—DEVELOPMENT OF FEDERAL ENERGY RESOURCES 

Subtitle A—Oil and Gas Leasing in the Gulf of Mexico 

Sec. 101. Leasing in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico. 

Sec. 102. Extension of deepwater oil and natural gas leases in Gulf of Mexico. 

Subtitle B—Scheduled Leasing, Exploration, and Development of Oil and 

Natural Gas in the Federal Outer Continental Shelf 

Sec. 121. Expanded outer Continental Shelf lease sales. 

Sec. 122. Geological and geophysical activities in expanded leasing areas. 

Sec. 123. Payments from areas newly available to leasing. 

Sec. 124. Definitions under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. 

Sec. 125. Determination of adjacent zones and planning areas. 

Subtitle C—Leasing, Exploration, and Development of Oil and Natural Gas 

Resources in Portions of the Coastal Plain of Alaska 

Sec. 131. Establishment of leasing program for Coastal Plain. 

Sec. 132. Conduct of leasing program. 

Sec. 133. Federal and State distribution of revenues. 

Sec. 134. Rights-of-way across the Coastal Plain. 

Sec. 135. Conveyance. 

Sec. 136. Local government impact aid and community service assistance. 

Subtitle D—Improvement of Interagency Coordination and Cooperation in the 

Processing of Federal Permits for Production of Domestic Oil and Gas Resources 

Sec. 141. Regulatory certainty. 

Sec. 142. Regional offices and regional permit coordinators. 

Sec. 143. Reviews and actions of Federal agencies. 

Sec. 144. Lead agency. 

Sec. 145. Congressional review of agency rulemaking. 

Sec. 146. State coordination regarding Federal oil and gas permitting. 

Sec. 147. State consultation. 

Sec. 148. Savings provision. 


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Sec. 149. Review of agency permitting decisions. 

Sec. 150. Deadline for decision on agency appeals. 

Subtitle E—Prohibition on New Wilderness or Wilderness Study Areas on 

Lands Administered by the BLM Without Congressional Approval; Indian 

Land Development 

Sec. 161. Repeal of Executive order. 

Sec. 162. Wilderness designation procedures. 

Sec. 163. Future executive branch actions. 

Sec. 164. Leases for development of natural resources on Indian lands. 

Subtitle F—Legal Causes and Claims Pertaining to the Leasing and Development of Federal Lands for Exploration and Production of Oil, Natural 

Gas, Associated Hydrocarbons, and Oil Shale 

Sec. 171. Oil shale, tar sands, and other strategic unconventional fuels. 

Sec. 172. Energy production on Federal lands. 

Sec. 173. Jurisdiction. 

Sec. 174. Judicial review. 

Sec. 175. Time for filing petition for judicial review; standing, filing of record. 

Sec. 176. Limitation on scope of review and relief. 

Sec. 177. Exclusion. 

Subtitle G—Development of Solar and Wind Energy on Public Land 

Sec. 181. Definitions. 

Sec. 182. Programmatic environmental impact statements and land use planning. 

Sec. 183. Development of solar and wind energy on public land. 

Sec. 184. Disposition of revenues. 

Subtitle H—Miscellaneous Provisions 

Sec. 191. Military operations. 

Sec. 192. Environmental sensitivity analysis under the program. 

Sec. 193. Validity of existing leases. 

Sec. 194. Integrity of lease sales and leasing schedule. 

Sec. 195. Authority to conduct offshore drilling under approved permits. 

Sec. 196. Time requirement to act on oil and natural gas drilling permits. 

Sec. 197. Timely issuance of onshore oil and gas leases. 

Sec. 198. State auditing. 

TITLE II—CONTINENTAL PIPELINE APPROVAL 

Sec. 201. Keystone XL pipeline permit approval. 

TITLE III—RADIOLOGICAL MATERIAL REPOSITORY 

Sec. 301. Radiological material repository. 

TITLE IV—RELIEF FROM REGULATIONS AND PROHIBITIONS 

THAT CAUSE ARTIFICIAL PRICE INCREASES 

Sec. 401. Endangered Species Act of 1973 reform. 

Sec. 402. Repeal of EPA climate change regulation. 

Sec. 403. Repeal of Federal ban on synthetic fuels purchasing requirement. 

Sec. 404. Repeal of ethanol mandates. 


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TITLE V—REFINERY REFORM 

Sec. 501. Refinery permitting process. 

Sec. 502. Existing refinery permit application deadline. 

TITLE VI—REPEAL OF ENERGY TAX SUBSIDIES 

Sec. 600. Amendment of 1986 code. 

Sec. 601. Repeal of credit for alcohol fuel, biodiesel, and alternative fuel mixtures. 

Sec. 602. Repeal of credit for certain plug-in electric vehicles. 

Sec. 603. Early termination of credit for qualified fuel cell motor vehicles. 

Sec. 604. Repeal of alternative fuel vehicle refueling property credit. 

Sec. 605. Repeal of credit for alcohol used as fuel. 

Sec. 606. Repeal of credit for biodiesel and renewable diesel used as fuel. 

Sec. 607. Repeal of enhanced oil recovery credit. 

Sec. 608. Termination of credit for electricity produced from certain renewable 

resources. 

Sec. 609. Repeal of credit for producing oil and gas from marginal wells. 

Sec. 610. Termination of credit for production from advanced nuclear power facilities. 

Sec. 611. Repeal of credit for carbon dioxide sequestration. 

Sec. 612. Termination of energy credit. 

Sec. 613. Repeal of qualifying advanced coal project. 

Sec. 614. Repeal of qualifying gasification project credit. 

Sec. 615. Repeal of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 energy 

grant program. 

TITLE VII—REGULATORY RELIEF 

Sec. 701. Legislative stay. 

Sec. 702. Compliance dates. 

Sec. 703. Energy recovery and conservation. 

Sec. 704. Other provisions. 

Sec. 705. Management and disposal of coal combustion residuals. 

TITLE VIII—ATTAINMENT OF NATIONAL AMBIENT AIR QUALITY 

STANDARDS 

Sec. 801. Air quality monitoring and modeling methodologies. 

Sec. 802. Extending compliance for NAAQS attainment for downwind States. 

TITLE IX—SUB-BASIN REPORTING OF GREENHOUSE GAS 

EMISSIONS 

Sec. 901. Sub-basin reporting of greenhouse gas emissions. 

TITLE X—IMPLEMENTATION OF NATIONAL OCEAN POLICY 

Sec. 1001. Prohibition on use of funds. 

TITLE XI—OTHER PROVISIONS 

Sec. 1101. Administrative record. 

Sec. 1102. Statement of energy effects. 

Sec. 1103. Priority-Energy Project permit duration. 

Sec. 1104. Exemption for takings of migratory bird incidental to energy development and production. 


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1 SEC. 3. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that— 

3 (1) the United States spends over 

4 $1,000,000,000 per day to import crude oil from 

5 foreign countries, representing the largest wealth 

6 transfer in history; 

7 (2) the domestic oil and natural gas industry is 

8 responsible for approximately 9.2 million jobs; 

9 (3) the United States has substantial undevel10 oped oil and natural gas resources underlying Fed11 eral lands; 

12 (4) multiple legal challenges relating to the 

13 leasing, exploration, and development of Federal 

14 lands can significantly delay and even prevent these 

15 desperately needed oil and natural gas resources 

16 from reaching the American public; 

17 (5) expedited and focused judicial review of 

18 legal challenges to proposed oil and natural gas de19 velopment activities is necessary to ensure that addi20 tional American oil and natural gas resources are 

21 made available without undue delay to American 

22 consumers; 

23 (6) the approximately 43 million leased outer 

24 Continental Shelf acres currently account for about 

25 15 percent of the United States domestic natural 


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1 gas production and about 27 percent of the United 

2 States domestic oil production; 

3 (7) the leasing of these domestic offshore areas 

4 for oil and natural gas development provides signifi5 cant economic benefits to the Federal Government, 

6 as well as to States and localities, through the cre7 ation and sustenance of jobs and domestic product; 

8 (8) the Federal Government distributed over 

9 $10,000,000,000 to Federal, State and Indian ac10 counts from energy production during fiscal year 

11 2009, primarily from oil and natural gas production; 

12 (9) the outer Continental Shelf is a vital na13 tional resource reserve held by the Federal Govern14 ment for the public, which should be made available 

15 for expeditious and orderly development, subject to 

16 environmental safeguards, in a manner that is con17 sistent with the maintenance of competition and 

18 other national needs; 

19 (10) Executive Order 13563 on Improving Reg20 ulation and Regulatory Review, issued on January 

21 18, 2011, requires that to the extent permitted by 

22 law, each agency must, among other things— 

23 (A) propose or adopt a regulation only 

24 upon a reasoned determination that its benefits 


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1 justify its costs (recognizing that some benefits 

2 and costs are difficult to quantify); 

3 (B) tailor its regulations to impose the 

4 least burden on society, consistent with obtain5 ing regulatory objectives, taking into account, 

6 among other things, and to the extent prac7 ticable, the costs of cumulative regulations; 

8 (C) select, in choosing among alternative 

9 regulatory approaches, those approaches that 

10 maximize net benefits (including potential eco11 nomic, environmental, public health and safety, 

12 and other advantages; distributive impacts; and 

13 equity); 

14 (D) to the extent feasible, specify perform15 ance objectives, rather than specifying the be16 havior or manner of compliance that regulated 

17 entities must adopt; and 

18 (E) identify and assess available alter19 natives to direct regulation, including providing 

20 economic incentives to encourage the desired 

21 behavior, such as user fees or marketable per22 mits, or providing information upon which 

23 choices can be made by the public; 

24 (11) Executive Order 13547 on Stewardship of 

25 the Ocean, Our Coasts, and the Great Lakes, issued 


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1 on July 19, 2010, provides for the development of 

2 coastal and marine spatial plans (CMSP) that build 

3 upon and improve existing Federal, State, tribal, 

4 local, and regional decisionmaking and planning 

5 processes; 

6 (12) the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 

7 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.) already provides a comprehen8 sive and complete framework for undertaking oil and 

9 gas activities within the framework of a CMSP10 based program; 

11 (13) through the Outer Continental Shelf 

12 Lands Act, Congress has already established the 

13 process for development of coastal and marine spa14 tial plans for oil and gas leasing and other author15 izations, and it is not necessary to create a new reg16 ulatory regime as this would go against the Execu17 tive Order; 

18 (14) the Coastal Plain of Alaska is an impor19 tant potential new source of domestic oil and gas 

20 production; 

21 (15) the delivery of oil from Alberta, Canada, to 

22 domestic markets in the United States is in the na23 tional interest of the United States, and the earliest 

24 possible completion of the Keystone XL pipeline will 

25 best serve the national interest; 


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1 (16) there are 104 nuclear reactors currently 

2 operating in the United States, providing 20 percent 

3 of the electricity of the United States, slightly less 

4 than the electricity generated by natural gas; 

5 (17) nuclear energy is the largest provider of 

6 clean, low-carbon electricity, almost 8 times larger 

7 than all renewable power production combined, ex8 cluding hydroelectric power; 

9 (18) nuclear power is responsible for 72 percent 

10 of emission-free electricity production in the United 

11 States and is an essential tool for greenhouse gas re12 duction; 

13 (19) nuclear power plants virtually eliminate 

14 emissions of greenhouse gases and criteria pollutants 

15 associated with acid rain, smog, or ozone; 

16 (20) nuclear energy supplies consistent, base17 load electricity, independent of environmental condi18 tions; 

19 (21) nuclear power is a safe, reliable, efficient, 

20 and affordable source of energy; 

21 (22) between 1960 and 1980, the Nuclear Reg22 ulatory Commission issued 169 permits to construct 

23 nuclear power facilities; 


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1 (23) even if every nuclear power plant is grant2 ed a 20-year extension, all currently operating nu3 clear power plants will be retired by 2055; 

4 (24) long lead times for nuclear power plant li5 censing, permitting, and construction indicate that 

6 action to stimulate the nuclear power industry 

7 should not be delayed; 

8 (25) there are 17 combined operating license 

9 applications currently pending before the Nuclear 

10 Regulatory Commission for 26 new reactors in the 

11 United States, with 4 applications inactive due to 

12 regulatory uncertainty; 

13 (26) those proposed reactors will use the latest 

14 in nuclear technology for efficiency and safety, more 

15 advanced than the technology of the 1960s and 

16 1970s found in the reactors currently operating in 

17 the United States; 

18 (27) increasing nuclear power threefold will cre19 ate 480,000 construction jobs, 140,000 permanent 

20 jobs, and $20,000,000,000 in local, State, and Fed21 eral tax revenue each year; 

22 (28) increasing nuclear power threefold will re23 duce electricity-based carbon dioxide emissions by 

24 1,400,000,000 metric tons annually and will reduce 


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1 carbon emissions by 65 percent from current emis2 sions levels by 2050; 

3 (29) increasing nuclear power threefold will 

4 produce 320 gigawatts of electricity to power 

5 237,000,000 households and constitute 52 percent of 

6 the United States electricity portfolio by 2030; 

7 (30) the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 

8 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) requires the Federal Govern9 ment to take ownership of high-level radioactive 

10 waste and spent nuclear fuel and build a permanent 

11 geologic repository in which to store such waste; 

12 (31) the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as 

13 amended in 1987, selected the Yucca Mountain site 

14 to be the sole geologic repository in which to store 

15 high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel; 

16 (32) the Congress reaffirmed Yucca Mountain 

17 as the sole candidate site for a geologic repository in 

18 2001; 

19 (33) despite such laws, the Government has 

20 failed to accept high-level radioactive waste and 

21 spent nuclear fuel from utilities and has delayed 

22 construction of the Yucca Mountain repository; 

23 (34) failure to accept high-level radioactive 

24 waste and spent nuclear fuel has led to more than 

25 74 lawsuits filed by utilities against the Government, 


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1 $1,000,000,000 in settlements being paid, and an 

2 estimated $16,200,000,000 in potential liabilities to 

3 settle remaining lawsuits; 

4 (35) each year the Government refuses to ac5 cept high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear 

6 fuel adds an estimated $500,000,000 in additional 

7 liabilities associated with future lawsuits; 

8 (36) the failure of the Federal Government to 

9 accept high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear 

10 fuel from utilities is a significant barrier to the fu11 ture development of additional nuclear power; 

12 (37) the United States has 58,000 tons of radi13 ological material stored at more than 100 sites in 39 

14 States; 

15 (38) the 104 commercial nuclear reactors oper16 ating in the United States produce approximately 

17 2,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel every year; 

18 (39) the Yucca Mountain repository’s capacity 

19 is statutorily limited to 70,000 tons of waste but can 

20 safely hold 120,000 tons; 

21 (40) operators who have paid into the Nuclear 

22 Waste Fund have been denied access to permanent 

23 storage of radiological material as promised by the 

24 Federal Government; 


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1 (41) permanent geologic storage capacity is a 

2 finite resource on which the industry depends; and 

3 (42) operators have the technical expertise to 

4 develop new and more efficient processes of dis5 posing of new radiological material. 

6 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to— 

7 (1) promote expansion of domestic employment 

8 opportunities; 

9 (2) respond to the Nation’s increased need for 

10 domestic energy resources, including oil and natural 

11 gas resources; 

12 (3) support the utilization of the outer Conti13 nental Shelf for oil and gas production and trans14 mission; 

15 (4) confirm and ensure the validity of oil and 

16 gas leases issued under the Final Outer Continental 

17 Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program, 2007–2012; 

18 (5) ensure the continued leasing of outer Conti19 nental Shelf areas pursuant to the Final Outer Con20 tinental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program, 2007– 

21 2012; 

22 (6) facilitate interagency coordination and co23 operation in the processing of permits required to 

24 support oil and gas use authorization on Federal 

25 lands, both onshore and on the outer Continental 


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1 Shelf, in order to achieve greater consistency, cer2 tainty, and timeliness in permit processing require3 ments; 

4 (7) promote process streamlining and increased 

5 interagency efficiency, including elimination of inter6 agency duplication of effort; 

7 (8) improve information sharing among agen8 cies and understanding of respective agency roles 

9 and responsibilities; 

10 (9) promote coordination with State agencies 

11 with expertise and responsibilities related to Federal 

12 oil and gas permitting decisions, and balance Fed13 eral interests with the interests and well-being of 

14 State and local communities; 

15 (10) promote responsible stewardship of Fed16 eral oil and gas resources; 

17 (11) maintain high standards of safety and en18 vironmental protection; and 

19 (12) enhance the benefits to Federal permitting 

20 already occurring as a result of a coordinated and 

21 timely interagency process for oil and gas permit re22 view for certain Federal oil and gas leases. 

23 SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

24 It is the policy of the United States, given the impor25 tance of making a transition to a clean energy, low-carbon 


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1 economy, to facilitate the continued development and 

2 growth of a safe and clean nuclear energy industry 

3 through reductions in financial, regulatory, and technical 

4 barriers to construction and operation. 

5 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS. 

6 For purposes of this Act— 

7 (1) ACT.—The term ‘‘Act’’ means the Outer 

8 Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et 

9 seq.). 

10 (2) AUTHORIZING LEASING STATUTE.—The 

11 term ‘‘authorizing leasing statute’’ means the Outer 

12 Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et 

13 seq.), the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 et 

14 seq.), the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands 

15 (30 U.S.C. 351 et seq.), and any other law author16 izing the use or disposition of Federal lands for oil 

17 and gas production or transmission. 

18 (3) COASTAL PLAIN.—The term ‘‘Coastal 

19 Plain’’ means that area described in appendix I to 

20 part 37 of title 50, Code of Federal Regulations. 

21 (4) COVERED OIL AND NATURAL GAS ACTIV22 ITY.—The term ‘‘covered oil and natural gas activ23 ity’’ means— 

24 (A) the leasing or other disposition of any 

25 lands pursuant to an authorizing leasing statute 


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1 for the exploration, development, production, 

2 processing, or transmission of oil, natural gas, 

3 or associated hydrocarbons, and oil shale, in4 cluding actions or decisions relating to the se5 lection of which lands may or shall be made 

6 available for such leasing; and 

7 (B) any activity taken or proposed to be 

8 taken pursuant or in relation to such leases, in9 cluding their suspension, and any environ10 mental analyses relating to such activity. 

11 (5) OTHER TERMS.—Any terms used in this 

12 Act shall have the meaning such term has in the 

13 Act. 

14 (6) PRIORITY ENERGY PROJECT.—The term 

15 ‘‘Priority Energy Project’’ means a project or facil16 ity in the United States whose operation results in 

17 the production of a domestic supply of energy or the 

18 generation of electricity. 

19 (7) PRIORITY ENERGY PROJECT DEVELOPER.— 

20 The term ‘‘Priority Energy Project Developer’’ 

21 means a person, organization, or other entity that 

22 owns or operates a Priority Energy Project. 

23 (8) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means a 

24 Final Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing 


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1 Program issued pursuant to section 18 of the Act 

2 (43 U.S.C. 1344). 

3 (9) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

4 the Secretary of the Interior, unless otherwise indi5 cated. 

6 TITLE I—DEVELOPMENT OF 

7 FEDERAL ENERGY RESOURCES 

8 Subtitle A—Oil and Gas Leasing in 

9 the Gulf of Mexico 

10 SEC. 101. LEASING IN THE EASTERN GULF OF MEXICO. 

11 (a) TERMINATION OF MORATORIUM.—Section 104 of 

12 the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 (43 

13 U.S.C. 1331 note; Public Law 109–432) is amended by 

14 striking subsection (a) and redesignating subsections (b) 

15 and (c) as subsections (a) and (b), respectively. 

16 (b) NATIONAL DEFENSE AREA.—Section 12(d) of 

17 the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 

18 1341(d)) is amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘The United States’’ and insert20 ing the following: 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The United States’’; and 

22 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(2) REVIEW.—Annually, the Secretary of De24 fense shall review the areas of the outer Continental 

25 Shelf that have been designated as restricted from 


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1 exploration and operation to determine whether the 

2 areas should remain under restriction.’’. 

3 (c) LEASING OF MORATORIUM AREAS.— 

4 (1) DESTIN DOME AND PENSACOLA AREAS.— 

5 Within 1 year after the date of the enactment of this 

6 Act, the Secretary shall offer for leasing under the 

7 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 

8 et seq.), the Destin Dome (OPD NH 16–08) and 

9 Pensacola (OPD NH 16–05) areas. 

10 (2) OTHER AREAS.—As soon as practicable 

11 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec12 retary shall offer for leasing under the Outer Conti13 nental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.), 

14 any other areas in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico Plan15 ning Area that are made available for leasing pursu16 ant to subsection (a). 

17 (3) ADMINISTRATION.—The areas described in 

18 paragraphs (1) and (2) shall be offered for lease 

19 under this section notwithstanding the omission of 

20 any of those areas from the 5-year leasing program 

21 approved by the Secretary under section 18 of the 

22 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 

23 1344) in effect at the time of the lease sale. The 

24 Secretary shall include the areas described in paraVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:23 Apr 05, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4301.IH H4301

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1 graphs (1) and (2) in any 5-year leasing program 

2 approved after the date of enactment of this Act. 

3 (d) COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT ACT OF 1972 RE4 VIEW.—The Secretary’s decision to hold a lease sale for 

5 the areas described in section 101(c) shall not be subject 

6 to consistency review under the Coastal Zone Management 

7 Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.). 

8 SEC. 102. EXTENSION OF DEEPWATER OIL AND NATURAL 

9 GAS LEASES IN GULF OF MEXICO. 

10 (a) DEFINITION OF COVERED LEASE.—In this sec11 tion the term ‘‘covered lease’’ means each oil and gas lease 

12 for the Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf region 

13 issued under section 8(b) of the Outer Continental Shelf 

14 Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1337(b)) that was not producing 

15 as of April 30, 2010. 

16 (b) EXTENSION OF COVERED LEASES.—The Sec17 retary of the Interior shall extend the term of a covered 

18 lease by 24 months. 

19 (c) MINIMUM DEEPWATER WELL REQUIREMENT.— 

20 If fewer than 20 exploration or development wells have 

21 been spudded on deepwater leases in the Gulf of Mexico 

22 within 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, 

23 the 24-month period under subsection (b) for deepwater 

24 leases (water depths of 500 feet or greater) shall be ex25 tended by an additional 18 months. 


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1 (d) EFFECT OF EXTENSION ON SUSPENSIONS.—The 

2 lease term extension under this Act shall be in addition 

3 to any lease term suspension either granted or directed 

4 under section 5(a)(1) of the Act (43 U.S.C. 1334(a)(1)) 

5 prior to or following the date of enactment of this Act. 

6 (e) LEASE REINSTATEMENT.—The Secretary shall 

7 reinstate any lease subject to subsection (a) that expired 

8 between April 30, 2010 and the date of enactment of this 

9 Act, with a new expiration date as provided in subsection 

10 (b). 

11 Subtitle B—Scheduled Leasing, Ex12 ploration, and Development of 

13 Oil and Natural Gas in the Fed14 eral Outer Continental Shelf 

15 SEC. 121. EXPANDED OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF LEASE 

16 SALES. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning in fiscal year 2012, the 

18 Secretary shall conduct all lease sales included in Table 

19 A of the Draft Proposed Outer Continental Shelf Oil and 

20 Gas Leasing Program 2010–2015, issued January 2009. 

21 All such lease sales shall be conducted in accordance with 

22 this section. 

23 (b) EIS.—The Secretary is deemed to have issued a 

24 final environmental impact statement for the program de25 scribed in subsection (a) in accordance with all requireVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:23 Apr 05, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4301.IH H4301

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1 ments under section 102(2)(C) of the National Environ2 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)). 

3 (c) EXEMPTION FROM CONSISTENCY REVIEW.—The 

4 Secretary’s decision to hold a lease sale required under 

5 this section shall not be subject to consistency review 

6 under the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 

7 U.S.C. 1451 et seq). 

8 (d) LEASING PROGRAM.—The Secretary shall pre9 pare and make available a 2015–2020 Draft Proposed 

10 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program no 

11 later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act. 

12 (e) REQUIREMENT TO MAINTAIN PROGRAM.—The 

13 Secretary’s implementation of the requirements of this 

14 section shall fulfill the requirement under section 19 of 

15 the Act (43 U.S.C. 1345) to maintain an oil and gas leas16 ing program through June 30, 2015. 

17 SEC. 122. GEOLOGICAL AND GEOPHYSICAL ACTIVITIES IN 

18 EXPANDED LEASING AREAS. 

19 (a) EIS FOR ATLANTIC OCS PLANNING AREA.— 

20 Within 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

21 Secretary shall issue a Final Programmatic Environ22 mental Impact Statement and Record of Decision pursu23 ant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

24 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), assessing the environmental effects 


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1 of geological and geophysical activities in the Atlantic 

2 Outer Continental Shelf Planning Area. 

3 (b) PERMITS FOR ATLANTIC OCS PLANNING

4 AREA.—The Secretary shall approve any permit that 

5 meets the requirements of the Act for geologic and geo6 physical activities in the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf 

7 Planning Area, including areas in the Southern Atlantic 

8 outer Continental Shelf. 

9 (c) PRELIMINARY EIS FOR SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

10 OCS PLANNING AREA.—Not later than 18 months after 

11 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue 

12 a Preliminary Environmental Impact Statement pursuant 

13 to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

14 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) to assess the environmental impacts 

15 of geophysical activities in the Southern California Outer 

16 Continental Shelf Planning Area. 

17 SEC. 123. PAYMENTS FROM AREAS NEWLY AVAILABLE TO 

18 LEASING. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 9 of the 

20 Act (43 U.S.C. 1338), upon enactment of this Act and 

21 each fiscal year thereafter, 37.5 percent of all bonuses, 

22 rents, royalties, and other sums due and payable to the 

23 United States received on or after enactment of this Act 

24 from outer Continental Shelf leases entered into on or 

25 after the date of enactment of this Act shall be paid to 


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1 the coastal States that are Adjacent States with respect 

2 to such leases. Such payment shall be allocated to each 

3 such Adjacent State in amounts (based on a formula es4 tablished by the Secretary by regulation) that are inversely 

5 proportional to the respective distances between the point 

6 on the coastline of the Adjacent State that is closest to 

7 the geographic center of the applicable leased tract and 

8 the geographic center of the leased tract. 

9 (b) EXCLUSIONS.—Subsection (a) shall not apply 

10 to— 

11 (1) revenues from the forfeiture of a bond or 

12 other surety securing obligations other than royal13 ties, civil penalties, or royalties taken by the Sec14 retary in-kind and not sold; and 

15 (2) revenues generated from leases subject to 

16 section 8(g) of the Act (43 U.S.C. 1137(g)). 

17 (c) USE OF PAYMENTS TO STATES.—Amounts paid 

18 to a State under subsection (a) shall be used by the State 

19 for such purposes as that State considers necessary. 

20 (d) GULF OF MEXICO OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF

21 REVENUES.— 

22 (1) LIMITATION ON APPLICATION.—Subsection 

23 (a) shall not affect the application of section 105 of 

24 the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 

25 (title I of division C of Public Law 109–432; (43 


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1 U.S.C. 1331 note)), as in effect before the enact2 ment of this Act, with respect to revenues received 

3 by the United States under oil and gas leases issued 

4 for tracts located in the Western and Central Gulf 

5 of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf Planning Areas, 

6 including such leases issued on or after the date of 

7 the enactment of this Act. 

8 (2) AMOUNT OF DISTRIBUTED QUALIFIED

9 OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF REVENUES.—Section 

10 105(f)(1) of the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act 

11 of 2006 (title I of division C of Public Law 109– 

12 432; (43 U.S.C. 1331 note)) is amended by striking 

13 ‘‘2055’’ and inserting ‘‘2022, and shall not exceed 

14 $750,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 

15 2055’’. 

16 SEC. 124. DEFINITIONS UNDER THE OUTER CONTINENTAL 

17 SHELF LANDS ACT. 

18 Section 2 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 

19 (43 U.S.C. 1331) is amended— 

20 (1) by amending paragraph (f) to read as fol21 lows: 

22 ‘‘(f) The term ‘affected State’ means the Adjacent 

23 State.’’; 


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1 (2) by striking the semicolon at the end of each 

2 of paragraphs (a) through (o) and inserting a pe3 riod; 

4 (3) by striking ‘‘; and’’ at the end of paragraph 

5 (p) and inserting a period; 

6 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(r) The term ‘Adjacent State’ means, with respect 

8 to any program, plan, lease sale, leased tract, or other ac9 tivity, proposed, conducted, or approved pursuant to this 

10 Act, any State the laws of which are declared, pursuant 

11 to section 4(a)(2), to be the law of the United States for 

12 the portion of the outer Continental Shelf on which such 

13 program, plan, lease sale, leased tract, or activity apper14 tains or is, or is proposed to be, conducted. 

15 ‘‘(s) The term ‘State’ includes all States having a 

16 coastline contiguous to the Arctic, Atlantic, or Pacific 

17 Ocean, or the Gulf of Mexico, the Commonwealth of Puer18 to Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is19 lands, the United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, 

20 Guam, the other territories of the United States, and the 

21 District of Columbia. 

22 ‘‘(t) The term ‘Adjacent Zone’ means, with respect 

23 to any program, plan, lease sale, leased tract, or other ac24 tivity, proposed, conducted, or approved pursuant to this 

25 Act, the portion of the outer Continental Shelf for which 


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1 the laws of a particular Adjacent State are declared, pur2 suant to section 4(a)(2), to be the law of the United 

3 States. 

4 ‘‘(u) The term ‘miles’ means statute miles. 

5 ‘‘(v) The term ‘coastline’ has the same meaning as 

6 the term ‘coast line’ as defined in section 2(c) of the Sub7 merged Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1301(c)). 

8 ‘‘(w) The term ‘Neighboring State’ means a coastal 

9 State having a common boundary at the coastline with the 

10 Adjacent State.’’; and 

11 (5) in paragraph (a), by inserting after ‘‘con12 trol’’ the following: ‘‘or lying within the United 

13 States Exclusive Economic Zone and outer Conti14 nental Shelf adjacent to the Commonwealth of Puer15 to Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mar16 iana Islands, the United States Virgin Islands, 

17 American Samoa, Guam, or any other territory of 

18 the United States’’. 

19 SEC. 125. DETERMINATION OF ADJACENT ZONES AND 

20 PLANNING AREAS. 

21 Section 4(a)(2)(A) of the Outer Continental Shelf 

22 Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1333(a)(2)(A)) is amended in the 

23 first sentence by striking ‘‘, and the President’’ and all 

24 that follows through the end of the sentence and inserting 

25 the following: ‘‘. The lines extending seaward and defining 


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1 each State’s Adjacent Zone, and the Atlantic OCS Plan2 ning Area, are as indicated on the maps for the Atlantic 

3 Outer Continental Shelf region entitled ‘Atlantic OCS Re4 gion State Adjacent Zones and OCS Planning Areas’, 

5 which is dated September 2005 and is on file in the Office 

6 of the Director, Minerals Management Service. The Sec7 retary shall designate the Adjacent Zones of States, and 

8 additional OCS Planning Areas, for parts of the United 

9 States Exclusive Economic Zone and outer Continental 

10 Shelf not covered by those maps.’’. 

11 Subtitle C—Leasing, Exploration, 

12 and Development of Oil and 

13 Natural Gas Resources in Por14 tions of the Coastal Plain of 

15 Alaska 

16 SEC. 131. ESTABLISHMENT OF LEASING PROGRAM FOR 

17 COASTAL PLAIN. 

18 The Secretary shall take such actions as are nec19 essary— 

20 (1) to establish and implement, in accordance 

21 with this subtitle and acting through the Director of 

22 the Bureau of Land Management in consultation 

23 with the Director of the United States Fish and 

24 Wildlife Service, a competitive oil and gas leasing 

25 program that will result in an environmentally sound 


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1 program for the exploration, development, and pro2 duction of the oil and gas resources of the Coastal 

3 Plain; and 

4 (2) to administer the provisions of this title 

5 through regulations, lease terms, conditions, restric6 tions, prohibitions, stipulations, and other provisions 

7 that ensure the oil and gas exploration, development, 

8 and production activities on the Coastal Plain will 

9 minimize any significant adverse effects on fish and 

10 wildlife, their habitat, subsistence resources, and the 

11 environment, including, in furtherance of this goal, 

12 by requiring the application of the best commercially 

13 available technology for oil and gas exploration, de14 velopment, and production to all exploration, devel15 opment, and production operations under this title 

16 in a manner that ensures the receipt of fair market 

17 value by the public for the mineral resources to be 

18 leased. 

19 SEC. 132. CONDUCT OF LEASING PROGRAM. 

20 (a) REPEAL.— 

21 (1) REPEAL.—Section 1003 of the Alaska Na22 tional Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 (16 

23 U.S.C. 3143) is repealed. 


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1 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of 

2 contents in section 1 of such Act is amended by 

3 striking the item relating to section 1003. 

4 (b) COMPLIANCE WITH REQUIREMENTS UNDER

5 CERTAIN OTHER LAWS.— 

6 (1) COMPATIBILITY.—For purposes of the Na7 tional Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 

8 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668dd et seq.), the oil and gas 

9 leasing program and activities authorized by this 

10 subtitle in the Coastal Plain are deemed to be com11 patible with the purposes for which the Arctic Na12 tional Wildlife Refuge was established, and no fur13 ther findings or decisions are required to implement 

14 this determination. 

15 (2) ADEQUACY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE

16 INTERIOR’S LEGISLATIVE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

17 STATEMENT.—The ‘‘Final Legislative Environ18 mental Impact Statement’’ (April 1987) on the 

19 Coastal Plain prepared pursuant to section 1002 of 

20 the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation 

21 Act of 1980 (16 U.S.C. 3142) and section 102(2)(C) 

22 of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 

23 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)) is deemed to satisfy the re24 quirements under the National Environmental Policy 

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1 tivities, including actions authorized to be taken by 

2 the Secretary to develop and promulgate the regula3 tions for the establishment of a leasing program au4 thorized by this subtitle before the conduct of the 

5 first lease sale. 

6 (3) COMPLIANCE WITH NEPA FOR OTHER AC7 TIONS.—Before conducting the first lease sale under 

8 this subtitle, the Secretary shall prepare an environ9 mental impact statement under the National Envi10 ronmental Policy Act of 1969 with respect to the ac11 tions authorized by this subtitle that are not re12 ferred to in paragraph (2). Notwithstanding any 

13 other law, the Secretary is not required to identify 

14 nonleasing alternative courses of action or to analyze 

15 the environmental effects of such courses of action. 

16 The Secretary shall only identify a preferred action 

17 for such leasing and a single leasing alternative, and 

18 analyze the environmental effects and potential miti19 gation measures for those two alternatives. The 

20 identification of the preferred action and related 

21 analysis for the first lease sale under this subtitle 

22 shall be completed within 18 months after the date 

23 of enactment of this Act. The Secretary shall only 

24 consider public comments that specifically address 

25 the Secretary’s preferred action and that are filed 


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1 within 20 days after publication of an environmental 

2 analysis. Notwithstanding any other law, compliance 

3 with this paragraph is deemed to satisfy all require4 ments for the analysis and consideration of the envi5 ronmental effects of proposed leasing under this sub6 title. In preparing or reviewing an environmental as7 sessment pursuant to the National Environmental 

8 Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and any 

9 regulations promulgated thereto, an agency shall 

10 consider, in addition to any mitigation required by 

11 the agency, all applicable Federal, State, local, and 

12 other laws and regulations, guidelines, permit condi13 tions, and any other requirements and best practices 

14 regarding a Priority Energy Project and any other 

15 actions considered in a cumulative effects analysis. 

16 Pursuant to that, the agency shall make a finding 

17 of no significant impact or a mitigated finding of no 

18 significant impact, as applicable, unless, presuming 

19 administrative regularity, the agency can conclu20 sively demonstrate that the mitigation required by 

21 the agency and the applicable Federal, State, local, 

22 and other laws and regulations, guidelines, permit 

23 conditions, and any other requirements and best 

24 practices regarding a Priority Energy Project and 

25 any other actions considered in a cumulative effects 


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1 analysis will not prevent or otherwise mitigate a sig2 nificant impact on the human environment. 

3 (c) RELATIONSHIP TO STATE AND LOCAL AUTHOR4 ITY.—Nothing in this subtitle shall be considered to limit 

5 State and local regulatory authority. 

6 (d) SPECIAL AREAS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, after con8 sultation with the State of Alaska, the city of 

9 Kaktovik, and the North Slope Borough, may des10 ignate up to a total of 45,000 acres of the Coastal 

11 Plain as a Special Area if the Secretary determines 

12 that the Special Area is of such unique character 

13 and interest so as to require special management 

14 and regulatory protection. The Secretary shall des15 ignate as such a Special Area the Sadlerochit Spring 

16 area, comprising approximately 4,000 acres. 

17 (2) MANAGEMENT.—Each such Special Area 

18 shall be managed so as to protect and preserve the 

19 area’s unique and diverse character including its 

20 fish, wildlife, and subsistence resource values. 

21 (3) EXCLUSION FROM LEASING OR SURFACE

22 OCCUPANCY.—The Secretary may exclude any Spe23 cial Area from leasing. If the Secretary leases a Spe24 cial Area, or any part thereof, for purposes of oil 

25 and gas exploration, development, production, and 


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1 related activities, there shall be no surface occu2 pancy of the lands comprising the Special Area. 

3 (4) DIRECTIONAL DRILLING.—Notwithstanding 

4 the other provisions of this subsection, the Secretary 

5 may lease all or a portion of a Special Area under 

6 terms that permit the use of horizontal drilling tech7 nology from sites on leases located outside the Spe8 cial Area. 

9 (e) LIMITATION ON CLOSED AREAS.—The Sec10 retary’s sole authority to close lands within the Coastal 

11 Plain to oil and gas leasing and to exploration, develop12 ment, and production is that set forth in this subtitle. 

13 (f) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

14 such regulations as may be necessary to carry out this 

15 subtitle, including rules and regulations relating to protec16 tion of the fish and wildlife, their habitat, subsistence re17 sources, and environment of the Coastal Plain, by no later 

18 than 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act. 

19 (g) LEASE SALES.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Lands may be leased pursu21 ant to this subtitle to any person qualified to obtain 

22 a lease for deposits of oil and gas under the Mineral 

23 Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 et seq.). 

24 (2) PROCEDURES.—The Secretary shall, by reg25 ulation, establish procedures for— 


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1 (A) receipt and consideration of sealed 

2 nominations for any area in the Coastal Plain 

3 for inclusion in, or exclusion (as provided in 

4 subparagraph (C)) from, a lease sale; 

5 (B) the holding of lease sales after such 

6 nomination process; and 

7 (C) public notice of and comment on des8 ignation of areas to be included in, or excluded 

9 from, a lease sale. 

10 (3) LEASE SALE BIDS.—Bidding for leases 

11 under this subtitle shall be by sealed competitive 

12 cash bonus bids. 

13 (4) ACREAGE MINIMUM IN FIRST SALE.—In the 

14 first lease sale under this subtitle, the Secretary 

15 shall offer for lease those tracts the Secretary con16 siders to have the greatest potential for the dis17 covery of hydrocarbons, taking into consideration 

18 nominations received pursuant to paragraph (2)(A), 

19 but in no case less than 200,000 acres. 

20 (5) TIMING OF LEASE SALES.—The Secretary 

21 shall— 

22 (A) conduct the first lease sale under this 

23 subtitle within 18 months after the date of the 

24 enactment of this Act; 


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1 (B) evaluate the bids in such sale and 

2 issue leases resulting from such sale, within 90 

3 days after the date of the completion of such 

4 sale; and 

5 (C) conduct additional sales so long as suf6 ficient interest in development exists to war7 rant, in the Secretary’s judgment, the conduct 

8 of such sales. 

9 (h) GRANT OF LEASES BY THE SECRETARY.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may grant to 

11 the highest responsible qualified bidder in a lease 

12 sale conducted pursuant to subsection (g) any lands 

13 to be leased on the Coastal Plain upon payment by 

14 the lessee of such bonus as may be accepted by the 

15 Secretary. 

16 (2) SUBSEQUENT TRANSFERS.—No lease issued 

17 under this subtitle may be sold, exchanged, assigned, 

18 sublet, or otherwise transferred except with the ap19 proval of the Secretary. Prior to any such approval 

20 the Secretary shall consult with, and give due con21 sideration to the views of, the Attorney General. 

22 (i) LEASE TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—An oil or gas 

23 lease issued pursuant to this subtitle shall— 

24 (1) provide for the payment of a royalty of 

371 25 ⁄2 percent in amount or value of the production 


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1 removed or sold from the lease, as determined by the 

2 Secretary under the regulations applicable to other 

3 Federal oil and gas leases; 

4 (2) require that the lessee of lands within the 

5 Coastal Plain shall be fully responsible and liable for 

6 the reclamation of lands within the Coastal Plain 

7 and any other Federal lands that are adversely af8 fected in connection with exploration, development, 

9 production, or transportation activities conducted 

10 under the lease and within the Coastal Plain by the 

11 lessee or by any of the subcontractors or agents of 

12 the lessee; 

13 (3) provide that the lessee may not delegate or 

14 convey, by contract or otherwise, the reclamation re15 sponsibility and liability to another person without 

16 the express written approval of the Secretary; 

17 (4) provide that the standard of reclamation for 

18 lands required to be reclaimed under this subtitle 

19 shall be, as nearly as practicable, a condition capable 

20 of supporting the uses which the lands were capable 

21 of supporting prior to any exploration, development, 

22 or production activities, or upon application by the 

23 lessee, to a higher or better use as approved by the 

24 Secretary; 


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1 (5) contain terms and conditions relating to 

2 protection of fish and wildlife, their habitat, subsist3 ence resources, and the environment as required 

4 pursuant to section 131(2); 

5 (6) provide that the lessee, its agents, and its 

6 contractors use best efforts to provide a fair share, 

7 as determined by the level of obligation previously 

8 agreed to in the 1974 agreement implementing sec9 tion 29 of the Federal Agreement and Grant of 

10 Right of Way for the Operation of the Trans Alaska 

11 Pipeline, of employment and contracting for Alaska 

12 Natives and Alaska Native Corporations from 

13 throughout the State; and 

14 (7) contain such other provisions as the Sec15 retary determines necessary to ensure compliance 

16 with the provisions of this subtitle and the regula17 tions issued under this subtitle. 

18 (j) LEASE APPROVAL DEADLINES.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 10 business 

20 days after the date on which an agency receives an 

21 application for any permit, authorization, or other 

22 agency action with respect to a lease under this sub23 title, the agency shall— 

24 (A) notify the applicant that the applica25 tion is complete; or 


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1 (B) notify the applicant that information is 

2 missing and specify any information that is re3 quired to be submitted for the application to be 

4 complete. 

5 (2) ISSUANCE OR DEFERRAL.—Not later than 

6 30 days after the applicant for such a permit, au7 thorization, or other agency action has submitted a 

8 complete application, the agency shall— 

9 (A) issue the permit; or 

10 (B)(i) defer the decision on the permit; 

11 and 

12 (ii) provide to the applicant a notice that 

13 specifies any steps that the applicant could take 

14 for the permit to be issued. 

15 (3) REQUIREMENTS FOR DEFERRED APPLICA16 TIONS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—If the agency provides 

18 notice under paragraph (2)(B), the applicant 

19 shall have a period of 2 years from the date of 

20 receipt of the notice in which to complete all re21 quirements specified by the agency, including 

22 providing information needed for compliance 

23 with the National Environmental Policy Act of 

24 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 


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1 (B) ISSUANCE OF DECISION ON PERMIT.— 

2 If the applicant completes the requirements 

3 within the period specified in subparagraph (A), 

4 the agency shall issue a decision on the permit 

5 not later than 10 days after the date of comple6 tion of the requirements described in subpara7 graph (A). 

8 (C) DENIAL OF PERMIT.—If the applicant 

9 does not complete the requirements within the 

10 period specified in subparagraph (A) the agency 

11 shall deny the permit. 

12 (4) AGENCY REQUIREMENTS.—In any applica13 tion for a permit, authorization, or other agency ac14 tion, the agency shall be prohibited from requiring 

15 the applicant to perform any analyses, studies, or 

16 other activities that are novel, unprecedented, or 

17 otherwise inconsistent with past requirements for 

18 permit applicants in the same or similar situations. 

19 (5) FAILURE TO ACT.—In the event the agency 

20 fails to meet any deadline set forth in this section, 

21 the agency shall immediately grant the requested 

22 permit, authorization, or other approval. 

23 (k) COASTAL PLAIN ENVIRONMENTAL PROTEC24 TION.— 


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1 (1) NO SIGNIFICANT ADVERSE EFFECT STAND2 ARD TO GOVERN AUTHORIZED COASTAL PLAIN AC3 TIVITIES.—The Secretary shall, consistent with the 

4 requirements of paragraph (3), administer the provi5 sions of this subtitle through regulations, lease 

6 terms, conditions, restrictions, prohibitions, stipula7 tions, and other provisions that— 

8 (A) ensure the oil and gas exploration, de9 velopment, and production activities on the 

10 Coastal Plain will result in no significant ad11 verse effect on fish and wildlife, their habitat, 

12 and the environment; 

13 (B) require the application of the best 

14 commercially available technology for oil and 

15 gas exploration, development, and production 

16 on all new exploration, development, and pro17 duction operations; and 

18 (C) ensure that the maximum amount of 

19 surface acreage covered by production and sup20 port facilities, including airstrips and any areas 

21 covered by gravel berms or piers for support of 

22 pipelines, does not exceed 5,000 acres on the 

23 Coastal Plain. 

24 (2) SITE-SPECIFIC ASSESSMENT AND MITIGA25 TION.—The Secretary shall also require, with reVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:23 Apr 05, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4301.IH H4301

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1 spect to any proposed drilling and related activities 

2 pursuant to this subtitle, that— 

3 (A) a site-specific analysis be made of the 

4 probable effects, if any, that the drilling or re5 lated activities will have on fish and wildlife, 

6 their habitat, subsistence resources, and the en7 vironment; 

8 (B) a plan be implemented to avoid, mini9 mize, and mitigate (in that order and to the ex10 tent practicable) any significant adverse effect 

11 identified under subparagraph (A); and 

12 (C) the development of the plan shall occur 

13 after consultation with the agency or agencies 

14 having jurisdiction over matters mitigated by 

15 the plan. 

16 (3) REGULATIONS TO PROTECT COASTAL PLAIN

17 FISH AND WILDLIFE RESOURCES, SUBSISTENCE

18 USERS, AND THE ENVIRONMENT.—Before imple19 menting the leasing program authorized by this sub20 title, the Secretary shall prepare and promulgate 

21 regulations, lease terms, conditions, restrictions, pro22 hibitions, stipulations, and other measures designed 

23 to ensure that the activities undertaken on the 

24 Coastal Plain under this subtitle are conducted in a 


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1 manner consistent with the purposes and environ2 mental requirements of this subtitle. 

3 (4) COMPLIANCE WITH FEDERAL AND STATE

4 ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS AND OTHER REQUIRE5 MENTS.—The proposed regulations, lease terms, 

6 conditions, restrictions, prohibitions, and stipulations 

7 for the leasing program under this subtitle shall re8 quire compliance with all applicable provisions of 

9 Federal and State environmental law, and shall also 

10 require the following: 

11 (A) Standards at least as effective as the 

12 safety and environmental mitigation measures 

13 set forth in items 1 through 29 at pages 167 

14 through 169 of the ‘‘Final Legislative Environ15 mental Impact Statement’’ (April 1987) on the 

16 Coastal Plain. 

17 (B) That exploration activities shall be 

18 supported, if necessary, by ice roads, winter 

19 trails with adequate snow cover, ice pads, ice 

20 airstrips, and air transport methods, except 

21 that such exploration activities may occur at 

22 other times if the Secretary finds that such ex23 ploration will have no significant adverse effect 

24 on the fish and wildlife, their habitat, and the 

25 environment of the Coastal Plain. 


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1 (C) Design safety and construction stand2 ards for all pipelines and any access and service 

3 roads, that— 

4 (i) minimize, to the maximum extent 

5 possible, adverse effects upon the passage 

6 of migratory species such as caribou; and 

7 (ii) minimize adverse effects upon the 

8 flow of surface water by requiring the use 

9 of culverts, bridges, and other structural 

10 devices. 

11 (D) Prohibitions on general public access 

12 and use on all pipeline access and service roads. 

13 (E) Stringent reclamation and rehabilita14 tion requirements, consistent with the stand15 ards set forth in this subtitle, requiring the re16 moval from the Coastal Plain of all oil and gas 

17 development and production facilities, struc18 tures, and equipment upon completion of oil 

19 and gas production operations, except that the 

20 Secretary may exempt from the requirements of 

21 this subparagraph those facilities, structures, or 

22 equipment that the Secretary determines would 

23 assist in the management of the Arctic National 

24 Wildlife Refuge and that are donated to the 

25 United States for that purpose. 


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1 (F) Appropriate prohibitions or restrictions 

2 on access by all modes of transportation. 

3 (G) Appropriate prohibitions or restrictions 

4 on sand and gravel extraction. 

5 (H) Consolidation of facility siting. 

6 (I) Appropriate prohibitions or restrictions 

7 on use of explosives. 

8 (J) Avoidance, to the extent practicable, of 

9 springs, streams, and river system; the protec10 tion of natural surface drainage patterns, wet11 lands, and riparian habitats; and the regulation 

12 of methods or techniques for developing or 

13 transporting adequate supplies of water for ex14 ploratory drilling. 

15 (K) Avoidance or minimization of air traf16 fic-related disturbance to fish and wildlife. 

17 (L) Treatment and disposal of hazardous 

18 and toxic wastes, solid wastes, reserve pit 

19 fluids, drilling muds and cuttings, and domestic 

20 wastewater, including an annual waste manage21 ment report, a hazardous materials tracking 

22 system, and a prohibition on chlorinated sol23 vents, in accordance with applicable Federal 

24 and State environmental law. 


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1 (M) Fuel storage and oil spill contingency 

2 planning. 

3 (N) Research, monitoring, and reporting 

4 requirements. 

5 (O) Field crew environmental briefings. 

6 (P) Avoidance of significant adverse effects 

7 upon subsistence hunting, fishing, and trapping 

8 by subsistence users. 

9 (Q) Compliance with applicable air and 

10 water quality standards. 

11 (R) Appropriate seasonal and safety zone 

12 designations around well sites, within which 

13 subsistence hunting and trapping shall be lim14 ited. 

15 (S) Reasonable stipulations for protection 

16 of cultural and archeological resources. 

17 (T) All other protective environmental stip18 ulations, restrictions, terms, and conditions 

19 deemed necessary by the Secretary. 

20 (l) CONSIDERATIONS.—In preparing and promul21 gating regulations, lease terms, conditions, restrictions, 

22 prohibitions, and stipulations under this section, the Sec23 retary shall consider the following: 

24 (1) The stipulations and conditions that govern 

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1 gram, as set forth in the 1999 Northeast National 

2 Petroleum Reserve-Alaska Final Integrated Activity 

3 Plan/Environmental Impact Statement. 

4 (2) The environmental protection standards 

5 that governed the initial Coastal Plain seismic explo6 ration program under parts 37.31 to 37.33 of title 

7 50, Code of Federal Regulations. 

8 (3) The land use stipulations for exploratory 

9 drilling on the KIC–ASRC private lands that are set 

10 forth in appendix 2 of the August 9, 1983, agree11 ment between Arctic Slope Regional Corporation and 

12 the United States. 

13 (m) ENVIRONMENTAL APPEALS BOARD.— 

14 (1) LIMITATION ON DELEGATION OF AUTHOR15 ITY.—The Administrator of the Environmental Pro16 tection Agency shall not delegate any authority to 

17 the Environmental Appeals Board to consider, re18 view, reject, remand, or otherwise invalidate any per19 mit for activity under a lease under this title. 

20 (2) PERFORMANCE BY SECRETARY.—The Ad21 ministrator shall perform all duties currently as22 signed to the Environmental Appeals Board in the 

23 Secretary’s individual capacity. 

24 (n) FACILITY CONSOLIDATION PLANNING.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, after 

2 providing for public notice and comment, prepare 

3 and update periodically a plan to govern, guide, and 

4 direct the siting and construction of facilities for the 

5 exploration, development, production, and transpor6 tation of Coastal Plain oil and gas resources. 

7 (2) OBJECTIVES.—The plan shall have the fol8 lowing objectives: 

9 (A) Avoiding unnecessary duplication of fa10 cilities and activities. 

11 (B) Encouraging consolidation of common 

12 facilities and activities. 

13 (C) Locating or confining facilities and ac14 tivities to areas that will minimize impact on 

15 fish and wildlife, their habitat, and the environ16 ment. 

17 (D) Utilizing existing facilities wherever 

18 practicable. 

19 (E) Enhancing compatibility between wild20 life values and development activities. 

21 (o) ACCESS TO PUBLIC LANDS.—The Secretary 

22 shall— 

23 (1) manage public lands in the Coastal Plain 

24 subject to subsections (a) and (b) of section 811 of 


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1 the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation 

2 Act (16 U.S.C. 3121); and 

3 (2) ensure that local residents shall have rea4 sonable access to public lands in the Coastal Plain 

5 for traditional uses. 

6 (p) EXPEDITED JUDICIAL REVIEW.— 

7 (1) FILING OF COMPLAINT.— 

8 (A) DEADLINE.—A complaint seeking judi9 cial review of any provision of this section or 

10 any action of the Secretary under this section 

11 shall be filed— 

12 (i) within the 90-day period beginning 

13 on the date of the action being challenged; 

14 or 

15 (ii) in the case of a complaint based 

16 solely on grounds arising after such period, 

17 within 90 days after the complainant knew 

18 or reasonably should have known of the 

19 grounds for the complaint. 

20 (B) VENUE.—Any complaint seeking judi21 cial review of any provision of this subtitle or 

22 any action of the Secretary under this subtitle 

23 may be filed only in the United States Court of 

24 Appeals for the District of Columbia. 


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1 (C) LIMITATION ON SCOPE OF CERTAIN

2 REVIEW.—Judicial review of a Secretarial deci3 sion to conduct a lease sale under this subtitle, 

4 including the environmental analysis thereof, 

5 shall be limited to whether the Secretary has 

6 complied with this subtitle and shall be based 

7 upon the administrative record of that decision. 

8 The Secretary’s identification of a preferred 

9 course of action to enable leasing to proceed 

10 and the Secretary’s analysis of environmental 

11 effects under this subtitle shall be presumed to 

12 be correct unless shown otherwise by clear and 

13 convincing evidence to the contrary. 

14 (2) LIMITATION ON OTHER REVIEW.—Actions 

15 of the Secretary with respect to which review could 

16 have been obtained under this section shall not be 

17 subject to judicial review in any civil or criminal pro18 ceeding for enforcement. 

19 SEC. 133. FEDERAL AND STATE DISTRIBUTION OF REVE20 NUES. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—All adjusted bonus, rental, and 

22 royalty revenues from Federal oil and gas leasing and op23 erations authorized under this subtitle shall be subject to 

24 distribution in the same manner as for Federal oil and 


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1 gas leases under section 35 of the Mineral Leasing Act 

2 (30 U.S.C. 191). 

3 (b) PAYMENTS TO ALASKA.—Payments to the State 

4 of Alaska under this section shall be made semiannually. 

5 SEC. 134. RIGHTS-OF-WAY ACROSS THE COASTAL PLAIN. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall issue rights7 of-way and easements across the Coastal Plain for the 

8 transportation of oil and gas— 

9 (1) except as provided in paragraph (2), under 

10 section 28 of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

11 185), without regard to title XI of the Alaska Na12 tional Interest Lands Conservation Act (30 U.S.C. 

13 3161 et seq.); and 

14 (2) under title XI of the Alaska National Inter15 est Lands Conservation Act (30 U.S.C. 3161 et 

16 seq.), for access authorized by sections 1110 and 

17 1111 of that Act (16 U.S.C. 3170 and 3171). 

18 (b) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—The Secretary shall 

19 include in any right-of-way or easement issued under sub20 section (a) such terms and conditions as may be necessary 

21 to ensure that transportation of oil and gas does not result 

22 in a significant adverse effect on the fish and wildlife, sub23 sistence resources, their habitat, and the environment of 

24 the Coastal Plain, including requirements that facilities be 


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1 sited or designed so as to avoid unnecessary duplication 

2 of roads and pipelines. 

3 (c) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall include in 

4 regulations under section 132 provisions granting rights5 of-way and easements described in subsection (a). 

6 SEC. 135. CONVEYANCE. 

7 In order to maximize Federal revenues by removing 

8 clouds on title to lands and clarifying land ownership pat9 terns within the Coastal Plain, the Secretary, notwith10 standing section 1302(h)(2) of the Alaska National Inter11 est Lands Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 3192(h)(2)), shall 

12 convey— 

13 (1) to the Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation the 

14 surface estate of the lands described in paragraph 1 

15 of Public Land Order 6959, to the extent necessary 

16 to fulfill the Corporation’s entitlement under sec17 tions 12 and 14 of the Alaska Native Claims Settle18 ment Act (43 U.S.C. 1611 and 1613) in accordance 

19 with the terms and conditions of the Agreement be20 tween the Department of the Interior, the United 

21 States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of 

22 Land Management, and the Kaktovik Inupiat Cor23 poration effective January 22, 1993; and 

24 (2) to the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation 

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1 tled pursuant to the August 9, 1983, agreement be2 tween the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation and the 

3 United States of America. 

4 SEC. 136. LOCAL GOVERNMENT IMPACT AID AND COMMU5 NITY SERVICE ASSISTANCE. 

6 (a) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE AUTHORIZED.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may use 

8 amounts available from the Coastal Plain Local Gov9 ernment Impact Aid Assistance Fund established by 

10 subsection (d) to provide timely financial assistance 

11 to entities that are eligible under paragraph (2) and 

12 that are directly impacted by the exploration for or 

13 production of oil and gas on the Coastal Plain under 

14 this subtitle. 

15 (2) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—The North Slope 

16 Borough, the City of Kaktovik, and any other bor17 ough, municipal subdivision, village, or other com18 munity in the State of Alaska that is directly im19 pacted by exploration for, or the production of, oil 

20 or gas on the Coastal Plain under this subtitle, as 

21 determined by the Secretary, shall be eligible for fi22 nancial assistance under this section. 

23 (b) USE OF ASSISTANCE.—Financial assistance 

24 under this section may be used only for— 


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1 (1) planning for mitigation of the potential ef2 fects of oil and gas exploration and development on 

3 environmental, social, cultural, recreational, and sub4 sistence values; 

5 (2) implementing mitigation plans and main6 taining mitigation projects; 

7 (3) developing, carrying out, and maintaining 

8 projects and programs that provide new or expanded 

9 public facilities and services to address needs and 

10 problems associated with such effects, including fire11 fighting, police, water, waste treatment, medivac, 

12 and medical services; and 

13 (4) establishment of a coordination office, by 

14 the North Slope Borough, in the City of Kaktovik, 

15 that shall— 

16 (A) coordinate with and advise developers 

17 on local conditions, impact, and history of the 

18 areas utilized for development; and 

19 (B) provide to the Committee on Natural 

20 Resources of the House of Representatives and 

21 the Committee on Energy and Natural Re22 sources of the Senate an annual report on the 

23 status of coordination between developers and 

24 the communities affected by development. 

25 (c) APPLICATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any community that is eligi2 ble for assistance under this section may submit an 

3 application for such assistance to the Secretary, in 

4 such form and under such procedures as the Sec5 retary may prescribe by regulation. 

6 (2) NORTH SLOPE BOROUGH COMMUNITIES.—A 

7 community located in the North Slope Borough may 

8 apply for assistance under this section either directly 

9 to the Secretary or through the North Slope Bor10 ough. 

11 (3) APPLICATION ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary 

12 shall work closely with and assist the North Slope 

13 Borough and other communities eligible for assist14 ance under this section in developing and submitting 

15 applications for assistance under this section. 

16 (d) ESTABLISHMENT OF FUND.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the 

18 Treasury the Coastal Plain Local Government Im19 pact Aid Assistance Fund. 

20 (2) USE.—Amounts in the fund may be used 

21 only for providing financial assistance under this 

22 section. 

23 (3) DEPOSITS.—Subject to paragraph (4), there 

24 shall be deposited into the fund amounts received by 

25 the United States as revenues derived from rents, 


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1 bonuses, and royalties from Federal leases and lease 

2 sales authorized under this subtitle. 

3 (4) LIMITATION ON DEPOSITS.—The total 

4 amount in the fund may not exceed $11,000,000. 

5 (5) INVESTMENT OF BALANCES.—The Sec6 retary of the Treasury shall invest amounts in the 

7 fund in interest bearing government securities. 

8 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To pro9 vide financial assistance under this section there is author10 ized to be appropriated to the Secretary from the Coastal 

11 Plain Local Government Impact Aid Assistance Fund 

12 $5,000,000 for each fiscal year. 

13 Subtitle D—Improvement of Inter14 agency Coordination and Co15 operation in the Processing of 

16 Federal Permits for Production 

17 of Domestic Oil and Gas Re18 sources 

19 SEC. 141. REGULATORY CERTAINTY. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The relevant regulations, guid21 ance, guidelines, and any other agency interpretations and 

22 rules that are in effect on the day on which a Priority 

23 Energy Project Developer submits an application for a 

24 permit, authorization, or other agency action regarding a 

25 Priority Energy Project shall remain in effect for purposes 


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1 of the agency’s evaluation, review, or action on such appli2 cation. In no event shall any regulations, guidance, guide3 lines, or any other agency interpretations and rules that 

4 become effective after such day be considered applicable 

5 to or otherwise controlling with regard to an agency’s eval6 uation, review, or action on such application. 

7 (b) WAIVER.—Upon providing written notice to an 

8 agency, a Priority Energy Project Developer may waive 

9 subsection (a) with respect to a specific permit application. 

10 In no event shall such waiver be construed as waiving sub11 section (a) regarding any other permit application or any 

12 other agency action for that same Priority Energy Project. 

13 SEC. 142. REGIONAL OFFICES AND REGIONAL PERMIT CO14 ORDINATORS. 

15 It is the sense of the Congress that— 

16 (1) within 180 days after enactment of this Act, 

17 the Secretary of the Interior should establish re18 gional offices in Alaska and the contiguous 48 

19 States to coordinate review of Federal permits for oil 

20 and gas projects on Federal lands onshore and on 

21 the outer Continental Shelf; 

22 (2) the regional offices should be responsible for 

23 coordinating the timely completion of all permitting 

24 activities by Federal agencies, and State agencies to 

25 the maximum extent practicable, with respect to any 


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1 oil and gas project under a Federal lease issued pur2 suant to the mineral leasing laws, either onshore or 

3 on the outer Continental Shelf, including oil and gas 

4 projects should include oil shale projects under Fed5 eral oil shale leases; 

6 (3) the number of regional offices should be es7 tablished by the Secretary, ensuring that there is an 

8 adequate number of offices in each region proximate 

9 to available Federal oil and gas lease tracts onshore 

10 and on the outer Continental Shelf to meet the de11 mands for expeditious permitting in that region; 

12 (4) the Secretary should designate as regional 

13 offices pursuant to paragraph (3) all offices estab14 lished under section 365 of the Energy Policy Act of 

15 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15924); 

16 (5) within 90 days after the enactment of this 

17 Act, the Secretary, the Secretary of Agriculture, the 

18 Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Transpor19 tation, the Administrator of the Environmental Pro20 tection Agency, the Chief of the Corps of Engineers, 

21 and the head of any other Federal agency with re22 sponsibilities related to permitting of Federal oil and 

23 gas leases, should enter into a memorandum of un24 derstanding establishing respective duties and reVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:23 Apr 05, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00057 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4301.IH H4301

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1 sponsibilities for staffing the regional offices and ac2 complishing the objectives of this section; 

3 (6) not later than 30 days after the date of 

4 signing of a memorandum pursuant to subsection 

5 (c), all Federal signatory agencies should assign to 

6 each regional office the appropriate employees with 

7 expertise in the oil and gas permitting issues relat8 ing to that office, including with respect to— 

9 (A) consultation and preparation of bio10 logical opinions under section 7 of the Endan11 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536); 

12 (B) regulatory matters under the Clean 

13 Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.); 

14 (C) planning under the National Forest 

15 Management Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 472a et 

16 seq.); 

17 (D) the preparation of analyses under the 

18 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

19 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) (NEPA); 

20 (E) the preparation of analyses and the 

21 issuance of approvals as required under the 

22 Coastal Zone Management Act (33 U.S.C. 1451 

23 et seq.); 


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1 (F) authorizations pursuant to the Marine 

2 Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 

3 1361 et seq.); 

4 (G) the issuance of permits as may be re5 quired for the discharge of dredged or fill mate6 rial into the waters of the United States, in7 cluding wetlands, under section 404 of the Fed8 eral Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 

9 1344); 

10 (H) applications for permits to drill under 

11 the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 et 

12 seq.); 

13 (I) exploration plans and development and 

14 production plans and associated permits under 

15 the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 

16 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.); and 

17 (J) to the maximum extent practicable, for 

18 purposes of this paragraph, Federal agencies 

19 should give preference to employees volun20 teering for reassignment to the regional offices, 

21 and should offer incentives to attract and retain 

22 regional office employees, including retaining 

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1 ployee’s existing salary immediately prior to re2 assignment, or any combination of strategies; 

3 (7) each employee assigned pursuant to para4 graph (6) should— 

5 (A) within 90 days after the date of as6 signment, report to the regional office to which 

7 the employee is assigned; 

8 (B) be responsible for all issues relating to 

9 the jurisdiction of the home office or agency of 

10 the employee; and 

11 (C) participate as part of the team work12 ing on proposed oil and gas projects, planning, 

13 and environmental analyses; and 

14 (8) the Secretary should appoint a Regional 

15 Permit Coordinator to be located within each re16 gional office established pursuant to this section, 

17 with full authority to act on behalf of the Secretary, 

18 and consistent with the purposes of this subtitle, the 

19 Regional Permit Coordinators should— 

20 (A) pursue interagency coordination and 

21 cooperation in the processing of permits re22 quired to support oil and gas use authorizations 

23 on Federal lands; 


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1 (B) maintain or enhance high standards of 

2 safety and environmental protection through 

3 improved coordination; 

4 (C) achieve process streamlining and in5 creased interagency efficiency, including elimi6 nation of duplication between Federal and State 

7 agencies; 

8 (D) seek improved information sharing and 

9 use, and an improved understanding of respec10 tive agency mandates, roles, and responsibil11 ities; 

12 (E) provide a more consistent approach for 

13 the application of environmental science that 

14 will ensure environmental protection for all 

15 areas affected by outer Continental Shelf devel16 opment, including Alaska; and 

17 (F) establish mechanisms to enhance co18 ordination with State agencies with expertise 

19 and responsibilities related to oil and gas use 

20 authorizations. 

21 SEC. 143. REVIEWS AND ACTIONS OF FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

22 (a) SCHEDULES FOR TIMELY PERMIT DECISION23 MAKING.— 

24 (1) NOTIFICATION OF APPLICANT.—Within 10 

25 days after the date on which the Secretary receives 


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1 any oil and gas permit application or amended appli2 cation, the Secretary shall either notify the applicant 

3 that the application is complete or notify the appli4 cant that information is missing and specify the in5 formation that is required to be submitted for the 

6 application to be complete. 

7 (2) CLASSIFICATION OF PERMIT.—Within 30 

8 days after notifying such a permit applicant that an 

9 application is complete, the Secretary, in consulta10 tion with the permit applicant as necessary, shall de11 termine and inform the Regional Permit Coordinator 

12 responsible for that project area whether the pro13 posed permit is a class I, class II, or class III per14 mit. The Regional Permit Coordinator shall as soon 

15 as possible, but in no event later than 30 days fol16 lowing the Secretary’s determination, establish a 

17 binding schedule to ensure the most expeditious pos18 sible review and processing of the requested permit 

19 in accordance with this section. 

20 (b) PERMIT CLASSES AND SCHEDULES.— 

21 (1) CLASS I PERMITS.—An oil and gas permit 

22 shall be designated as a class I permit under this 

23 section if the permitted activity is of a nature that 

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1 ronmental Policy Act of 1969 to inform the permit2 ting decision. For such permits, the Regional Permit 

3 Coordinator shall establish a schedule for timely 

4 completion of all permit reviews and processing, not 

5 to exceed 30 months. The Regional Permit Coordi6 nator shall make the schedule publicly available 

7 within 10 days after the schedule is established. 

8 (2) CLASS II PERMITS.—An oil and gas permit 

9 shall be designated as a class II permit under this 

10 section if the permitted activity is of a nature that 

11 would typically be found not to significantly affect 

12 the quality of the human environment under the Na13 tional Environmental Policy Act of 1969. For such 

14 permits, the Regional Permit Coordinator shall es15 tablish the most expeditious schedule possible for 

16 completion of all permit reviews and processing, not 

17 to exceed 90 days. The Regional Permit Coordinator 

18 may grant a one-time extension of that schedule, not 

19 to exceed 60 days, upon a good cause showing that 

20 additional time is necessary to complete permit deci21 sions. Not later than 15 days after establishing or 

22 extending any schedule for a class II permit, the Re23 gional Permit Coordinator shall provide the permit 

24 applicant with the schedule. 


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1 (3) CLASS III PERMITS AND CATEGORICAL EX2 CLUSIONS.— 

3 (A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding para4 graphs (1) and (2), an oil and gas permit shall 

5 be designated as a class III permit under this 

6 section if the permitted activity either qualifies 

7 for a statutory or regulatory categorical exclu8 sion under the National Environmental Policy 

9 Act of 1969 or if the requirements under the 

10 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and 

11 other applicable law for the permit have been 

12 completed within 30 days after the date of a 

13 complete application. For such permits, the per14 mit shall be issued within 30 days after the 

15 date of a complete application. 

16 (B) PURPOSE.—It is recognized that the 

17 purpose for issuing a categorical exclusion is to 

18 eliminate the need for unnecessary paperwork 

19 and effort under the National Environmental 

20 Policy Act of 1969 for categories of actions that 

21 normally do not warrant preparation of an envi22 ronmental impact statement or environmental 

23 assessment. 

24 (C) REBUTTABLE PRESUMPTION.—In the 

25 case of permits issued by the Bureau of Land 


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1 Management, the activities described in section 

2 390 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 

3 U.S.C. 15942) shall be entitled to a rebuttable 

4 presumption that a categorical exclusion shall 

5 apply if the activities are to be conducted pur6 suant to the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

7 181 et seq.), unless the Bureau shall have 

8 found extraordinary circumstances to exist as a 

9 result of a review conducted in accordance with 

10 43 CFR 46.20(c), 43 CFR 46.215, and chapter 

11 4 and appendix 5 of the Bureau of Land Man12 agement NEPA Handbook, and shall have re13 ported the findings of this review to the Re14 gional Permit Coordinator within 30 days after 

15 the date of a complete application. If extraor16 dinary circumstances exist in relation to the ac17 tivities being considered, then the application 

18 shall be eligible for a class I or class II permit 

19 as appropriate under this section. 

20 (4) RECLASSIFICATION OF CLASS II PERMIT.— 

21 If prior to the expiration of the established schedule 

22 for a class II permit newly discovered information 

23 indicates that the class II permit will significantly 

24 affect the quality of the human environment, the 

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1 cant, reclassify the permit as a class I permit under 

2 paragraph (1), and the Regional Coordinator shall 

3 establish an amended schedule that complies with 

4 the provisions of that paragraph. 

5 (c) DISPUTE RESOLUTION.—The Regional Permit 

6 Coordinator shall resolve all administrative issues that af7 fect oil and gas permit reviews. The Regional Permit Coor8 dinator shall report to the head of the relevant action 

9 agency, or his or her designee, for resolution of any issue 

10 regarding an oil and gas permit that may result in missing 

11 the schedule deadlines established pursuant to subsection 

12 (b). The Regional Permit Coordinators shall include data 

13 regarding the incidence and resolution of disputes under 

14 this subsection in their reports to the Secretary. 

15 (d) REMEDIES.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—An applicant for a class I 

17 permit may bring a cause of action to seek expedited 

18 mandamus review, pursuant to the procedures in 

19 section 174, if a Regional Permit Coordinator or the 

20 Secretary fails to— 

21 (A) establish a schedule in accordance with 

22 subsection (b); 

23 (B) enforce and ensure completion of re24 views within schedule deadlines; or 


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1 (C) take all actions as are necessary and 

2 proper to avoid jeopardizing the timely comple3 tion of the entire schedule. 

4 (2) FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH SCHEDULE.—If 

5 an agency fails to complete its review of and issue 

6 a decision upon a permit within the schedule estab7 lished by the Court pursuant to section 174, that 

8 permit shall be deemed granted to the applicant. 

9 (e) PROHIBITION OF CERTAIN TERMS AND CONDI10 TIONS.—No Federal agency may include in any permit, 

11 right-of-way, or other authorization issued for an oil and 

12 gas project subject to the provisions of this subtitle, any 

13 term or condition that may be authorized, but is not re14 quired, by the provisions of any applicable law, if such 

15 term or condition would prevent or impair in any signifi16 cant respect completion of a permit review within the time 

17 schedule established pursuant to subsection (b) or would 

18 otherwise impair in any significant respect expeditious oil 

19 and gas development. No Regional Permit Coordinator 

20 shall have any authority to impose any terms, conditions, 

21 or requirements beyond those imposed by any Federal law, 

22 agency, regulation, or lease term. 

23 (f) CONSOLIDATED RECORD.—The Secretary, acting 

24 through the appropriate Regional Permit Coordinator, 

25 with the cooperation of Federal and State administrative 


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1 officials and agencies, shall maintain a complete, consoli2 dated record of all decisions made or actions taken by the 

3 Regional Permit Coordinators or by any Federal agency 

4 with respect to any oil and gas permit. 

5 (g) FUNDING.—The Secretary shall carry out this 

6 section with amounts that are otherwise available for re7 lated purposes. 

8 SEC. 144. LEAD AGENCY. 

9 (a) APPLICABILITY.—The provisions of this section 

10 apply pursuant to this Act only where a Priority Energy 

11 Project is subject to the jurisdiction of more than one Fed12 eral agency or upon the election of the Priority Energy 

13 Project Developer. 

14 (b) LEAD AGENCY.—The Federal Energy Regulatory 

15 Commission shall act as the lead agency for purposes of 

16 coordinating, reviewing, or otherwise granting any permit 

17 or authorization or other agency action regarding a Pri18 ority Energy Project pursuant to this Act. 

19 (c) AUTHORITY TO SET DEADLINES.—The Federal 

20 Energy Regulatory Commission, in consultation with other 

21 Federal agencies and, as appropriate, with Indian tribes, 

22 multi-State entities, and State agencies that are willing 

23 to coordinate their own separate permitting and environ24 mental reviews with the lead agency, shall establish 

25 prompt and binding intermediate milestones and final 


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1 deadlines for the granting of permits or authorizations or 

2 other agency actions relating to the Priority Energy 

3 Project not later than 90 days following notification by 

4 a Priority Energy Project Developer that it is invoking 

5 the provisions of this section for its Priority Energy 

6 Project. 

7 (d) REQUIREMENT TO MEET DEADLINES.—All Fed8 eral agencies shall meet the deadlines established under 

9 subsection (c) and cooperate fully with the Federal Energy 

10 Regulatory Commission in its capacity as lead agency pur11 suant to this Act. In the event an agency fails to act in 

12 accordance with a final deadline established pursuant to 

13 subsection (c) regarding a Priority Energy Project, the 

14 permit or authorization or other agency action shall be 

15 deemed granted and approved. 

16 (e) APPEALS.—As lead agency, the Federal Energy 

17 Regulatory Commission shall hear all agency appeals in 

18 lieu of an affected agency regarding a Priority Energy 

19 Project and in hearing such appeals is authorized to re20 mand, reverse, or revise any agency decision. 

21 (f) CONSOLIDATED RECORD.—As lead agency, the 

22 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, in consultation 

23 with other Federal agencies, shall prepare a single envi24 ronmental review document, which shall be used as the 

25 basis for all decisions regarding the Priority Energy 


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1 Project under Federal law. The document may be an envi2 ronmental assessment or environmental impact statement 

3 under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

4 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), if warranted, or such other form 

5 of analysis. 

6 (g) RESOURCES.—All Federal agencies are required, 

7 upon request of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commis8 sion, as lead agency, to allocate personnel and other re9 sources to assist it in fulfilling its obligations under this 

10 section. 

11 (h) RELATIONSHIP TO NEPA AND ENERGY POLICY

12 ACT OF 2005.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 390(a) of the En14 ergy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15942(a)) is 

15 amended— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘rebuttable presumption 

17 that the use of a’’; and 

18 (B) by striking ‘‘would apply’’. 

19 (2) MINERAL LEASING ACT.—Section 17(p) of 

20 the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(p)) is re21 pealed. 

22 (i) ADDITIONAL POWERS AND RESPONSIBILITIES.— 

23 (1) REGIONAL PERMIT COORDINATOR RE24 PORTS.—The Regional Permit Coordinators shall 

25 each submit a report to the Secretary by December 


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1 31 of each year that documents each office’s per2 formance in meeting the objectives under this sub3 title, including recommendations to further stream4 line the permitting process. 

5 (2) REDIRECTION OF PRIORITIES OR RE6 SOURCES.—In order to expedite overall permitting 

7 activity, the Secretary may redirect the priority of 

8 regional office activities or the allocation of re9 sources among such offices, and shall engage the 

10 agencies that are parties to the memorandum of un11 derstanding under section 142(c) to the extent such 

12 adjustments implicate their respective staffs or re13 sources. 

14 (3) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Beginning 3 years 

15 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec16 retary shall prepare and submit a report to the 

17 President and Congress by April 15 of each year 

18 that outlines the results achieved under this subtitle 

19 and makes recommendations to the President and 

20 Congress for further improvements in processing oil 

21 and gas permits on Federal lands. 

22 SEC. 145. CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW OF AGENCY RULE23 MAKING. 

24 Chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

25 to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘CHAPTER 8—CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW 

2 OF AGENCY RULEMAKING 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘801. Congressional review. 

‘‘802. Congressional approval procedure for major rules. 

‘‘803. Congressional disapproval procedure for nonmajor rules. 

‘‘804. Definitions. 

‘‘805. Judicial review. 

‘‘806. Exemption for monetary policy. 

‘‘807. Effective date of certain rules. 

3 ‘‘§ 801. Congressional review 

4 ‘‘(a)(1)(A) Before a rule may take effect, the Federal 

5 agency promulgating such rule shall submit to each House 

6 of the Congress and to the Comptroller General a report 

7 containing— 

8 ‘‘(i) a copy of the rule; 

9 ‘‘(ii) a concise general statement relating to the 

10 rule; 

11 ‘‘(iii) a classification of the rule as a major or 

12 nonmajor rule, including an explanation of the clas13 sification specifically addressing each criteria for a 

14 major rule contained within sections 804(2)(A), 

15 804(2)(B), and 804(2)(C); 

16 ‘‘(iv) a list of any other related regulatory ac17 tions intended to implement the same statutory pro18 vision or regulatory objective as well as the indi19 vidual and aggregate economic effects of those ac20 tions; and 

21 ‘‘(v) the proposed effective date of the rule. 


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1 ‘‘(B) On the date of the submission of the report 

2 under subparagraph (A), the Federal agency promulgating 

3 the rule shall submit to the Comptroller General and make 

4 available to each House of Congress— 

5 ‘‘(i) a complete copy of the cost-benefit analysis 

6 of the rule, if any, including an analysis of any jobs 

7 added or lost, differentiating between public and pri8 vate sector jobs; 

9 ‘‘(ii) the agency’s actions pursuant to sections 

10 603, 604, 605, 607, and 609 of this title; 

11 ‘‘(iii) the agency’s actions pursuant to sections 

12 202, 203, 204, and 205 of the Unfunded Mandates 

13 Reform Act of 1995; and 

14 ‘‘(iv) any other relevant information or require15 ments under any other Act and any relevant Execu16 tive orders. 

17 ‘‘(C) Upon receipt of a report submitted under sub18 paragraph (A), each House shall provide copies of the re19 port to the chairman and ranking member of each stand20 ing committee with jurisdiction under the rules of the 

21 House of Representatives or the Senate to report a bill 

22 to amend the provision of law under which the rule is 

23 issued. 

24 ‘‘(2)(A) The Comptroller General shall provide a re25 port on each major rule to the committees of jurisdiction 


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1 by the end of 15 calendar days after the submission or 

2 publication date as provided in section 802(b)(2). The re3 port of the Comptroller General shall include an assess4 ment of the agency’s compliance with procedural steps re5 quired by paragraph (1)(B). 

6 ‘‘(B) Federal agencies shall cooperate with the Comp7 troller General by providing information relevant to the 

8 Comptroller General’s report under subparagraph (A). 

9 ‘‘(3) A major rule relating to a report submitted 

10 under paragraph (1) shall take effect upon enactment of 

11 a joint resolution of approval described in section 802 or 

12 as provided for in the rule following enactment of a joint 

13 resolution of approval described in section 802, whichever 

14 is later. 

15 ‘‘(4) A nonmajor rule shall take effect as provided 

16 by section 803 after submission to Congress under para17 graph (1). 

18 ‘‘(5) If a joint resolution of approval relating to a 

19 major rule is not enacted within the period provided in 

20 subsection (b)(2), then a joint resolution of approval relat21 ing to the same rule may not be considered under this 

22 chapter in the same Congress by either the House of Rep23 resentatives or the Senate. 


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1 ‘‘(b)(1) A major rule shall not take effect unless the 

2 Congress enacts a joint resolution of approval described 

3 under section 802. 

4 ‘‘(2) If a joint resolution described in subsection (a) 

5 is not enacted into law by the end of 70 session days or 

6 legislative days, as applicable, beginning on the date on 

7 which the report referred to in section 801(a)(1)(A) is re8 ceived by Congress (excluding days either House of Con9 gress is adjourned for more than 3 days during a session 

10 of Congress), then the rule described in that resolution 

11 shall be deemed not to be approved and such rule shall 

12 not take effect. 

13 ‘‘(c)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

14 section (except subject to paragraph (3)), a major rule 

15 may take effect for one 90-calendar-day period if the 

16 President makes a determination under paragraph (2) and 

17 submits written notice of such determination to the Con18 gress. 

19 ‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) applies to a determination made 

20 by the President by Executive order that the major rule 

21 should take effect because such rule is— 

22 ‘‘(A) necessary because of an imminent threat 

23 to health or safety or other emergency; 

24 ‘‘(B) necessary for the enforcement of criminal 

25 laws; 


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1 ‘‘(C) necessary for national security; or 

2 ‘‘(D) issued pursuant to any statute imple3 menting an international trade agreement. 

4 ‘‘(3) An exercise by the President of the authority 

5 under this subsection shall have no effect on the proce6 dures under section 802. 

7 ‘‘(d)(1) In addition to the opportunity for review oth8 erwise provided under this chapter, in the case of any rule 

9 for which a report was submitted in accordance with sub10 section (a)(1)(A) during the period beginning on the date 

11 occurring— 

12 ‘‘(A) in the case of the Senate, 60 session days, 

13 or 

14 ‘‘(B) in the case of the House of Representa15 tives, 60 legislative days, 

16 before the date the Congress is scheduled to adjourn a 

17 session of Congress through the date on which the same 

18 or succeeding Congress first convenes its next session, sec19 tions 802 and 803 shall apply to such rule in the suc20 ceeding session of Congress. 

21 ‘‘(2)(A) In applying sections 802 and 803 for pur22 poses of such additional review, a rule described under 

23 paragraph (1) shall be treated as though— 

24 ‘‘(i) such rule were published in the Federal 

25 Register on— 


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1 ‘‘(I) in the case of the Senate, the 15th 

2 session day, or 

3 ‘‘(II) in the case of the House of Rep4 resentatives, the 15th legislative day, 

5 after the succeeding session of Congress first con6 venes; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) a report on such rule were submitted to 

8 Congress under subsection (a)(1) on such date. 

9 ‘‘(B) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed 

10 to affect the requirement under subsection (a)(1) that a 

11 report shall be submitted to Congress before a rule can 

12 take effect. 

13 ‘‘(3) A rule described under paragraph (1) shall take 

14 effect as otherwise provided by law (including other sub15 sections of this section). 

16 ‘‘§ 802. Congressional approval procedure for major 

17 rules 

18 ‘‘(a)(1) For purposes of this section, the term ‘joint 

19 resolution’ means only a joint resolution addressing a re20 port classifying a rule as major pursuant to section 

21 801(a)(1)(A)(iii) that— 

22 ‘‘(A) bears no preamble; 

23 ‘‘(B) bears the following title (with blanks filled 

24 as appropriate): ‘Approving the rule submitted by 

25 lll relating to lll.’; 


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1 ‘‘(C) includes after its resolving clause only the 

2 following (with blanks filled as appropriate): ‘That 

3 Congress approves the rule submitted by lll re4 lating to lll.’; and 

5 ‘‘(D) is introduced pursuant to paragraph (2). 

6 ‘‘(2) After a House of Congress receives a report 

7 classifying a rule as major pursuant to section 

8 801(a)(1)(A)(iii), the majority leader of that House (or 

9 his or her respective designee) shall introduce (by request, 

10 if appropriate) a joint resolution described in paragraph 

11 (1)— 

12 ‘‘(A) in the case of the House of Representa13 tives, within three legislative days; and 

14 ‘‘(B) in the case of the Senate, within three ses15 sion days. 

16 ‘‘(3) A joint resolution described in paragraph (1) 

17 shall not be subject to amendment at any stage of pro18 ceeding. 

19 ‘‘(b) A joint resolution described in subsection (a) 

20 shall be referred in each House of Congress to the commit21 tees having jurisdiction over the provision of law under 

22 which the rule is issued. 

23 ‘‘(c) In the Senate, if the committee or committees 

24 to which a joint resolution described in subsection (a) has 

25 been referred have not reported it at the end of 15 session 


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1 days after its introduction, such committee or committees 

2 shall be automatically discharged from further consider3 ation of the resolution and it shall be placed on the cal4 endar. A vote on final passage of the resolution shall be 

5 taken on or before the close of the 15th session day after 

6 the resolution is reported by the committee or committees 

7 to which it was referred, or after such committee or com8 mittees have been discharged from further consideration 

9 of the resolution. 

10 ‘‘(d)(1) In the Senate, when the committee or com11 mittees to which a joint resolution is referred have re12 ported, or when a committee or committees are discharged 

13 (under subsection (c)) from further consideration of a 

14 joint resolution described in subsection (a), it is at any 

15 time thereafter in order (even though a previous motion 

16 to the same effect has been disagreed to) for a motion 

17 to proceed to the consideration of the joint resolution, and 

18 all points of order against the joint resolution (and against 

19 consideration of the joint resolution) are waived. The mo20 tion is not subject to amendment, or to a motion to post21 pone, or to a motion to proceed to the consideration of 

22 other business. A motion to reconsider the vote by which 

23 the motion is agreed to or disagreed to shall not be in 

24 order. If a motion to proceed to the consideration of the 

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1 main the unfinished business of the Senate until disposed 

2 of. 

3 ‘‘(2) In the Senate, debate on the joint resolution, 

4 and on all debatable motions and appeals in connection 

5 therewith, shall be limited to not more than 2 hours, which 

6 shall be divided equally between those favoring and those 

7 opposing the joint resolution. A motion to further limit 

8 debate is in order and not debatable. An amendment to, 

9 or a motion to postpone, or a motion to proceed to the 

10 consideration of other business, or a motion to recommit 

11 the joint resolution is not in order. 

12 ‘‘(3) In the Senate, immediately following the conclu13 sion of the debate on a joint resolution described in sub14 section (a), and a single quorum call at the conclusion of 

15 the debate if requested in accordance with the rules of the 

16 Senate, the vote on final passage of the joint resolution 

17 shall occur. 

18 ‘‘(4) Appeals from the decisions of the Chair relating 

19 to the application of the rules of the Senate to the proce20 dure relating to a joint resolution described in subsection 

21 (a) shall be decided without debate. 

22 ‘‘(e) In the House of Representatives, if any com23 mittee to which a joint resolution described in subsection 

24 (a) has been referred has not reported it to the House 

25 at the end of 15 legislative days after its introduction, 


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1 such committee shall be discharged from further consider2 ation of the joint resolution, and it shall be placed on the 

3 appropriate calendar. On the second and fourth Thursdays 

4 of each month it shall be in order at any time for the 

5 Speaker to recognize a Member who favors passage of a 

6 joint resolution that has appeared on the calendar for at 

7 least 5 legislative days to call up that joint resolution for 

8 immediate consideration in the House without intervention 

9 of any point of order. When so called up a joint resolution 

10 shall be considered as read and shall be debatable for 1 

11 hour equally divided and controlled by the proponent and 

12 an opponent, and the previous question shall be considered 

13 as ordered to its passage without intervening motion. It 

14 shall not be in order to reconsider the vote on passage. 

15 If a vote on final passage of the joint resolution has not 

16 been taken by the third Thursday on which the Speaker 

17 may recognize a Member under this subsection, such vote 

18 shall be taken on that day. 

19 ‘‘(f)(1) If, before passing a joint resolution described 

20 in subsection (a), one House receives from the other a 

21 joint resolution having the same text, then— 

22 ‘‘(A) the joint resolution of the other House 

23 shall not be referred to a committee; and 

24 ‘‘(B) the procedure in the receiving House shall 

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1 ceived from the other House until the vote on pas2 sage, when the joint resolution received from the 

3 other House shall supplant the joint resolution of 

4 the receiving House. 

5 ‘‘(2) This subsection shall not apply to the House of 

6 Representatives if the joint resolution received from the 

7 Senate is a revenue measure. 

8 ‘‘(g) If either House has not taken a vote on final 

9 passage of the joint resolution by the last day of the period 

10 described in section 801(b)(2), then such vote shall be 

11 taken on that day. 

12 ‘‘(h) This section and section 803 are enacted by 

13 Congress— 

14 ‘‘(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 

15 the Senate and House of Representatives, respec16 tively, and as such is deemed to be part of the rules 

17 of each House, respectively, but applicable only with 

18 respect to the procedure to be followed in that 

19 House in the case of a joint resolution described in 

20 subsection (a) and superseding other rules only 

21 where explicitly so; and 

22 ‘‘(2) with full recognition of the Constitutional 

23 right of either House to change the rules (so far as 

24 they relate to the procedure of that House) at any 


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1 time, in the same manner and to the same extent as 

2 in the case of any other rule of that House. 

3 ‘‘§ 803. Congressional disapproval procedure for 

4 nonmajor rules 

5 ‘‘(a) For purposes of this section, the term ‘joint res6 olution’ means only a joint resolution introduced in the 

7 period beginning on the date on which the report referred 

8 to in section 801(a)(1)(A) is received by Congress and 

9 ending 60 days thereafter (excluding days either House 

10 of Congress is adjourned for more than 3 days during a 

11 session of Congress), the matter after the resolving clause 

12 of which is as follows: ‘That Congress disapproves the 

13 nonmajor rule submitted by the lll relating to 

14 lll, and such rule shall have no force or effect.’ (The 

15 blank spaces being appropriately filled in). 

16 ‘‘(b)(1) A joint resolution described in subsection (a) 

17 shall be referred to the committees in each House of Con18 gress with jurisdiction. 

19 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this section, the term submis20 sion or publication date means the later of the date on 

21 which— 

22 ‘‘(A) the Congress receives the report submitted 

23 under section 801(a)(1); or 

24 ‘‘(B) the nonmajor rule is published in the Fed25 eral Register, if so published. 


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1 ‘‘(c) In the Senate, if the committee to which is re2 ferred a joint resolution described in subsection (a) has 

3 not reported such joint resolution (or an identical joint 

4 resolution) at the end of 15 session days after the date 

5 of introduction of the joint resolution, such committee may 

6 be discharged from further consideration of such joint res7 olution upon a petition supported in writing by 30 Mem8 bers of the Senate, and such joint resolution shall be 

9 placed on the calendar. 

10 ‘‘(d)(1) In the Senate, when the committee to which 

11 a joint resolution is referred has reported, or when a com12 mittee is discharged (under subsection (c)) from further 

13 consideration of a joint resolution described in subsection 

14 (a), it is at any time thereafter in order (even though a 

15 previous motion to the same effect has been disagreed to) 

16 for a motion to proceed to the consideration of the joint 

17 resolution, and all points of order against the joint resolu18 tion (and against consideration of the joint resolution) are 

19 waived. The motion is not subject to amendment, or to 

20 a motion to postpone, or to a motion to proceed to the 

21 consideration of other business. A motion to reconsider the 

22 vote by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to shall 

23 not be in order. If a motion to proceed to the consideration 

24 of the joint resolution is agreed to, the joint resolution 


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1 shall remain the unfinished business of the Senate until 

2 disposed of. 

3 ‘‘(2) In the Senate, debate on the joint resolution, 

4 and on all debatable motions and appeals in connection 

5 therewith, shall be limited to not more than 10 hours, 

6 which shall be divided equally between those favoring and 

7 those opposing the joint resolution. A motion to further 

8 limit debate is in order and not debatable. An amendment 

9 to, or a motion to postpone, or a motion to proceed to 

10 the consideration of other business, or a motion to recom11 mit the joint resolution is not in order. 

12 ‘‘(3) In the Senate, immediately following the conclu13 sion of the debate on a joint resolution described in sub14 section (a), and a single quorum call at the conclusion of 

15 the debate if requested in accordance with the rules of the 

16 Senate, the vote on final passage of the joint resolution 

17 shall occur. 

18 ‘‘(4) Appeals from the decisions of the Chair relating 

19 to the application of the rules of the Senate to the proce20 dure relating to a joint resolution described in subsection 

21 (a) shall be decided without debate. 

22 ‘‘(e) In the Senate the procedure specified in sub23 section (c) or (d) shall not apply to the consideration of 

24 a joint resolution respecting a nonmajor rule— 


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1 ‘‘(1) after the expiration of the 60 session days 

2 beginning with the applicable submission or publica3 tion date, or 

4 ‘‘(2) if the report under section 801(a)(1)(A) 

5 was submitted during the period referred to in sec6 tion 801(d)(1), after the expiration of the 60 session 

7 days beginning on the 15th session day after the 

8 succeeding session of Congress first convenes. 

9 ‘‘(f) If, before the passage by one House of a joint 

10 resolution of that House described in subsection (a), that 

11 House receives from the other House a joint resolution 

12 described in subsection (a), then the following procedures 

13 shall apply: 

14 ‘‘(1) The joint resolution of the other House 

15 shall not be referred to a committee. 

16 ‘‘(2) With respect to a joint resolution described 

17 in subsection (a) of the House receiving the joint 

18 resolution— 

19 ‘‘(A) the procedure in that House shall be 

20 the same as if no joint resolution had been re21 ceived from the other House; but 

22 ‘‘(B) the vote on final passage shall be on 

23 the joint resolution of the other House. 

24 ‘‘§ 804. Definitions 

25 ‘‘For purposes of this chapter— 


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1 ‘‘(1) The term ‘Federal agency’ means any 

2 agency as that term is defined in section 551(1). 

3 ‘‘(2) The term ‘major rule’ means any rule, in4 cluding an interim final rule, that the Administrator 

5 of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs 

6 of the Office of Management and Budget finds has 

7 resulted in or is likely to result in— 

8 ‘‘(A) an annual effect on the economy of 

9 $100,000,000 or more; 

10 ‘‘(B) a major increase in costs or prices for 

11 consumers, individual industries, Federal, 

12 State, or local government agencies, or geo13 graphic regions; or 

14 ‘‘(C) significant adverse effects on competi15 tion, employment, investment, productivity, in16 novation, or on the ability of United States17 based enterprises to compete with foreign-based 

18 enterprises in domestic and export markets. 

19 ‘‘(3) The term ‘nonmajor rule’ means any rule 

20 that is not a major rule. 

21 ‘‘(4) The term ‘rule’ has the meaning given 

22 such term in section 551, except that such term does 

23 not include— 

24 ‘‘(A) any rule of particular applicability, 

25 including a rule that approves or prescribes for 


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1 the future rates, wages, prices, services, or al2 lowances therefore, corporate or financial struc3 tures, reorganizations, mergers, or acquisitions 

4 thereof, or accounting practices or disclosures 

5 bearing on any of the foregoing; 

6 ‘‘(B) any rule relating to agency manage7 ment or personnel; or 

8 ‘‘(C) any rule of agency organization, pro9 cedure, or practice that does not substantially 

10 affect the rights or obligations of non-agency 

11 parties. 

12 ‘‘§ 805. Judicial review 

13 ‘‘(a) No determination, finding, action, or omission 

14 under this chapter shall be subject to judicial review. 

15 ‘‘(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), a court may de16 termine whether a Federal agency has completed the nec17 essary requirements under this chapter for a rule to take 

18 effect. 

19 ‘‘(c) The enactment of a joint resolution of approval 

20 under section 802 shall not be interpreted to serve as a 

21 grant or modification of statutory authority by Congress 

22 for the promulgation of a rule, shall not extinguish or af23 fect any claim, whether substantive or procedural, against 

24 any alleged defect in a rule, and shall not form part of 

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1 cerning a rule except for purposes of determining whether 

2 or not the rule is in effect. 

3 ‘‘§ 806. Exemption for monetary policy 

4 ‘‘Nothing in this chapter shall apply to rules that con5 cern monetary policy proposed or implemented by the 

6 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or the 

7 Federal Open Market Committee. 

8 ‘‘§ 807. Effective date of certain rules 

9 ‘‘Notwithstanding section 801— 

10 ‘‘(1) any rule that establishes, modifies, opens, 

11 closes, or conducts a regulatory program for a com12 mercial, recreational, or subsistence activity related 

13 to hunting, fishing, or camping; or 

14 ‘‘(2) any rule other than a major rule which an 

15 agency for good cause finds (and incorporates the 

16 finding and a brief statement of reasons therefore in 

17 the rule issued) that notice and public procedure 

18 thereon are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary 

19 to the public interest, 

20 shall take effect at such time as the Federal agency pro21 mulgating the rule determines.’’. 

22 SEC. 146. STATE COORDINATION REGARDING FEDERAL OIL 

23 AND GAS PERMITTING. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall invite the 

25 Governor of any State wherein an oil and gas operation 


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1 may require a Federal permit, or the coastline of which 

2 is in immediate geographic proximity to oil and gas oper3 ations on the outer Continental Shelf, to be a signatory 

4 to the memorandum under section 142(c) for purposes of 

5 fulfilling any State responsibilities with respect to Federal 

6 oil and gas permitting decisions. The Regional Permit Co7 ordinators shall facilitate and coordinate concurrent State 

8 reviews of requested permits for oil and gas projects on 

9 the outer Continental Shelf. 

10 (b) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary 

11 may enter into cooperative agreements with affected 

12 States for purposes of this section, consistent with this 

13 title and other applicable Federal law. Such agreements 

14 may include the sharing of information, the joint utiliza15 tion of available expertise, the facilitating of permitting 

16 procedures, joint planning and review, and the formation 

17 of joint surveillance and monitoring arrangements to carry 

18 out applicable Federal and State laws, regulations, and 

19 stipulations relevant to oil and gas operations that may 

20 be carried out pursuant to this title. 

21 SEC. 147. STATE CONSULTATION. 

22 A Federal agency with jurisdiction over a Priority 

23 Energy Project may delegate to the State in which the 

24 Priority Energy Project is located the Federal agency’s 

25 responsibilities for environmental reviews, consultations, 


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1 or decisions or other actions required under any Federal 

2 law regarding the Priority Energy Project. After authority 

3 is delegated under this section to a State it may be re4 voked only by an Act of Congress. The Federal agency 

5 may provide financial and other forms of assistance to 

6 States, multistate entities, and Indian tribes to facilitate 

7 the coordination and delegation under this section. 

8 SEC. 148. SAVINGS PROVISION. 

9 Except as expressly stated, nothing in this subtitle 

10 affects— 

11 (1) the applicability of any Federal or State 

12 law; or 

13 (2) any delegation of authority made by the 

14 head of a Federal agency the employees of which are 

15 participating in the implementation of this subtitle. 

16 SEC. 149. REVIEW OF AGENCY PERMITTING DECISIONS. 

17 (a) ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW.—Any oil and gas per18 mitting decision for Federal lands onshore or on the outer 

19 Continental Shelf under this subtitle shall not be subject 

20 to further administrative review within the respective Fed21 eral agency responsible for that decision, and shall be the 

22 final decision of that agency for purposes of judicial re23 view. 

24 (b) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Any oil and gas permitting 

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1 nental Shelf under this subtitle shall be subject to judicial 

2 review only in accordance with section 174. 

3 SEC. 150. DEADLINE FOR DECISION ON AGENCY APPEALS. 

4 (a) DEADLINE FOR DECISION.—Not later than 120 

5 days after the date of the filing of an appeal by a Priority 

6 Energy Project Developer, the agency shall issue a final 

7 decision. 

8 (b) FAILURE TO ACT.—In the event the agency fails 

9 to meet the deadline of this section, the appeal shall be 

10 decided in favor of the Priority Energy Project Developer. 

11 Subtitle E—Prohibition on New 

12 Wilderness or Wilderness Study 

13 Areas on Lands Administered by 

14 the BLM Without Congressional 

15 Approval; Indian Land Develop16 ment 

17 SEC. 161. REPEAL OF EXECUTIVE ORDER. 

18 The Bureau of Land Management shall not imple19 ment, administer, or enforce Secretarial Order No. 3310, 

20 issued by the Secretary of the Interior on December 22, 

21 2010, except by Congressional approval. 

22 SEC. 162. WILDERNESS DESIGNATION PROCEDURES. 

23 (a) PRECONDITION TO DESIGNATION.—The Sec24 retary of the Interior may not designate or issue a rec25 ommendation to designate a wilderness or wilderness 


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1 study area as ‘‘Wild Lands’’, ‘‘Wilderness’’, or any other 

2 protective designation on lands administered by the Bu3 reau of Land Management before the last day of the 30- 

4 day period beginning on the date on which the Secretary 

5 provides a description and map of the land proposed to 

6 be so designated to Congress and to the Governor of each 

7 State with jurisdiction over parcels of land located within 

8 the boundaries of the area proposed to be designated. 

9 (b) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.— 

10 (1) PUBLIC HEARING REQUIREMENT.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara12 graph (D), not later than 90 days after the 

13 date on which the Secretary of Interior issues 

14 a recommendation under subsection (a), the 

15 Secretary shall hold not fewer than one public 

16 hearing within a county (or comparable unit of 

17 local government) located wholly or in part 

18 within the boundaries of the proposed wilder19 ness or wilderness study area. The Secretary 

20 shall ensure that all interested individuals are 

21 afforded an opportunity to participate in a 

22 hearing held under this paragraph. 

23 (B) COMMENTS.—The Secretary of the In24 terior shall solicit comments from the public at 

25 a hearing held under subparagraph (A), and 


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1 shall enter all comments received at or related 

2 to such hearing into the record of the hearing. 

3 (C) AVAILABILITY OF RECORD.—The Sec4 retary of the Interior shall promptly make the 

5 record of a hearing held under subparagraph 

6 (A), including a transcript of the hearing, avail7 able to the public on the Internet or by other 

8 electronic means. The Secretary shall ensure 

9 that any components of the record that are 

10 completed before the entire record is finalized 

11 are made available upon their completion. 

12 (D) WAIVER.—The Secretary of the Inte13 rior may decline to hold a public hearing under 

14 subparagraph (A) if each unit of local govern15 ment located wholly or in part within the 

16 boundaries of the national monument expressly 

17 waives the right to such hearing. 

18 (2) NOTICE AND COMMENT PERIOD REQUIRE19 MENT.—Not later than 30 days after the date on 

20 which Secretary of Interior issues a recommendation 

21 under subsection (a), the Secretary shall initiate a 

22 notice and comment period to receive comments 

23 from the public regarding the recommendation. 

24 (3) REPORT.— 


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1 (A) CONTENTS.—Not later than one year 

2 after issuing a recommendation to designate a 

3 wilderness or wilderness study area under sub4 section (a), the Secretary shall submit to Con5 gress a report containing the following: 

6 (i) An analysis of the economic impact 

7 of the designation on the communities 

8 within 100 miles of the boundaries of the 

9 proposed wilderness or wilderness study 

10 area, including an estimate of the tax reve11 nues that will be lost to, or gained for, the 

12 Federal, State, and local governments as a 

13 result of the designation. 

14 (ii) An analysis of the impact the des15 ignation will have on the Nation’s energy 

16 security, including the effects of the loss of 

17 sites to produce wind, geothermal, or solar 

18 energy, and the number of barrels of oil, 

19 tons of coal, or cubic feet of natural gas 

20 that will become unavailable as a result of 

21 the designation. 

22 (iii) The projected impact of the des23 ignation on interests, rights, and uses as24 sociated with the parcels of land within the 

25 boundaries of the monument, including 


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1 water rights, hunting, recreational shoot2 ing, grazing, timber production, vegetation 

3 manipulation to maintain forest health, 

4 off-road vehicle use, hiking, horseback 

5 riding, and mineral and energy leases, 

6 claims, and permits. 

7 (iv) The record of any hearings held 

8 under paragraph (1). 

9 (v) Any written comments received 

10 during the notice and comment period con11 ducted under paragraph (2). 

12 (B) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary of Inte13 rior shall ensure that— 

14 (i) a report submitted to Congress 

15 under subparagraph (A) is published on 

16 the Department of Interior Web site upon 

17 completion; and 

18 (ii) any components of the report that 

19 are completed before the entire report is fi20 nalized and submitted to Congress are 

21 published on the Department of Interior 

22 Web site upon their completion. 

23 (4) IMPLEMENTATION GUIDELINES.—The Sec24 retary of the Interior, in cooperation with the States, 


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1 shall develop and publish guidelines to provide for 

2 the implementation of subsection. 

3 (c) CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL OF DESIGNATION.— 

4 (1) APPROVAL REQUIRED.—A designation 

5 issued under subsection (a) shall cease to be effec6 tive following the last day of the 2-year period begin7 ning on the date on which the Secretary of Interior 

8 issued the designation, unless the report is approved 

9 by an Act of Congress on or before that last day. 

10 (2) MANAGEMENT OF LAND BEFORE AP11 PROVAL.—During the period between the issuance of 

12 the report described in subsection (b)(3) and con13 gressional approval described above, the Secretary of 

14 Interior shall ensure that any restriction placed on 

15 land and interests, rights, or uses associated with 

16 the parcels of land designated as a national monu17 ment, including water rights, hunting, recreational 

18 shooting, grazing, timber production, vegetation ma19 nipulation to maintain forest health, off-road vehicle 

20 use, hiking, horseback riding, and mineral and en21 ergy leases, claims, and permits, is narrowly tailored 

22 and essential to the proper care and management of 

23 the objects to be protected. 

24 (3) EFFECT OF NONAPPROVAL.—If Congress 

25 does not approve the report, any reservation of land 


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1 made by the report, and any restriction imposed as 

2 a result of the report on interests, rights, or uses as3 sociated with the parcels of land, shall cease to be 

4 effective following the last day of the 2-year period 

5 referred to in paragraph (1). 

6 SEC. 163. FUTURE EXECUTIVE BRANCH ACTIONS. 

7 (a) EFFECTIVENESS.—Upon enactment of this Act, 

8 no executive branch action that withdraws more than 100 

9 acres, in the aggregate, of public lands within the United 

10 States pursuant to the Antiquities Act of 1906 (16 U.S.C. 

11 431 et seq.) or any other relevant authority shall be effec12 tive except by compliance with this section. The provisions 

13 of this subsection shall apply to executive branch actions 

14 that withdraw less than 100 acres of public land where 

15 such withdrawals are located within 100 miles of any other 

16 withdrawal of public lands. 

17 (b) WITHDRAWAL.—To the extent authorized by ex18 isting law, the President or the relevant head of an agency 

19 may withdraw public lands in the United States provided 

20 that such withdrawal shall not be effective until notice is 

21 provided in the Federal Register and to the House of Rep22 resentatives and the Senate. Such withdrawal shall termi23 nate unless approved by a Federal statute not later than 

24 one year after the notice of such withdrawal has been sub25 mitted to Congress. 


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1 (c) LIMITATION.—If Congress fails to pass an Act ap2 proving a withdrawal under subsection (b), the President 

3 or the relevant head of an agency shall be prohibited from 

4 withdrawing such land or a similar area of public lands 

5 until at least 5 years after the end of the time period de6 scribed in subsection (b). 

7 SEC. 164. LEASES FOR DEVELOPMENT OF NATURAL RE8 SOURCES ON INDIAN LANDS. 

9 Subsection (a) of the first section of the Act to au10 thorize the leasing of restricted Indian lands for public, 

11 religious, educational, recreational, residential, business, 

12 and other purposes requiring the grant of long-term leases 

13 (25 U.S.C. 415(a); commonly known as the ‘‘Long-term 

14 Leasing Act’’) is amended by striking ‘‘including the de15 velopment or utilization of natural resources in connection 

16 with operations under such leases’’ and inserting ‘‘except 

17 leases for the development or utilization of natural re18 sources and leases in connection with operations under 

19 such leases, neither of which shall require Secretarial ap20 proval under this section,’’. 


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1 Subtitle F—Legal Causes and 

2 Claims Pertaining to the Leas3 ing and Development of Federal 

4 Lands for Exploration and Pro5 duction of Oil, Natural Gas, As6 sociated Hydrocarbons, and Oil 

7 Shale 

8 SEC. 171. OIL SHALE, TAR SANDS, AND OTHER STRATEGIC 

9 UNCONVENTIONAL FUELS. 

10 (a) JURISDICTION.—Upon enactment of this Act, the 

11 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, in lieu of the De12 partment of the Interior, shall be granted exclusive juris13 diction and all relevant authority to implement and admin14 ister the leasing program for research and development 

15 of oil shale and tar sands and all other programs and re16 quirements contained in section 369 of the Energy Policy 

17 Act of 2005 (Public Law 109–58; 42 U.S.C. 15927). 

18 (b) REGULATIONS.—Upon enactment of this Act and 

19 pursuant to paragraph (1), the Federal Energy Regu20 latory Commission shall immediately stay all regulations 

21 and guidelines promulgated by the Department of the In22 terior or any other agency under section 369 of the En23 ergy Policy Act of 2005 and, notwithstanding any other 

24 law, publish proposed rules in the Federal Register not 

25 later than 6 months following enactment of this Act that 


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1 fully implement as expeditiously as practicable the provi2 sions of such section 369. The Federal Energy Regulatory 

3 Commission shall publish final rules not later than 18 

4 months following enactment of this Act. 

5 (c) RESOURCES.—The Federal Energy Regulatory 

6 Commission is authorized to request from the Department 

7 of the Interior and the Department of Energy any re8 sources and personnel that it deems necessary to imple9 ment and administer the provisions of this subsection, and 

10 the Department of the Interior and the Department of En11 ergy are required to provide such resources and personnel 

12 as requested. 

13 SEC. 172. ENERGY PRODUCTION ON FEDERAL LANDS. 

14 (a) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary of the Interior is 

15 directed to take sufficient actions to ensure that by Janu16 ary 1, 2018, not less than 10 percent of the Federal outer 

17 Continental Shelf lands and not less than 10 percent of 

18 onshore Federal lands and interests in lands that are 

19 under the Secretary’s jurisdiction are being leased for the 

20 production of energy. 

21 (b) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of the Interior 

22 shall utilize all available authority pursuant to this Act 

23 and any other Federal law, as applicable, to comply with 

24 the requirement in subsection (a). 


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1 SEC. 173. JURISDICTION. 

2 (a) EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION.—Notwithstanding 

3 any other provision of law, including section 23(c)(2) of 

4 the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 

5 1349(c)(2)), any final agency decision concerning any cov6 ered oil and natural gas activity shall be subject to judicial 

7 review only in the United States District Court for the 

8 District of Columbia. 

9 (b) FINALITY OF LEASING DECISIONS.—Notwith10 standing the provisions of any law or regulation to the 

11 contrary, a decision by the Bureau of Land Management 

12 or the Minerals Management Service to issue a Final No13 tice of Sale and proceed with an oil and gas lease sale 

14 pursuant to any authorizing leasing statute shall not be 

15 subject to further administrative review within the Depart16 ment of the Interior, and shall be the final decision of the 

17 agency for purposes of judicial review. 

18 (c) EXPEDITED REVIEW.—Section 390 of the Energy 

19 Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15942) is amended— 

20 (1) by striking ‘‘be subject to a rebuttable pre21 sumption that the use of’’ and inserting ‘‘apply’’; 

22 and 

23 (2) by striking ‘‘would apply’’. 

24 SEC. 174. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 

25 (a) IN GENERAL.— 


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1 (1) EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION.—The United 

2 States Court of Appeals for the circuit in which a 

3 Priority Energy Project is proposed to be con4 structed, expanded, or operated shall have original 

5 and exclusive jurisdiction over the review of an order 

6 or action of a Federal agency or State administra7 tive agency acting pursuant to Federal law to issue, 

8 condition, or deny any permit, license, concurrence, 

9 or approval (hereinafter in this section collectively 

10 referred to as a ‘‘permit’’) required under Federal 

11 law. 

12 (2) AGENCY DELAY.—The United States Court 

13 of Appeals for the District of Columbia shall have 

14 original and exclusive jurisdiction over the review of 

15 an alleged failure to act by a Federal agency or 

16 State administrative agency acting pursuant to Fed17 eral law to issue, condition, or deny any permit re18 quired under Federal law for a Priority Energy 

19 Project. 

20 (3) COURT ACTION.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Court shall act as 

22 expeditiously as possible for all appeals under 

23 this section. 

24 (B) REMAND.—If a Court finds that such 

25 order or action is inconsistent with the Federal 


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1 law governing such permit and would prevent 

2 the construction, expansion, or operation of the 

3 Priority Energy Project, the Court shall re4 mand the proceeding to the agency to take ap5 propriate action consistent with the order of the 

6 Court. If the Court remands the order or action 

7 to a Federal or State agency, the Court shall 

8 set as expeditious a schedule and deadline as 

9 possible for the agency to act on remand, and 

10 in any event shall allow not more than 90 days 

11 for agency action on remand. 

12 (C) ATTORNEY’S FEES AND OTHER EX13 PENSES.—Attorney’s fees and other expenses of 

14 litigation shall be awarded to the prevailing 

15 party in actions challenging an agency action 

16 granting a permit for or otherwise authorizing 

17 a Priority Energy Project, but in no event shall 

18 a Priority Energy Project Developer be required 

19 to pay attorney’s fees and other expenses of liti20 gation to a prevailing party. 

21 (4) APPEALS.—Appeals brought pursuant to 

22 this section may only be filed within 30 days of a 

23 final agency action regarding a permit. 

24 (b) CITIZEN SUITS.— 


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1 (1) STANDING.—In any suit involving a Priority 

2 Energy Project brought under a citizen suit provi3 sion under a Federal law, any fact material to the 

4 standing of the party bringing the suit that is in dis5 pute shall be adjudicated by the Court prior to the 

6 adjudication of any other issue relating to the merits 

7 of the suit. 

8 (2) PRESERVATION OF AGENCY DISCRETION.— 

9 (A) NOTICE OF CITIZEN SUIT RE10 QUIRED.—A party seeking to file a citizen suit 

11 pursuant to a Federal law involving a Priority 

12 Energy Project shall first notify in writing the 

13 relevant agency and the Priority Energy Project 

14 Developer of its intent to file a citizen suit, the 

15 claims it intends to bring, and all relevant stat16 utory and regulatory provisions. 

17 (B) DETERMINATION REQUIRED.— 

18 (i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 

19 days following receipt of such notice, the 

20 agency shall exercise discretion in deter21 mining whether enforcement of the claims 

22 described in such notice are an appropriate 

23 use of agency resources. 

24 (ii) DISMISSAL REQUIRED.—If the 

25 agency determines such claims are not an 


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1 appropriate use of agency resources, the 

2 citizen suit shall be not be considered au3 thorized under relevant Federal law and if 

4 filed shall be immediately dismissed by the 

5 Court. 

6 (iii) AGENCY RESPONSE REQUIRED.— 

7 If the agency determines such claims are 

8 an appropriate use of agency resources, the 

9 agency shall have a period of 24 months to 

10 act in response to such claims, including 

11 by bringing an enforcement action or by 

12 consulting with the Priority Energy 

13 Project Developer, before the citizen suit 

14 shall be considered authorized under rel15 evant Federal law. Upon the request of the 

16 Priority Energy Project Developer, the 

17 agency must allow for an additional 24 

18 months to act in response to such claims. 

19 (C) CITIZEN SUIT AUTHORIZED.—After 

20 the 24 month period, or 48 month period, as 

21 applicable, described in subparagraph (B)(iii) 

22 has expired, if the agency publishes a notice in 

23 the Federal Register expressly stating that it 

24 declines to address the claims described by the 

25 party seeking to file a citizen suit as described 


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1 pursuant to subparagraph (A), then such party 

2 is authorized to file a citizen suit under relevant 

3 Federal law. The agency is prohibited from 

4 publishing such notice if the Priority Energy 

5 Project Developer has consulted with the agen6 cy and taken remedial action regarding the 

7 claims contained in the notice described in 

8 paragraph (A). 

9 (D) ATTORNEYS FEES AND EXPENSES.— 

10 In a citizen suit filed pursuant a Federal law 

11 that involves a Priority Energy Project, a Pri12 ority Energy Project Developer shall not be re13 quired to pay attorneys fees and expenses to a 

14 prevailing party. 

15 (3) SETTLEMENTS.—Notwithstanding any 

16 other provision of law, no Federal agency shall enter 

17 into a settlement agreement arising from a citizen 

18 suit subject to this subsection that would require the 

19 reallocation of agency resources that had been pre20 viously allocated by law or regulation. 

21 SEC. 175. TIME FOR FILING PETITION FOR JUDICIAL RE22 VIEW; STANDING, FILING OF RECORD. 

23 (a) DEADLINE.—All petitions for judicial review of 

24 covered oil and natural gas activities must be filed within 


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1 45 days of the final agency decision or the challenge shall 

2 be barred. 

3 (b) STANDING.—Only persons whose legal rights will 

4 be directly and adversely affected by the challenged action, 

5 and who are within the zone of interest protected by each 

6 Act under which the challenge is brought, shall have 

7 standing to file any petition for judicial review of covered 

8 oil and natural gas activities. 

9 (c) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this section creates a 

10 right to judicial review or places any limit on filing a claim 

11 that a person has violated the terms of a permit, license, 

12 or approval. 

13 (d) CONSOLIDATED RECORD.—When any civil action 

14 is brought concerning any covered oil and natural gas ac15 tivity, the Federal agencies involved shall immediately pre16 pare for the court the consolidated record compiled for the 

17 challenged decision. 

18 (e) COMPLETION OF REVIEW.—The court shall com19 plete all judicial review, including rendering a judgment, 

20 before the end of the 210-day period beginning on the date 

21 on which a petition is filed that is subject to this subtitle, 

22 unless all parties to such proceeding agree to an extension 

23 of such period. 

24 (f) EXPEDITED MANDAMUS REVIEW.—Notwith25 standing subsection (e), within 30 days after the filing of 


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1 an action that is subject to this subtitle, the court shall 

2 issue a decision either compelling permit issuance or es3 tablishing a schedule that enables the most expeditious 

4 possible completion of proceedings. The court may issue 

5 orders to enforce any schedule it establishes under this 

6 subsection. 

7 (g) NO PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.—Except as ex8 pressly provided in this section, this subtitle shall not be 

9 construed to create any additional right, benefit, or trust 

10 responsibility, substantive or procedural, enforceable at 

11 law or equity, by a person against the United States, its 

12 agencies, its officers, or any person. 

13 SEC. 176. LIMITATION ON SCOPE OF REVIEW AND RELIEF. 

14 (a) PROSPECTIVE RELIEF.—In any proceeding for 

15 judicial review that is subject to this subtitle, the court 

16 shall not grant or approve any prospective relief unless 

17 the court finds that such relief is narrowly drawn, extends 

18 no further than necessary to correct the violation of a Fed19 eral law requirement, and is the least intrusive means nec20 essary to correct the violation. 

21 (b) EFFECTIVENESS OF AGENCY DECISION PENDING

22 JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Final agency decisions relating to 

23 covered oil and natural gas activities shall be effective 

24 pending any judicial review of such decisions unless the 

25 Court issues an order staying the effect of the decision. 


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1 SEC. 177. EXCLUSION. 

2 This subtitle shall not apply to disputes between the 

3 parties to a lease issued pursuant to an authorizing leas4 ing statute regarding the obligations of such lease or the 

5 alleged breach thereof. 

6 Subtitle G—Development of Solar 

7 and Wind Energy on Public Land 

8 SEC. 181. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this subtitle: 

10 (1) COVERED LAND.—The term ‘‘covered land’’ 

11 means land that is— 

12 (A)(i) public land administered by the Sec13 retary; or 

14 (ii) National Forest System land adminis15 tered by the Secretary of Agriculture; and 

16 (B) not excluded from the development of 

17 solar or wind energy under— 

18 (i) a land use plan established under 

19 the Federal Land Policy and Management 

20 Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); 

21 (ii) a land use plan established under 

22 the National Forest Management Act of 

23 1976 (16 U.S.C. 1600 et seq.); or 

24 (iii) other law. 


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1 (2) PILOT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘pilot pro2 gram’’ means the wind and solar leasing pilot pro3 gram established under section 183(a). 

4 (3) PUBLIC LAND.—The term ‘‘public land’’ 

5 has the meaning given the term ‘‘public lands’’ in 

6 section 103 of the Federal Land Policy and Manage7 ment Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702). 

8 (4) SECRETARIES.—The term ‘‘Secretaries’’ 

9 means— 

10 (A) in the case of public land administered 

11 by the Secretary, the Secretary; and 

12 (B) in the case of National Forest System 

13 land administered by the Secretary of Agri14 culture, the Secretary of Agriculture. 

15 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

16 the Secretary of the Interior. 

17 SEC. 182. PROGRAMMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT 

18 STATEMENTS AND LAND USE PLANNING. 

19 (a) PUBLIC LAND.—Not later than 1 year after the 

20 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall— 

21 (1) complete and finalize the Programmatic En22 vironmental Impact Statement for Solar Energy De23 velopment in Six Southwestern States (BLM/DES 

24 10–59; DOE/EIS–0403) in accordance with the NaVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:23 Apr 05, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00111 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4301.IH H4301

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1 tional Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

2 4321 et seq.) to analyze the potential impacts of— 

3 (A) a program to develop solar energy on 

4 land administered by the Secretary, acting 

5 through the Bureau of Land Management; and 

6 (B) any necessary amendments to land use 

7 plans for the land; and 

8 (2) amend any land use plans as appropriate to 

9 provide for the development of energy resources in 

10 areas considered appropriate by the Secretary. 

11 (b) NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM LAND.—As soon as 

12 practicable but not later than 2 years after the date of 

13 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall— 

14 (1) prepare and publish in the Federal Register 

15 a notice of intent to prepare a programmatic envi16 ronmental impact statement in accordance with the 

17 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

18 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) to analyze the potential im19 pacts of— 

20 (A) a program to develop solar and wind 

21 energy on National Forest System land admin22 istered by the Secretary of Agriculture; and 

23 (B) any necessary amendments to land use 

24 plans for the land; and 


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1 (2) amend any land use plans as appropriate to 

2 provide for the development of energy resources in 

3 areas considered appropriate by the Secretary of Ag4 riculture immediately on completion of the pro5 grammatic environmental impact statement. 

6 (c) EFFECT ON PROCESSING APPLICATIONS.—The 

7 requirement for completion of programmatic environ8 mental impact statements under this section shall not re9 sult in any delay in processing or approving applications 

10 for wind or solar development on public land administered 

11 by the Secretary or on National Forest System land. 

12 (d) MILITARY INSTALLATIONS.— 

13 (1) REPORT.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years 

15 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec16 retary of Defense, in consultation with the Sec17 retary of the Interior, shall conduct a study, 

18 and prepare a report, that— 

19 (i) identifies locations on land with20 drawn from the public domain and re21 served for military purposes that— 

22 (I) exhibit a high potential for 

23 solar, wind, geothermal, or other en24 ergy resources production; 


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1 (II) are disturbed or otherwise 

2 have comparatively low value for other 

3 resources; and 

4 (III) could be developed for en5 ergy production in a manner con6 sistent with all present and reasonably 

7 foreseeable military training and oper8 ational missions and research, devel9 opment, testing, and evaluation re10 quirements; and 

11 (ii) describes the administration of 

12 public land withdrawn for military pur13 poses for the development of commercial14 scale energy projects, including the legal 

15 authorities governing authorization for 

16 that use. 

17 (B) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The report 

18 shall include recommendations on— 

19 (i) necessary changes in any law (in20 cluding regulations); 

21 (ii) whether the authorization for the 

22 use of the land for development of energy 

23 projects should be pursuant to lease, con24 tract, right-of-way, permit, or other form 

25 of authorization; 


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1 (iii) methods of improving coordina2 tion among the Federal, State, and local 

3 agencies, if any, involved in authorizing the 

4 projects; and 

5 (iv) disposition of revenues resulting 

6 from the development of energy projects on 

7 the land. 

8 (2) ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ANALYSIS.—Not 

9 later than 1 year after the completion of the study 

10 required by paragraph (1), the Secretary of Defense, 

11 in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, 

12 shall prepare and publish in the Federal Register a 

13 notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact 

14 analysis document to support a program to develop 

15 energy resources on withdrawn military land identi16 fied in the study as suitable for the production. 

17 (3) REPORTS.—On completion of the report, 

18 the Secretary and the Secretary of Defense shall 

19 jointly submit the report required by paragraph (1) 

20 to— 

21 (A) the Committee on Armed Services of 

22 the Senate; 

23 (B) the Committee on Energy and Natural 

24 Resources of the Senate; 


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1 (C) the Committee on Armed Services of 

2 the House of Representatives; and 

3 (D) the Committee on Natural Resources 

4 of the House of Representatives. 

5 SEC. 183. DEVELOPMENT OF SOLAR AND WIND ENERGY ON 

6 PUBLIC LAND. 

7 (a) PILOT PROGRAM.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

9 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec10 retary shall establish a wind and solar leasing pilot 

11 program on covered land administered by the Sec12 retary. 

13 (2) SELECTION OF SITES.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days 

15 after the date the pilot program is established 

16 under this subsection, the Secretary shall (tak17 ing into consideration the multiple resource val18 ues of the land) select 2 sites that are appro19 priate for the development of a solar energy 

20 project, and 2 sites that are appropriate for the 

21 development of a wind energy project, on cov22 ered land administered by the Secretary as part 

23 of the pilot program. 


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1 (B) SITE SELECTION.—In carrying out 

2 subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall seek to 

3 select sites— 

4 (i) for which there is likely to be a 

5 high level of industry interest; 

6 (ii) that have a comparatively low 

7 value for other resources; and 

8 (iii) that are representative of sites on 

9 which solar or wind energy is likely to be 

10 developed on covered land. 

11 (C) INELIGIBLE SITES.—The Secretary 

12 shall not select as part of the pilot program any 

13 site for which a right-of way for site testing or 

14 construction has been issued. 

15 (3) QUALIFICATIONS.—Prior to any lease sale, 

16 the Secretary shall establish qualifications for bid17 ders that ensure bidders— 

18 (A) are able to expeditiously develop a 

19 wind or solar energy project on the site for 

20 lease; 

21 (B) possess— 

22 (i) financial resources necessary to 

23 complete a project; 

24 (ii) knowledge of the applicable tech25 nology; and 


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1 (iii) such other qualifications as are 

2 determined appropriate by the Secretary; 

3 and 

4 (C) meet the eligibility requirements for 

5 leasing under the first section of the Mineral 

6 Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181). 

7 (4) LEASE SALES.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

9 subparagraph (D)(ii), not later than 180 days 

10 after the date sites are selected under para11 graph (2), the Secretary shall offer each site for 

12 competitive leasing to qualified bidders under 

13 such terms and conditions as are required by 

14 the Secretary. 

15 (B) BIDDING SYSTEMS.— 

16 (i) IN GENERAL.—In offering the sites 

17 for lease, the Secretary may vary the bid18 ding systems to be used at each lease sale, 

19 including— 

20 (I) cash bonus bids with a re21 quirement for payment of the royalty 

22 established under this Act; 

23 (II) variable royalty bids based 

24 on a percentage of the gross proceeds 

25 from the sale of electricity produced 


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1 from the lease, except that the royalty 

2 shall not be less than the royalty re3 quired under this Act, together with a 

4 fixed cash bonus; and 

5 (III) such other bidding system 

6 as ensures a fair return to the public 

7 consistent with the royalty established 

8 under this Act. 

9 (ii) ROUND.—The Secretary shall 

10 limit bidding to 1 round in any lease sale. 

11 (iii) EXPENDITURES.—In any case in 

12 which the land that is subject to lease has 

13 1 or more pending applications for the de14 velopment of wind or solar energy at the 

15 time of the lease sale, the Secretary shall 

16 give credit toward any bid submitted by 

17 the applicant for expenditures of the appli18 cant considered by the Secretary to be 

19 qualified and necessary for the preparation 

20 of the application. 

21 (C) REVENUES.—Bonus bids, royalties, 

22 rentals, fees, or other payments collected by the 

23 Secretary under this section shall be subject to 

24 section 184. 

25 (D) LEASE TERMS.— 


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1 (i) IN GENERAL.—As part of the pilot 

2 program, the Secretary may vary the 

3 length of the lease terms and establish 

4 such other lease terms and conditions as 

5 the Secretary considers appropriate. 

6 (ii) DATA COLLECTION.—As part of 

7 the pilot program, the Secretary shall— 

8 (I) offer on a noncompetitive 

9 basis on at least 1 site a short-term 

10 lease for data collection; and 

11 (II) on the expiration of the 

12 short-term lease, offer on a competi13 tive basis a long-term lease, giving 

14 credit toward the bonus bid to the 

15 holder of the short-term lease for any 

16 qualified expenditures to collect data 

17 to develop the site during the short18 term lease. 

19 (5) COMPLIANCE WITH LAWS.—In offering for 

20 lease the selected sites under paragraph (4), the Sec21 retary shall comply with all applicable environmental 

22 and other laws. 

23 (6) REPORT.—The Secretary shall— 

24 (A) compile a report of the results of each 

25 lease sale under the pilot program, including— 


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1 (i) the level of competitive interest; 

2 (ii) a summary of bids and revenues 

3 received; and 

4 (iii) any other factors that may have 

5 impacted the lease sale process; and 

6 (B) not later than 90 days after the final 

7 lease sale, submit to the Committee on Energy 

8 and Natural Resources of the Senate and the 

9 Committee on Natural Resources of the House 

10 of Representatives the report described in sub11 paragraph (A). 

12 (7) RIGHTS-OF-WAY.—During the pendency of 

13 the pilot program, the Secretary shall continue to 

14 issue rights-of-way, in compliance with authority in 

15 effect on the date of enactment of this Act, for avail16 able sites not selected for the pilot program. 

17 (b) SECRETARIAL DETERMINATION.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

19 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretaries 

20 shall make a joint determination on whether to es21 tablish a leasing program under this section for wind 

22 or solar energy, or both, on all covered land. 

23 (2) SYSTEM.—If the Secretaries determine that 

24 a leasing program should be established, the pro25 gram shall apply to all covered land in accordance 


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1 with this Act and other provisions of law applicable 

2 to public land or National Forest System land. 

3 (3) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretaries shall 

4 establish a leasing program unless the Secretaries 

5 determine that the program— 

6 (A) is not in the public interest; and 

7 (B) does not provide an effective means of 

8 developing wind or solar energy. 

9 (4) CONSULTATION.—In making the determina10 tions required under this subsection, the Secretaries 

11 shall consult with— 

12 (A) the heads of other relevant Federal 

13 agencies; 

14 (B) interested States, Indian tribes, and 

15 local governments; 

16 (C) representatives of the solar and wind 

17 industries; 

18 (D) representatives of the environment, 

19 conservation, and outdoor sporting commu20 nities; 

21 (E) other users of the covered land; and 

22 (F) the public. 

23 (5) CONSIDERATIONS.—In making the deter24 minations required under this subsection, the Secre25 taries shall consider the results of the pilot program. 


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1 (6) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year after 

2 the date on which any determination is made to es3 tablish a leasing program, the Secretaries shall joint4 ly promulgate final regulations to implement the 

5 program. 

6 (7) REPORT.—If the Secretaries determine that 

7 a leasing program should not be established, not 

8 later than 60 days after the date of the determina9 tion, the Secretaries shall jointly submit to the Com10 mittee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen11 ate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the 

12 House of Representatives a report describing the 

13 basis and findings for the determination. 

14 (c) TRANSITION.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretaries determine 

16 under subsection (b) that a leasing program should 

17 be established for covered land, until the program is 

18 established and final regulations for the program are 

19 issued— 

20 (A) the Secretary shall continue to accept 

21 applications for rights-of-way on covered land, 

22 and provide for the issuance of rights-of-way on 

23 covered land within the jurisdiction of the Sec24 retary for the development of wind or solar en25 ergy pursuant to each requirement described in 


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1 title V of the Federal Land Policy and Manage2 ment Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1761 et seq.) and 

3 other applicable law; and 

4 (B) the Secretary of Agriculture shall con5 tinue to accept applications for authorizations, 

6 and provide for the issuance of the authoriza7 tions, for the development of wind or solar en8 ergy on covered land within the jurisdiction of 

9 the Secretary pursuant to applicable law. 

10 (2) EXISTING RIGHTS-OF-WAY AND AUTHORIZA11 TIONS.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Effective beginning on 

13 the date on which the wind or solar leasing pro14 grams are established and final regulations are 

15 issued, the Secretaries shall not renew an exist16 ing right-of-way or other authorization for wind 

17 or solar energy development at the end of the 

18 term of the right-of-way or authorization. 

19 (B) LEASE.— 

20 (i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause 

21 (ii), at the end of the term of the right-of22 way or other authorization for the wind or 

23 solar energy project, the Secretary or, in 

24 the case of National Forest System land, 

25 the Secretary of Agriculture, shall grant, 


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1 without a competitive process, a lease to 

2 the holder of the right-of-way or other au3 thorization for the same covered land as 

4 was authorized under the right-of-way or 

5 other authorization if (as determined by 

6 the Secretary concerned)— 

7 (I) the holder of the right-of-way 

8 or other authorization has met the re9 quirements of diligent development; 

10 and 

11 (II) issuance of the lease is in the 

12 public interest and consistent with ap13 plicable law. 

14 (ii) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—Any 

15 lease described in clause (i) shall be sub16 ject to— 

17 (I) terms and conditions that are 

18 consistent with this Act and the regu19 lations issued under this Act; and 

20 (II) the regulations in effect on 

21 the date of renewal and any other 

22 terms and conditions that the Sec23 retary considers necessary to protect 

24 the public interest. 


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1 (3) PENDING RIGHTS-OF-WAY.—Effective begin2 ning on the date on which the wind or solar leasing 

3 programs are established and final regulations for 

4 the programs are issued, the Secretary or, with re5 spect to National Forest System land, the Secretary 

6 of Agriculture shall provide any applicant that has 

7 filed a plan of development for a right-of-way or, in 

8 the case of National Forest System land, for an ap9 plicable authorization, for a wind or solar energy 

10 project with an option to acquire a lease on a non11 competitive basis, under such terms and conditions 

12 as are required by this Act, applicable regulations, 

13 and the Secretary concerned, for the same covered 

14 land included in the plan of development if— 

15 (A) the plan of development has been de16 termined by the Secretary concerned to be ade17 quate for the initiation of environmental review; 

18 (B) granting the lease is consistent with all 

19 applicable land use planning, environmental, 

20 and other laws; 

21 (C) the applicant has made a good faith ef22 fort to obtain a right-of-way or, in the case of 

23 National Forest System land, other authoriza24 tion, for the project; and 


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1 (D) issuance of the lease is in the public 

2 interest. 

3 (d) LEASING PROGRAM.—If the Secretaries deter4 mine under subsection (b) that a leasing program should 

5 be established, the program shall be established in accord6 ance with subsections (e) through (k). 

7 (e) COMPETITIVE LEASES.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para9 graph (2), leases for wind or solar energy develop10 ment under this section shall be issued on a competi11 tive basis with a single round of bidding in any lease 

12 sale. 

13 (2) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

14 apply if the Secretary or, with respect to National 

15 Forest System land, the Secretary of Agriculture de16 termines that— 

17 (A) no competitive interest exists for the 

18 covered land; 

19 (B) the public interest would not be served 

20 by the competitive issuance of a lease; 

21 (C) the lease is for the placement and op22 eration of a meteorological or data collection fa23 cility or for the development or demonstration 

24 of a new wind or solar technology and has a 

25 term of not more than 5 years; or 


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1 (D) the covered land is eligible to be grant2 ed a noncompetitive lease under subsection (c). 

3 (f) PAYMENTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretaries shall jointly 

5 establish fees, rentals, bonuses, or other payments to 

6 ensure a fair return to the United States for any 

7 lease issued under this section. 

8 (2) BONUS BIDS.—The Secretaries may grant 

9 credit toward any bonus bid for a qualified expendi10 ture by the holder of a lease described in subsection 

11 (e)(2)(C) in any competitive lease sale held for a 

12 long-term lease covering the same land covered by 

13 the lease described in subsection (e)(2)(C). 

14 (g) QUALIFICATIONS.—Prior to any lease sale, the 

15 Secretary shall establish qualifications for bidders that en16 sure bidders meet the requirements described in sub17 section (a)(3). 

18 (h) REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretaries shall ensure 

19 that any activity under a leasing program is carried out 

20 in a manner that— 

21 (1) is consistent with all applicable land use 

22 planning, environmental, and other laws; and 

23 (2) provides for— 

24 (A) safety; 


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1 (B) protection of the environment and fish 

2 and wildlife habitat; 

3 (C) mitigation of impacts; 

4 (D) prevention of waste; 

5 (E) diligent development of the resource, 

6 with specific milestones to be met by the lessee 

7 as determined by the Secretaries; 

8 (F) coordination with applicable Federal 

9 agencies; 

10 (G) a fair return to the United States for 

11 any lease; 

12 (H) use of best management practices, in13 cluding planning and practices for mitigation of 

14 impacts; 

15 (I) public notice and comment on any pro16 posal submitted for a lease under this section; 

17 (J) oversight, inspection, research, moni18 toring, and enforcement relating to a lease 

19 under this section; 

20 (K) the quantity of acreage to be commen21 surate with the size of the project covered by a 

22 lease; and 

23 (L) efficient use of water resources. 

24 (i) LEASE DURATION, SUSPENSION, AND CANCELLA25 TION.— 


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1 (1) DURATION.—A lease under this section 

2 shall be for— 

3 (A) an initial term of 25 years; and 

4 (B) any additional period after the initial 

5 term during which electricity is being produced 

6 annually in commercial quantities from the 

7 lease. 

8 (2) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary shall es9 tablish terms and conditions for the issuance, trans10 fer, renewal, suspension, and cancellation of a lease 

11 under this section. 

12 (3) READJUSTMENT.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—Royalties, rentals, and 

14 other terms and conditions of a lease under this 

15 section shall be subject to readjustment— 

16 (i) on the date that is 15 years after 

17 the date on which the lease is issued; and 

18 (ii) every 10 years thereafter. 

19 (B) LEASE.—Each lease issued under this 

20 Act shall provide for readjustment in accord21 ance with subparagraph (A). 

22 (j) SURFACE-DISTURBING ACTIVITIES.—The Secre23 taries shall— 


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1 (1) regulate all surface-disturbing activities con2 ducted pursuant to any lease issued under this sec3 tion; and 

4 (2) require any necessary reclamation and other 

5 actions under the lease as are required in the inter6 est of conservation of surface resources. 

7 (k) SECURITY.—The Secretaries shall require the 

8 holder of a lease issued under this section— 

9 (1) to furnish a surety bond or other form of 

10 security, as prescribed by the Secretaries; 

11 (2) to provide for the reclamation and restora12 tion of the area covered by the lease; and 

13 (3) to comply with such other requirements as 

14 the Secretaries consider necessary to protect the in15 terests of the public and the United States. 

16 (l) PERIODIC REVIEW.—Not less frequently than 

17 once every 5 years, the Secretary shall conduct a review 

18 of the adequacy of the surety bond or other form of secu19 rity provided by the holder of a lease issued under this 

20 section. 

21 SEC. 184. DISPOSITION OF REVENUES. 

22 (a) DISPOSITION OF REVENUES.—Of the amounts 

23 collected as bonus bids, royalties, rentals, fees, or other 

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1 thorization for the development of wind or solar energy 

2 on covered land— 

3 (1) 25 percent shall be paid by the Secretary of 

4 the Treasury to the State within the boundaries of 

5 which the income is derived; 

6 (2) 25 percent shall be paid by the Secretary of 

7 the Treasury to the 1 or more counties within the 

8 boundaries of which the income is derived; and 

9 (3) 50 percent shall be deposited in the Treas10 ury of the United States. 

11 (b) PAYMENTS TO STATES AND COUNTIES.— 

12 Amounts paid to States and counties under subsection (a) 

13 shall be used consistent with section 35 of the Mineral 

14 Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 191). 

15 Subtitle H—Miscellaneous 

16 Provisions 

17 SEC. 191. MILITARY OPERATIONS. 

18 The Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of De19 fense regarding military operations needs in the waters of 

20 the outer Continental Shelf. The Secretary shall work with 

21 the Secretary of Defense to resolve any conflicts that 

22 might arise between such operations and leasing under 

23 this subtitle. If the Secretaries are unable to resolve all 

24 such conflicts, any unresolved issues shall be referred by 


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1 the Secretaries to the President within 90 days for imme2 diate resolution. 

3 SEC. 192. ENVIRONMENTAL SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS UNDER 

4 THE PROGRAM. 

5 (a) ENVIRONMENTAL SENSITIVITY INDEX.—The En6 vironmental Sensitivity Index, developed by the National 

7 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which considers 

8 the sensitivity of different shoreline areas to oil spills, and 

9 the ranking under the program of the areas of the outer 

10 Continental Shelf based upon the Environmental Sensi11 tivity Index, satisfies the requirements of section 18 of the 

12 Act (43 U.S.C. 1344), including the requirement to con13 sider the relative environmental sensitivity of different 

14 areas of the outer Continental Shelf under section 

15 18(a)(2)(G) of the Act (43 U.S.C. 1344(a)(2)(G)). 

16 (b) PROGRAM DEEMED SUFFICIENT.—The Final 

17 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program, 

18 2007–2012, is deemed to meet all requirements of section 

19 18 of the Act (43 U.S.C. 1344) and is effective as of the 

20 date on which the Secretary made that program effective. 

21 SEC. 193. VALIDITY OF EXISTING LEASES. 

22 Any lease heretofore issued pursuant to a lease sale 

23 held under the Final Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas 

24 Leasing Program, 2007–2012, including any lease issued 

25 pursuant to Lease Sale 193 or 213, is deemed to be in 


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1 full compliance with the Act and all other legal require2 ments. 

3 SEC. 194. INTEGRITY OF LEASE SALES AND LEASING 

4 SCHEDULE. 

5 (a) LEASING DURING JUDICIAL OR ADMINISTRATIVE

6 REVIEW.—Section 18(d)(3) of the Act (43 U.S.C. 

7 1344(d)(3)) is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(3) After the leasing program has been approved by 

9 the Secretary, except as otherwise provided by applicable 

10 law, no lease shall be issued unless it is for an area in11 cluded in the approved leasing program and unless it con12 tains provisions consistent with the approved leasing pro13 gram, except that leasing shall continue for so long as 

14 such program is under judicial or administrative review 

15 pursuant to this Act, including any administrative review 

16 occasioned by the remand of such program as a result of 

17 judicial review. Any lease issued pursuant to a lease sale 

18 held in the period that the approved leasing program is 

19 under judicial or administrative review is deemed to have 

20 been issued pursuant to an approved leasing program.’’. 

21 (b) COURT ACTION UPON APPEAL.—The last sen22 tence of section 23(c)(6) of the Act (43 U.S.C. 1349(c)(6)) 

23 is amended to read as follows: ‘‘The court may affirm or 

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1 ceedings to the Secretary for such further action as it may 

2 direct.’’. 

3 SEC. 195. AUTHORITY TO CONDUCT OFFSHORE DRILLING 

4 UNDER APPROVED PERMITS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), each 

6 holder of a permit issued pursuant to an application for 

7 a permit to drill, including an application for a permit to 

8 sidetrack, that was approved by the Minerals Management 

9 Service before May 3, 2010, for purposes of outer Conti10 nental Shelf energy exploration or development and pro11 duction may conduct all operations authorized under the 

12 terms of the permit (including all exploration plans, devel13 opment operations coordination documents, and develop14 ment production plans submitted for the permit)— 

15 (1) without further review by the Bureau of 

16 Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and En17 forcement and Bureau of Safety and Environmental 

18 Enforcement; and 

19 (2) without further review or delay under the 

20 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

21 U.S.C. 4321 et. seq.) or any other similar statutes, 

22 including the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 

23 (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) or the Marine Mammal 

24 Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.). 


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1 (b) OPERATIONS.—Operations conducted under sub2 section (a) shall be carried out in accordance with the safe3 ty protocols contained in part 250 of title 30, Code of Fed4 eral Regulations. 

5 (c) REVIEW OF COMPLIANCE.—This section does not 

6 prohibit review of compliance with the terms of such a per7 mit. 

8 SEC. 196. TIME REQUIREMENT TO ACT ON OIL AND NAT9 URAL GAS DRILLING PERMITS. 

10 Subsection (d) of section 11 of the Act (43 U.S.C. 

11 1340) is amended by designating the existing text as para12 graph (1) and adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(2)(A) The Secretary shall approve or dis14 approve any application for a permit for drilling a 

15 well under an approved exploration or development 

16 plan, or any application to amend a previously ap17 proved permit, within 30 days after its submission, 

18 except that the Secretary may disapprove such per19 mit only upon a determination that— 

20 ‘‘(i) any proposed activity under the permit 

21 would result in any condition described in sec22 tion 5(a)(2)(A)(i); and 

23 ‘‘(ii) such proposed activity cannot be 

24 modified to avoid such condition. 


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1 ‘‘(B) The Secretary may request additional in2 formation from the applicant prior to approving or 

3 disapproving such application, but the request for 

4 additional information must be received by the appli5 cant within 15 days after submission of the applica6 tion to the Secretary. Upon receipt of the additional 

7 information requested by the Secretary, the Sec8 retary shall approve or disapprove the application 

9 within 15 days in accordance with this subsection. If 

10 the Secretary disapproves a permit application or an 

11 amended permit application pursuant to this sub12 section, and there is no other well on the lease tract 

13 capable of production in paying quantities, within 90 

14 days after receipt of a final disapproval decision all 

15 record title holders of the lease may request can16 cellation of the lease, and within 60 days after re17 ceipt of such cancellation request the Secretary shall 

18 pay to the record title holders the amount of any 

19 bonus bid paid for such lease. The Secretary shall 

20 make such payment from amounts that otherwise 

21 would be credited to miscellaneous receipts pursuant 

22 to section 9.’’. 


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1 SEC. 197. TIMELY ISSUANCE OF ONSHORE OIL AND GAS 

2 LEASES. 

3 Section 17(a)(1) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 

4 U.S.C. 226(b)(1)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘Leases shall 

5 be issued within 60 days following payment by the success6 ful bidder of the remainder of the bonus bid, if any, and 

7 the annual rental for the first lease year.’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘Unless the Secretary issues a lease sooner, leases shall 

9 automatically issue exactly 60 days following payment by 

10 the successful bidder of the remainder of the bonus bid, 

11 if any, and the annual rental for the first lease year. The 

12 filing of any protest to the sale or issuance of a lease shall 

13 not act to extend the date by which the lease is to be 

14 issued following payment by the successful bidder under 

15 the preceding sentence, nor shall the issuance of a lease 

16 be delayed or deferred beyond 60 days following payment 

17 by the successful bidder pending resolution of a protest 

18 to the sale or issuance of the lease.’’. 

19 SEC. 198. STATE AUDITING. 

20 Where authority is ceded to States to audit proc21 essing and transportation for purposes of royalty calcula22 tion under section 205 of the Royalty Simplification and 

23 Fairness Act of 1996, State auditors shall provide back24 ground methodology and supporting detail to the payor 

25 for audit findings; including formulas and supporting 

26 worksheets detailing the calculations used when costs from 


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1 processing plants and transportation providers are dis2 allowed by the State auditor. The State shall seek written 

3 authority from the processors and transporters to provide 

4 this information when necessary and requested. 

5 TITLE II—CONTINENTAL 

6 PIPELINE APPROVAL 

7 SEC. 201. KEYSTONE XL PIPELINE PERMIT APPROVAL. 

8 (a) PERMIT APPROVAL.—The permit described in 

9 subsection (b) is hereby approved. 

10 (b) DESCRIPTION OF PERMIT.—The permit approved 

11 under subsection (a) is the permit with respect to certain 

12 energy-related facilities and land transportation crossings 

13 on the international boundaries of the United States for 

14 the Keystone XL pipeline project, an application for which 

15 was filed on September 19, 2008 (including amendments). 

16 (c) REQUIREMENTS.—The permit granted under sub17 section (a) shall require the following: 

18 (1) The permittee shall comply with all applica19 ble Federal and State laws (including regulations) 

20 and all applicable industrial codes regarding the con21 struction, connection, operation, and maintenance of 

22 the United States facilities. 

23 (2) The permittee shall take all appropriate 

24 measures to prevent or mitigate any adverse envi25 ronmental impact or disruption of historic properties 


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1 in connection with the construction, operation, and 

2 maintenance of the United States facilities. 

3 (3) For the purpose of the permit approved 

4 under subsection (a) (regardless of any modifications 

5 under subsection (d))— 

6 (A) the final environmental impact state7 ment issued by the Secretary of State on Au8 gust 26, 2011, satisfies all requirements of the 

9 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

10 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and section 106 of the Na11 tional Historic Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 

12 470f); 

13 (B) any modification required by the Sec14 retary of State to the Plan described in para15 graph (4)(A) shall not require supplementation 

16 of the final environmental impact statement de17 scribed in that paragraph; and 

18 (C) no further Federal environmental re19 view shall be required. 

20 (4) The construction, operation, and mainte21 nance of the facilities shall be in all material re22 spects similar to that described in the application 

23 described in subsection (b) and in accordance with— 

24 (A) the construction, mitigation, and rec25 lamation measures agreed to by the permittee 


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1 in the Construction Mitigation and Reclamation 

2 Plan found in appendix B of the final environ3 mental impact statement issued by the Sec4 retary of State on August 26, 2011, subject to 

5 the modification described in subsection (d); 

6 (B) the special conditions agreed to be7 tween the permittee and the Administrator of 

8 the Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Ad9 ministration of the Department of Transpor10 tation found in appendix U of the final environ11 mental impact statement described in subpara12 graph (A); 

13 (C) if the modified route submitted by the 

14 Governor of Nebraska under subsection 

15 (d)(3)(B) crosses the Sand Hills region, the 

16 measures agreed to by the permittee for the 

17 Sand Hills region found in appendix H of the 

18 final environmental impact statement described 

19 in subparagraph (A); and 

20 (D) the stipulations identified in appendix 

21 S of the final environmental impact statement 

22 described in subparagraph (A). 

23 (5) Other requirements that are standard in24 dustry practice or commonly included in Federal 


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1 permits that are similar to a permit approved under 

2 subsection (a). 

3 (d) MODIFICATION.—The permit approved under 

4 subsection (a) shall require— 

5 (1) the reconsideration of routing of the Key6 stone XL pipeline within the State of Nebraska; 

7 (2) a review period during which routing within 

8 the State of Nebraska may be reconsidered and the 

9 route of the Keystone XL pipeline through the State 

10 altered with any accompanying modification to the 

11 Plan described in subsection (c)(4)(A); and 

12 (3) the President— 

13 (A) to coordinate review with the State of 

14 Nebraska and provide any necessary data and 

15 reasonable technical assistance material to the 

16 review process required under this subsection; 

17 and 

18 (B) to approve the route within the State 

19 of Nebraska that has been submitted to the 

20 Secretary of State by the Governor of Ne21 braska. 

22 (e) EFFECT OF NO APPROVAL.—If the President 

23 does not approve the route within the State of Nebraska 

24 submitted by the Governor of Nebraska under subsection 

25 (d)(3)(B) not later than 10 days after the date of submisVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:23 Apr 05, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00142 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4301.IH H4301

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1 sion, the route submitted by the Governor of Nebraska 

2 under subsection (d)(3)(B) shall be considered approved, 

3 pursuant to the terms of the permit approved under sub4 section (a) that meets the requirements of subsection (c) 

5 and this subsection, by operation of law. 

6 (f) PRIVATE PROPERTY SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing 

7 in this section alters the Federal, State, or local processes 

8 or conditions in effect on the date of enactment of this 

9 Act that are necessary to secure access from private prop10 erty owners to construct the Keystone XL pipeline. 

11 TITLE III—RADIOLOGICAL 

12 MATERIAL REPOSITORY 

13 SEC. 301. RADIOLOGICAL MATERIAL REPOSITORY. 

14 (a) REPOSITORY REQUIRED.—The Federal Govern15 ment shall site and permit at least one radiological mate16 rial geologic repository for the disposal of radiological ma17 terial. 

18 (b) YUCCA MOUNTAIN.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The repository site at Yucca 

20 Mountain shall remain the site for the Nation’s radi21 ological material repository following full statutory 

22 review of the Department of Energy’s license appli23 cation to construct the Yucca Mountain repository. 

24 (2) APPLICATION.—The Nuclear Regulatory 

25 Commission shall continue to review the Department 


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1 of Energy’s pending license application to construct 

2 the repository at Yucca Mountain until a determina3 tion is made on the merits of the application. 

4 (c) DEADLINES.— 

5 (1) SUITABILITY DETERMINATION.—Not later 

6 than 90 days after the enactment of this Act, the 

7 Nuclear Regulatory Commission shall make a deter8 mination regarding the suitability of Yucca Moun9 tain under subsection (a). 

10 (2) ACTION ON APPLICATION.—Not later than 

11 180 days after the enactment of this Act, the Nu12 clear Regulatory Commission shall approve the ap13 plication under subsection (b). 

14 (d) LIMITATIONS ON AMOUNT OF RADIOLOGICAL

15 MATERIAL.—All statutory limitations on the amount of 

16 radiological material that can be placed in Yucca Moun17 tain are hereby removed and shall be replaced by the Nu18 clear Regulatory Commission with new limits based on sci19 entific and technical analysis of the full capacity of Yucca 

20 Mountain for the storage of radiological material. 


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1 TITLE IV—RELIEF FROM REGU2 LATIONS AND PROHIBITIONS 

3 THAT CAUSE ARTIFICIAL 

4 PRICE INCREASES 

5 SEC. 401. ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT OF 1973 REFORM. 

6 The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

7 1531 et seq.) is amended— 

8 (1) by striking ‘‘best scientific and commercial 

9 data available’’ each place it appears and inserting 

10 ‘‘best scientific and economic data available at the 

11 time, including analysis of the costs and benefits of 

12 the matter under consideration’’; and 

13 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘SEC. 19. SCOPE. 

15 ‘‘Nothing in this Act shall be construed to authorize 

16 the use of this Act or the rules and regulations promul17 gated pursuant to this Act to regulate greenhouse gas 

18 emissions.’’. 

19 SEC. 402. REPEAL OF EPA CLIMATE CHANGE REGULATION. 

20 (a) GREENHOUSE GAS REGULATION UNDER CLEAN

21 AIR ACT.—Section 302(g) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 

22 7602(g)) is amended by adding the following at the end 

23 thereof: ‘‘The term ‘air pollutant’ does not include carbon 

24 dioxide, water vapor, methane, nitrous oxide, 


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1 hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, or sulfur 

2 hexafluoride.’’. 

3 (b) NO REGULATION OF CLIMATE CHANGE.—Noth4 ing in the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.), the 

5 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et 

6 seq.), the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

7 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Endangered Species Act of 1973 

8 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), or the Solid Waste Disposal Act 

9 (42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.), shall be treated as authorizing 

10 or requiring the regulation of climate change or global 

11 warming. 

12 (c) EXCEPTIONS.—Notwithstanding subsections (a) 

13 and (b), this section does not prohibit the following: 

14 (1) Implementation and enforcement of the rule 

15 entitled ‘‘Light-Duty Vehicle Greenhouse Gas Emis16 sion Standards and Corporate Average Fuel Econ17 omy Standards’’ (as published at 75 Fed. Reg. 

18 25324 (May 7, 2010) and without further revision) 

19 and finalization, implementation, enforcement, and 

20 revision of the proposed rule entitled ‘‘Greenhouse 

21 Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel Efficiency 

22 Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines 

23 and Vehicles’’ published at 75 Fed. Reg. 74152 (No24 vember 30, 2010). 


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1 (2) Statutorily authorized Federal research, de2 velopment, demonstration programs and voluntary 

3 programs addressing climate change. 

4 (3) Implementation and enforcement of title VI 

5 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7671 et seq.) to the 

6 extent such implementation or enforcement only in7 volves one or more class I substances or class II sub8 stances (as such terms are defined in section 601 of 

9 such title). 

10 (4) Implementation and enforcement of section 

11 821 (42 U.S.C. 7651k note) of Public Law 101–549 

12 (commonly referred to as the ‘‘Clean Air Act 

13 Amendments of 1990’’). 

14 SEC. 403. REPEAL OF FEDERAL BAN ON SYNTHETIC FUELS 

15 PURCHASING REQUIREMENT. 

16 Section 526 of the Energy Independence and Security 

17 Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17142) is repealed. 

18 SEC. 404. REPEAL OF ETHANOL MANDATES. 

19 Section 211(o) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 

20 7545(o); relating to the Renewable Fuel Program) is re21 pealed. 

22 TITLE V—REFINERY REFORM 

23 SEC. 501. REFINERY PERMITTING PROCESS. 

24 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis2 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ3 mental Protection Agency. 

4 (2) EXPANSION.—The term ‘‘expansion’’ means 

5 a physical change that results in an increase in the 

6 capacity of a refinery. 

7 (3) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ 

8 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

9 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

10 Act (25 U.S.C. 450b). 

11 (4) PERMIT.—The term ‘‘permit’’ means any 

12 permit, license, approval, variance, or other form of 

13 authorization that a refiner is required to obtain— 

14 (A) under any Federal law; or 

15 (B) from a State or Indian tribal govern16 ment agency delegated authority by the Federal 

17 Government, or authorized under Federal law, 

18 to issue permits. 

19 (5) REFINER.—The term ‘‘refiner’’ means a 

20 person that— 

21 (A) owns or operates a refinery; or 

22 (B) seeks to become an owner or operator 

23 of a refinery. 

24 (6) REFINERY.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘refinery’’ 

2 means— 

3 (i) a facility at which crude oil is re4 fined into transportation fuel or other pe5 troleum products; and 

6 (ii) a coal liquification or coal-to-liquid 

7 facility at which coal is processed into syn8 thetic crude oil or any other fuel. 

9 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘refinery’’ in10 cludes an expansion of a refinery. 

11 (7) REFINERY PERMITTING AGREEMENT.—The 

12 term ‘‘refinery permitting agreement’’ means an 

13 agreement entered into between the Administrator 

14 and a State or Indian tribe under subsection (b). 

15 (8) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means— 

16 (A) a State; 

17 (B) the District of Columbia; 

18 (C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 

19 and 

20 (D) any other territory or possession of the 

21 United States. 

22 (b) STREAMLINING OF REFINERY PERMITTING

23 PROCESS.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—At the request of the Gov25 ernor of a State or the governing body of an Indian 


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1 tribe, the Administrator shall enter into a refinery 

2 permitting agreement with the State or Indian tribe 

3 under which the process for obtaining all permits 

4 necessary for the construction and operation of a re5 finery shall be streamlined using a systematic inter6 disciplinary multimedia approach as provided in this 

7 section. 

8 (2) AUTHORITY OF ADMINISTRATOR.—Under a 

9 refinery permitting agreement the Administrator 

10 shall have authority, as applicable and necessary, 

11 to— 

12 (A) accept from a refiner a consolidated 

13 application for all permits that the refiner is re14 quired to obtain to construct and operate a re15 finery; 

16 (B) in consultation and cooperation with 

17 each Federal, State, or Indian tribal govern18 ment agency that is required to make any de19 termination to authorize the issuance of a per20 mit, establish a schedule under which each 

21 agency shall— 

22 (i) concurrently consider, to the max23 imum extent practicable, each determina24 tion to be made; and 


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1 (ii) complete each step in the permit2 ting process; and 

3 (C) issue a consolidated permit that com4 bines all permits issued under the schedule es5 tablished under subparagraph (B). 

6 (3) AGREEMENT BY THE STATE.—Under a re7 finery permitting agreement, a State or governing 

8 body of an Indian tribe shall agree that— 

9 (A) the Administrator shall have each of 

10 the authorities described in paragraph (2); and 

11 (B) each State or Indian tribal government 

12 agency shall— 

13 (i) in accordance with State law, make 

14 such structural and operational changes in 

15 the agencies as are necessary to enable the 

16 agencies to carry out consolidated project17 wide permit reviews concurrently and in 

18 coordination with the Environmental Pro19 tection Agency and other Federal agencies; 

20 and 

21 (ii) comply, to the maximum extent 

22 practicable, with the applicable schedule 

23 established under paragraph (2)(B). 

24 (4) DEADLINES.— 


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1 (A) NEW REFINERIES.—In the case of a 

2 consolidated permit for the construction of a 

3 new refinery, the Administrator and the State 

4 or governing body of an Indian tribe shall ap5 prove or disapprove the consolidated permit not 

6 later than— 

7 (i) 365 days after the date of the re8 ceipt of the administratively complete ap9 plication for the consolidated permit; or 

10 (ii) on agreement of the applicant, the 

11 Administrator, and the State or governing 

12 body of the Indian tribe, 90 days after the 

13 expiration of the deadline established 

14 under clause (i). 

15 (B) EXPANSION OF EXISTING REFIN16 ERIES.—In the case of a consolidated permit 

17 for the expansion of an existing refinery, the 

18 Administrator and the State or governing body 

19 of an Indian tribe shall approve or disapprove 

20 the consolidated permit not later than— 

21 (i) 120 days after the date of the re22 ceipt of the administratively complete ap23 plication for the consolidated permit; or 

24 (ii) on agreement of the applicant, the 

25 Administrator, and the State or governing 


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1 body of the Indian tribe, 30 days after the 

2 expiration of the deadline established 

3 under clause (i). 

4 (5) FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Each Federal agency 

5 that is required to make any determination to au6 thorize the issuance of a permit shall comply with 

7 the applicable schedule established under paragraph 

8 (2)(B). 

9 (6) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Any civil action for re10 view of any permit determination under a refinery 

11 permitting agreement shall be brought exclusively in 

12 the United States district court for the district in 

13 which the refinery is located or proposed to be lo14 cated. 

15 (7) EFFICIENT PERMIT REVIEW.—In order to 

16 reduce the duplication of procedures, the Adminis17 trator shall use State permitting and monitoring 

18 procedures to satisfy substantially equivalent Fed19 eral requirements under this title. 

20 (8) SEVERABILITY.—If 1 or more permits that 

21 are required for the construction or operation of a 

22 refinery are not approved on or before any deadline 

23 established under paragraph (4), the Administrator 

24 may issue a consolidated permit that combines all 


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1 other permits that the refiner is required to obtain 

2 other than any permits that are not approved. 

3 (9) SAVINGS.—Nothing in this subsection af4 fects the operation or implementation of otherwise 

5 applicable law regarding permits necessary for the 

6 construction and operation of a refinery. 

7 (10) CONSULTATION WITH LOCAL GOVERN8 MENTS.—Congress directs the Administrator, States, 

9 and tribal governments to consult, to the maximum 

10 extent practicable, with local governments in car11 rying out this subsection. 

12 (11) EFFECT ON LOCAL AUTHORITY.—Nothing 

13 in this subsection affects— 

14 (A) the authority of a local government 

15 with respect to the issuance of permits; or 

16 (B) any requirement or ordinance of a 

17 local government (such as a zoning regulation). 

18 (c) FISCHER-TROPSCH FUELS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—In cooperation with the Sec20 retary of Energy, the Secretary of Defense, the Ad21 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, 

22 Secretary of Health and Human Services, and 

23 Fischer-Tropsch industry representatives, the Ad24 ministrator shall— 


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1 (A) conduct a research and demonstration 

2 program to evaluate the air quality benefits of 

3 Fischer-Tropsch transportation fuel, including 

4 diesel and jet fuel; 

5 (B) evaluate the use of Fischer-Tropsch 

6 transportation fuel as a mechanism for reduc7 ing engine exhaust emissions; and 

8 (C) submit recommendations to Congress 

9 on the most effective use and associated bene10 fits of these fuels for reducing public exposure 

11 to exhaust emissions. 

12 (2) GUIDANCE AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT.—The 

13 Administrator shall, to the extent necessary, issue 

14 any guidance or technical support documents that 

15 would facilitate the effective use and associated ben16 efit of Fischer-Tropsch fuel and blends. 

17 (3) REQUIREMENTS.—The program described 

18 in paragraph (1) shall consider— 

19 (A) the use of neat (100 percent) Fischer20 Tropsch fuel and blends with conventional 

21 crude oil-derived fuel for heavy-duty and light22 duty diesel engines and the aviation sector; and 

23 (B) the production costs associated with 

24 domestic production of fuel and prices for con25 sumers. 


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1 (4) REPORTS.—The Administrator shall submit 

2 to the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

3 and the Committee on Energy and Natural Re4 sources of the Senate and the Committee on Energy 

5 and Commerce and the Committee on Natural Re6 sources of the House of Representatives— 

7 (A) not later than 1 year after the date of 

8 enactment of this Act, an interim report on ac9 tions taken to carry out this subsection; and 

10 (B) not later than 2 years after the date 

11 of enactment of this Act, a final report on ac12 tions taken to carry out this subsection. 

13 SEC. 502. EXISTING REFINERY PERMIT APPLICATION DEAD14 LINE. 

15 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, applica16 tions for a permit for existing refinery applications shall 

17 not be considered to be timely if submitted after 120 days 

18 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

19 TITLE VI—REPEAL OF ENERGY 

20 TAX SUBSIDIES 

21 SEC. 600. AMENDMENT OF 1986 CODE. 

22 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

23 this title an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

24 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi25 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 


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1 section or other provision of the Internal Revenue Code 

2 of 1986. 

3 SEC. 601. REPEAL OF CREDIT FOR ALCOHOL FUEL, BIO4 DIESEL, AND ALTERNATIVE FUEL MIXTURES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 6426 is repealed. 

6 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

7 (1) Subparagraph (D) of section 6427(e)(6) is 

8 amended by striking ‘‘September 30, 2014’’ and in9 serting ‘‘September 30, 2012’’. 

10 (2) Paragraph (1) of section 4101(a) is amend11 ed by striking ‘‘or alcohol (as defined in section 

12 6426(b)(4)(A)’’. 

13 (3) Paragraph (2) of section 4104(a) is amend14 ed by striking ‘‘6426, or 6427(e)’’. 

15 (4) Subparagraph (E) of section 7704(d)(1) is 

16 amended— 

17 (A) by inserting ‘‘(as in effect on the day 

18 before the date of the enactment of the Energy 

19 Exploration and Production to Achieve National 

20 Demand Act)’’ after ‘‘of section 6426’’, and 

21 (B) by inserting ‘‘(as so in effect)’’ after 

22 ‘‘section 6426(b)(4)(A)’’. 

23 (5) Paragraph (1) of section 9503(b) is amend24 ed by striking the second sentence. 


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1 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

2 for subchapter B of chapter 65 is amended by striking 

3 the item relating to section 6426. 

4 (d) EFFECTIVE.—The amendments made by this sec5 tion shall apply with respect to fuel sold and used after 

6 December 31, 2012. 

7 SEC. 602. REPEAL OF CREDIT FOR CERTAIN PLUG-IN ELEC8 TRIC VEHICLES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 30 is repealed. 

10 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

11 (1) Paragraph (3) of section 24(b) is amended 

12 by striking ‘‘, 30’’. 

13 (2) Clause (ii) of section 25(e)(1)(C) is amend14 ed by striking ‘‘, 30’’. 

15 (3) Paragraph (2) of section 25B(g) is amended 

16 by striking ‘‘, 30’’. 

17 (4) Paragraph (1) of section 26(a) is amended 

18 by striking ‘‘, 30’’. 

19 (5) Subclause (VI) of section 48C(c)(1)(A)(i) is 

20 amended by inserting ‘‘(as in effect on the day be21 fore the date of the enactment of the Energy Explo22 ration and Production to Achieve National Demand 

23 Act)’’ after ‘‘section 30(d)’’. 

24 (6) Paragraph (3) of section 179A(c) is amend25 ed by inserting ‘‘(as in effect on the day before the 


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1 date of the enactment of the Energy Freedom and 

2 Economic Prosperity Act)’’ after section ‘‘30(c)’’. 

3 (7) Subsection (a) of section 1016 is amended 

4 by striking paragraph (25) and by redesignating 

5 paragraphs (26) through (37) as paragraphs (25) 

6 through (36), respectively. 

7 (8) Subsection (m) of section 6501 is amended 

8 by striking ‘‘30(e)(6)’’. 

9 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

10 for subpart B of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 

11 is amended by striking the item relating to section 30. 

12 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

13 this section shall apply to property placed in service after 

14 December 31, 2011. 

15 SEC. 603. EARLY TERMINATION OF CREDIT FOR QUALIFIED 

16 FUEL CELL MOTOR VEHICLES. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 30B is repealed. 

18 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

19 (1) Subparagraph (A) of section 24(b)(3) is 

20 amended by striking ‘‘, 30B’’. 

21 (2) Clause (ii) of section 25(e)(1)(C) is amend22 ed by striking ‘‘, 30B’’. 

23 (3) Paragraph (2) of section 25B(g) is amended 

24 by striking ‘‘, 30B,’’. 


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1 (4) Paragraph (1) of section 26(a) is amended 

2 by striking ‘‘, 30B’’. 

3 (5) Subsection (b) of section 38 is amended by 

4 striking paragraph (25). 

5 (6) Subsection (a) of section 1016, as amended 

6 by section 602 of this Act, is amended by striking 

7 paragraph (33) and by redesignating paragraphs 

8 (34), (35), and (36) as paragraphs (33), (34), and 

9 (35), respectively. 

10 (7) Paragraph (2) of section 1400C(d) is 

11 amended by striking ‘‘, 30B’’. 

12 (8) Subsection (m) of section 6501 is amended 

13 by striking ‘‘, 30B(h)(9)’’. 

14 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

15 for subpart B of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 

16 is amended by striking the item relating to section 30B. 

17 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

18 this section shall apply to property placed in service after 

19 December 31, 2012. 

20 SEC. 604. REPEAL OF ALTERNATIVE FUEL VEHICLE RE21 FUELING PROPERTY CREDIT. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 30C is repealed. 

23 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

24 (1) Subsection (b) of section 38 is amended by 

25 striking paragraph (26). 


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1 (2) Paragraph (3) of section 55(c) is amended 

2 by striking ‘‘, 30C(d)(2),’’. 

3 (3) Subsection (a) of section 1016, as amended 

4 by sections 602 and 603 of this Act, is amended by 

5 striking paragraph (33) and by redesignating para6 graph (34) and (35) as paragraphs (33) and (34), 

7 respectively. 

8 (4) Subsection (m) of section 6501 is amended 

9 by striking ‘‘, 30C(e)(5)’’. 

10 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

11 for subpart B of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 

12 is amended by striking the item relating to section 30C. 

13 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

14 this section shall apply to property placed in service after 

15 December 31, 2012. 

16 SEC. 605. REPEAL OF CREDIT FOR ALCOHOL USED AS 

17 FUEL. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 40 is repealed. 

19 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

20 (1) Subsection (b) of section 38 is amended by 

21 striking paragraph (3). 

22 (2) Subsection (c) of section 196 is amended by 

23 striking paragraph (3) and by redesignating para24 graphs (4) through (14) as paragraphs (3) through 

25 (13), respectively. 


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1 (3) Paragraph (1) of section 4101(a) is amend2 ed by striking ‘‘, and every person producing cellu3 losic biofuel (as defined in section 40(b)(6)(E))’’. 

4 (4) Paragraph (1) of section 4104(a) is amend5 ed by striking ‘‘, 40’’. 

6 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

7 this section shall apply to fuel sold or used after December 

8 31, 2012. 

9 SEC. 606. REPEAL OF CREDIT FOR BIODIESEL AND RENEW10 ABLE DIESEL USED AS FUEL. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 40A is repealed. 

12 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

13 (1) Subsection (b) of section 38 is amended by 

14 striking paragraph (17). 

15 (2) Section 87 is repealed. 

16 (3) Subsection (c) of section 196, as amended 

17 by section 605 of this Act, is amended by striking 

18 paragraph (11) and by redesignating paragraphs 

19 (11), (12), and (13) as paragraphs (10), (11), and 

20 (12), respectively. 

21 (4) Paragraph (1) of section 4101(a) is amend22 ed by striking ‘‘, every person producing or import23 ing biodiesel (as defined in section 40A(d)(1)’’. 

24 (5) Paragraph (1) of section 4104(a) is amend25 ed by striking ‘‘, and 40A’’. 


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1 (6) Subparagraph (E) of section 7704(d)(1) is 

2 amended by inserting ‘‘(as so in effect)’’ after ‘‘sec3 tion 40A(d)(1)’’. 

4 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

5 for subpart D of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 

6 is amended by striking the item relating to section 40A. 

7 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

8 this section shall apply to fuel produced, and sold or used, 

9 after December 31, 2011. 

10 SEC. 607. REPEAL OF ENHANCED OIL RECOVERY CREDIT. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 43 is repealed. 

12 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

13 (1) Subsection (b) of section 38 is amended by 

14 striking paragraph (6). 

15 (2) Paragraph (4) of section 45Q(d) is amended 

16 by inserting ‘‘(as in effect on the day before the date 

17 of the enactment of the Energy Exploration and 

18 Production to Achieve National Demand Act)’’ after 

19 ‘‘section 43(c)(2)’’. 

20 (3) Subsection (c) of section 196, as amended 

21 by sections 605 and 606 of this Act, is amended by 

22 striking paragraph (5) and by redesignating para23 graphs (6) through (12) as paragraphs (5) through 

24 (11), respectively. 


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1 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

2 for subpart D of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 

3 is amended by striking the item relating to section 43. 

4 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall apply to costs paid or incurred in taxable 

6 years beginning after December 31, 2012. 

7 SEC. 608. TERMINATION OF CREDIT FOR ELECTRICITY 

8 PRODUCED FROM CERTAIN RENEWABLE RE9 SOURCES. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (d) of section 45 is 

11 amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘2013’’ in paragraph (1) and in13 serting ‘‘2012’’, and 

14 (2) by striking ‘‘2014’’ each place it appears in 

15 paragraphs (2), (3), (4), (6), (7), (9), and (11) and 

16 inserting ‘‘2012’’. 

17 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

18 this section shall apply to property placed in service after 

19 December 31, 2012. 

20 SEC. 609. REPEAL OF CREDIT FOR PRODUCING OIL AND 

21 GAS FROM MARGINAL WELLS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 45I is repealed. 

23 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subsection (b) of 

24 section 38 is amended by striking paragraph (19). 


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1 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

2 for subpart D of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 

3 is amended by striking the item relating to section 45I. 

4 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall apply to production in taxable years be6 ginning after December 31, 2012. 

7 SEC. 610. TERMINATION OF CREDIT FOR PRODUCTION 

8 FROM ADVANCED NUCLEAR POWER FACILI9 TIES. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (B) of section 

11 45J(d)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘January 1, 2021’’ and 

12 inserting ‘‘January 1, 2013’’. 

13 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

14 this section shall apply to property placed in service after 

15 December 31, 2012. 

16 SEC. 611. REPEAL OF CREDIT FOR CARBON DIOXIDE SE17 QUESTRATION. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 45Q is repealed. 

19 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

20 this section shall apply to carbon dioxide captured after 

21 December 31, 2012. 

22 SEC. 612. TERMINATION OF ENERGY CREDIT. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 48 is amended— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘January 1, 2017’’ each place 

25 it appears and inserting ‘‘January 1, 2013’’, 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘December 31, 2016’’ each 

2 place it appears and inserting ‘‘December 31, 

3 2012’’, and 

4 (3) by striking ‘‘2012, or 2013’’ in subsection 

5 (a)(5)(C)(ii) and inserting ‘‘or 2012’’. 

6 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

7 this section shall apply to property placed in service after 

8 December 31, 2012. 

9 SEC. 613. REPEAL OF QUALIFYING ADVANCED COAL 

10 PROJECT. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 48A is repealed. 

12 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 46 is 

13 amended by striking paragraph (3) and by redesignating 

14 paragraphs (4), (5), and (6) as paragraphs (3), (4), and 

15 (5), respectively. 

16 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

17 for subpart E of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 

18 is amended by striking the item relating to section 48A. 

19 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

20 this section shall apply to property placed in service after 

21 December 31, 2012. 

22 SEC. 614. REPEAL OF QUALIFYING GASIFICATION PROJECT 

23 CREDIT. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 48B is repealed. 


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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 46, as 

2 amended by section 613, is amended by striking para3 graph (3) and by redesignating paragraphs (4) and (5) 

4 as paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively. 

5 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

6 for subpart E of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 

7 is amended by striking the item relating to section 48B. 

8 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

9 this section shall apply to property placed in service after 

10 December 31, 2012. 

11 SEC. 615. REPEAL OF AMERICAN RECOVERY AND REIN12 VESTMENT ACT OF 2009 ENERGY GRANT PRO13 GRAM. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1603 of division B of the 

15 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 is re16 pealed. 

17 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

18 this section shall apply to property placed in service after 

19 December 31, 2011. 

20 TITLE VII—REGULATORY 

21 RELIEF 

22 SEC. 701. LEGISLATIVE STAY. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF STANDARDS.—In place of 

24 the rules specified in subsection (b), and notwithstanding 

25 the date by which such rules would otherwise be required 


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1 to be promulgated, the Administrator of the Environ2 mental Protection Agency (in this title referred to as the 

3 ‘‘Administrator’’) shall— 

4 (1) propose regulations for industrial, commer5 cial, and institutional boilers and process heaters, 

6 and commercial and industrial solid waste inciner7 ator units, subject to any of the rules specified in 

8 subsection (b)— 

9 (A) establishing maximum achievable con10 trol technology standards, performance stand11 ards, and other requirements under sections 

12 112 and 129, as applicable, of the Clean Air 

13 Act (42 U.S.C. 7412, 7429); and 

14 (B) identifying non-hazardous secondary 

15 materials that, when used as fuels or ingredi16 ents in combustion units of such boilers, proc17 ess heaters, or incinerator units are solid waste 

18 under the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 

19 6901 et seq.; commonly referred to as the ‘‘Re20 source Conservation and Recovery Act’’) for 

21 purposes of determining the extent to which 

22 such combustion units are required to meet the 

23 emissions standards under section 112 of the 

24 Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7412) or the emission 


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1 standards under section 129 of such Act (42 

2 U.S.C. 7429); and 

3 (2) finalize the regulations on the date that is 

4 15 months after the date of the enactment of this 

5 Act. 

6 (b) STAY OF EARLIER RULES.—The following rules 

7 are of no force or effect, shall be treated as though such 

8 rules had never taken effect, and shall be replaced as de9 scribed in subsection (a): 

10 (1) ‘‘National Emission Standards for Haz11 ardous Air Pollutants for Major Sources: Industrial, 

12 Commercial, and Institutional Boilers and Process 

13 Heaters’’, published at 76 Fed. Reg. 15608 (March 

14 21, 2011). 

15 (2) ‘‘National Emission Standards for Haz16 ardous Air Pollutants for Area Sources: Industrial, 

17 Commercial, and Institutional Boilers’’, published at 

18 76 Fed. Reg. 15554 (March 21, 2011). 

19 (3) ‘‘Standards of Performance for New Sta20 tionary Sources and Emission Guidelines for Exist21 ing Sources: Commercial and Industrial Solid Waste 

22 Incineration Units’’, published at 76 Fed. Reg. 

23 15704 (March 21, 2011). 


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1 (4) ‘‘Identification of Non-Hazardous Sec2 ondary Materials That Are Solid Waste’’, published 

3 at 76 Fed. Reg. 15456 (March 21, 2011). 

4 (c) INAPPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS.— 

5 With respect to any standard required by subsection (a) 

6 to be promulgated in regulations under section 112 of the 

7 Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7412), the provisions of sub8 sections (g)(2) and (j) of such section 112 shall not apply 

9 prior to the effective date of the standard specified in such 

10 regulations. 

11 SEC. 702. COMPLIANCE DATES. 

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF COMPLIANCE DATES.—For 

13 each regulation promulgated pursuant to section 701, the 

14 Administrator— 

15 (1) shall establish a date for compliance with 

16 standards and requirements under such regulation 

17 that is, notwithstanding any other provision of law, 

18 not earlier than 5 years after the effective date of 

19 the regulation; and 

20 (2) in proposing a date for such compliance, 

21 shall take into consideration— 

22 (A) the costs of achieving emissions reduc23 tions; 


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1 (B) any non-air quality health and environ2 mental impact and energy requirements of the 

3 standards and requirements; 

4 (C) the feasibility of implementing the 

5 standards and requirements, including the time 

6 needed to— 

7 (i) obtain necessary permit approvals; 

8 and 

9 (ii) procure, install, and test control 

10 equipment; 

11 (D) the availability of equipment, sup12 pliers, and labor, given the requirements of the 

13 regulation and other proposed or finalized regu14 lations of the Environmental Protection Agency; 

15 and 

16 (E) potential net employment impacts. 

17 (b) NEW SOURCES.—The date on which the Adminis18 trator proposes a regulation pursuant to section 701(a)(1) 

19 establishing an emission standard under section 112 or 

20 129 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7412, 7429) shall 

21 be treated as the date on which the Administrator first 

22 proposes such a regulation for purposes of applying the 

23 definition of a new source under section 112(a)(4) of such 

24 Act (42 U.S.C. 7412(a)(4)) or the definition of a new solid 


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1 waste incineration unit under section 129(g)(2) of such 

2 Act (42 U.S.C. 7429(g)(2)). 

3 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this title 

4 shall be construed to restrict or otherwise affect the provi5 sions of paragraphs (3)(B) and (4) of section 112(i) of 

6 the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7412(i)). 

7 SEC. 703. ENERGY RECOVERY AND CONSERVATION. 

8 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, and to 

9 ensure the recovery and conservation of energy consistent 

10 with the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6901 et 

11 seq.; commonly referred to as the ‘‘Resource Conservation 

12 and Recovery Act’’), in promulgating rules under section 

13 701(a) addressing the subject matter of the rules specified 

14 in paragraphs (3) and (4) of section 701(b), the Adminis15 trator— 

16 (1) shall adopt the definitions of the terms 

17 ‘‘commercial and industrial solid waste incineration 

18 unit’’, ‘‘commercial and industrial waste’’, and ‘‘con19 tained gaseous material’’ in the rule entitled ‘‘Stand20 ards of Performance for New Stationary Sources 

21 and Emission Guidelines for Existing Sources: Com22 mercial and Industrial Solid Waste Incineration 

23 Units’’, published at 65 Fed. Reg. 75338 (December 

24 1, 2000); and 


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1 (2) shall identify non-hazardous secondary ma2 terial to be solid waste only if— 

3 (A) the material meets such definition of 

4 commercial and industrial waste; or 

5 (B) if the material is a gas, it meets such 

6 definition of contained gaseous material. 

7 SEC. 704. OTHER PROVISIONS. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF STANDARDS ACHIEVABLE IN

9 PRACTICE.—In promulgating rules under section 701(a), 

10 the Administrator shall ensure that emissions standards 

11 for existing and new sources established under section 112 

12 or 129 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7412, 7429), as 

13 applicable, can be met under actual operating conditions 

14 consistently and concurrently with emission standards for 

15 all other air pollutants regulated by the rule for the source 

16 category, taking into account variability in actual source 

17 performance, source design, fuels, inputs, controls, ability 

18 to measure the pollutant emissions, and operating condi19 tions. 

20 (b) REGULATORY ALTERNATIVES.—For each regula21 tion promulgated pursuant to section 701(a), from among 

22 the range of regulatory alternatives authorized under the 

23 Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.) including work 

24 practice standards under section 112(h) of such Act (42 

25 U.S.C. 7412(h)), the Administrator shall impose the least 


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1 burdensome, consistent with the purposes of such Act and 

2 Executive Order No. 13563 published at 76 Fed. Reg. 

3 3821 (January 21, 2011). 

4 (c) DEDUCTION FOR CAPITAL EXPENDITURES RE5 LATING TO ENERGY PROPERTY.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Part VI of subchapter 

8 B of chapter 1 is amended by inserting after 

9 section 179E the following new section: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 179F. ELECTION TO EXPENSE PROPERTY USED IN 

11 THE PRODUCTION OF ENERGY. 

12 ‘‘(a) TREATMENT AS EXPENSES.—A taxpayer may 

13 elect to treat the cost of any property used in the produc14 tion of energy as an expense which is not chargeable to 

15 capital account. Any cost so treated shall be allowed as 

16 a deduction for the taxable year in which the property is 

17 placed in service. 

18 ‘‘(b) ELECTION.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An election under this sec20 tion for any taxable year shall be made on the tax21 payer’s return of the tax imposed by this chapter for 

22 the taxable year. Such election shall specify the 

23 property to which the election applies and shall be 

24 made in such manner as the Secretary may by regu25 lations prescribe. 


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1 ‘‘(2) ELECTION IRREVOCABLE.—Any election 

2 made under this section may not be revoked except 

3 with the consent of the Secretary. 

4 ‘‘(c) PROPERTY USED IN THE PRODUCTION OF EN5 ERGY.—For purposes of this section, the term ‘property 

6 used in the production of energy’ means property— 

7 ‘‘(1) used in the production of energy, 

8 ‘‘(2) the original use of which commences with 

9 the taxpayer, and 

10 ‘‘(3) which is placed in service by the taxpayer 

11 after the date of the enactment of this section. 

12 ‘‘(d) COORDINATION.—No expenditures shall be 

13 taken into account under subsection (a) with respect to 

14 the portion of the cost of any property taken into account 

15 in determining a credit or deduction under any other sec16 tion of this chapter. 

17 ‘‘(e) BASIS REDUCTION.—For purposes of this sub18 title, if a deduction is allowed under this section with re19 spect to any property, the basis of such property shall be 

20 reduced by the amount of the deduction so allowed. 

21 ‘‘(f) REPORTING.—No deduction shall be allowed 

22 under subsection (a) to any taxpayer for any taxable year 

23 unless such taxpayer files with the Secretary a report con24 taining such information with respect to the operation of 

25 the mines of the taxpayer as the Secretary shall require.’’. 


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1 (B) Section 1016(a) is amended by strik2 ing ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph (36), by 

3 striking the period at the end of paragraph (37) 

4 and inserting ‘‘, and’’, and by adding at the end 

5 the following new paragraph: 

6 ‘‘(38) to the extent provided in section 

7 179F(e).’’. 

8 (C) Section 263(a)(1) of the Internal Rev9 enue Code of 1986 (relating to capital expendi10 tures) is amended by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end 

11 of subparagraph (K), by striking the period at 

12 the end of paragraph (L) and inserting ‘‘, or’’, 

13 and by adding at the end the following new sub14 paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(M) expenditures for which a deduction is 

16 allowed under section 179F.’’. 

17 (D) Section 1245(a) of such Code is 

18 amended by inserting ‘‘179F,’’ after ‘‘179E,’’ 

19 both places it appears in paragraphs (2)(C) and 

20 (3)(C). 

21 (E) The table of sections for part VI of 

22 subchapter B of chapter 1 of such Code is 

23 amended by inserting after the item relating to 

24 section 179E the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 179F. Election to expense property used in the production of energy.’’. 


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1 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

2 by this subsection shall apply to taxable years begin3 ning after December 31, 2012. 

4 SEC. 705. MANAGEMENT AND DISPOSAL OF COAL COMBUS5 TION RESIDUALS. 

6 (a) AMENDMENT TO SUBTITLE D OF THE SOLID

7 WASTE DISPOSAL ACT.—Subtitle D of the Solid Waste 

8 Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6941 et seq.) is amended by add9 ing at the end the following new section: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 4011. MANAGEMENT AND DISPOSAL OF COAL COM11 BUSTION RESIDUALS. 

12 ‘‘(a) STATE PERMIT PROGRAMS FOR COAL COMBUS13 TION RESIDUALS.—Each State may adopt and implement 

14 a coal combustion residuals permit program. 

15 ‘‘(b) STATE ACTIONS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 6 months 

17 after the date of enactment of this section (except 

18 as provided by the deadline identified under sub19 section (d)(2)(B)), the Governor of each State shall 

20 notify the Administrator, in writing, whether such 

21 State will adopt and implement a coal combustion 

22 residuals permit program. 

23 ‘‘(2) CERTIFICATION.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 36 

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1 tion (except as provided in subsections (f)(1)(A) 

2 and (f)(1)(C)), in the case of a State that has 

3 notified the Administrator that it will imple4 ment a coal combustion residuals permit pro5 gram, the head of the lead State agency respon6 sible for implementing the coal combustion re7 siduals permit program shall submit to the Ad8 ministrator a certification that such coal com9 bustion residuals permit program meets the 

10 specifications described in subsection (c)(1). 

11 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—A certification sub12 mitted under this paragraph shall include— 

13 ‘‘(i) a letter identifying the lead State 

14 agency responsible for implementing the 

15 coal combustion residuals permit program, 

16 signed by the head of such agency; 

17 ‘‘(ii) identification of any other State 

18 agencies involved with the implementation 

19 of the coal combustion residuals permit 

20 program; 

21 ‘‘(iii) a narrative description that pro22 vides an explanation of how the State will 

23 ensure that the coal combustion residuals 

24 permit program meets the requirements of 


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1 this section, including a description of the 

2 State’s— 

3 ‘‘(I) process to inspect or other4 wise determine compliance with such 

5 permit program; 

6 ‘‘(II) process to enforce the re7 quirements of such permit program; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(III) public participation proc10 ess for the promulgation, amendment, 

11 or repeal of regulations for, and the 

12 issuance of permits under, such per13 mit program; 

14 ‘‘(iv) a legal certification that the 

15 State has, at the time of certification, fully 

16 effective statutes or regulations necessary 

17 to implement a coal combustion residuals 

18 permit program that meets the specifica19 tions described in subsection (c)(1); and 

20 ‘‘(v) copies of State statutes and regu21 lations described in clause (iv). 

22 ‘‘(3) MAINTENANCE OF 4005(c) OR 3006 PRO23 GRAM.—In order to adopt or implement a coal com24 bustion residuals permit program under this section 

25 (including pursuant to subsection (f)), the State 


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1 agency responsible for implementing a coal combus2 tion residuals permit program in a State shall main3 tain an approved program under section 4005(c) or 

4 an authorized program under section 3006. 

5 ‘‘(c) PERMIT PROGRAM SPECIFICATIONS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.—The specifica7 tions described in this subsection for a coal combus8 tion residuals permit program are as follows: 

9 ‘‘(A) The revised criteria described in 

10 paragraph (2) shall apply to a coal combustion 

11 residuals permit program, except as provided in 

12 paragraph (3). 

13 ‘‘(B) Each structure shall be, in accord14 ance with generally accepted engineering stand15 ards for the structural integrity of such struc16 tures, designed, constructed, and maintained to 

17 provide for containment of the maximum vol18 umes of coal combustion residuals appropriate 

19 for the structure. If a structure is determined 

20 by the head of the agency responsible for imple21 menting the coal combustion residuals permit 

22 program to be deficient, the head of such agen23 cy has authority to require action to correct the 

24 deficiency according to a schedule determined 

25 by such agency. If the identified deficiency is 


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1 not corrected according to such schedule, the 

2 head of such agency has authority to require 

3 that the structure close in accordance with sub4 section (h). 

5 ‘‘(C) The coal combustion residuals permit 

6 program shall apply the revised criteria promul7 gated pursuant to section 4010(c) for location, 

8 design, groundwater monitoring, corrective ac9 tion, financial assurance, closure, and post-clo10 sure described in paragraph (2) and the speci11 fications described in this paragraph to surface 

12 impoundments. 

13 ‘‘(D) If a structure that is classified as 

14 posing a high hazard potential pursuant to the 

15 guidelines published by the Federal Emergency 

16 Management Agency entitled ‘Federal Guide17 lines for Dam Safety: Hazard Potential Classi18 fication System for Dams’ (FEMA Publication 

19 Number 333) is determined by the head of the 

20 agency responsible for implementing the coal 

21 combustion residuals permit program to be defi22 cient with respect to the structural integrity re23 quirement in subparagraph (B), the head of 

24 such agency has authority to require action to 

25 correct the deficiency according to a schedule 


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1 determined by such agency. If the identified de2 ficiency is not corrected according to such 

3 schedule, the head of such agency has authority 

4 to require that the structure close in accordance 

5 with subsection (h). 

6 ‘‘(E) New structures that first receive coal 

7 combustion residuals after the date of enact8 ment of this section shall be constructed with a 

9 base located a minimum of two feet above the 

10 upper limit of the natural water table. 

11 ‘‘(F) In the case of a coal combustion re12 siduals permit program implemented by a 

13 State, the State has the authority to inspect 

14 structures and implement and enforce such per15 mit program. 

16 ‘‘(G) In the case of a coal combustion re17 siduals permit program implemented by a 

18 State, the State has the authority to address 

19 wind dispersal of dust from coal combustion re20 siduals by requiring dust control measures, as 

21 determined appropriate by the head of the lead 

22 State agency responsible for implementing the 

23 coal combustion residuals permit program. 

24 ‘‘(2) REVISED CRITERIA.—The revised criteria 

25 described in this paragraph are— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the revised criteria for design, 

2 groundwater monitoring, corrective action, clo3 sure, and post-closure, for structures, includ4 ing— 

5 ‘‘(i) for new structures, and lateral ex6 pansions of existing structures, that first 

7 receive coal combustion residuals after the 

8 date of enactment of this section, the re9 vised criteria regarding design require10 ments described in section 258.40 of title 

11 40, Code of Federal Regulations; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) for all structures that receive 

13 coal combustion residuals after the date of 

14 enactment of this section, the revised cri15 teria regarding groundwater monitoring 

16 and corrective action requirements de17 scribed in subpart E of part 258 of title 

18 40, Code of Federal Regulations, except 

19 that, for the purposes of this paragraph, 

20 such revised criteria shall also include— 

21 ‘‘(I) for the purposes of detection 

22 monitoring, the constituents boron, 

23 chloride, conductivity, fluoride, mer24 cury, pH, sulfate, sulfide, and total 

25 dissolved solids; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) for the purposes of assess2 ment monitoring, the constituents alu3 minum, boron, chloride, fluoride, iron, 

4 manganese, molybdenum, pH, sulfate, 

5 and total dissolved solids; 

6 ‘‘(B) the revised criteria for location re7 strictions described in— 

8 ‘‘(i) for new structures, and lateral ex9 pansions of existing structures, that first 

10 receive coal combustion residuals after the 

11 date of enactment of this section, sections 

12 258.11 through 258.15 of title 40, Code of 

13 Federal Regulations; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) for existing structures that re15 ceive coal combustion residuals after the 

16 date of enactment of this section, sections 

17 258.11 and 258.15 of title 40, Code of 

18 Federal Regulations; 

19 ‘‘(C) for all structures that receive coal 

20 combustion residuals after the date of enact21 ment of this section, the revised criteria for air 

22 quality described in section 258.24 of title 40, 

23 Code of Federal Regulations; 

24 ‘‘(D) for all structures that receive coal 

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1 ment of this section, the revised criteria for fi2 nancial assurance described in subpart G of 

3 part 258 of title 40, Code of Federal Regula4 tions; 

5 ‘‘(E) for all structures that receive coal 

6 combustion residuals after the date of enact7 ment of this section, the revised criteria for sur8 face water described in section 258.27 of title 

9 40, Code of Federal Regulations; 

10 ‘‘(F) for all structures that receive coal 

11 combustion residuals after the date of enact12 ment of this section, the revised criteria for rec13 ordkeeping described in section 258.29 of title 

14 40, Code of Federal Regulations; 

15 ‘‘(G) for landfills and other land-based 

16 units, other than surface impoundments, that 

17 receive coal combustion residuals after the date 

18 of enactment of this section, the revised criteria 

19 for run-on and run-off control systems de20 scribed in section 258.26 of title 40, Code of 

21 Federal Regulations; and 

22 ‘‘(H) for surface impoundments that re23 ceive coal combustion residuals after the date of 

24 enactment of this section, the revised criteria 

25 for run-off control systems described in section 


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1 258.26(a)(2) of title 40, Code of Federal Regu2 lations. 

3 ‘‘(3) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN REQUIRE4 MENTS.—A State may determine that one or more 

5 of the requirements of the revised criteria described 

6 in paragraph (2) is not needed for the management 

7 of coal combustion residuals in that State, and may 

8 decline to apply such requirement as part of its coal 

9 combustion residuals permit program. If a State de10 clines to apply a requirement under this paragraph, 

11 the State shall include in the certification under sub12 section (b)(2) a description of such requirement and 

13 the reasons such requirement is not needed in the 

14 State. If the Administrator determines that a State 

15 determination under this paragraph does not accu16 rately reflect the needs for the management of coal 

17 combustion residuals in the State, the Administrator 

18 may treat such State determination as a deficiency 

19 under subsection (d). 

20 ‘‘(d) WRITTEN NOTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO REM21 EDY.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 

23 provide to a State written notice and an opportunity 

24 to remedy deficiencies in accordance with paragraph 

25 (2) if at any time the State— 


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1 ‘‘(A) does not satisfy the notification re2 quirement under subsection (b)(1); 

3 ‘‘(B) has not submitted a certification 

4 under subsection (b)(2); 

5 ‘‘(C) does not satisfy the maintenance re6 quirement under subsection (b)(3); or 

7 ‘‘(D) is not implementing a coal combus8 tion residuals permit program that meets the 

9 specifications described in subsection (c)(1). 

10 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF NOTICE; DEADLINE FOR RE11 SPONSE.—A notice provided under this subsection 

12 shall— 

13 ‘‘(A) include findings of the Administrator 

14 detailing any applicable deficiencies in— 

15 ‘‘(i) compliance by the State with the 

16 notification requirement under subsection 

17 (b)(1); 

18 ‘‘(ii) compliance by the State with the 

19 certification requirement under subsection 

20 (b)(2); 

21 ‘‘(iii) compliance by the State with the 

22 maintenance requirement under subsection 

23 (b)(3); and 

24 ‘‘(iv) the State coal combustion re25 siduals permit program in meeting the 


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1 specifications described in subsection 

2 (c)(1); and 

3 ‘‘(B) identify, in collaboration with the 

4 State, a reasonable deadline, which shall be not 

5 sooner than 6 months after the State receives 

6 the notice, by which the State shall remedy the 

7 deficiencies detailed under subparagraph (A). 

8 ‘‘(e) IMPLEMENTATION BY ADMINISTRATOR.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 

10 implement a coal combustion residuals permit pro11 gram for a State only in the following cir12 cumstances: 

13 ‘‘(A) If the Governor of such State notifies 

14 the Administrator under subsection (b)(1) that 

15 such State will not adopt and implement such 

16 a permit program. 

17 ‘‘(B) If such State has received a notice 

18 under subsection (d) and, after any review 

19 brought by the State under section 7006, fails, 

20 by the deadline identified in such notice under 

21 subsection (d)(2)(B), to remedy the deficiencies 

22 detailed in such notice under subsection 

23 (d)(2)(A). 


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1 ‘‘(C) If such State informs the Adminis2 trator, in writing, that such State will no longer 

3 implement such a permit program. 

4 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—If the Administrator 

5 implements a coal combustion residuals permit pro6 gram for a State under paragraph (1), such permit 

7 program shall consist of the specifications described 

8 in subsection (c)(1). 

9 ‘‘(3) ENFORCEMENT.—If the Administrator im10 plements a coal combustion residuals permit pro11 gram for a State under paragraph (1), the authori12 ties referred to in section 4005(c)(2)(A) shall apply 

13 with respect to coal combustion residuals and struc14 tures and the Administrator may use such authori15 ties to inspect, gather information, and enforce the 

16 requirements of this section in the State. 

17 ‘‘(f) STATE CONTROL AFTER IMPLEMENTATION BY

18 ADMINISTRATOR.— 

19 ‘‘(1) STATE CONTROL.— 

20 ‘‘(A) NEW ADOPTION AND IMPLEMENTA21 TION BY STATE.—For a State for which the 

22 Administrator is implementing a coal combus23 tion residuals permit program under subsection 

24 (e)(1)(A), the State may adopt and implement 

25 such a permit program by— 


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1 ‘‘(i) notifying the Administrator that 

2 the State will adopt and implement such a 

3 permit program; 

4 ‘‘(ii) not later than 6 months after the 

5 date of such notification, submitting to the 

6 Administrator a certification under sub7 section (b)(2); and 

8 ‘‘(iii) receiving from the Adminis9 trator— 

10 ‘‘(I) a determination that the 

11 State coal combustion residuals per12 mit program meets the specifications 

13 described in subsection (c)(1); and 

14 ‘‘(II) a timeline for transition of 

15 control of the coal combustion residu16 als permit program. 

17 ‘‘(B) REMEDYING DEFICIENT PERMIT PRO18 GRAM.—For a State for which the Adminis19 trator is implementing a coal combustion re20 siduals permit program under subsection 

21 (e)(1)(B), the State may adopt and implement 

22 such a permit program by— 

23 ‘‘(i) remedying the deficiencies de24 tailed in the notice provided under sub25 section (d)(2)(A); and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) receiving from the Adminis2 trator— 

3 ‘‘(I) a determination that the de4 ficiencies detailed in such notice have 

5 been remedied; and 

6 ‘‘(II) a timeline for transition of 

7 control of the coal combustion residu8 als permit program. 

9 ‘‘(C) RESUMPTION OF IMPLEMENTATION

10 BY STATE.—For a State for which the Adminis11 trator is implementing a coal combustion re12 siduals permit program under subsection 

13 (e)(1)(C), the State may adopt and implement 

14 such a permit program by— 

15 ‘‘(i) notifying the Administrator that 

16 the State will adopt and implement such a 

17 permit program; 

18 ‘‘(ii) not later than 6 months after the 

19 date of such notification, submitting to the 

20 Administrator a certification under sub21 section (b)(2); and 

22 ‘‘(iii) receiving from the Adminis23 trator— 

24 ‘‘(I) a determination that the 

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1 mit program meets the specifications 

2 described in subsection (c)(1); and 

3 ‘‘(II) a timeline for transition of 

4 control of the coal combustion residu5 als permit program. 

6 ‘‘(2) REVIEW OF DETERMINATION.— 

7 ‘‘(A) DETERMINATION REQUIRED.—The 

8 Administrator shall make a determination 

9 under paragraph (1) not later than 90 days 

10 after the date on which the State submits a cer11 tification under paragraph (1)(A)(ii) or 

12 (1)(C)(ii), or notifies the Administrator that the 

13 deficiencies have been remedied pursuant to 

14 paragraph (1)(B)(i), as applicable. 

15 ‘‘(B) REVIEW.—A State may obtain a re16 view of a determination by the Administrator 

17 under paragraph (1) as if such determination 

18 was a final regulation for purposes of section 

19 7006. 

20 ‘‘(3) IMPLEMENTATION DURING TRANSITION.— 

21 ‘‘(A) EFFECT ON ACTIONS AND ORDERS.— 

22 Actions taken or orders issued pursuant to a 

23 coal combustion residuals permit program shall 

24 remain in effect if— 


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1 ‘‘(i) a State takes control of its coal 

2 combustion residuals permit program from 

3 the Administrator under paragraph (1); or 

4 ‘‘(ii) the Administrator takes control 

5 of a coal combustion residuals permit pro6 gram from a State under subsection (e). 

7 ‘‘(B) CHANGE IN REQUIREMENTS.—Sub8 paragraph (A) shall apply to such actions and 

9 orders until such time as the Administrator or 

10 the head of the lead State agency responsible 

11 for implementing the coal combustion residuals 

12 permit program, as applicable— 

13 ‘‘(i) implements changes to the re14 quirements of the coal combustion residu15 als permit program with respect to the 

16 basis for the action or order; or 

17 ‘‘(ii) certifies the completion of a cor18 rective action that is the subject of the ac19 tion or order. 

20 ‘‘(4) SINGLE PERMIT PROGRAM.—If a State 

21 adopts and implements a coal combustion residuals 

22 permit program under this subsection, the Adminis23 trator shall cease to implement the permit program 

24 implemented under subsection (e) for such State. 


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1 ‘‘(g) EFFECT ON DETERMINATION UNDER 4005(c) 

2 OR 3006.—The Administrator shall not consider the im3 plementation of a coal combustion residuals permit pro4 gram by the Administrator under subsection (e) in making 

5 a determination of approval for a permit program or other 

6 system of prior approval and conditions under section 

7 4005(c) or of authorization for a program under section 

8 3006. 

9 ‘‘(h) CLOSURE.—If it is determined, pursuant to a 

10 coal combustion residuals permit program, that a struc11 ture should close, the time period and method for the clo12 sure of such structure shall be set forth in a closure plan 

13 that establishes a deadline for completion and that takes 

14 into account the nature and the site-specific characteris15 tics of the structure to be closed. In the case of a surface 

16 impoundment, the closure plan shall require, at a min17 imum, the removal of liquid and the stabilization of re18 maining waste, as necessary to support the final cover. 

19 ‘‘(i) AUTHORITY.— 

20 ‘‘(1) STATE AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this sec21 tion shall preclude or deny any right of any State to 

22 adopt or enforce any regulation or requirement re23 specting coal combustion residuals that is more 

24 stringent or broader in scope than a regulation or 

25 requirement under this section. 


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1 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY OF THE ADMINISTRATOR.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

3 subsection (e) of this section and section 6005 

4 of this title, the Administrator shall, with re5 spect to the regulation of coal combustion re6 siduals, defer to the States pursuant to this sec7 tion. 

8 ‘‘(B) IMMINENT HAZARD.—Nothing in this 

9 section shall be construed to affect the author10 ity of the Administrator under section 7003 

11 with respect to coal combustion residuals. 

12 ‘‘(C) TECHNICAL AND ENFORCEMENT AS13 SISTANCE ONLY UPON REQUEST.—Upon re14 quest from the head of a lead State agency that 

15 is implementing a coal combustion residuals 

16 permit program, the Administrator may provide 

17 to such State agency only the technical or en18 forcement assistance requested. 

19 ‘‘(3) CITIZEN SUITS.—Nothing in this section 

20 shall be construed to affect the authority of a person 

21 to commence a civil action in accordance with sec22 tion 7002. 

23 ‘‘(j) MINE RECLAMATION ACTIVITIES.—A coal com24 bustion residuals permit program implemented under sub25 section (e) by the Administrator shall not apply to the utiVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:23 Apr 05, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00195 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4301.IH H4301

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1 lization, placement, and storage of coal combustion residu2 als at surface mining and reclamation operations. 

3 ‘‘(k) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

4 ‘‘(1) COAL COMBUSTION RESIDUALS.—The 

5 term ‘coal combustion residuals’ means— 

6 ‘‘(A) the solid wastes listed in section 

7 3001(b)(3)(A)(i), including recoverable mate8 rials from such wastes; 

9 ‘‘(B) coal combustion wastes that are co10 managed with wastes produced in conjunction 

11 with the combustion of coal, provided that such 

12 wastes are not segregated and disposed of sepa13 rately from the coal combustion wastes and 

14 comprise a relatively small proportion of the 

15 total wastes being disposed in the structure; 

16 ‘‘(C) fluidized bed combustion wastes; 

17 ‘‘(D) wastes from the co-burning of coal 

18 with nonhazardous secondary materials pro19 vided that coal makes up at least 50 percent of 

20 the total fuel burned; and 

21 ‘‘(E) wastes from the co-burning of coal 

22 with materials described in subparagraph (A) 

23 that are recovered from monofills. 

24 ‘‘(2) COAL COMBUSTION RESIDUALS PERMIT

25 PROGRAM.—The term ‘coal combustion residuals 


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1 permit program’ means a permit program or other 

2 system of prior approval and conditions that is 

3 adopted by or for a State for the management and 

4 disposal of coal combustion residuals to the extent 

5 such activities occur in structures in such State. 

6 ‘‘(3) STRUCTURE.—The term ‘structure’ means 

7 a landfill, surface impoundment, or other land-based 

8 unit which may receive coal combustion residuals. 

9 ‘‘(4) REVISED CRITERIA.—The term ‘revised 

10 criteria’ means the criteria promulgated for munic11 ipal solid waste landfill units under section 4004(a) 

12 and under section 1008(a)(3), as revised under sec13 tion 4010(c) in accordance with the requirement of 

14 such section that the criteria protect human health 

15 and the environment.’’. 

16 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con17 tents contained in section 1001 of the Solid Waste Dis18 posal Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 

19 to section 4010 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 4011. Management and disposal of coal combustion residuals.’’. 

20 (c) 2000 REGULATORY DETERMINATION.—Nothing 

21 in this section, or the amendments made by this section, 

22 shall be construed to alter in any manner the Environ23 mental Protection Agency’s regulatory determination enti24 tled ‘‘Notice of Regulatory Determination on Wastes from 

25 the Combustion of Fossil Fuels’’, published at 65 Fed. 


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1 Reg. 32214 (May 22, 2000), that the fossil fuel combus2 tion wastes addressed in that determination do not war3 rant regulation under subtitle C of the Solid Waste Dis4 posal Act (42 U.S.C. 6921 et seq.). 

5 TITLE VIII—ATTAINMENT OF NA6 TIONAL AMBIENT AIR QUAL7 ITY STANDARDS 

8 SEC. 801. AIR QUALITY MONITORING AND MODELING 

9 METHODOLOGIES. 

10 (a) NONATTAINMENT DESIGNATION TO BE BASED

11 ON MONITORING DATA.—Section 107 of the Clean Air Act 

12 (42 U.S.C. 7407) is amended by adding at the end the 

13 following: 

14 ‘‘(f) NONATTAINMENT DESIGNATION TO BE BASED

15 ON MONITORING DATA.—Any designation or redesigna16 tion of an area or portion of an area within a State or 

17 interstate area as a nonattainment area for a pollutant 

18 within the meaning of subsection (d)(1)(A)(i) shall— 

19 ‘‘(1) be based on monitoring data; and 

20 ‘‘(2) not take into consideration modeling 

21 data.’’. 

22 (b) AIR QUALITY MODELING METHODOLOGIES.— 

23 (1) METHODOLOGIES.—Section 110 of the 

24 Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7410) is amended by add25 ing at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(d) AIR QUALITY MODELING METHODOLOGIES.— 

2 The Administrator shall, by regulation, set forth the air 

3 quality modeling methodologies required to be used for 

4 purposes of air quality modeling pursuant to subsection 

5 (a)(2)(K).’’. 

6 (2) REGULATIONS.—The Administrator of the 

7 Environmental Protection Agency shall promulgate 

8 final regulations, as required by section 110(d) of 

9 the Clean Air Act, as added by paragraph (1), not 

10 later than one year after the date of the enactment 

11 of this Act. 

12 SEC. 802. EXTENDING COMPLIANCE FOR NAAQS ATTAIN13 MENT FOR DOWNWIND STATES. 

14 Section 181 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7511) 

15 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(d) EXTENDED ATTAINMENT DATE FOR CERTAIN

17 DOWNWIND AREAS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

19 ‘‘(A) The term ‘upwind area’ means an 

20 area that— 

21 ‘‘(i) affects nonattainment in another 

22 area (in this subsection referred to as the 

23 ‘downwind area’); and 

24 ‘‘(ii) is either— 


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1 ‘‘(I) a nonattainment area with a 

2 later attainment date than the down3 wind area; or 

4 ‘‘(II) an area in another State 

5 that the Administrator has found to 

6 be significantly contributing to non7 attainment in the downwind area in 

8 violation of section 110(a)(2)(D) and 

9 for which the Administrator has es10 tablished requirements through notice 

11 and comment rulemaking to reduce 

12 the emissions causing such significant 

13 contribution. 

14 ‘‘(B) The term ‘current classification’ 

15 means the classification of a downwind area 

16 under this section at the time of the determina17 tion under paragraph (2). 

18 ‘‘(2) EXTENSION.—Notwithstanding subsection 

19 (b)(2), a downwind area that is not in attainment 

20 within 18 months of the attainment deadline re21 quired under this section may seek an extension of 

22 time to come into attainment by petitioning the Ad23 ministrator for such an extension. If the Adminis24 trator— 


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1 ‘‘(A) determines that the area is a down2 wind area with respect to a particular national 

3 ambient air quality standard for ozone; 

4 ‘‘(B) approves a plan revision for such 

5 area as provided in paragraph (3) prior to a re6 classification under subsection (b)(2)(A); and 

7 ‘‘(C) determines that the petitioning down8 wind area has demonstrated that it is affected 

9 by transport from an upwind area to a degree 

10 that affects the area’s ability to attain, 

11 the Administrator, in lieu of such reclassification, 

12 may extend the attainment date for such downwind 

13 area for such standard in accordance with paragraph 

14 (5). 

15 ‘‘(3) APPROVAL.—In order to extend the attain16 ment date for a downwind area under this sub17 section, the Administrator may approve a revision of 

18 the applicable implementation plan for the downwind 

19 area for the national ambient air quality standard 

20 that— 

21 ‘‘(A) complies with all requirements of this 

22 Act applicable under the current classification 

23 of the downwind area, including any require24 ments applicable to the area under section 

25 172(c) for such standard; 


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1 ‘‘(B) includes any additional measures 

2 needed to demonstrate attainment by the ex3 tended attainment date provided under this 

4 subsection, and provides for implementation of 

5 those measures as expeditiously as practicable; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(C) provides appropriate measures to en8 sure that no area downwind of the area receiv9 ing the extended attainment date will be af10 fected by transport to a degree that affects the 

11 other area’s ability to attain. 

12 ‘‘(4) PRIOR RECLASSIFICATION DETERMINA13 TION.—If, after April 1, 2003, and prior to the time 

14 the 1-hour ozone standard no longer applies to a 

15 downwind area, the Administrator made a reclassi16 fication determination under subsection (b)(2)(A) 

17 for such downwind area, and the Administrator ap18 proves a plan consistent with subparagraphs (A) and 

19 (B) for such area, the reclassification shall be with20 drawn and, for purposes of implementing the 8-hour 

21 ozone national ambient air quality standard, the 

22 area shall be treated as if the reclassification never 

23 occurred. Such plan must be submitted no later than 

24 12 months following enactment of this subsection, 

25 and— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the plan revision for the downwind 

2 area must comply with all control and planning 

3 requirements of this Act applicable under the 

4 classification that applied immediately prior to 

5 reclassification, including any requirements ap6 plicable to the area under section 172(c) for 

7 such standard; and 

8 ‘‘(B) the plan must include any additional 

9 measures needed to demonstrate attainment no 

10 later than the date on which the last reductions 

11 in pollution transport that have been found by 

12 the Administrator to significantly contribute to 

13 nonattainment are required to be achieved by 

14 the upwind area or areas. 

15 ‘‘(5) EXTENDED DATE.—The attainment date 

16 extended under this subsection shall provide for at17 tainment of such national ambient air quality stand18 ard for ozone in the downwind area as expeditiously 

19 as practicable but no later than the new date that 

20 the area would have been subject to had it been re21 classified under subsection (b)(2). 

22 ‘‘(6) RULEMAKING.—Within 12 months after 

23 the enactment of this subsection, the Administrator 

24 shall, after notice and comment, promulgate rules to 

25 determine, for purposes of paragraphs (2) and (3), 


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1 when an area is affected by transport to a degree 

2 that affects the area’s ability to attain. The purpose 

3 of such rules shall be to ensure that downwind areas 

4 are not unjustly penalized.’’. 

5 TITLE IX—SUB-BASIN REPORT6 ING OF GREENHOUSE GAS 

7 EMISSIONS 

8 SEC. 901. SUB-BASIN REPORTING OF GREENHOUSE GAS 

9 EMISSIONS. 

10 Section 114 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7414) 

11 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(e) REPORTING OF GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS

13 FROM PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS SYSTEMS.—In re14 quiring any owner or operator of any facility in the petro15 leum and natural gas system source category (as such 

16 terms are used in part 98 of title 40, Code of Federal 

17 Regulations, and any successor regulations) to report 

18 greenhouse gas emissions from facilities in such category, 

19 the Administrator shall allow the owner or operator, at 

20 its election— 

21 ‘‘(1) to designate sub-basins consisting of simi22 lar fields within a larger basin; and 

23 ‘‘(2) to report such emissions from such sub-ba24 sins instead of reporting such emissions from the 

25 larger basin.’’. 


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1 TITLE X—IMPLEMENTATION OF 

2 NATIONAL OCEAN POLICY 

3 SEC. 1001. PROHIBITION ON USE OF FUNDS. 

4 (a) Federal departments and agencies are prohibited 

5 from performing activities to implement Executive Order 

6 13547. 

7 TITLE XI—OTHER PROVISIONS 

8 SEC. 1101. ADMINISTRATIVE RECORD. 

9 The administrative record compiled by an agency re10 garding an application for a permit, authorization, or 

11 other agency action involving a Priority Energy Project 

12 shall be the sole and exclusive record for any appeal or 

13 review of the permit action or other activity by that agency 

14 or other agency, as applicable. Upon final agency action, 

15 such record shall be closed and shall not be subject to any 

16 further evidentiary proceedings or requirements unless re17 quested by the applicant. 

18 SEC. 1102. STATEMENT OF ENERGY EFFECTS. 

19 (a) PREPARATION.— 

20 (1) REQUIREMENT.—An agency shall prepare 

21 and submit a Statement of Energy Effects to the 

22 Administrator of the Office of Information and Reg23 ulatory Affairs of the Office of Management and 

24 Budget, for each proposed significant energy action. 


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1 (2) CONTENTS.—A Statement of Energy Ef2 fects shall consist of a detailed statement by the 

3 agency responsible for the significant energy action 

4 relating to— 

5 (A) any adverse effects on energy supply, 

6 distribution, or use (including a shortfall in 

7 supply, price increases, and increased use of 

8 foreign supplies) should the proposal be imple9 mented; and 

10 (B) reasonable alternatives to the action 

11 with adverse energy effects, and the expected 

12 effects of such alternatives on energy supply, 

13 distribution, and use. 

14 (3) GUIDANCE AND CONSULTATION.—The Ad15 ministrator of the Office of Information and Regu16 latory Affairs shall provide guidance to the agencies 

17 on the implementation of this section and shall con18 sult with other agencies as appropriate in the imple19 mentation of this section. 

20 (b) PUBLICATION.—Agencies shall publish their 

21 Statements of Energy Effects, or a summary thereof, in 

22 each related notice of proposed rulemaking and in any re23 sulting final rule. 

24 (c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this subsection— 


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1 (1) the term ‘‘agency’’ has the meaning given 

2 that term in paragraph (1) of section 3502 of title 

3 44, United States Code, except that the term does 

4 not include an independent regulatory agency, as de5 fined in paragraph (5) of that section; and 

6 (2) the term ‘‘significant energy action’’ means 

7 any action by an agency that is expected to lead to 

8 promulgation of a final regulation and that— 

9 (A) is likely to have a significant adverse 

10 effect on the supply, distribution, or use of en11 ergy; or 

12 (B) is designated by the Administrator of 

13 the Office of Information and Regulatory Af14 fairs as a significant energy action. 

15 SEC. 1103. PRIORITY-ENERGY PROJECT PERMIT DURATION. 

16 The approval to construct or operate a Priority En17 ergy Project pursuant to any Federal permit, as applica18 ble, shall remain valid and authorized for the later of— 

19 (1) 18 months following the date on which the 

20 last permit needed by a Priority Energy Project to 

21 commence construction or operation is final and no 

22 longer subject to judicial review; 

23 (2) 3 years; or 


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1 (3) in the case of a nationwide permit issued by 

2 the Army Corps of Engineers pursuant to part 330 

3 of title 33, Code of Federal Regulations, 5 years. 

4 SEC. 1104. EXEMPTION FOR TAKINGS OF MIGRATORY BIRD 

5 INCIDENTAL TO ENERGY DEVELOPMENT AND 

6 PRODUCTION. 

7 Section 6 of The Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16 

8 U.S.C. 707) is amended in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘not 

9 more than’’ and all that follows through the end of the 

10 subsection and inserting ‘‘not more than $1,000.’’. 

Æ 


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