II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 988 

To provide for coordination by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 

of the process for reviewing certain natural gas projects under the jurisdiction of the Commission, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 27, 2023 

Mr. HOEVEN (for himself and Mr. SULLIVAN) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To provide for coordination by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission of the process for reviewing certain 

natural gas projects under the jurisdiction of the Commission, and for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Promoting Interagency 

5 Coordination for Review of Natural Gas Projects Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FERC PROCESS COORDINATION FOR NATURAL GAS 

7 PROJECTS. 

8 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 988 IS

1 (1) CERTIFICATE OF PUBLIC CONVENIENCE

2 AND NECESSITY.—The term ‘‘certificate of public 

3 convenience and necessity’’ means a certificate of 

4 public convenience and necessity issued under sec5 tion 7 of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717f). 

6 (2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

7 means the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. 

8 (3) FEDERAL AUTHORIZATION.—The term 

9 ‘‘Federal authorization’’ has the meaning given the 

10 term in section 15(a) of the Natural Gas Act (15 

11 U.S.C. 717n(a)). 

12 (4) NEPA REVIEW.—The term ‘‘NEPA review’’ 

13 means the process of reviewing a proposed Federal 

14 action under section 102 of the National Environ15 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332). 

16 (5) PROJECT-RELATED NEPA REVIEW.—The 

17 term ‘‘project-related NEPA review’’ means any 

18 NEPA review required to be conducted with respect 

19 to the issuance of— 

20 (A) an authorization under section 3 of the 

21 Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b); or 

22 (B) a certificate of public convenience and 

23 necessity. 

24 (b) COMMISSION NEPA REVIEW RESPONSIBIL25 ITIES.—In acting as the lead agency under section 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 988 IS

1 15(b)(1) of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717n(b)(1)) 

2 for the purposes of complying with the National Environ3 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) with 

4 respect to an authorization under section 3 of the Natural 

5 Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b) or a certificate of public conven6 ience and necessity, the Commission shall, in accordance 

7 with this section and other applicable Federal law— 

8 (1) be the only lead agency; 

9 (2) coordinate as early as practicable with each 

10 agency designated as a participating agency under 

11 subsection (d)(3) to ensure that the Commission de12 velops information in conducting project-related 

13 NEPA review that is usable by the participating 

14 agency in considering an aspect of an application for 

15 a Federal authorization for which the agency is re16 sponsible; and 

17 (3) take such actions as are necessary and 

18 proper to facilitate the expeditious resolution of 

19 project-related NEPA review. 

20 (c) DEFERENCE TO COMMISSION.—In making a deci21 sion with respect to a Federal authorization required with 

22 respect to an application for an authorization under sec23 tion 3 of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b) or a cer24 tificate of public convenience and necessity, each agency 

25 shall give deference, to the maximum extent authorized 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 988 IS

1 by law, to the scope of the project-related NEPA review 

2 that the Commission determines to be appropriate. 

3 (d) PARTICIPATING AGENCIES.— 

4 (1) IDENTIFICATION.—Not later than 30 days 

5 after receiving an application for an authorization 

6 under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 

7 717b) or a certificate of public convenience and ne8 cessity, the Commission shall identify any Federal or 

9 State agency, local government, or Indian Tribe 

10 that— 

11 (A) may issue a Federal authorization with 

12 respect to the application; or 

13 (B) is required by Federal law to consult 

14 with the Commission in conjunction with the 

15 issuance of an authorization under section 3 of 

16 that Act (15 U.S.C. 717b) or a Federal author17 ization required for the certificate of public con18 venience and necessity. 

19 (2) INVITATION.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 45 days 

21 after receiving an application for an authoriza22 tion under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (15 

23 U.S.C. 717b) or a certificate of public conven24 ience and necessity, the Commission shall invite 

25 any agency identified under paragraph (1) to 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 988 IS

1 participate in the review process for the applica2 ble Federal authorization. 

3 (B) DEADLINE.—An invitation issued 

4 under subparagraph (A) shall establish a dead5 line by which a response to the invitation shall 

6 be submitted to the Commission, which may be 

7 extended by the Commission for good cause. 

8 (3) DESIGNATION AS PARTICIPATING AGEN9 CIES.—Not later than 60 days after the Commission 

10 receives an application for an authorization under 

11 section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b) 

12 or a certificate of public convenience and necessity, 

13 the Commission shall designate an agency identified 

14 under paragraph (1) as a participating agency with 

15 respect to an application for an authorization under 

16 section 3 of that Act (15 U.S.C. 717b) or a certifi17 cate of public convenience and necessity unless the 

18 agency informs the Commission, in writing, by the 

19 deadline established pursuant to paragraph (2)(B), 

20 that the agency— 

21 (A) has no jurisdiction or authority with 

22 respect to the applicable Federal authorization; 

23 (B) has no special expertise or information 

24 relevant to any project-related NEPA review; or 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 988 IS

1 (C) does not intend to submit comments 

2 for the record for the project-related NEPA re3 view conducted by the Commission. 

4 (4) EFFECT OF NON-DESIGNATION.— 

5 (A) EFFECT ON AGENCY.—Any agency 

6 that is not designated as a participating agency 

7 under paragraph (3) with respect to an applica8 tion for an authorization under section 3 of the 

9 Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b) or a certifi10 cate of public convenience and necessity may 

11 not request or conduct a NEPA review that is 

12 supplemental to the project-related NEPA re13 view conducted by the Commission, unless the 

14 agency— 

15 (i) demonstrates that such review is 

16 legally necessary for the agency to carry 

17 out responsibilities in considering an as18 pect of an application for a Federal au19 thorization; and 

20 (ii) requires information that could 

21 not have been obtained during the project22 related NEPA review conducted by the 

23 Commission. 

24 (B) COMMENTS; RECORD.—The Commis25 sion shall not, with respect to an agency that is 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 988 IS

1 not designated as a participating agency under 

2 paragraph (3) with respect to an application for 

3 an authorization under section 3 of the Natural 

4 Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b) or a certificate of 

5 public convenience and necessity— 

6 (i) consider any comments or other in7 formation submitted by the agency for the 

8 project-related NEPA review conducted by 

9 the Commission; or 

10 (ii) include any such comments or 

11 other information in the record for the 

12 project-related NEPA review. 

13 (e) SCHEDULE.— 

14 (1) DEADLINE FOR FEDERAL AUTHORIZA15 TIONS.—The deadline for a Federal authorization 

16 required with respect to an application for an au17 thorization under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act 

18 (15 U.S.C. 717b) or a certificate of public conven19 ience and necessity set by the Commission under 

20 section 15(c)(1) of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 

21 717n(c)(1)) shall be not later than 90 days after the 

22 date on which the Commission completes the appli23 cable project-related NEPA review, unless an appli24 cable schedule is otherwise established by Federal 

25 law. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 988 IS

1 (2) CONCURRENT REVIEWS.—Each Federal and 

2 State agency— 

3 (A) that may consider an application for a 

4 Federal authorization required with respect to 

5 an application for an authorization under sec6 tion 3 of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b) 

7 or a certificate of public convenience and neces8 sity shall formulate and implement a plan for 

9 administrative, policy, and procedural mecha10 nisms to enable the agency to ensure completion 

11 of Federal authorizations in compliance with 

12 the schedule established by the Commission 

13 under section 15(c)(1) of the Natural Gas Act 

14 (15 U.S.C. 717n(c)(1)); and 

15 (B) in considering an aspect of an applica16 tion for a Federal authorization required with 

17 respect to an application for an authorization 

18 under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (15 

19 U.S.C. 717b) or a certificate of public conven20 ience and necessity, shall— 

21 (i) develop and implement a plan to 

22 enable the agency to comply with the 

23 schedule; 

24 (ii) carry out the obligations of the 

25 agency under applicable law concurrently, 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 988 IS

1 and in conjunction with, the project-related 

2 NEPA review conducted by the Commis3 sion, and in compliance with the schedule; 

4 (iii) transmit to the Commission a 

5 statement— 

6 (I) acknowledging receipt of the 

7 schedule; and 

8 (II) describing the plan developed 

9 under clause (i); and 

10 (iv) not less frequently than once 

11 every 90 days, transmit to the Commission 

12 a report describing the progress made in 

13 considering the application for a Federal 

14 authorization. 

15 (3) FAILURE TO MEET DEADLINE.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—If a Federal or State 

17 agency, including the Commission, fails to meet 

18 a deadline for a Federal authorization required 

19 in the applicable schedule established by the 

20 Commission under section 15(c)(1) of the Nat21 ural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717n(c)(1)), not later 

22 than 5 days after the deadline, the head of the 

23 relevant Federal agency (including, in the case 

24 of a failure by a State agency, the Federal 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 988 IS

1 agency overseeing the delegated authority) 

2 shall— 

3 (i) notify Congress and the Commis4 sion of the failure; and 

5 (ii) include in that notification a de6 scription of the recommended implementa7 tion plan to ensure completion of the ac8 tion to which the deadline applied, unless 

9 the Commission deems the requirement to 

10 complete the action has been waived. 

11 (B) REQUIREMENT.—In cases in which a 

12 requirement has not been waived under clause 

13 (ii) of subparagraph (A), not later than 5 days 

14 after the date on which the Commission receives 

15 the notification under that subparagraph, the 

16 Commission shall— 

17 (i) accept the recommended implemen18 tation plan; or 

19 (ii) if the Commission does not accept 

20 the recommended implementation plan, es21 tablish a revised schedule for completion of 

22 the action and notify the head of the rel23 evant Federal agency. 

24 (f) CONSIDERATION OF APPLICATIONS FOR FEDERAL

25 AUTHORIZATION.— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 988 IS

1 (1) ISSUE IDENTIFICATION AND RESOLU2 TION.— 

3 (A) IDENTIFICATION.—Federal and State 

4 agencies that may consider an aspect of an ap5 plication for a Federal authorization shall iden6 tify, as early as practicable, any issues of con7 cern that may delay or prevent an agency 

8 from— 

9 (i) working with the Commission to 

10 resolve the issues; and 

11 (ii) granting the Federal authoriza12 tion. 

13 (B) ISSUE RESOLUTION.—The Commission 

14 may forward any issue of concern identified 

15 under subparagraph (A) to the heads of the rel16 evant agencies (including, in the case of an 

17 issue of concern that is a failure by a State 

18 agency, the Federal agency overseeing the dele19 gated authority, if applicable) for resolution. 

20 (2) REMOTE SURVEYS.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—If a Federal or State 

22 agency considering an aspect of an application 

23 for a Federal authorization requires the person 

24 applying for the Federal authorization to sub25 mit data, subject to subparagraph (B), the 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 988 IS

1 agency shall consider any data gathered by aer2 ial or other remote means that the person sub3 mits. 

4 (B) CONSIDERATION.—Aerial or remote 

5 survey data shall be considered under subpara6 graph (A) in cases in which property access is 

7 not permitted or available and therefore onsite 

8 inspection is not possible at the time of the ap9 plication review. 

10 (C) CONDITIONAL APPROVAL.—If appro11 priate and necessary for compliance with the 

12 mandate of the agency, a Federal or State 

13 agency may condition approval for a Federal 

14 authorization based in part on data gathered by 

15 aerial or remote means on the verification of 

16 the data by subsequent onsite inspection. 

17 (3) APPLICATION PROCESSING.—The Commis18 sion, and Federal and State agencies, may allow a 

19 person applying for a Federal authorization to fund 

20 a third-party contractor to assist in reviewing the 

21 application for the Federal authorization. 

22 (g) ACCOUNTABILITY, TRANSPARENCY, EFFI23 CIENCY.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—For an application for an 

25 authorization under section 3 of the Natural Gas 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 988 IS

1 Act (15 U.S.C. 717b) or a certificate of public con2 venience and necessity that requires multiple Fed3 eral authorizations, the Commission, with input from 

4 any Federal or State agency considering an aspect 

5 of the application, shall track and make available to 

6 the public on the website of the Commission infor7 mation relating to the actions required to complete 

8 the Federal authorizations. 

9 (2) INCLUSIONS.—Information tracked and in10 cluded under paragraph (1) shall include the fol11 lowing: 

12 (A) The schedule established by the Com13 mission under section 15(c)(1) of the Natural 

14 Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717n(c)(1)). 

15 (B) A list of all the actions required by 

16 each applicable agency to complete permitting, 

17 reviews, and other actions necessary to obtain a 

18 final decision on the application. 

19 (C) The expected completion date for each 

20 action. 

21 (D) A point of contact at the agency re22 sponsible for each action. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 988 IS

1 (E) In the event that an action is still 

2 pending as of the expected date of completion, 

3 a brief explanation of the reasons for the delay. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS