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[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3301 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3301

  To require approval for the construction, connection, operation, or 
 maintenance of oil or natural gas pipelines or electric transmission 
facilities at the national boundary of the United States for the import 
  or export of oil, natural gas, or electricity to or from Canada or 
                    Mexico, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 22, 2013

   Mr. Upton (for himself, Mr. Gene Green of Texas, Mr. Barton, Mr. 
 Collins of New York, Mr. Costa, Mr. Cramer, Mr. Cuellar, Mr. Gallego, 
 Mr. Hinojosa, Mr. Matheson, Mrs. McMorris Rodgers, Mr. Peterson, Mr. 
    Pompeo, Mr. Terry, Mr. Vela, and Mr. Whitfield) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
   Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and 
 Infrastructure and Natural Resources, 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 require approval for the construction, connection, operation, or 
 maintenance of oil or natural gas pipelines or electric transmission 
facilities at the national boundary of the United States for the import 
  or export of oil, natural gas, or electricity to or from Canada or 
                    Mexico, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``North American Energy Infrastructure 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDING.

    Congress finds that the United States should establish a more 
uniform, transparent, and modern process for the construction, 
connection, operation, and maintenance of oil and natural gas pipelines 
and electric transmission facilities for the import and export of oil, 
natural gas, and electricity to and from Canada and Mexico, in pursuit 
of a more secure and efficient North American energy market.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF CERTAIN ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS AT THE 
              NATIONAL BOUNDARY OF THE UNITED STATES.

    (a) Authorization.--Except as provided in subsections (d) and (e), 
no person may construct, connect, operate, or maintain an oil or 
natural gas pipeline or electric transmission facility at the national 
boundary of the United States for the import or export of oil, natural 
gas, or electricity to or from Canada or Mexico without obtaining 
approval of the construction, connection, operation, or maintenance 
under this section.
    (b) Approval.--
            (1) Requirement.--Not later than 120 days after receiving a 
        request for approval of construction, connection, operation, or 
        maintenance under this section, the relevant official 
        identified under paragraph (2), in consultation with 
        appropriate Federal agencies, shall approve the request unless 
        the relevant official finds that the construction, connection, 
        operation, or maintenance is not in the national security 
        interests of the United States.
            (2) Relevant official.--The relevant official referred to 
        in paragraph (1) is--
                    (A) the Secretary of Commerce with respect to oil 
                pipelines;
                    (B) the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission with 
                respect to natural gas pipelines; and
                    (C) the Secretary of Energy with respect to 
                electric transmission facilities.
            (3) Approval not major federal action.--An approval of 
        construction, connection, operation, or maintenance under 
        paragraph (1) shall not be construed to constitute a major 
        Federal action for purposes of the National Environmental 
        Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).
            (4) Additional requirement for electric transmission 
        facilities.--In the case of a request for approval of the 
        construction, connection, operation, or maintenance of an 
        electric transmission facility, the Secretary of Energy shall 
        require, as a condition of approval of the request under 
        paragraph (1), that the electric transmission facility be 
        constructed, connected, operated, or maintained consistent with 
        all applicable policies and standards of--
                    (A) the Electric Reliability Organization and the 
                applicable regional entity; and
                    (B) any Regional Transmission Organization or 
                Independent System Operator with operational or 
                functional control over the electric transmission 
                facility.
    (c) No Other Approval Required.--No Presidential permit (or similar 
permit) required under Executive Order 13337 (3 U.S.C. 301 note), 
Executive Order 11423 (3 U.S.C. 301 note), section 301 of title 3, 
United States Code, Executive Order 12038, Executive Order 10485, or 
any other Executive Order shall be necessary for construction, 
connection, operation, or maintenance to which this section applies.
    (d) Exclusions.--This section shall not apply to any construction, 
connection, operation, or maintenance of an oil or natural gas pipeline 
or electric transmission facility at the national boundary of the 
United States for the import or export of oil, natural gas, or 
electricity to or from Canada or Mexico--
            (1) if the pipeline or facility is operating at such 
        national boundary for such import or export as of the date of 
        enactment of this Act;
            (2) if a permit described in subsection (c) for such 
        construction, connection, operation, or maintenance has been 
        issued;
            (3) if approval of such construction, connection, 
        operation, or maintenance has previously been obtained under 
        this section; or
            (4) if an application for a permit described in subsection 
        (c) for such construction, connection, operation, or 
        maintenance is pending on the date of enactment of this Act, 
        until the earlier of--
                    (A) the date on which such application is denied; 
                or
                    (B) July 1, 2016.
    (e) Modifications to Existing Projects.--No approval under this 
section, or permit described in subsection (c), shall be required for 
modifications to construction, connection, operation, or maintenance 
described in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (d), including 
reversal of flow direction, change in ownership, volume expansion, 
downstream or upstream interconnection, or adjustments to maintain flow 
(such as a reduction or increase in the number of pump or compressor 
stations).
    (f) Effect of Other Laws.--Nothing in this section shall affect the 
application of any other Federal statute to a project for which 
approval of construction, connection, operation, or maintenance is 
sought under this section.
    (g) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) the term ``natural gas'' has the meaning given that 
        term in section 2 of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717a);
            (2) the term ``oil'' means petroleum or a petroleum 
        product;
            (3) the terms ``Electric Reliability Organization'' and 
        ``regional entity'' have the meanings given those terms in 
        section 215 of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 824o); and
            (4) the terms ``Independent System Operator'' and 
        ``Regional Transmission Organization'' have the meanings given 
        those terms in section 3 of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 
        796).

SEC. 4. IMPORTATION OR EXPORTATION OF NATURAL GAS TO CANADA AND MEXICO.

    Section 3(c) of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b(c)) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: ``No order is required under 
subsection (a) to authorize the export or import of any natural gas to 
or from Canada or Mexico.''.

SEC. 5. TRANSMISSION OF ELECTRIC ENERGY TO CANADA AND MEXICO.

    (a) Repeal of Requirement To Secure Order.--Section 202(e) of the 
Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 824a(e)) is repealed.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) State regulations.--Section 202(f) of the Federal Power 
        Act (16 U.S.C. 824a(f)) is amended by striking ``insofar as 
        such State regulation does not conflict with the exercise of 
        the Commission's powers under or relating to subsection 
        202(e)''.
            (2) Seasonal diversity electricity exchange.--Section 
        602(b) of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 
        (16 U.S.C. 824a-4(b)) is amended by striking ``the Commission 
        has conducted hearings and made the findings required under 
        section 202(e) of the Federal Power Act'' and all that follows 
        through the period at the end and inserting ``the Secretary has 
        conducted hearings and finds that the proposed transmission 
        facilities would not impair the sufficiency of electric supply 
        within the United States or would not impede or tend to impede 
        the coordination in the public interest of facilities subject 
        to the jurisdiction of the Secretary.''.

SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE; RULEMAKING DEADLINES.

    (a) Effective Date.--Sections 3, 4, and 5, and the amendments made 
by such sections, shall take effect on July 1, 2015.
    (b) Rulemaking Deadlines.--Each relevant official described in 
section 3(b)(2) shall--
            (1) not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, publish in the Federal Register notice of a proposed 
        rulemaking to carry out the applicable requirements of section 
        3; and
            (2) not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, publish in the Federal Register a final rule to carry 
        out the applicable requirements of section 3.
                                 <all>
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