I 
113TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 3 
To approve the construction, operation, and maintenance of the Keystone 
XL pipeline, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 15, 2013 
Mr. TERRY (for himself, Mr. MATHESON, Mr. UPTON, Mr. BARROW of Geor-
gia, Mr. WHITFIELD, Mr. BACHUS, Mr. BARTON, Mr. BILIRAKIS, Mr. 
BISHOP of Utah, Mrs. BLACKBURN, Mr. BONNER, Mr. BOUSTANY, Mr. 
BRIDENSTINE, Mr. BROUN of Georgia, Mr. BUCSHON, Mr. BROOKS of 
Alabama, Mr. BURGESS, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. CARTER, Mr. CASSIDY, Mr. 
CHABOT, Mr. COBLE, Mr. CONAWAY, Mr. CRAMER, Mr. CRAWFORD, Mr. 
CULBERSON, Mr. DAINES, Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. DUNCAN 
of South Carolina, Mrs. ELLMERS, Mr. FINCHER, Mr. FLORES, Mr. 
FRANKS of Arizona, Mr. GOHMERT, Mr. GARDNER, Mr. GINGREY of 
Georgia, Ms. GRANGER, Mr. GRAVES of Missouri, Mr. GRIFFIN of Arkan-
sas, Mr. GRIFFITH of Virginia, Mr. GUTHRIE, Mr. HARPER, Mr. HARRIS, 
Mr. HUELSKAMP, Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan, Mr. HUNTER, Mr. JOHN-
SON of Ohio, Mr. KINZINGER of Illinois, Mr. LANCE, Mr. LATTA, Mr. 
LONG, Mr. LUETKEMEYER, Mrs. LUMMIS, Mr. MARCHANT, Mr. MCCAUL, 
Mr. MCHENRY, Mr. MCKINLEY, Mr. MEEHAN, Mr. MURPHY of Pennsyl-
vania, Mr. MULLIN, Mr. MULVANEY, Mrs. NOEM, Mr. NUNES, Mr. 
OLSON, Mr. PEARCE, Mr. PITTS, Mr. POE of Texas, Mr. RIBBLE, Mrs. 
MCMORRIS RODGERS, Mr. ROGERS of Michigan, Mr. SCALISE, Mr. SHIM-
KUS, Mr. SHUSTER, Mr. STIVERS, Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania, Mr. 
WALDEN, Mrs. WALORSKI, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Mr. WESTMORELAND, 
Mr. WOMACK, Mr. YOUNG of Florida, Mr. COFFMAN, Mr. BENTIVOLIO, 
and Ms. FOXX) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the 
Committees on Energy and Commerce and Natural Resources, for a pe-
riod to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for con-
sideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com-
mittee concerned 
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A BILL 
To approve the construction, operation, and maintenance of 
the Keystone XL pipeline, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Northern Route Ap-
proval Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds the following: 
(1) To maintain our Nation’s competitive edge 
and ensure an economy built to last, the United 
States must have fast, reliable, resilient, and envi-
ronmentally sound means of moving energy. In a 
global economy, we will compete for the world’s in-
vestments based in significant part on the quality of 
our infrastructure. Investing in the Nation’s infra-
structure provides immediate and long-term eco-
nomic benefits for local communities and the Nation 
as a whole. 
(2) The delivery of oil from Canada, a close ally 
not only in proximity but in shared values and 
ideals, to domestic markets is in the national inter-
est because of the need to lessen dependence upon 
insecure foreign sources. 
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(3) The Keystone XL pipeline would provide 
both short-term and long-term employment opportu-
nities and related labor income benefits, such as gov-
ernment revenues associated with taxes. 
(4) The State of Nebraska has thoroughly re-
viewed and approved the proposed Keystone XL 
pipeline reroute, concluding that the concerns of Ne-
braskans have had a major influence on the pipeline 
reroute and that the reroute will have minimal envi-
ronmental impacts. 
(5) The Department of State and other Federal 
agencies have over a long period of time conducted 
extensive studies and analysis of the technical as-
pects and of the environmental, social, and economic 
impacts of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. 
(6) The transportation of oil via pipeline is the 
safest and most economically and environmentally 
effective means of doing so. 
(7) The Keystone XL is in much the same posi-
tion today as the Alaska Pipeline in 1973 prior to 
congressional action. Once again, the Federal regu-
latory process remains an insurmountable obstacle 
to a project that is likely to reduce oil imports from 
insecure foreign sources. 
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SEC. 3. KEYSTONE XL PERMIT APPROVAL. 
Notwithstanding Executive Order No. 13337 (3 
U.S.C. 301 note), Executive Order No. 11423 (3 U.S.C. 
301 note), section 301 of title 3, United States Code, and 
any other Executive order or provision of law, no Presi-
dential permit shall be required for the pipeline described 
in the application filed on May 4, 2012, by TransCanada 
Keystone Pipeline, L.P. to the Department of State for 
the Keystone XL pipeline, as supplemented to include the 
Nebraska reroute evaluated in the Final Evaluation Re-
port issued by the Nebraska Department of Environ-
mental Quality in January 2013 and approved by the Ne-
braska governor. The final environmental impact state-
ment issued by the Secretary of State on August 26, 2011, 
coupled with the Final Evaluation Report described in the 
previous sentence, shall be considered to satisfy all re-
quirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and of the National His-
toric Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470 et seq.). 
SEC. 4. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 
(a) EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION.—Except for review by 
the Supreme Court on writ of certiorari, the United States 
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit shall 
have original and exclusive jurisdiction to determine— 
(1) the validity of any final order or action (in-
cluding a failure to act) of any Federal agency or of-
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ficer with respect to issuance of a permit relating to 
the construction or maintenance of the Keystone XL 
pipeline, including any final order or action deemed 
to be taken, made, granted, or issued; 
(2) the constitutionality of any provision of this 
Act, or any decision or action taken, made, granted, 
or issued, or deemed to be taken, made, granted, or 
issued under this Act; or 
(3) the adequacy of any environmental impact 
statement prepared under the National Environ-
mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), 
or of any analysis under any other Act, with respect 
to any action taken, made, granted, or issued, or 
deemed to be taken, made, granted, or issued under 
this Act. 
(b) DEADLINE FOR FILING CLAIM.—A claim arising 
under this Act may be brought not later than 60 days 
after the date of the decision or action giving rise to the 
claim. 
(c) 
EXPEDITED
CONSIDERATION.—The 
United 
States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Cir-
cuit shall set any action brought under subsection (a) for 
expedited consideration, taking into account the national 
interest of enhancing national energy security by providing 
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access to the significant oil reserves in Canada that are 
needed to meet the demand for oil. 
SEC. 5. AMERICAN BURYING BEETLE. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that— 
(1) environmental reviews performed for the 
Keystone XL pipeline project satisfy the require-
ments of section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 
1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536(a)(2)) in its entirety; and 
(2) for purposes of that Act, the Keystone XL 
pipeline project will not jeopardize the continued ex-
istence of the American burying beetle or destroy or 
adversely modify American burying beetle critical 
habitat. 
(b) BIOLOGICAL OPINION.—The Secretary of the In-
terior is deemed to have issued a written statement setting 
forth the Secretary’s opinion containing such findings 
under section 7(b)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species Act 
of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536(b)(1)(A)) and any taking of the 
American burying beetle that is incidental to the construc-
tion or operation and maintenance of the Keystone XL 
pipeline as it may be ultimately defined in its entirety, 
shall not be considered a prohibited taking of such species 
under such Act. 
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SEC. 6. RIGHT-OF-WAY AND TEMPORARY USE PERMIT. 
The Secretary of the Interior is deemed to have 
granted or issued a grant of right-of-way and temporary 
use permit under section 28 of the Mineral Leasing Act 
(30 U.S.C. 185) and the Federal Land Policy and Man-
agement Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), as set forth 
in the application tendered to the Bureau of Land Man-
agement for the Keystone XL pipeline. 
SEC. 7. PERMITS FOR ACTIVITIES IN NAVIGABLE WATERS. 
(a) ISSUANCE OF PERMITS.—The Secretary of the 
Army, not later than 90 days after receipt of an applica-
tion therefor, shall issue all permits under section 404 of 
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1344) 
and section 10 of the Act of March 3, 1899 (33 U.S.C. 
403; commonly known as the Rivers and Harbors Appro-
priations Act of 1899), necessary for the construction, op-
eration, and maintenance of the pipeline described in the 
May 4, 2012, application referred to in section 3, as sup-
plemented by the Nebraska reroute. The application shall 
be based on the administrative record for the pipeline as 
of the date of enactment of this Act, which shall be consid-
ered complete. 
(b) WAIVER OF PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS.—The 
Secretary may waive any procedural requirement of law 
or regulation that the Secretary considers desirable to 
waive in order to accomplish the purposes of this section. 
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(c) ISSUANCE IN ABSENCE OF ACTION BY THE SEC-
RETARY.—If the Secretary has not issued a permit de-
scribed in subsection (a) on or before the last day of the 
90-day period referred to in subsection (a), the permit 
shall be deemed issued under section 404 of the Federal 
Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1344) or section 
10 of the Act of March 3, 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403), as appro-
priate, on the day following such last day. 
(d) LIMITATION.—The Administrator of the Environ-
mental Protection Agency may not prohibit or restrict an 
activity or use of an area that is authorized under this 
section. 
SEC. 8. MIGRATORY BIRD TREATY ACT PERMIT. 
The Secretary of the Interior is deemed to have 
issued a special purpose permit under the Migratory Bird 
Treaty Act (16 U.S.C. 703 et seq.), as described in the 
application filed with the United States Fish and Wildlife 
Service for the Keystone XL pipeline on January 11, 
2013. 
Æ 
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