I 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6717 
To terminate or provide for suspension of the application of Federal laws 
that restrict exploration, development, or production of oil, gas, or oil 
shale, to facilitate the construction of new crude oil refineries, and 
for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 31, 2008 
Mrs. BACHMANN (for herself, Mr. AKIN, Mr. BROUN of Georgia, Mr. BURTON 
of Indiana, Mr. DOOLITTLE, Mr. FRANKS of Arizona, Mr. KINGSTON, Mr. 
LAMBORN, Mr. LATTA, Mr. MCHENRY, Mr. GARY G. MILLER of Cali-
fornia, Mrs. MUSGRAVE, Mr. PITTS, Mrs. SCHMIDT, Mr. SHIMKUS, and 
Mr. WESTMORELAND) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Commit-
tees on Energy and Commerce and Agriculture, for a period to be subse-
quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To terminate or provide for suspension of the application 
of Federal laws that restrict exploration, development, 
or production of oil, gas, or oil shale, to facilitate the 
construction of new crude oil refineries, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Emergency Energy 
Cut the Red Tape Now Act of 2008’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds the following: 
(1) Gas prices have skyrocketed to record high 
levels and are negatively impacting America’s econ-
omy, consumers, and businesses. 
(2) In July 2006, the average price of gas in 
the United States was $2.98 per gallon and the 
price of a barrel of oil was $68.86. 
(3) As of July 1, 2008, the average price of 
gasoline in the United States was $4.07 per gallon 
and the price of a barrel of oil was $142.00. 
(4) The United States currently imports from 
foreign nations over 60 percent of all crude oil, gaso-
line, and diesel fuel consumed by Americans annu-
ally. 
(5) The Minerals Management Service has esti-
mated that 88.85 billion barrels of oil are available 
in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) areas of the 
Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and 
Alaska, yet over 80 percent of the OCS is under 
Federal leasing moratorium. 
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(6) The United States Geological Survey esti-
mates that there are 16 billion barrels of recoverable 
oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). 
(7) The Bureau of Land Management estimates 
that the United States holds the world’s largest 
known unconventional oil source, known as oil shale, 
and that more than 70 percent of American oil shale 
lies on Federal land, primarily in Colorado, Utah, 
and Wyoming. 
(8) These Federal lands contain an estimated 
1.23 trillion barrels of oil, which is more than 50 
times the Nation’s proven conventional oil reserves. 
(9) There are currently no unconventional fuels 
leasing programs operating in the United States 
that would allow oil and gas companies to explore 
and drill for oil. 
(10) The Federal Government could open land 
in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming for oil exploration 
and the United States could offset all of its imports 
from Saudi Arabia according to Bureau of Land 
Management statistics. 
(11) There has not been a new oil refinery built 
in the United States since 1981 and between 1980 
and 2006 over half of existing United States refin-
eries closed. 
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(12) The current bureaucratic permitting proc-
ess to drill for oil and gas contributes to extensive 
delays in exploring United States natural resources. 
(13) It has been estimated that it takes seven 
years and an average of $5,000,000,000 for one off-
shore platform to be built and permitted before nat-
ural gas or oil is produced. 
SEC. 3. TERMINATION OR WAIVER OF RESTRICTIONS ON 
LEASING FOR EXPLORATION, DEVELOPMENT, 
AND PRODUCTION OF OIL, GAS, AND OIL 
SHALE DURING PERIOD OF HIGH OIL PRICES. 
(a) TERMINATION OF STATUTORY PROHIBITIONS.— 
Any Federal law that prohibits the leasing of Federal 
Outer Continental Shelf, Bureau of Land Management, 
or National Forest lands or Federal submerged lands for 
exploration, development, or production of oil, gas, or oil 
shale, that withdraws such lands from such leasing, or 
that prohibits the expenditure of Federal funds for such 
leasing, shall have no force or effect. 
(b) WAIVER OF PERMIT REQUIREMENTS.—The Sec-
retary of the Interior— 
(1) may waive the application of any provision 
of Federal law that requires a permit to engage in 
drilling for oil or gas under a lease of Federal lands 
or Federal submerged lands for exploration, develop-
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ment, or production of oil or gas, during any period 
in which the most recent the spot market price for 
West Texas Intermediate crude oil at the domestic 
spot market at Cushing, Oklahoma, as published by 
the Energy Information Administration, is less than 
$100 per barrel; and 
(2) shall waive the application of such provi-
sions during any period in which the most recent 
such spot market price is greater than $100 per bar-
rel. 
SEC. 4. REFINERY PROCESS AND PROCEDURES. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 
(1) the term ‘‘designated refinery’’ means a fa-
cility designed and operated to receive, load, unload, 
store, transport, process, and refine crude oil by any 
chemical or physical process, including distillation, 
fluid catalytic cracking, hydrocracking, coking, 
alkylation, etherification, polymerization, catalytic 
reforming, isomerization, hydrotreating, blending, 
and any combination thereof, in order to produce 
gasoline or other fuel; 
(2) the term ‘‘Federal refinery authorization’’— 
(A) means any authorization required 
under Federal law, whether administered by a 
Federal or State administrative agency or offi-
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(5) the term ‘‘State’’ means a State, the Dis-
trict of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 
Rico, and any other territory or possession of the 
United States. 
(b) DESIGNATION AS LEAD AGENCY.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Department of Energy 
shall act as the lead agency for the purposes of co-
ordinating all applicable Federal refinery authoriza-
tions and related environmental reviews with respect 
to a designated refinery. 
(2) OTHER
AGENCIES.—Each Federal and 
State agency or official required to provide a Fed-
eral refinery authorization shall cooperate with the 
Secretary and comply with the deadlines established 
by the Secretary. 
(c) SCHEDULE.— 
(1) SECRETARY’S AUTHORITY TO SET SCHED-
ULE.—The Secretary shall establish a schedule for 
all Federal refinery authorizations with respect to a 
designated refinery. In establishing the schedule, the 
Secretary shall— 
(A) ensure expeditious completion of all 
such proceedings; and 
(B) accommodate the applicable schedules 
established by Federal law for such proceedings. 
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(2) FAILURE TO MEET SCHEDULE.— If a Fed-
eral or State administrative agency or official does 
not complete a proceeding for an approval that is re-
quired for a Federal refinery authorization in ac-
cordance with the schedule established by the Sec-
retary under this subsection, not later than 30 days 
after such failure, the Secretary shall award the ap-
proval of the application. 
(d) CONSOLIDATED RECORD.—The Secretary shall, 
with the cooperation of Federal and State administrative 
agencies and officials, maintain a complete consolidated 
record of all decisions made or actions taken by the Sec-
retary or by a Federal administrative agency or officer (or 
State administrative agency or officer acting under dele-
gated Federal authority) with respect to any Federal re-
finery authorization. 
Æ 
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