IIB 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2883 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
JULY 20, 2017 
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources 
AN ACT 
To establish a more uniform, transparent, and modern proc-
ess to authorize the construction, connection, operation, 
and maintenance of international border-crossing facili-
ties for the import and export of oil and natural gas 
and the transmission of electricity. 
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 ‘‘Promoting Cross-Bor-
der Energy Infrastructure Act’’. 
SEC. 2. APPROVAL FOR BORDER-CROSSING FACILITIES. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION OF CERTAIN ENERGY INFRA-
STRUCTURE PROJECTS AT AN INTERNATIONAL BOUND-
ARY OF THE UNITED STATES.— 
(1) AUTHORIZATION.—Except as provided in 
paragraph (3) and subsection (e), no person may 
construct, connect, operate, or maintain a border- 
crossing facility for the import or export of oil or 
natural gas, or the transmission of electricity, across 
an international border of the United States without 
obtaining a certificate of crossing for the border- 
crossing facility under this subsection. 
(2) CERTIFICATE OF CROSSING.— 
(A) REQUIREMENT.—Not later than 120 
days after final action is taken, by the relevant 
official or agency identified under subparagraph 
(B), under the National Environmental Policy 
Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) with re-
spect to a border-crossing facility for which a 
person requests a certificate of crossing under 
this subsection, the relevant official or agency, 
in consultation with appropriate Federal agen-
cies, shall issue a certificate of crossing for the 
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border-crossing facility unless the relevant offi-
cial or agency finds that the construction, con-
nection, operation, or maintenance of the bor-
der-crossing facility is not in the public interest 
of the United States. 
(B) RELEVANT
OFFICIAL
OR
AGENCY.— 
The relevant official or agency referred to in 
subparagraph (A) is— 
(i) the Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission with respect to border-cross-
ing facilities consisting of oil or natural 
gas pipelines; and 
(ii) the Secretary of Energy with re-
spect to border-crossing facilities consisting 
of electric transmission facilities. 
(C) 
ADDITIONAL
REQUIREMENT
FOR 
ELECTRIC
TRANSMISSION
FACILITIES.—In the 
case of a request for a certificate of crossing for 
a border-crossing facility consisting of an elec-
tric transmission facility, the Secretary of En-
ergy shall require, as a condition of issuing the 
certificate of crossing under subparagraph (A), 
that the border-crossing facility be constructed, 
connected, operated, or maintained consistent 
with all applicable policies and standards of— 
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(i) the Electric Reliability Organiza-
tion and the applicable regional entity; and 
(ii) any Regional Transmission Orga-
nization or Independent System Operator 
with operational or functional control over 
the border-crossing facility. 
(3) EXCLUSIONS.—This subsection shall not 
apply to any construction, connection, operation, or 
maintenance of a border-crossing facility for the im-
port or export of oil or natural gas, or the trans-
mission of electricity— 
(A) if the border-crossing facility is oper-
ating for such import, export, or transmission 
as of the date of enactment of this Act; 
(B) if a permit described in subsection (d) 
for the construction, connection, operation, or 
maintenance has been issued; or 
(C) if an application for a permit described 
in subsection (d) for the construction, connec-
tion, operation, or maintenance is pending on 
the date of enactment of this Act, until the ear-
lier of— 
(i) the date on which such application 
is denied; or 
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(ii) two years after the date of enact-
ment of this Act, if such a permit has not 
been issued by such date. 
(4) EFFECT OF OTHER LAWS.— 
(A) APPLICATION TO PROJECTS.—Nothing 
in this subsection or subsection (e) shall affect 
the application of any other Federal statute to 
a project for which a certificate of crossing for 
a border-crossing facility is requested under 
this subsection. 
(B) NATURAL GAS ACT.—Nothing in this 
subsection or subsection (e) shall affect the re-
quirement to obtain approval or authorization 
under sections 3 and 7 of the Natural Gas Act 
for the siting, construction, or operation of any 
facility to import or export natural gas. 
(C) OIL PIPELINES.—Nothing in this sub-
section or subsection (e) shall affect the author-
ity of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commis-
sion with respect to oil pipelines under section 
60502 of title 49, United States Code. 
(D) SCOPE OF NEPA REVIEW.—Nothing in 
this Act, or the amendments made by this Act, 
shall affect the scope of any review required to 
be conducted under section 102 of the National 
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Environmental Policy Act of 1969 with respect 
to a project for which a certificate of crossing 
for a border-crossing facility is requested under 
this subsection. 
(b) IMPORTATION OR EXPORTATION OF NATURAL 
GAS TO CANADA AND MEXICO.—Section 3(c) of the Nat-
ural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b(c)) is amended by adding 
at the end the following: ‘‘In the case of an application 
for the importation of natural gas from, or the exportation 
of natural gas to, Canada or Mexico, the Commission shall 
grant the application not later than 30 days after the date 
on which the Commission receives the complete applica-
tion.’’. 
(c) TRANSMISSION OF ELECTRIC ENERGY TO CAN-
ADA AND MEXICO.— 
(1) REPEAL
OF
REQUIREMENT
TO
SECURE 
ORDER.—Section 202(e) of the Federal Power Act 
(16 U.S.C. 824a(e)) is repealed. 
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 
(A) 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)’’. 
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(B) SEASONAL
DIVERSITY
ELECTRICITY 
EXCHANGE.—Section 602(b) of the Public Util-
ity Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 
824a–4(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘the Com-
mission 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 sup-
ply within the United States or would not im-
pede or tend to impede the coordination in the 
public interest of facilities subject to the juris-
diction of the Secretary.’’. 
(d) NO PRESIDENTIAL PERMIT REQUIRED.—No 
Presidential permit (or similar permit) required under Ex-
ecutive 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, Executive Order No. 12038, Exec-
utive Order No. 10485, or any other Executive order shall 
be necessary for the construction, connection, operation, 
or maintenance of an oil or natural gas pipeline or electric 
transmission facility, or any border-crossing facility there-
of. 
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(e) MODIFICATIONS TO EXISTING PROJECTS.—No 
certificate of crossing under subsection (a), or permit de-
scribed in subsection (d), shall be required for a modifica-
tion to— 
(1) an oil or natural gas pipeline or electric 
transmission facility that is operating for the import 
or export of oil or natural gas or the transmission 
of electricity as of the date of enactment of this Act; 
(2) an oil or natural gas pipeline or electric 
transmission facility for which a permit described in 
subsection (d) has been issued; or 
(3) a border-crossing facility for which a certifi-
cate of crossing has previously been issued under 
subsection (a). 
(f) EFFECTIVE DATE; RULEMAKING DEADLINES.— 
(1) 
EFFECTIVE
DATE.—Subsections 
(a) 
through (e), and the amendments made by such sub-
sections, shall take effect on the date that is 1 year 
after the date of enactment of this Act. 
(2) RULEMAKING DEADLINES.—Each relevant 
official or agency described in subsection (a)(2)(B) 
shall— 
(A) not later than 180 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act, publish in the Federal 
Register notice of a proposed rulemaking to 
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carry out the applicable requirements of sub-
section (a); and 
(B) 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 subsection (a). 
(g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 
(1) the term ‘‘border-crossing facility’’ means 
the portion of an oil or natural gas pipeline or elec-
tric transmission facility that is located at an inter-
national boundary of the United States; 
(2) the term ‘‘modification’’ includes a reversal 
of flow direction, change in ownership, change in 
flow volume, addition or removal of an interconnec-
tion, or an adjustment to maintain flow (such as a 
reduction or increase in the number of pump or 
compressor stations); 
(3) the term ‘‘natural gas’’ has the meaning 
given that term in section 2 of the Natural Gas Act 
(15 U.S.C. 717a); 
(4) the term ‘‘oil’’ means petroleum or a petro-
leum product; 
(5) the terms ‘‘Electric Reliability Organiza-
tion’’ and ‘‘regional entity’’ have the meanings given 
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those terms in section 215 of the Federal Power Act 
(16 U.S.C. 824o); and 
(6) the terms ‘‘Independent System Operator’’ 
and ‘‘Regional Transmission Organization’’ have the 
meanings given those terms in section 3 of the Fed-
eral Power Act (16 U.S.C. 796). 
Passed the House of Representatives July 19, 2017. 
Attest: 
KAREN L. HAAS, 
Clerk. 
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