Title: Safer Pipelines Act of 2017
Policy area: Energy

Summary:
Safe and Accountable Federal Energy Review for Pipelines Act of 2017 or the Safer Pipelines Act of 2017
This bill requires the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), before granting a certificate of public convenience and necessity for a proposed pipeline expansion project for which a challenge has been raised, to
Additionally, FERC must (1) conduct a cumulative review of planned energy infrastructure projects in the region of the proposed expansion; (2)	consider, in the case of interstate pipeline projects, the cumulative environmental impacts of other interstate or regional projects; and (3) monitor approved pipeline projects for five years to ensure that environmental mitigation steps have been implemented.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2649 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2649

 To require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to apply certain 
  procedures before granting a certificate of public convenience and 
   necessity for a proposed pipeline project, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 24, 2017

  Mrs. Watson Coleman (for herself and Mr. Cartwright) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                                Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to apply certain 
  procedures before granting a certificate of public convenience and 
   necessity for a proposed pipeline project, 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 ``Safe and Accountable Federal Energy 
Review for Pipelines Act of 2017'' or the ``Safer Pipelines Act of 
2017''.

SEC. 2. APPROVAL OF NEW NATURAL GAS PIPELINES.

    Section 7(e) of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717f(e)) is 
amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(1)'' before ``Except in the cases''; 
        and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(2) Before granting a certificate for a proposed pipeline 
expansion project for which an impacted State or political subdivision 
or intervener has raised a challenge to the project's public necessity 
based upon factors that the Commission is required to consider 
including FERC Statement of Policy (88 FERC 61,227) modified by 89 FERC 
61,040, further clarified by 90 FERC 61,128, the Commission shall--
            ``(A) assign the application to an administrative law judge 
        who shall, as appropriate--
                    ``(i) hold a full trial-type evidentiary hearing on 
                any contested issue of need for the expansion; or
                    ``(ii) conduct for an evidentiary hearing after 
                conducting limited discovery; and
            ``(B) issue a staff report publishing the findings with 
        respect to each factor which includes the data and analyses 
        relied upon in reaching those findings.
    ``(3) The Commission shall conduct a cumulative review of major 
energy infrastructure projects planned throughout the region of the 
expansion, their purported purpose and need, and their prospective 
impacts on State and regional energy goals, which shall be updated 
regularly, but no less than every five years, and that considers--
            ``(A) the existence of underutilized or inefficient use of 
        existing pipeline capacity;
            ``(B) the effect of approval on existing customers of other 
        pipelines;
            ``(C) an analysis of demonstrated regional needs for the 
        additional natural gas, including consideration of the 
        existence of precedent contracts;
            ``(D) compatibility with the State's clean power plan, 
        renewable energy goals, and renewable portfolio standard;
            ``(E) the region's ability to meet any deficiency in energy 
        needs through energy efficiency, dual fuel sources, LNG 
        storage, or other economically viable and less environmentally 
        disruptive measures than additional pipeline infrastructure;
            ``(F) Federal renewable energy goals; and
            ``(G) the need for the proposed project in relation to this 
        regional analysis.
    ``(4) In the case of an interstate natural gas pipeline project, 
for purposes of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Commission shall consider, in addition to 
current requirements for environmental impact statements or 
environmental assessments, the cumulative impacts of other interstate 
natural gas pipeline projects located within the same State or States, 
as well as projects within 100 miles of the project, that are approved, 
filed with the Commission or, in the pre-filing process--
            ``(A) for a 1-year period prior to the filing of the 
        project application with the Commission;
            ``(B) before the issuance of the draft environmental impact 
        statement or environmental assessment; and
            ``(C) the cumulative review in paragraph (3).
    ``(5) The Commission shall require all approved and constructed 
natural gas pipeline projects to undertake a five-year monitoring 
program to confirm that the environmental impacts identified in any 
environmental impact statement or analysis conducted with respect to 
the project have been mitigated.''.
                                 <all>