Partly as a result of the increased use of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing to extract natural gas from shale formations in the United States, the domestic supply of natural gas has increased relative to demand, leading to lower domestic prices. Domestic oil production has also increased after decades of decline thanks to new drilling technologies These production increases have generated new interest by some U.S. companies in exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG) to take advantage of relatively higher prices in world markets. This new interest in exporting natural gas has also produced renewed interest in the laws and regulations governing the export of other fossil fuels, including crude oil and coal. This report reviews federal laws and the regulatory regime governing the export of natural gas, crude oil, and coal. This report provides an overview of federal laws and regulations and agency roles in authorizing and regulating the export of these fossil fuels. The report addresses several categories of federal laws and regulations, including (1) statutes that establish the authorization process for the actual export of any of the three listed fossil fuels; (2) statutes that govern the permitting of the facilities that export any of the listed fossil fuels; and (3) generally applicable trade statutes and treaties that affect exports of fossil fuels. In general, transactions involving the export of items from the United States to a foreign country are subject to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) enforced by the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). However, transactions that fall within the scope of the EAR do not necessarily require an export license from BIS. Whether an export license is required depends on several factors, including the nature of the item, its end use, and its ultimate destination. The EAR provides instructions for exporters to follow when determining whether an export transaction is subject to the EAR and, if so, whether the transaction requires a license. Other general requirements may apply to transactions involving the export of items from the United States. For example, for exports of items subject to the EAR that do not take place electronically or in another intangible form, an exporter is required in certain circumstances to submit a Shipper's Export Declaration (SED) or Automated Export System (AES) Record to BIS and the International Trade Administration in the Department of Commerce's Bureau of the Census. A declaration or record typically contains an identification of the exporter and the commodity being shipped; the date of exportation; and the country of ultimate destination, among other information. The Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 directed the President to "promulgate a rule prohibiting the export of crude oil and natural gas produced in the United States, except that the President may ... exempt from such prohibition such crude oil or natural gas exports which he determines to be consistent with the national interest and the purposes of this chapter." The act further provides that the exemptions to the prohibition should be "based on the purpose for export, class of seller or purchaser, country of destination, or any other reasonable classification or basis as the President determines to be appropriate and consistent with the national interest and the purposes of this chapter." This general prohibition on crude oil exports and the exemptions to that prohibition are found in the BIS regulations on Short Supply Controls at 15 C.F.R. §754.2. The regulations provide that a license must be obtained for exports of crude oil, including those to Canada. The regulations further provide that BIS will issue licenses for certain crude oil exports that fall under one of the listed exemptions, including (i) exports from Alaska's Cook Inlet; (ii) exports to Canada for consumption or use therein; (iii) exports in connection with refining or exchange of strategic petroleum reserve oil; (iv) exports of heavy California crude oil up to an average volume not to exceed 25,000 barrels per day; (v) exports that are consistent with certain international agreements; (vi) exports that are consistent with findings made by the President under certain statutes; and (vii) exports of foreign origin crude oil where, based on satisfactory written documentation, the exporter can demonstrate that the oil is not of U.S. origin and has not been commingled with oil of U.S. origin. The regulations also direct BIS to review applications to export crude oil that do not fall under one of these exemptions on a "case by case basis" and to approve such applications on a finding that the proposed export is "consistent with the national interest and the purposes of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act." However, the regulations also seem to suggest that only certain specific exports will be authorized pursuant to this case-by-case review. The regulations provide that while BIS "will consider all applications for approval," generally BIS will approve only those applications that are either for temporary exports (e.g., a pipeline that crosses an international border before returning to the United States), or are for transactions (1) that result directly in importation of an equal or greater quantity and quality of crude oil; (2) that take place under contracts that can be terminated if petroleum supplies of the United States are threatened; and (3) for which the applicant can demonstrate that for compelling economic or technological reasons, the crude oil cannot reasonably be marketed in the United States. The regulations also provide for a few enumerated exceptions to the general license requirement. These exceptions include foreign origin crude oil stored in the Strategic Petroleum Reserves, small samples exported for analytic and testing purposes, and exports of oil transported by pipeline over rights-of-way granted pursuant to Section 203 of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline Authorization Act. These exports do not require a license from BIS. Section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (NGA) provides that "no person shall export any natural gas from the United States to a foreign country or import any natural gas from a foreign country without having first secured an order of the Commission authorizing it to do so." This authorization is to be issued "unless, after opportunity for hearing, [the Commission] finds that the proposed exportation or importation will not be consistent with the public interest." The Commission is further empowered to grant authorizations in part and to modify or place terms and conditions upon authorizations and to supplement its orders as appropriate. At the time of the NGA's enactment in 1938, the "Commission" referred to the Federal Power Commission. However, in 1977 the Federal Power Commission was dissolved and its responsibilities were transferred to the Department of Energy (DOE) as well as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), an independent agency operating within DOE, pursuant to the Department of Energy Organization Act. Title III of this act transferred all functions of the Federal Power Commission to DOE except for those subsequently assigned to FERC in Title IV. Title III of the DOE Organization Act thus transferred the authority to authorize natural gas imports and exports from the Federal Power Commission to DOE. Title IV provides added clarity on this point. Section 402(f) of the act specifically states that "[n]o function ... which regulates the exports or imports of natural gas or electricity shall be within the jurisdiction of [FERC] unless the Secretary assigns such functions to [FERC]." Natural gas exporting responsibilities are handled by the Office of Fossil Energy within DOE. The procedures for filing for authorization to import or export natural gas are set forth in DOE regulations found at 10 C.F.R. Part 590. The regulations establish filing requirements as well as the procedures for review of applications, including procedures that allow interested parties to participate in the process prior to the issuance of orders by DOE. The regulations also provide for an expedited filing and review process for one-time small volume imports and exports for "scientific, experimental or other non-utility gas use" without necessitating a permit. The Energy Policy Act of 1992 amended the NGA Section 3 generic requirement for a permit in order to export natural gas to create a more streamlined authorization process for imports from and exports to certain countries. Subsection (c) of Section 3 provides that the importation of natural gas from or exportation of natural gas to a country with which the United States has in effect "a free trade agreement requiring national treatment for trade in natural gas shall be deemed to be consistent with the public interest, and applications for such importation and exportation shall be granted without modification or delay." This provision eased the authorization process for certain countries in the interest of free trade, including Canada and Mexico, the only countries with whom natural gas importation and exportation takes place via pipeline. Section 3 of the NGA also protects the role of the states in the permitting decisions. State rights under various environmental statutes are protected with respect to both export authorization by DOE and permitting by FERC (discussed infra ) in Section 3(d), and Section 3(e) mandates the notification of relevant state authorities in order to gather their input during the process. Although the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 authorized the President to restrict coal exports, the President does not appear to have exercised this authority to impose any significant export restrictions specific to coal. In fact, there have been legislative efforts aimed at expanding coal exports. For example, Section 1338 of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 directed the Secretary of Commerce to create a plan for expanding coal exports. Almost all U.S. coal exports pass through ports on the East Coast or in the Gulf of Mexico, so laws and regulations applicable to such facilities would potentially affect coal exports. Such laws and regulations are briefly discussed below. The previous section of this report discusses federal authorization of the export of natural resources, not the construction and operation of export facilities. However, in many cases approval for the export facility itself also must be obtained from the federal government. This section discusses various approval requirements for different types of facilities that enable the export of oil and natural gas. Note that, in addition to the facility approvals described below, a facility used in the export or import of fossil fuels may require additional federal approvals or authorizations.