113 S2088 IS: American Natural Gas Security and Consumer Protection Act
U.S. Senate
2014-03-06
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
1.
This Act may be cited as the
American Natural Gas Security and
Consumer Protection Act
.
2.
Authorization for
the Exportation of Natural Gas
Section 3(a) of the Natural Gas Act (15
U.S.C. 717b(a)) is amended—
(1)
by inserting
before After six months from the date on which
the following:
(1) Authorization for the Importation of Natural
Gas.—
;
(2)
by striking
export any natural gas from the United States to a foreign country
or
;
(3)
by striking
exportation or
; and
(4)
by adding at the
end the following new paragraphs:
(2)
Authorization for the Exportation
of Natural Gas
(A)
No person
may export any natural gas from the United States to a foreign
country without
first having secured an order of the Secretary of Energy
authorizing such
person to do so.
(B)
The Secretary of Energy may issue an order
authorizing a person to export natural gas from the United States
to a foreign
country, upon application, if the Secretary determines that the
proposed
exportation will be consistent with the public interest, in
accordance with the
regulations issued under paragraph (3)(B). The Secretary may by
order grant
such application, in whole or in part, with such modification and
upon such
terms and conditions as the Secretary may find necessary or
appropriate.
(C)
No order may be
issued by the Secretary of Energy under this paragraph prior to the
date on
which the Secretary issues final regulations under paragraph
(3)(B).
(3)
Public Interest
Determination
(A)
The Secretary of Energy shall issue a
detailed statement under section 102(2)(C) of the National
Environmental Policy
Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)) of the environmental impact of
the issuance
of orders under paragraph (2), including by conducting an analysis
of the
impacts of extraction of exported natural gas on the environment in
communities
where the natural gas is extracted.
(B)
(i)
Not later
than 2 years after the date of enactment of this paragraph, the
Secretary of
Energy shall issue final regulations, after notice and public
comment, for
determining whether an export of natural gas from the United States
to a
foreign country is in the public interest for purposes of issuing
an order
under paragraph (2).
(ii)
Regulations
issued under this paragraph shall require the Secretary of Energy
to determine,
with respect to each application for export of natural gas from the
United
States to a foreign country, whether such export is in the public
interest
through—
(I)
use of the latest available data on
current and projected United States natural gas demands,
production, and
price;
(II)
consideration of the effects of such
natural gas exports on—
-
(aa)
household and business energy
expenditures by electricity and natural gas consumers in the United
States;
-
(bb)
the United States economy, jobs, and
manufacturing, including such effects on wages, investment, and
energy
intensive and trade exposed industries, as determined by the
Secretary;
-
(cc)
the energy security of the United
States, including the ability of the United States to reduce its
reliance on
imported oil;
-
(dd)
the conservation of domestic natural
gas supplies to meet the future energy needs of the United States;
-
(ee)
the potential for natural gas use in
the transportation, industrial, and electricity sectors of the
United
States;
-
(ff)
the ability of the United States to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions;
- (gg)the national security and foreign policy of the United States;
-
(hh)
domestic natural gas supply and
availability, including such effects on pipelines and other
infrastructure;
-
(ii)
the balance of trade of the United
States; and
-
(jj)
other issues determined relevant by
the Secretary; and
(III)
consideration of the detailed statement
issued under subparagraph (A).
(4)
Paragraph
(2) does not apply with respect to any order authorizing the
exportation of
natural gas if the natural gas that would be exported as a result
of the order
is exported solely to meet a requirement imposed pursuant to
section 203 of the
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702),
section 5(b) of
the Trading with the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. App. 5(b)), or part B of
title II of
the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6271 et seq.). In
such cases,
the Secretary of Energy may issue such order upon application
without
modification or
delay.
.