[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6208 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6208

To temporarily limit the authority of the Secretary of the Interior to 
 require or authorize the removal or movement of offshore oil and gas 
                              facilities.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 26, 2012

Mr. Farenthold introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To temporarily limit the authority of the Secretary of the Interior to 
 require or authorize the removal or movement of offshore oil and gas 
                              facilities.

    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 ``Retaining Essential Environmental 
Fishing Structures Act'' or the ``REEFS Act''.

SEC. 2. TEMPORARY LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY TO REQUIRE OR AUTHORIZE 
              REMOVAL OR MOVEMENT OF OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS FACILITIES.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), during the 
2-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act the 
Secretary of the Interior may not require or authorize the removal or 
movement of any facility used for oil or gas activities under a lease 
under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.), 
notwithstanding any requirement under that Act, a lease under that Act, 
or any other Federal law.
    (b) Exception.--Subsection (a) shall not apply with respect to 
removal or movement of a facility for purposes of temporary abandonment 
of a well in accordance with section 250.1721 of title 30, Code of 
Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of the enactment of this 
Act) because of an emergency identified by the Secretary of the 
Interior.
    (c) Facility Defined.--In this section the term ``facility'' as the 
meaning that term has under section 250.1700(c) of title 30, Code of 
Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of the enactment of this 
Act).
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