[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2823 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2823

  To require approval for the construction, connection, operation, or 
 maintenance of oil or natural gas pipelines or electric transmission 
facilities at the national boundary of the United States for the import 
  or export of oil, natural gas, or electricity to or from Canada or 
                    Mexico, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 16, 2014

Mr. Hoeven (for himself, Mr. Donnelly, Ms. Murkowski, and Mr. Manchin) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
               Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To require approval for the construction, connection, operation, or 
 maintenance of oil or natural gas pipelines or electric transmission 
facilities at the national boundary of the United States for the import 
  or export of oil, natural gas, or electricity to or from Canada or 
                    Mexico, 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 ``North American Energy Infrastructure 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDING.

    Congress finds that the United States should establish a more 
uniform, transparent, and modern process for the construction, 
connection, operation, and maintenance of oil and natural gas pipelines 
and electric transmission facilities for the import and export of oil 
and natural gas and the transmission of electricity to and from Canada 
and Mexico, in pursuit of a more secure and efficient North American 
energy market.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF CERTAIN ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS AT THE 
              NATIONAL BOUNDARY OF THE UNITED STATES.

    (a) Authorization.--Except as provided in subsection (c) and 
section 7, no person may construct, connect, operate, or maintain a 
cross-border segment of an oil pipeline or electric transmission 
facility for the import or export of oil or the transmission of 
electricity to or from Canada or Mexico without obtaining a certificate 
of crossing for the construction, connection, operation, or maintenance 
of the cross-border segment under this section.
    (b) Certificate of Crossing.--
            (1) Requirement.--Not later than 120 days after final 
        action is taken under the National Environmental Policy Act of 
        1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) with respect to a cross-border 
        segment for which a request is received under this section, the 
        relevant official identified under paragraph (2), in 
        consultation with appropriate Federal agencies, shall issue a 
        certificate of crossing for the cross-border segment unless the 
        relevant official finds that the construction, connection, 
        operation, or maintenance of the cross-border segment is not in 
        the public interest of the United States.
            (2) Relevant official.--The relevant official referred to 
        in paragraph (1) is--
                    (A) the Secretary of State with respect to oil 
                pipelines; and
                    (B) the Secretary of Energy with respect to 
                electric transmission facilities.
            (3) Additional requirement for electric transmission 
        facilities.--In the case of a request for a certificate of 
        crossing for the construction, connection, operation, or 
        maintenance of a cross-border segment of an electric 
        transmission facility, the Secretary of Energy shall require, 
        as a condition of issuing the certificate of crossing for the 
        request under paragraph (1), that the cross-border segment of 
        the electric transmission facility be constructed, connected, 
        operated, or maintained consistent with all applicable policies 
        and standards of--
                    (A) the Electric Reliability Organization and the 
                applicable regional entity; and
                    (B) any Regional Transmission Organization or 
                Independent System Operator with operational or 
                functional control over the cross-border segment of the 
                electric transmission facility.
    (c) Exclusions.--This section shall not apply to any construction, 
connection, operation, or maintenance of a cross-border segment of an 
oil pipeline or electric transmission facility for the import or export 
of oil or the transmission of electricity to or from Canada or Mexico--
            (1) if the cross-border segment is operating for such 
        import, export, or transmission as of the date of enactment of 
        this Act;
            (2) if a permit described in section 6 for such 
        construction, connection, operation, or maintenance has been 
        issued;
            (3) if a certificate of crossing for such construction, 
        connection, operation, or maintenance has previously been 
        issued under this section; or
            (4) if an application for a permit described in section 6 
        for such construction, connection, operation, or maintenance is 
        pending on the date of enactment of this Act, until the earlier 
        of--
                    (A) the date on which such application is denied; 
                or
                    (B) July 1, 2016.
    (d) Effect of Other Laws.--
            (1) Application to projects.--Nothing in this section or 
        section 7 shall affect the application of any other Federal 
        statute to a project for which a certificate of crossing for 
        the construction, connection, operation, or maintenance of a 
        cross-border segment is sought under this section.
            (2) Energy policy and conservation act.--Nothing in this 
        section or section 7 shall affect the authority of the 
        President under section 103(a) of the Energy Policy and 
        Conservation Act.

SEC. 4. IMPORTATION OR EXPORTATION OF NATURAL GAS TO CANADA AND MEXICO.

    Section 3(c) of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b(c)) is 
amended--
            (1) by striking, ``For purposes of subsection (a) of this 
        section'' and inserting the following:
            ``(1) In general.--For purposes of subsection (a)''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Deadline for approval of applications relating to 
        canada and mexico.--In the case of an application for the 
        importation or exportation of natural gas to or from Canada or 
        Mexico, the Commission shall approve the application not later 
        than 30 days after the date of receipt of the application.''.

SEC. 5. TRANSMISSION OF ELECTRIC ENERGY TO CANADA AND MEXICO.

    (a) Repeal of Requirement To Secure Order.--Section 202(e) of the 
Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 824a(e)) is repealed.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) 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)''.
            (2) Seasonal diversity electricity exchange.--Section 
        602(b) of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 
        (16 U.S.C. 824a-4(b)) is amended by striking ``the Commission 
        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 supply 
        within the United States or would not impede or tend to impede 
        the coordination in the public interest of facilities subject 
        to the jurisdiction of the Secretary.''.

SEC. 6. NO PRESIDENTIAL PERMIT REQUIRED.

    No Presidential permit (or similar permit) required under Executive 
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, Executive 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 cross-border segment thereof.

SEC. 7. MODIFICATIONS TO EXISTING PROJECTS.

    No certificate of crossing under section 3, or permit described in 
section 6, shall be required for a modification to the construction, 
connection, operation, or maintenance of an oil or natural gas pipeline 
or electric transmission facility--
            (1) that is operating for the import or export of oil or 
        natural gas or the transmission of electricity to or from 
        Canada or Mexico as of the date of enactment of the Act;
            (2) for which a permit described in section 6 for such 
        construction, connection, operation, or maintenance has been 
        issued; or
            (3) for which a certificate of crossing for the cross-
        border segment of the pipeline or facility has previously been 
        issued under section 3.

SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATE; RULEMAKING DEADLINES.

    (a) Effective Date.--Sections 3 through 7, and the amendments made 
by such sections, shall take effect on July 1, 2015.
    (b) Rulemaking Deadlines.--Each relevant official described in 
section 3(b)(2) shall--
            (1) not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, publish in the Federal Register notice of a proposed 
        rulemaking to carry out the applicable requirements of section 
        3; and
            (2) 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 section 3.

SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act--
            (1) the term ``cross-border segment'' means the portion of 
        an oil or natural gas pipeline or electric transmission 
        facility that is located at the national boundary of the United 
        States with either Canada or Mexico;
            (2) the term ``modification'' includes a change in 
        ownership, volume expansion, downstream or upstream 
        interconnection, or 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 petroleum 
        product;
            (5) the terms ``Electric Reliability Organization'' and 
        ``regional entity'' have the meanings given 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 Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 
        796).
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