[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 15 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 15

 To amend the Mineral Leasing Act to recognize the authority of States 
    to regulate oil and gas operations and promote American energy 
    security, development, and job creation, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 6, 2015

   Mr. Hatch introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Mineral Leasing Act to recognize the authority of States 
    to regulate oil and gas operations and promote American energy 
    security, development, and job creation, 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 ``Protecting States' Rights to Promote 
American Energy Security Act''.

SEC. 2. STATE AUTHORITY FOR HYDRAULIC FRACTURING REGULATION.

    The Mineral Leasing Act is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 44 (30 U.S.C. 181 note) as 
        section 45; and
            (2) by inserting after section 43 (30 U.S.C. 226-3) the 
        following:

``SEC. 44. STATE AUTHORITY FOR HYDRAULIC FRACTURING REGULATION.

    ``(a) Definition of Hydraulic Fracturing.--In this section the term 
`hydraulic fracturing' means the process by which fracturing fluids (or 
a fracturing fluid system) are pumped into an underground geologic 
formation at a calculated, predetermined rate and pressure to generate 
fractures or cracks in the target formation and, as a result, increase 
the permeability of the rock near the wellbore and improve production 
of natural gas or oil.
    ``(b) Prohibition.--The Secretary of the Interior shall not enforce 
any Federal regulation, guidance, or permit requirement regarding 
hydraulic fracturing, or any component of hydraulic fracturing, 
relating to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities on or under 
any land in any State that has regulations, guidance, or permit 
requirements for hydraulic fracturing.
    ``(c) State Authority.--The Secretary shall recognize and defer to 
State regulations, guidance, and permitting for all activities 
regarding hydraulic fracturing, or any component of hydraulic 
fracturing, relating to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities 
on Federal land regardless of whether the regulations, guidance, and 
permitting are duplicative, more or less restrictive, have different 
requirements, or do not meet Federal regulations, guidance, or permit 
requirements.''.
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