[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 989 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 989

    To establish a more uniform, transparent, and modern process to 
 authorize the construction, connection, operation, and maintenance of 
 international border-crossing facilities for the import and export of 
        oil and natural gas and the transmission of electricity.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 27, 2023

   Mr. Hoeven (for himself, Mr. Mullin, Mr. Sullivan, and Mr. Budd) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
               Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To establish a more uniform, transparent, and modern process to 
 authorize the construction, connection, operation, and maintenance of 
 international border-crossing facilities for the import and export of 
        oil and natural gas and the transmission of electricity.

    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 Act''.

SEC. 2. APPROVAL FOR BORDER-CROSSING FACILITIES.

    (a) Authorization of Certain Energy Infrastructure Projects at an 
International Boundary of the United States.--
            (1) Authorization.--Except as provided in paragraph (3) and 
        subsection (e), no person may construct, connect, or operate, a 
        border-crossing facility for the import or export of oil or 
        natural gas, or the transmission of electricity, across an 
        international border of the United States without obtaining a 
        certificate of crossing for the border-crossing facility under 
        this subsection.
            (2) Certificate of crossing.--
                    (A) Requirement.--Not later than 90 days after 
                final action is taken, by the relevant official or 
                agency identified under subparagraph (B), under the 
                National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 
                4321 et seq.) with respect to a border-crossing 
                facility for which a person requests a certificate of 
                crossing under this subsection, the relevant official 
                or agency, in consultation with appropriate Federal 
                agencies, shall issue a certificate of crossing for the 
                border-crossing facility unless the relevant official 
                or agency finds that the construction, connection, or 
                operation, of the border-crossing facility is not in 
                the public interest of the United States.
                    (B) Relevant official or agency.--The relevant 
                official or agency referred to in subparagraph (A) is--
                            (i) the Federal Energy Regulatory 
                        Commission with respect to border-crossing 
                        facilities consisting of oil or natural gas 
                        pipelines; and
                            (ii) the Secretary of Energy with respect 
                        to border-crossing facilities consisting of 
                        electric transmission facilities.
                    (C) Additional requirement for electric 
                transmission facilities.--In the case of a request for 
                a certificate of crossing for a border-crossing 
                facility consisting of an electric transmission 
                facility, the Secretary of Energy shall require, as a 
                condition of issuing the certificate of crossing under 
                subparagraph (A), that the border-crossing facility be 
                constructed, connected, operated, or maintained 
                consistent with all applicable policies and standards 
                of--
                            (i) the Electric Reliability Organization 
                        and the applicable regional entity; and
                            (ii) any Regional Transmission Organization 
                        or Independent System Operator with operational 
                        or functional control over the border-crossing 
                        facility.
            (3) Exclusions.--This subsection shall not apply to any 
        construction, connection, operation, or maintenance of a 
        border-crossing facility for the import or export of oil or 
        natural gas, or the transmission of electricity--
                    (A) if the border-crossing facility is operating 
                for such import, export, or transmission as of the date 
                of enactment of this Act;
                    (B) if a permit described in subsection (d) for the 
                construction, connection, operation, or maintenance has 
                been issued; or
                    (C) if an application for a permit described in 
                subsection (d) for the construction, connection, 
                operation, or maintenance is pending on the date of 
                enactment of this Act, until the earlier of--
                            (i) the date on which such application is 
                        denied; or
                            (ii) 2 years after the date of enactment of 
                        this Act, if such a permit has not been issued 
                        by such date.
            (4) Effect of other laws.--
                    (A) Application to projects.--Nothing in this 
                subsection or subsection (e) shall affect the 
                application of any other Federal statute to a project 
                for which a certificate of crossing for a border-
                crossing facility is requested under this subsection.
                    (B) Natural gas act.--Nothing in this subsection or 
                subsection (e) shall affect the requirement to obtain 
                approval or authorization under sections 3 and 7 of the 
                Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717b, 717f) for the siting, 
                construction, or operation of any facility to import or 
                export natural gas.
                    (C) Oil pipelines.--Nothing in this subsection or 
                subsection (e) shall affect the authority of the 
                Federal Energy Regulatory Commission with respect to 
                oil pipelines under section 60502 of title 49, United 
                States Code.
                    (D) Scope of nepa review.--Nothing in this Act, or 
                the amendments made by this Act, shall affect the scope 
                of any review required to be conducted under section 
                102 of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
                (42 U.S.C. 4332) with respect to a project for which a 
                certificate of crossing for a border-crossing facility 
                is requested under this subsection.
    (b) 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 by adding at the end the following: ``In the case of an 
application for the importation of natural gas from, or the exportation 
of natural gas to, Canada or Mexico, the Commission shall grant the 
application not later than 30 days after the date on which the 
Commission receives the complete application.''.
    (c) Transmission of Electric Energy to Canada and Mexico.--
            (1) Repeal of requirement to secure order.--Section 202(e) 
        of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 824a(e)) is repealed.
            (2) Conforming amendments.--
                    (A) 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 (e)''.
                    (B) 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.''.
    (d) No Presidential Permit Required.--No Presidential permit (or 
similar permit) shall be required pursuant to any provision of law or 
Executive order for the construction, connection, operation, or 
maintenance of an oil or natural gas pipeline or electric transmission 
facility, or any border-crossing facility thereof.
    (e) Modifications to and Maintenance of Existing Projects.--No 
certificate of crossing under subsection (a), or permit described in 
subsection (d), shall be required for a modification to or maintenance 
of--
            (1) an oil or natural gas pipeline or electric transmission 
        facility that is operating for the import or export of oil or 
        natural gas or the transmission of electricity as of the date 
        of enactment of this Act;
            (2) an oil or natural gas pipeline or electric transmission 
        facility for which a permit described in subsection (d) has 
        been issued; or
            (3) a border-crossing facility for which a certificate of 
        crossing has previously been issued under subsection (a).
    (f) Effective Dates; Rulemaking Deadlines.--
            (1) Effective date.--Subsections (a) through (e) and the 
        amendments made by such subsections shall take effect on the 
        date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act.
            (2) Rulemaking deadlines.--Each relevant official or agency 
        described in subsection (a)(2)(B) shall--
                    (A) 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 subsection (a); and
                    (B) 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 subsection (a).
    (g) Judicial Review.--Any entity aggrieved by a final agency action 
taken under this section may obtain a review of such action by filing a 
petition for review in the United States Court of Appeals for any 
circuit wherein an applicant for authorization under this section is 
located or has its principal place of business, or in the United States 
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. The petition must be 
filed not later than 60 days after such action is taken.
    (h) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Appropriate federal agencies.--The term ``appropriate 
        Federal agencies'' in subsection (a)(2)(A) means the Secretary 
        of Defense, the Attorney General, the Secretary of the 
        Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of 
        Transportation, the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of 
        Homeland Security, the Administrator of the Environmental 
        Protection Agency, and, for applications concerning the border 
        with Mexico, the United States Commissioner of the 
        International Boundary and Water Commission.
            (2) Border-crossing facility.--The term ``border-crossing 
        facility'' means--
                    (A) the portion of an oil pipeline between an 
                international boundary and the first mainline valve on 
                the United States side of an international boundary; 
                and
                    (B) the portion of a natural gas pipeline or 
                electric transmission facility that is located at an 
                international boundary of the United States.
            (3) Electric reliability organization; regional entity.--
        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).
            (4) Independent system operator; regional transmission 
        organization.--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).
            (5) Modification.--The term ``modification'' includes a 
        reversal of flow direction, change in ownership, change in flow 
        volume, change in product delivered, addition or removal of an 
        interconnection, or an adjustment to regulate flow (such as a 
        reduction or increase in the number of pump or compressor 
        stations or valves).
            (6) Natural gas.--The term ``natural gas'' has the meaning 
        given that term in section 2 of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 
        717a).
            (7) Oil.--The term ``oil'' means petroleum or a petroleum 
        product.
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