[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 77 (Tuesday, May 19, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3062-S3063]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Ms. HEITKAMP (for herself, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Manchin, and Mr. 
        Corker):

[[Page S3063]]

  S. 1372. A bill to repeal the crude oil export ban, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
  Ms. HEITKAMP. Mr. President, I am proud to introduce today, with my 
good friend from Alaska, Senator Murkowski, a bill that will wipe an 
outdated policy from our books while providing a boost to our domestic 
oil development and production industry. I am also pleased to have my 
great friends from West Virginia, Senator Manchin, and Tennessee, 
Senator Corker, join us in introducing this bill today. This bill would 
allow U.S. crude oil producers to compete on equal footing with most 
other major oil producing nations, helping to remove current barriers 
that prevent U.S. producers from receiving a fair price for their 
commodity on the world market.
  Just last week, I joined Senator Murkowski as she introduced her 
bill, The Energy Supply and Distribution Act, that looks to address the 
build-out of critical energy infrastructure and opening up access to 
new markets for our energy commodities, while also looking to make it 
easier to distribute our energy to our neighbors in Mexico and Canada. 
A provision in that bill also looks to repeal the current crude oil 
export ban. I will continue to advocate for that bill as well, and look 
forward to Senator Murkowski bringing that bill before her Senate 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. I view this bill as not only 
complimentary to the bill introduced last week, but also a way to keep 
the conversation going as I look to bring this bill up for debate in 
another Committee, before a different audience. Senator Murkowski and I 
have been working on this effort for some time and we both felt it was 
time to show our cards and let our colleagues and others see where we 
are in this process. The language may be different, but the goal is the 
same.
  Some people may wonder how we even got here, and why would we want to 
remove a policy that has brought little public or Congressional 
scrutiny for almost forty years. Well, in 1973, President Richard Nixon 
placed crude oil under price controls after the price of oil continued 
to rise. He created a ban on oil exports as an enforcement tool for his 
price controls, restricting sales outside the U.S. When President 
Ronald Reagan lifted those price controls, the accompanying export ban 
was retained. So basically, the current restricted trade environment 
for U.S. crude oil is an unintended consequence of a 1970's price 
control policy.
  While certain exemptions were added over the years allowing for the 
export of some U.S. oil from California and Alaska, repeal of the 
overall prohibition on U.S. crude oil exports was never really seen as 
a major policy priority. All of that changed with the new oil 
production renaissance in the U.S, brought about by technological 
innovations that have allowed for pin-point accurate horizontal 
drilling and continued advances in hydraulic fracturing. These, and 
other advances, have allowed for exploration and production of shale in 
places like North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Texas, Colorado, and New 
Mexico. These shale oil and natural gas plays across the country have 
made the U.S. the number one combined crude oil and natural gas 
producer in the world. The situation on the ground has certainly 
changed and it is time to make sure our export policies are finally 
updated to reflect those changes.
  This issue is of particular importance to North Dakota. Due to 
transportation and infrastructure constraints, producers in the Bakken 
are already selling their crude oil at an even steeper discount than 
U.S. producers in other plays. Combined with the recent downturn in the 
price of a barrel of oil, static or declining current global demand, 
and stable production from OPEC nations--U.S. crude producers in North 
Dakota and elsewhere have begun to feel the pinch. While other nations, 
including Iran and Russia, are able to sell their crude oil into the 
world market for the best price and can continue to maintain or pick up 
market share during this downturn, U.S. producers are constrained from 
competing on equal footing.
  As recently as 2007, North Dakota ranked eight among U.S. oil 
producing states. However, due to the shale oil boom in the Bakken, 
North Dakota has been the number two oil producing state in the country 
since 2012--behind only Texas. While North Dakota continues to remain 
in that spot, there has been a steep downturn since September 2014. The 
state has over one hundred less drilling rigs then at the same time in 
September 2014, the number of wells awaiting completion are at near 
historic highs, capital expenditures in the U.S. are way down for oil 
companies, and we continue to see layoffs and reduced hours in the oil 
and oilfield services industries. North Dakota crude oil producers need 
access to the world market to maintain and continue to develop the 
valuable natural resource in the State.
  Numerous studies in the past year including one by the non-partisan 
U.S. Government Accountability Office have found that repealing the ban 
on crude oil exports will lower U.S. gasoline prices. These studies 
concluded that we should export crude oil in the same manner that we 
export millions of barrels of gasoline and diesel every day. As a 
matter of fact, while some people continue to say that we need to keep 
our crude oil locked in or retail gasoline prices will rise--they fail 
to mention the fact that the U.S. is the number exporter in the world 
of refined petroleum products, including gasoline. So the facts just do 
not add up for their argument. Additionally, at a time of growing 
threats to international security, hardworking Americans in the energy 
sector are helping our nation become more secure, prosperous, and 
resilient to crises overseas. The administration's own National 
Security Strategy recognizes that energy abundance at home can 
translate to a strengthened geopolitical position on the global stage.
  Unrestricted exports of U.S. crude oil is key to the long-term 
stability of consumer prices, continued investment and growth in U.S. 
development and production, resumption of job growth in the energy 
sector and supporting industries, and continued reduction in the U.S. 
trade deficit, while also providing national energy security. I hope 
our colleagues will join us in supporting this important effort to 
remove an outdated policy and put our U.S. crude oil on equal footing 
with crude oil from around the world.
                                 ______