"House Votes To Streamline Pipeline Reviews"

"The House voted Wednesday to streamline the federal permitting process for a variety of oil and natural gas pipelines.
 
Lawmakers voted 248-179 on the Promoting Interagency Coordination for Review of Natural Gas Pipelines Act, a bill by Rep. Bill Flores (R-Texas) to designate the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) as the lead agency for interstate gas pipeline permitting and require other agencies to coordinate with FERC and conduct simultaneous reviews.
 
The chamber also voted 254-175 to pass the Promoting Cross-Border Energy Infrastructure Act, a bill by Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) to give FERC responsibility for permitting oil and gas pipelines and electric transmission lines that cross the Canadian or Mexican borders, such as the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline.

That bill would remove the requirement that such projects obtain permits from the president and would end the State Department’s leading role in those decisions."

Timothy Cama reports for The Hill July 19, 2017.