House moves to lift longtime ban on U.S. oil exports

The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Thursday approved legislation to lift the nearly 40-year-old ban on crude oil exports, a move it said will boost the U.S. economy.    The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Thursday approved legislation to lift the nearly 40-year-old ban on crude oil exports.
   The bill, H.R. 702, passed the committee by a vote of 31-19. The legislation is expected to be considered by the full house before the end of the month.
   “The ban on exporting crude oil imposes an estimated $200-$600 billion cost to the U.S. economy, discourages crude oil production, prevents the creation of jobs, and causes higher gasoline prices for U.S. consumers,” said Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, former head of the House committee. Barton introduced the legislation along with Texas Democrat Rep. Henry Cuellar.
   The bill’s supporters pointed to recent studies that show lifting the ban would add nearly a million new U.S. jobs and keep gas prices lower for American consumers.
   Committee lawmakers also said passing H.R. 702 would give U.S. trading partners an opportunity to import American oil, versus relying on Russian and Iranian oil.
   The U.S. oil export ban was put in place by Congress and the White House in 1975 to stabilize fuel prices in the wake of the 1973 Arab Oil Embargo.
   “Much has changed since 1975 when these restrictions were imposed but the dramatic growth in domestic oil output over the last decade has flipped the script. The administration now supports lifting Iran’s ban on oil exports – and we should all agree it’s time to lift the ban on American exports,” said House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., in a statement.
   Meanwhile, Rep. John Garamendi, D-Calif., ranking member of the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee, is urging Congress to adopt provisions that would require the use of ships that carry U.S. crude and liquefied natural gas exports to be built and flagged in the U.S. with U.S. seafarers.
   In a letter to the leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Garamendi said, “We should apply the export model set forth in the case of the Alaskan North Slope crude oil.”
   “Such a requirement would keep our shipyards, which are critical to the production of naval vessels, vibrant and technologically advanced; our merchant fleet of sufficient size to meet any national emergency; and skilled sailors available for any requirement.”
   Garamendi is planning to offer an “amendment on the floor that addresses the issues we mentioned in the letter, but that amendment is still in draft phase.”
    A spokesman in his office noted Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Reauthorization Act of 2014 “contains a provision requiring the Secretary of Transportation to develop a program to promote the use of US-flag vessels for LNG export, and to give priority processing of export applications for deepwater terminals that would utilize U.S-flag vessels.”
    That provision was an outgrowth of an amendment Garamendi offered that would phase in a requirement to use U.S.-flag vessels for LNG exports.
    “We’re working on new legislation on the issue, the biggest portion of which involves establishing a program to provide financial assistance to promote the development of a reliable LNG fleet,” the spokesman added.