North American Energy Infrastructure Act

Floor Speech

Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to H.R. 3301, which would dramatically weaken the public input and environmental review process for cross-border pipelines.

Cross-border pipelines can be enormously complex projects, spanning hundreds of miles and operating for decades. The bill before us today would limit environmental review of these projects to the narrow segment that actually crosses the border, preventing analysis of the full scope of impacts on private property, public safety, and water quality. And it would exempt modifications to existing pipelines from any federal review, so a pipeline's capacity could be increased significantly, its contents could be changed, or its flow could be reversed without any discussion of the impacts of those decisions.

Moreover, this bill opens the door to unlimited natural gas exports by lifting all restrictions on exports to Canada or Mexico. Those exports could then be shipped anywhere in the world without approval or review of impacts on domestic energy prices. A number of American manufacturers have expressed concern about unchecked LNG exports raising their costs of doing business and increasing the price of consumer goods.

Once again, we have a bill on the floor of this House that limits public comment and short-circuits the cost-benefit analysis. While we all want these reviews to operate efficiently, we should not place arbitrary restrictions that fail to give regulators enough information to make a responsible decision. I urge a no vote.

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