• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

House Passes Bill to Ease Permit Process for New Refineries

Posted on: Wednesday, 7 June 2006, 21:00 CDT

WASHINGTON _ As drivers continue facing higher prices at the pump, House Republicans are pursuing a slew of measures meant to increase gasoline supplies and lower costs.

They want to open up new sites for the industry to build refineries, ease environmental permitting requirements for new facilities and cut the number of fuel blends nationwide.

But five months before mid-term elections, they're getting little traction in their attempts to ease the pain for consumers. The oil industry has met the overtures with mild interest, and the Senate has been slow to respond with its own measures.

Critics maintain that the Republican measures would do little to help consumers, arguing for higher fuel-economy requirements and a greater focus on alternative energy sources.

The Republicans' latest effort came Wednesday when the House passed legislation along party lines to speed up the permitting process for new refineries and open up three closed military bases for new plants. The measure would designate a federal coordinator to oversee permit applications for a proposed refinery.

A long-sought energy bill last summer was intended to address many concerns about regulatory barriers on the oil industry.

But sharp spikes in gasoline prices since last year's hurricanes, which knocked out Gulf Coast refineries, have led lawmakers to pursue legislation to address a shortfall in production capacity, gasoline distribution bottlenecks and speculation in energy markets.

"We're trying to solve the problem and get prices back down," said Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

Republican leaders are planning an "energy week" at the end of the month to move more legislation that's meant to lower prices.

The House's refining legislation and the plans to cut the number of fuel blends drew complaints from many Democrats and environmental groups who say the legislation is unnecessary.

Though no new refinery has been built in the United States in three decades, refiners have increased their capacity by expanding existing facilities. Many companies have said they've shown little interest in building new refineries because the market has been too volatile over the last two decades, not necessarily because of permitting rules.

Because many permitting and fuel-specification requirements were created to comply with clean-air requirements, environmental groups say that proposed changes _ such as a reduction in fuel blends _ could short-circuit efforts in areas that are already struggling to cut their air pollution.

Local and state officials "are really wrestling with this stuff on a day-to-day level," said Frank O'Donnell, president of Clean Air Watch, an advocacy group. "What's really going on is an attempt to fool the public into thinking Congress is doing something to lower gas prices," he said.

Barton said the refining legislation that passed Wednesday preserves all environmental protections and would attract new companies that may be concerned about potential permitting delays.

"Today margins are at an all-time high," Barton said. "This is a great business to get into if you have regulatory certainty."

___

(c) 2006, The Dallas Morning News.

Visit The Dallas Morning News on the World Wide Web at http://www.dallasnews.com/

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

Source: The Dallas Morning News

More News in this Category