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House passed energy bills secure jobs, increase energy production on federal lands, and protect states against duplicative regulation.

Today U.S. Representative Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) voted for two pieces of legislation critical to energy production on federal lands in Wyoming.  The U.S. House passed, by a vote of 228-192, the Federal Lands Jobs and Energy Security Act of 2013 (H.R. 1965).  The House also passed, by a vote of 235-187, the Protecting States’ Rights to Promote American Energy Security Act (H.R. 2728). 

H.R. 1965 streamlines the permitting process for onshore energy production on federal land to remove unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles to responsible energy development on these lands consistent with the Bureau of Land Management’s mandate to provide for the multiple use of public lands.  The act also reforms the leasing and permitting processes at the BLM, including the redirection of permitting fees back to the local office where they were collected to provide more resources for additional leasing and permit processing. 

H.R. 2728 would prohibit the Department of the Interior from enforcing its proposed hydraulic fracturing regulations in states like Wyoming that already regulate the practice effectively.  Despite admitting that there has not been a single documented case of groundwater contamination due to hydraulic fracturing, Interior officials are nonetheless moving forward to impose an extra layer of costly red tape on energy producing states.

“This legislation is critical for our nation and especially for Wyoming considering our abundant energy resources on federal lands,” said Rep. Lummis.  “H.R. 1965 will help cut through the bureaucratic red tape that hinders responsible energy development on federal land while production skyrockets on state and private land.  H.R. 2728 recognizes and protects the right of Wyoming to what we do best, and that’s balance responsible production with the health of our people and protection of our environment.  The Obama Administration’s unjustifiable fight against conventional energy is hurting the American people and our economy.  Americans want the opportunity to earn an honest living.  We can help by putting public lands to work for the people that own them, the American people, and particularly those who live near the resource and want them developed in a responsible way.”

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