American Energy Solutions for Lower Costs and More American Jobs Act

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

American Energy Solutions for Lower Costs and More American Jobs Act - Division A: Energy and Commerce - Title I: Modernizing Infrastructure - Subtitle A: Northern Route Approval - Northern Route Approval Act - (Sec. 103) Declares that a presidential permit shall not be required for the pipeline described in the application filed on May 4, 2012, by TransCanada Keystone Pipeline, L.P. to the Department of State for the Keystone XL pipeline, including the Nebraska reroute evaluated in the Final Evaluation Report issued by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality in January 2013 and approved by the Nebraska governor.

Deems the final environmental impact statement issued by the Secretary of State on January 31, 2014, coupled with such Final Evaluation Report, to satisfy all requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and of the National Historic Preservation Act.

(Sec. 104) Grants original and exclusive jurisdiction to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to determine specified issues (except for review by the Supreme Court on writ of certiorari).

(Sec. 105) Deems the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary in this subtitle) to have issued a written statement setting forth the Secretary's opinion that the Keystone XL pipeline project will not jeopardize the continued existence of the American burying beetle or destroy or adversely modify American burying beetle critical habitat.

States that any taking of the American burying beetle that is incidental to the construction or operation and maintenance of the Keystone XL pipeline shall not be considered a prohibited taking of such species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973.

(Sec. 106) Deems the Secretary to have issued a grant of right-of-way and temporary use permit pursuant to the Mineral Leasing Act and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976.

(Sec. 107) Requires the Secretary of the Army, within 90 days after receipt of an application, to issue certain permits under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act and the Rivers and Harbors Appropriations Act of 1899 which are necessary for pipeline construction, operation, and maintenance described in the May 4, 2012, application, as supplemented by the Nebraska reroute. Deems such a permit issued on the 91st day if the Secretary has not issued them within 90 days after receipt of a permit application.

Authorizes the Secretary of the Army to waive any procedural requirement of law or regulation considered desirable to waive in order to accomplish the purposes of this Act.

Prohibits the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from prohibiting or restricting any activity or use of an area authorized under this Act.

(Sec. 108) Deems the Secretary of the Interior to have issued a special purpose permit under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, as described in the application filed with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service for the Keystone XL pipeline on January 11, 2013.

(Sec. 109) Requires a pipeline owner or operator required under federal law to develop an oil spill response plan for the Keystone XL pipeline to make available to the governor of each state in which the pipeline operates. Requires a plan update to be submitted to the governor within seven days after it is made.

Subtitle B: Natural Gas Pipeline Permitting Reform - Natural Gas Pipeline Permitting Reform Act - (Sec. 122) Amends the Natural Gas Act to direct the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to approve or deny a certificate of public convenience and necessity for a prefiled project within 12 months after receiving a complete application that is ready to be processed.

Defines "prefiled project" as a project for the siting, construction, expansion, or operation of a natural gas pipeline with respect to which a prefiling docket number has been assigned by FERC pursuant to a prefiling process established by FERC for the purpose of facilitating the formal application process for obtaining a certificate of public convenience and necessity.

Requires the agency responsible for issuing any federal license, permit, or approval regarding the siting, construction, expansion, or operation of a project for which a certificate is sought to approve or deny issuance of the certificate within 90 days after FERC issues its final environmental document regarding the project.

Requires FERC to grant an agency request for a 30-day extension of the 90-day time period if the agency demonstrates that it cannot otherwise complete the process required to approve or deny the license, permit, or approval, and therefore will be compelled to deny it.

Authorizes FERC, in granting such an extension, to offer technical assistance to the agency in order to address conditions preventing completion of the application review.

Declares that, if the agency fails to approve or deny issuance of a permit, license, or approval within the prescribed time-frame, the license, permit, or approval shall take effect upon expiration of 30 days after the period's end.

Directs FERC to incorporate into the terms of a license, permit, or approval any conditions proffered by the agency that FERC does not find to be inconsistent with the final environmental document.

Subtitle C: North American Energy Infrastructure - North American Energy Infrastructure Act - (Sec. 133) Prohibits any person from constructing, connecting, operating, or maintaining a cross-border segment of an oil or natural gas pipeline or electric transmission facility at the national boundary of the United States for the import or export of oil, natural gas, or electricity to or from Canada or Mexico without obtaining a certificate of crossing under this Act.

Requires the Secretary of State, with respect to oil pipelines, or the Secretary of Energy (DOE), with respect to electric transmission facilities, to issue a certificate of crossing for the cross-border segment within 120 days after final action is taken under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), unless it is not in U.S. public interest.

Directs DOE, as a condition of issuing a certificate, to require that the cross-border segment be constructed, connected, operated, or maintained consistent with the policies and standards of: (1) the Electric Reliability Organization and the applicable regional entity, and (2) any Regional Transmission Organization or Independent System Operator with operational or functional control over the segment.

Exempts from such requirement any construction, connection, operation, or maintenance of a cross-border segment if: (1) it is operating for import, export, or electrical transmission upon the date of enactment of this Act; (2) the relevant permit or certificate of crossing has previously been issued under this Act; or (3) an permit application is pending on the date of enactment of this Act, until it is denied or July 1, 2016, whichever occurs first.

Retains: (1) the requirement to obtain approval or authorization under the Natural Gas Act for the siting, construction, or operation of any facility to import or export natural gas; and (2) certain authority of the President under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA).

(Sec. 134) Amends the Natural Gas Act to declare that no order of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is required for the export or import of natural gas to or from Canada or Mexico.

(Sec. 135) Amends the Federal Power Act to repeal the requirement that the transmission of electric energy to a foreign country necessitates prior authorization by FERC.

(Sec. 136) Declares that no presidential permit shall be necessary for the construction, connection, operation, or maintenance of an oil or natural gas pipeline or electric transmission facility, including any cross-border segment.

(Sec. 137) Declares that no certificate of crossing or permit shall be required for a modification to the construction, connection, operation, or maintenance of an oil or natural gas pipeline or electric transmission facility that: (1) operates for the import or export of oil or natural gas or the transmission of electricity to or from Canada or Mexico as of the date of enactment of this Act; (2) for which a permit for such construction, connection, operation, or maintenance has been issued; or (3) for which a certificate of crossing for the cross-border segment of the pipeline or facility has previously been issued.

Title II: Maintaining Diverse Electricity Generation and Affordability - Subtitle A: Energy Consumers Relief - Energy Consumers Relief Act of 2014 - (Sec. 202) Prohibits the Administrator from promulgating any such final rule if the Secretary determines that such rule will cause significant adverse effects to the economy.

(Sec. 203) Requires the EPA Administrator, before promulgating as final such a rule, to report to Congress: (1) an estimate of the total costs and benefits of the rule, (2) an estimate of the increases in energy prices that may result from implementation or enforcement of the rule, and (3) a detailed description of the employment effects that may also result.

Requires the DOE Secretary: (1) to prepare an independent analysis to determine whether the rule will cause any increase in energy prices for consumers, any impact on fuel diversity of the nation's electricity generation portfolio or on electric reliability, or any adverse effect on energy supply, distribution, or use; and (2), upon making such a determination, to determine whether the rule will cause significant adverse effects to the economy.

(Sec. 205) Prohibits the Administrator from using the social cost of carbon in any cost-benefit analysis relating to an energy-related rule estimated to cost more than $1 billion unless and until a federal law is enacted authorizing such use.

Subtitle B: Electricity Security and Affordability - Electricity Security and Affordability Act - (Sec. 212) Prohibits the EPA Administrator from issuing, implementing, or enforcing any proposed or final rule under the Clean Air Act that establishes a performance standard for greenhouse gas emissions from any new source that is a fossil fuel-fired electric utility generating unit unless the rule meets specified requirements of this Act.

Requires the Administrator to separate sources fueled with coal and natural gas into separate categories.

Prohibits the Administrator, however, from setting a standard based on the best system of emission reduction for new sources within a fossil-fuel category unless it has been achieved on average for at least one continuous 12-month period (excluding planned outages) by each of at least 6 units within the category. Requires each such unit to: (1) be located at a different electric generating station in the United States, (2) be representative of the operating characteristics of electric generation at its location, and (3) be operated for the entire 12-month period on a full commercial basis. Prohibits the use of any results obtained from a demonstration project in setting the standard.

Requires the Administrator, in separating sources fueled with coal into a separate category, to establish a separate subcategory for new sources that are fossil fuel-fired electric utility generating units using coal with an average heat content of 8300 or less British Thermal Units (BTUs) per pound.

Prohibits the Administrator, in issuing any rule establishing performance standards for greenhouse gas emissions from new sources in such subcategory, from setting a standard based on the best system of emission reduction unless the standard has been achieved on average for at least one continuous 12-month period (excluding planned outages) by each of at least 3 units within such subcategory that meets the unit requirements specified by this Act for the coal category.

Prohibits this Act from being construed to preclude the issuance, implementation, or enforcement of a standard of performance that: (1) is based on the use of technologies that are developed in a foreign country, but has been demonstrated to be achievable at fossil fuel-fired electric utility generating units in the United States; and (2) meets the requirements of this Act.

(Sec. 213) Precludes from taking effect, unless a federal law is enacted specifying an effective date, any EPA rule or guideline that: (1) establishes any performance standard for greenhouse gas emissions from a modified or reconstructed source that is a fossil fuel-fired electric utility generating unit, or (2) applies to greenhouse gas emissions from such an existing source.

Requires, in order for the rule or guidelines to take effect, that the Administrator submit a report that contains: (1) the text of the rule or guidelines; (2) the economic impacts of such rule or guidelines, including potential effects on electricity ratepayers, on economic growth, competitiveness, and jobs in the United States and on required capital investments and projected costs for operation and maintenance of new equipment required to be installed; and (3) the amount of greenhouse gas emissions projected to be reduced as compared to overall global greenhouse gas emissions.

Requires the Administrator, in carrying out such reporting requirements, to consult with the Administrator of the Energy Information Administration, the Comptroller General (GAO), the Director of the National Energy Technology Laboratory, and the Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology.

(Sec. 214) Nullifies specified proposed rules (or similar successor proposed or final rules) for Standards of Performance for Greenhouse Gas Emissions for New Stationary Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units that are issued before enactment of this Act, including proposed rules targeting specified: (1) Carbon Pollution Emission Guidelines for Existing Stationary Sources; and (2) Carbon Pollution Standards for Modified and Reconstructed Stationary Sources. Includes any successor proposed or final rules applicable to any existing, modified, or reconstructed source that is a fossil fuel-fired electric utility generating unit.

Subtitle C: Report on Energy and Water Savings Potential From Thermal Insulation -(Sec. 221) Instructs the DOE Secretary to report to certain congressional committees on the impact of thermal insulation on both energy and water use systems for potable hot and chilled water in federal buildings, and the return on investment of installing such insulation.

Title III: Unleashing Energy Diplomacy - Domestic Prosperity and Global Freedom Act - (Sec. 302) Directs DOE to issue a decision on an application for authorization to export natural gas within 30 days after the later of: (1) the conclusion of the review to site, construct, expand, or operate the liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities required by NEPA; or (2) the date of enactment of this Act.

Deems any NEPA review to be concluded: (1) 30 days after publication of a required Environmental Impact Statement if the project needs one; (2) 30 days after publication by DOE of a Finding of No Significant Impact if the project needs an Environmental Assessment; and (3) upon a determination by the lead agency that an application is eligible for a categorical exclusion pursuant to regulations under NEPA.

(A "categorical exclusion" under NEPA is a category of actions which do not individually or cumulatively have a significant effect on the human environment and which have been found to have no such effect in procedures adopted by a federal agency in implementing environmental regulations and for which, therefore, neither an Environmental Assessment nor an Environmental Impact Statement is required.)

Confers original and exclusive jurisdiction upon the U.S. Court of Appeals for the circuit in which the export facility under an application will be located over any civil action for the review of: (1) a DOE order regarding the application, or (2) DOE failure to issue a final decision on the application.

Requires the Court, if it finds in a civil action that DOE has failed to issue a final decision on an application, to order DOE to issue one within 30 days.

Requires the Court to set any civil action brought under this Act on the docket, for expedited consideration, as soon as practical after the filing date of the initial pleading.

(Sec. 303) Amends the Natural Gas Act to set, as a condition for approval of any authorization to export LNG, that the DOE Secretary require the applicant to disclose publicly the specific destination or destinations of any such authorized LNG exports.

Division B: Natural Resources Committee - Subdivision A: Lowering Gasoline Prices to Fuel an America That Works Act of 2014 - Lowering Gasoline Prices to Fuel an America That Works Act of 2014 - Title I: Offshore Energy And Jobs - Subtitle A: Outer Continental Shelf Leasing Program Reforms - (Sec. 10101) Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) to direct the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary in this division) to implement a leasing program that includes at least 50% of the available unleased acreage within each outer Continental Shelf (OCS) planning area considered to have the largest undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources, with an emphasis on offering the most geologically prospective parts of the planning area.

(Sec. 10102) Directs the Secretary, in developing a five-year oil and gas leasing program, to determine a domestic strategic production goal, meeting specified criteria, for the development of oil and natural gas.

Sets the production goal as an increase by 2032 of: (1) at least 3 million barrels of oil produced per day, and (2) at least 10 billion cubic feet of natural gas produced per day.

(Sec. 10103) Requires the Secretary to: (1) submit to Congress a new proposed oil and gas leasing program for the five-year period beginning on July 15, 2015, and ending July 15, 2021, and (2) approve a final oil and gas leasing program by July 15, 2016.

(Sec. 10104) Prohibits any construction of this Act as authorizing the issuance of a lease under the OCSLA to any person designated for the imposition of sanctions pursuant to:

• the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996;
• the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability and Divestiture Act of 2010;
• the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012;
• the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012;
• the Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act of 2012;
• Executive Orders 13622, 13628, or 13645 (Iran sanctions);
• Executive Order 13224 (transactions with those who commit or support terrorism);
• Executive Order 13338 (Syria sanctions); or
• the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2003.

(Sec. 10105) Authorizes the Secretary to add more areas to an approved leasing program if all review and documents required under NEPA have been completed with respect to leasing of each such additional area within the preceding five years.

Subtitle B: Directing the President to Conduct New OCS Sales - (Sec. 10201) Directs the Secretary to: (1) conduct offshore oil and gas Lease Sale 220 within one year after enactment of this Act, and (2) make replacement lease blocks acceptable for oil and gas exploration and production available in the Virginia lease sale planning area for any lease blocks about which the Secretary of Defense (DOD) proposes deferral from a lease offering because of defense-related activities irreconcilable with mineral exploration and development.

(Sec. 10202) Directs the Secretary to conduct a lease sale within two years after enactment of this Act for areas off the coast of South Carolina with the most geologically promising hydrocarbon resources and constituting of at least 25% of the leasable area within the South Carolina offshore administrative boundaries.

(Sec. 10203) Directs the Secretary to: (1) offer for sale by December 31, 2015, leases of tracts in the Santa Maria and Santa Barbara/Ventura Basins of the Southern California OCS Planning Area, and (2) prepare a multisale environmental impact statement pursuant to NEPA for all lease sales required under this Act.

(Sec. 10205) Retains DOD authority, with the President's approval, to designate national defense areas on the OCS.

(Sec. 10206) Declares that this Act does not affect restrictions on oil and gas leasing under the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006.

Subtitle C: Equitable Sharing of Outer Continental Shelf Revenues - (Sec. 10301) Allocates, via specified phased-in increments, 37.5% of the amount of new federal leasing revenues to coastal states that are: (1) affected by the leases under which those revenues are received by the United States, and (2) within 200 miles of the leased tract.

Prescribes an allocation schedule for coastal states within 200 miles of the leased tract, in amounts inversely proportional to the respective distances between the point on the coastline of each such state that is closest to the geographic center of the lease tract.

Subtitle D: Reorganization of Minerals Management Agencies of the Department of the Interior - (Sec. 10401) Establishes in the Department of the Interior: (1) an Under Secretary for Energy, Lands, and Minerals; (2) an Assistant Secretary of Ocean Energy and Safety; (3) an Assistant Secretary of Land and Minerals Management; (4) a Bureau of Ocean Energy, to administer a comprehensive program of offshore mineral and renewable energy resources management; (5) an Ocean Energy Safety Service, to administer safety and environmental enforcement activities related to offshore mineral and renewable energy resources on the OCS; and (6) an Office of Natural Resources Revenue, to administer offshore royalty and revenue management functions.

(Sec. 10403) Requires the Secretary of the Interior to establish a National Offshore Energy Safety Academy as an agency of the Ocean Energy Safety Service.

(Sec. 10405) Directs the Secretary to: (1) certify annually that all Department of the Interior personnel having regular, direct official contact with lessees, government contractors, and certain other businesses, or conducting investigations, issuing permits, or overseeing energy programs, comply fully with federal employee ethics laws and regulations; and (2) conduct a program of random drug testing of such personnel.

(Sec. 10406) Abolishes the Minerals Management Service.

(Sec. 10408) Directs the Secretary to establish an Outer Continental Shelf Energy Safety Advisory Board.

(Sec. 10409) Directs the Secretary to collect specified non-refundable fees, including fees for drilling rigs, from operators of facilities subject to inspection.

Establishes in the Treasury the Ocean Energy Enforcement Fund as depository for such fees.

(Sec. 10410) Prohibits the Bureau of Ocean Energy and the Ocean Energy Safety Service from developing, proposing, finalizing, administering, or implementing any limitation on activities under their jurisdictions as a result of the coastal and marine spatial planning component of the National Ocean Policy developed under Executive Order 13547.

Requires the President to report to Congress on all federal expenditures in FY2012-FY2014 by such agencies concerning that component.

Subtitle E: United States Territories - (Sec. 10501) Redefines the OCS to include all submerged lands lying within the U.S. exclusive economic zone and the Continental Shelf adjacent to any U.S. territory.

Subtitle F: Miscellaneous Provisions - (Sec. 10601) Directs the Secretary to promulgate rules regarding revenue streams contemplated by the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006, including the timing and methods of disbursements of certain funds under such Act.

(Sec. 10602) Increases, for FY2024-FY2055, the maximum amount of qualified OCS revenues distributed to Gulf producing states.

(Sec. 10603) Defines the "South Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Planning Area" as the OCS area located between the northern lateral seaward administrative boundary of Virginia and the southernmost lateral seaward administrative boundary of Georgia.

(Sec. 10604) Amends OCSLA to require the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, to enter into partnerships to conduct oil- or gas-related geological and geophysical investigations on the OCS with institutions of higher education nominated by the governors of Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia.

Subtitle G: Judicial Review - (Sec. 10701) Requires a cause of action arising from any action or decision by a federal official regarding the issuance of an energy lease under this Act to be filed 60 days after such action or decision, unless the plaintiff is a party to such a lease.

(Sec. 10702) Sets forth: (1) deadlines for case initiation and resolution in U.S. district court and for review by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, (2) limitations on judicial review, and (3) a requirement that a person who is not a prevailing party shall pay legal fees to the prevailing parties in connection with judicial review.

Title II: Onshore Federal Lands and Energy Security - Subtitle A: Federal Lands Jobs and Energy Security - Federal Lands Jobs and Energy Security Act - (Sec. 21002) Directs the Secretary, when practicable, to encourage the use of U.S. workers and equipment manufactured in the U.S. in all construction related to mineral resource development under this Act.

Chapter 1: Onshore Oil and Gas Permit Streamlining - Streamlining Permitting of American Energy Act of 2014 - Subchapter A: Application for Permits to Drill Process Reform - (Sec. 21111) Amends the Mineral Leasing Act (MLA) to direct the Secretary to decide whether to issue a permit to drill within 30 days after receiving a permit application. Authorizes the Secretary to extend the initial 30-day permit application review period for up to two periods of 15 days each, with written notice to the applicant.

Deems a permit application approved if the Secretary has not made a decision by 60 days after its receipt. Prescribes follow-up requirements if an application is denied, including allowing resubmission of an application and a decision to issue or deny within 10 days after resubmission.

Requires the Secretary to collect a single $6,500 permit processing fee per application at the time the decision is made whether to issue a permit.

Subchapter B: Administrative Protest Documentation Reform - (Sec. 21121) Directs the Secretary to collect a $5,000 documentation fee to accompany each protest for a lease, right of way, or application for permit to drill. Requires 50% of all such fees to remain in the field office where they are collected and used to process protests subject to appropriation.

Subchapter C: Permit Streamlining - (Sec. 21131) Requires the Secretary to: (1) establish a Federal Permit Streamlining Project in every Bureau of Land Management (BLM) field office with responsibility for permitting energy projects on federal land, and (2) enter into a related memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Secretary of Agriculture, the EPA Administrator, and the Chief of the Army Corps of Engineers.

Authorizes the Secretary to request that the governor of any state with energy projects on federal lands be a signatory to the MOU.

Requires all federal signatories to such a MOU, if appropriate, to assign to each BLM field office staff with special expertise in the pertinent regulatory issues.

Requires such staff to: (1) be responsible for all issues relating to the energy projects that arise under the authorities of the employee's home agency; and (2) participate as part of the team of personnel working on proposed energy projects, planning, and environmental analyses on federal lands.

Directs the Secretary to assign to each relevant BLM field office additional personnel to ensure the effective approval and implementation of energy projects administered by BLM field offices, including inspection and enforcement relating to energy development on federal land in accordance with the multiple use mandate of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976.

(Sec. 21132) Prohibits the Secretary, in managing federal lands under the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005) in connection with oil or natural gas drilling, from requiring a finding of extraordinary circumstances under a review pursuant to NEPA.

Subchapter D: Judicial Review - (Sec. 21142) Prescribes requirements for judicial review of a claim regarding agency action affecting the leasing of federal lands for exploration, development, production, processing, or transmission of oil, natural gas, or any other source of energy.

Subchapter E: Knowing America's Oil and Gas Resources - (Sec. 21151) Requires the Secretary to provide matching funding of up to 50% for joint projects with states to conduct oil and gas resource assessments on federal lands with significant oil and gas potential.

Authorizes the appropriation of $50 million for FY2015-FY2018 to implement such assessments.

Chapter 2: Oil and Gas Leasing Certainty - Providing Leasing Certainty for American Energy Act of 2014 - (Sec. 21202) Requires the Secretary, in conducting lease sales under the MLA, to offer for sale at least 25% of the annual nominated acreage not previously made available for lease.

Shields such acreage from protest. Makes it eligible for certain categorical exclusions under the EPAct 2005, but not subject to the test of extraordinary circumstances.

(Sec. 21203) Amends the MLA to prohibit the Secretary from: (1) withdrawing any covered energy project without finding a violation of lease terms by the lessee; (2) infringing upon lease rights by indefinitely delaying issuance of project approvals, drilling and seismic permits, and rights of way for activities under a lease; or (3) cancelling or withdrawing any lease parcel after a competitive lease sale has occurred and a winning bidder has made the last payment for the parcel.

Directs the Secretary to: (1) make nominated areas available for lease within 18 months after an area is designated as open under a current land use plan, (2) issue all leases sold 60 days after the last payment is made, and (3) adjudicate lease protests filed following a lease sale.

Prohibits the Secretary from canceling or withdrawing any lease parcel: (1) after the conclusion of the public comment period for a planned competitive lease sale, or (2) after a competitive lease sale has occurred and a winning bidder has submitted the last payment for it.

Requires the Secretary to adjudicate any lease protests filed following a lease sale within 60 days after the sale is held. Declares any protest automatically denied, and the protestor's appeal rights to begin, if after 60 days the protest is left unsettled.

Prohibits additional lease stipulations after the parcel is sold without consultation and agreement of the lessee (except certain emergency actions to conserve U.S. resources).

(Sec. 21204) Requires federal land managers to follow existing resource management plans and continue to lease actively in areas designated as open when resource management plans are being amended or revised, until such time as a new record of decision is signed.

(Sec. 21205) Declares without force or effect BLM Instruction Memorandum 2010-117 (which establishes a process to ensure orderly, effective, timely, and environmentally responsible leasing of oil and gas resources on federal lands).

Chapter 3: Oil Shale - Protecting Investment in Oil Shale the Next Generation of Environmental, Energy, and Resource Security Act, or the PIONEERS Act - (Sec. 21302) Deems the final regulations regarding oil shale management published by the BLM on November 18, 2008, to satisfy all legal and procedural requirements under any law, including the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and NEPA.

Directs the Secretary to implement those regulations, including the oil shale leasing program they authorize, without any other administrative action necessary.

Deems also the November 17, 2008, U.S. BLM Approved Resource Management Plan Amendments/Record of Decision for Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resources to Address Land Use Allocations in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming and Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement to satisfy all legal and procedural requirements under any law.

Directs the Secretary to implement the oil shale leasing program in those areas covered by the resource management plans amended by such amendments, and covered by such record of decision, without any other administrative action necessary.

(Sec. 21303) Directs the Secretary to hold a lease sale, within 180 days after enactment of this Act, that offers an additional ten parcels for lease for research, development, and demonstration of oil shale resources under the terms offered in the solicitation of bids for such leases published on January 15, 2009.

Requires the Secretary, by January 1, 2016, to hold at least five separate commercial lease sales, in multiple lease blocs, in areas of at least 25,000 acres, which: (1) have been nominated through public comment, and (2) are considered to have the most potential for oil shale development.

Chapter 4: Miscellaneous Provisions - (Sec. 21401) Prohibits this Act from being construed to authorize the issuance of a lease under the MLA to any person designated for the imposition of sanctions pursuant to specified Executive Orders, certain statutes relating to Iran Sanctions, and the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2003.

Subtitle B: Planning for American Energy - Planning for American Energy Act of 2014 - (Sec. 22002) Amends the MLA to direct the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) with regard to lands administered by the Forest Service, to publish every four years a Quadrennial Federal Onshore Energy Production Strategy to direct federal land energy development and department resource allocation in order to promote the energy and national security of the United States in accordance with the BLM mission to promote the multiple use of federal lands.

Requires the Secretary to consult with the Administrator of the Energy Information Administration on the projected U.S. energy demands for the next 30 years and on how energy derived from federal onshore lands can put the United States on a trajectory that meets that demand during the next four years, with a goal for increasing energy independence and production.

Directs the Secretary to determine a domestic strategic production objective for the development of energy resources from such lands.

Expresses the sense of Congress that federally recognized Indian tribes may elect to set their own production objectives as part of the strategy.

Grants the relevant Secretary all authority necessary to make determinations regarding which additional federal lands available for leasing at the time the lease sale occurs will be available to meet the production objectives established by the strategies.

Requires the Secretary, within 12 months of enactment of this Act, to complete a programmatic environmental impact statement in accordance with certain NEPA requirements. Deems such statement sufficient to comply with all NEPA requirements for all necessary resource management and land use plans associated with implementation of the strategy.

Requires the Secretary to submit to: (1) the President and Congress, each proposed strategy, including comments received from affected states, federally recognized tribes, and local governments prior to publishing it; and (2) Congress the first Quadrennial Federal Onshore Energy Production Strategy within 18 months of enactment of this Act.

Subtitle C: National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Access - National Petroleum Reserve Alaska Access Act - (Sec. 23002) Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the National Petroleum Reserve (NPR) in Alaska remains explicitly designated to provide oil and natural gas resources to the United States, and (2) it is national policy to actively advance oil and gas development within the NPR.

(Sec. 23003) Amends the Naval Petroleum Reserves Production Act of 1976 to require that the mandatory program of competitive leasing of oil and gas in the NPR include at least one lease sale annually in those areas most likely to produce commercial quantities of oil and natural gas each year in the period 2014-2024.

(Sec. 23004) Directs the Secretary to ensure permits according to a specified time line for all surface development activities, including pipelines and roads construction, to: (1) develop and bring into production areas within the NPR that are subject to oil and gas leases, and (2) transport oil and gas from and through the NPR to existing transportation or processing infrastructure on the North Slope of Alaska.

Requires the Secretary to ensure that any federal permitting agency shall issue permits for construction for transportation of oil and natural gas under existing federal oil and gas leases with drilling permits within 60 days after enactment of this Act.

Requires approval of drilling permits under new federal oil and gas leases within six months after submission of a permit request to the Secretary.

Directs the Secretary to submit to Congress a plan for approved rights-of-way for any plan for pipeline, road, and other necessary surface infrastructure that will ensure that all leasable tracts in the NPR are within 25 miles of an approved road and pipeline right-of-way that can serve future development of the NPR.

(Sec. 23005) Directs the Secretary to issue: (1) a new proposed integrated activity plan from among the non-adopted alternatives in the NPR Alaska Integrated Activity Plan Record of Decision dated February 21, 2013, and (2) an environmental impact statement under NEPA for issuance of oil and gas leases in the NPR-Alaska to promote efficient and maximum development of oil and natural gas resources of such reserve.

Nullifies the February 21, 2013, Record of Decision, including its integrated activity plan and environmental impact statement.

(Sec. 23006) Directs the Secretary to issue regulations establishing clear requirements to ensure that the Department is supporting development of oil and gas leases in the NPR.

(Sec. 23007) Prescribes requirements for the new proposed integrated activity plan, including a departmental deadline for response to lease development permit applications and a timeline for processing each application.

(Sec. 23008) Requires the Secretary to assess all technically recoverable fossil fuel resources within the NPR, including all conventional and unconventional oil and natural gas.

Directs the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the state of Alaska and the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, to implement and complete the resource assessment within 24 months after enactment of this Act.

Authorizes the USGS to use resources and funds provided by the state of Alaska in carrying out such assessment.

Subtitle D: BLM Live Internet Auctions - BLM Live Internet Auctions Act - (Sec. 24002) Amends the MLA to authorize the Secretary to conduct onshore oil and gas lease sales through Internet-based live bidding methods.

Requires each individual Internet-based lease sale to conclude within seven days.

Directs the Secretary to analyze the first 10 such lease sales, including estimates of: (1) increases or decreases in such lease sales, compared to sales conducted by oral bidding; and (2) the total cost or savings to the Department as a result of such sales, compared to sales conducted by oral bidding.

Requires the report also to evaluate the demonstrated or expected effectiveness of different structures for lease sales which may provide an opportunity to better maximize bidder participation, ensure the highest return to the federal taxpayers, minimize opportunities for fraud or collusion, and ensure the security and integrity of the leasing process.

Subtitle E: Native American Energy - Native American Energy Act - (Sec. 25002) Amends the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to allow the Secretary, an affected Indian tribe, or a certified third-party appraiser under contract with the Indian tribe to appraise Indian land or trust assets involved in a transaction requiring the Secretary's approval.

Deems an appraisal conducted by an Indian tribe or by an appraiser under contract with an Indian tribe to be approved if the Secretary does not approve or disapprove of the appraisal within 60 days of receiving it.

Gives tribes the option of waiving such appraisals if they give the Secretary an unambiguous indication of tribal intent to do so that includes an express waiver of any claims they might have against the United States that result from forgoing the appraisal.

(Sec. 25003) Requires each agency within the Department of the Interior involved in the review of oil and gas activities on Indian lands to use a uniform system of reference numbers and tracking systems for oil and gas wells.

(Sec. 25004) Amends NEPA to make the environmental impact statement for major federal action on Indian lands available for review and comment only to the affected Indian tribe and individuals residing within the affected area.

(Sec. 25005) Bars any energy-related action filed later than the end of the 60-day period beginning on the date of the final agency action.

Requires that all energy-related actions be: (1) brought in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, (2) resolved within 180 days after the cause of action is filed, and (3) resolved on appeal by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit within 180 days after an interlocutory order or final judgment, decree or order of the district court was issued.

Requires the court, in any energy-related action in which the plaintiff does not ultimately prevail, to award expenses incurred by the defendant, unless the court finds that the position of the plaintiff was substantially justified or that special circumstances make an award unjust.

(Sec. 25006) Amends the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 to direct the Secretary to enter into agreements with Indian tribes, from FY2014-FY2018, to carry out demonstration projects that promote biomass energy production on Indian forest land and in nearby communities by providing tribes with reliable supplies of woody biomass from federal lands.

Requires the creation of at least four new demonstration projects during each of those fiscal years.

Directs the Secretary, when reviewing project applications, to consider whether a proposed demonstration project will:

• increase the availability or reliability of local or regional energy,
• enhance the tribe's economic development,
• improve the connection of electric power transmission facilities serving the tribe with other electric transmission facilities,
• improve the forest health or watersheds of federal land or Indian forest land or rangeland, or
• otherwise promote woody biomass use.

Directs the Secretary, to the extent practicable, to incorporate management plans in effect on Indian forest land or rangeland into demonstration project agreements affecting those lands.

Prohibits the agreements from having a term that exceeds 20 years, but allows them to be renewed for up to 10 additional years.

(Sec. 25007) Considers activities conducted or resources harvested or produced pursuant to a tribal resource management plan or an integrated resource management plan approved by the Secretary to be sustainable when sustainability is federally required.

(Sec. 25008) Amends the Long-Term Leasing Act to authorize the Navajo Nation to enter into commercial or agricultural leases of up to 99 years on their restricted lands without the Secretary's approval, provided they are executed under tribal regulations approved by the Secretary.

Allows the Navajo Nation to enter into mineral resource leases on their restricted lands without the Secretary's approval if they are executed under approved tribal regulations and do not exceed 25 years, though they may include a renewal option for one additional term not exceeding 25 years.

(Sec. 25009) Prohibits any Department of the Interior rule regarding hydraulic fracturing, used in oil and gas development or production, from having any effect on land held in trust or restricted status for Indians, except with the express consent of its Indian beneficiaries.

Title III: Miscellaneous Provisions - (Sec. 30101) Directs the Secretary of the Interior to: (1) establish an Office of Energy Employment and Training, under the direction of a Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy, Lands and Minerals Management, to oversee the hiring and training of the Department of the Interior relating to energy planning, permitting, and regulatory agencies; and (2) submit annual status reports to Congress regarding the hiring and diversity policies of the Office and the Department.

Subdivision B: Bureau Of Reclamation Conduit Hydropower Development Equity And Jobs Act - Bureau of Reclamation Conduit Hydropower Development Equity and Jobs Act - (Sec. 2) Amends the Water Conservation and Utilization Act (WCUA) to: (1) authorize the Secretary of the Interior (acting through the Bureau of Reclamation) to enter into leases of power privileges for electric power generation in connection with any project constructed under such Act, using the processes applicable to such leases under the Reclamation Project Act of 1939 (RPA); and (2) grant the Secretary authority in addition to and alternative to any authority in existing laws relating to particular projects, including small conduit hydropower development.

Requires the lease of power privilege contracts to be at rates that will produce revenues at least sufficient to cover the appropriate share of the annual operation and maintenance cost of the project and such fixed charges, including interest, as the Secretary deems proper. Limits such leases to periods not to exceed 40 years. Specifies that no findings required as prerequisites for construction of a water conservation or utilization project under WCUA shall be required for such a lease.

Requires all right, title, and interest to installed power facilities constructed by non-federal entities pursuant to a lease of power privilege, and direct revenues derived therefrom, to remain with the lessee, except that lease revenues and fixed charges, if any, shall be covered into the Reclamation Fund to be credited to the project from which those revenues were derived.

Requires the Secretary: (1) to first offer the lease of power privilege to an irrigation district or water users association operating the applicable transferred conduit, or to the district or association receiving water from such conduit; (2) to determine a reasonable timeframe for the district or association to accept or reject the lease offer; and (3) if the district or association rejects the offer, to offer the lease to other parties using the applicable RPA processes.

Requires the Bureau to apply its categorical exclusion process under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) to small conduit hydropower under WCUA, excluding siting of associated transmission facilities on federal lands.

Subdivision C: Central Oregon Jobs And Water Security Act - Central Oregon Jobs and Water Security Act - (Sec. 2) Amends the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to modify the boundary of the Crooked River, Oregon. Requires the developer for any hydropower development at Bowman Dam to analyze any impacts to the Outstanding Remarkable Values of the Wild and Scenic River that may be caused by such development and propose mitigation for such impacts as part of any license application submitted to FERC.

(Sec. 3) Increases (from 10 to 17 cubic feet per second) the minimum release that shall be maintained from the Prineville Reservoir for the benefit of downstream fish life. Requires 7 of the 17 cubic feet per second release to serve as mitigation for the city of Prineville groundwater pumping, as determined necessary for any given year by the city, including any shaping of the release of the up to 7 cubic feet per second to coincide with the city's groundwater pumping as may be required by the state of Oregon. Authorizes the Secretary of the Army to make applications to that state in conjunction with that city to protect these supplies instream. Directs the city to make payment to the Secretary for that portion of the minimum release that actually serves as mitigation under Oregon law. Authorizes the Secretary to contract exclusively with the city for additional amounts in the future at the city's request.

(Sec. 4) Directs the Secretary, on a "first fill" priority basis, to store in and release from the Reservoir: (1) 68,273 acre feet of water annually to fulfill all 16 Bureau of Reclamation contracts existing as of January 1, 2011; (2) up to 2,740 acre feet of water annually to supply the McKay Creek lands; and (3) up to 10,000 acre feet of water annually to the North Unit Irrigation District, upon request, pursuant to a Temporary Water Service Contract.

(Sec. 5) Authorizes any landowner within Ochoco Irrigation District, Oregon, to repay construction costs of project facilities allocated to that landowner's lands within that District. Requires the Secretary of the Interior, upon the request of a landowner who has repaid project construction costs, to provide certification of freedom from ownership and pricing limitations.

Modifies the District's reclamation contracts, on approval of the District directors, to: (1) authorize the use of water for instream purposes in order for the District to engage in, or take advantage of, conserved water projects and temporary instream leasing as authorized by Oregon law; (2) include within the district boundary approximately 2,742 acres in the vicinity of McKay Creek; (3) classify approximately 685 of such acres as irrigable; and (4) provide the District with stored water from Prineville Reservoir for supplying such 685 acres, contingent on the transfer of existing appurtenant McKay Creek water rights to instream use and the state's issuance of water rights for the use of stored water.

Subdivision D: State Authority For Hydraulic Fracturing Regulation; EPA Hydraulic Fracturing Research - Title I: State Authority For Hydraulic Fracturing Regulation - Protecting States' Rights to Promote American Energy Security Act - (Sec. 102) Amends the Mineral Leasing Act to prohibit the Department of the Interior (Department) from enforcing any federal regulation, guidance, or permit requirement regarding hydraulic fracturing (including any component of that process), relating to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities on or under any land in any state that has regulations, guidance, or permit requirements for that activity.

Defines "hydraulic fracturing" as the process by which fracturing fluids (including a fracturing fluid system) are pumped into an underground geologic formation to generate fractures or cracks, thereby increasing rock permeability near the wellbore and improving production of natural gas or oil.

Requires the Department to recognize and defer to state regulations, permitting, and guidance for all activities regarding hydraulic fracturing relating to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities on federal land.

Requires each state to submit to the BLM a copy of its regulations that: (1) apply to hydraulic fracturing operations on federal land, and (2) require disclosure of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing operations on federal land.

Directs the Secretary of the Interior to make such state regulations available to the public.

(Sec. 103) Directs the Comptroller General (GAO) to examine the economic benefits of domestic shale oil and gas production resulting from hydraulic fracturing, including identification of: (1) state and federal revenue generated as a result of shale gas production, (2) jobs created as a result of shale oil and gas production, and (3) an estimate of potential energy prices without domestic shale oil and gas production.

(Sec. 104) Prohibits the Department from enforcing any federal regulation, guidance, or permit requirement governing the hydraulic fracturing process, or any of its components, relating to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities on land held either in trust or restricted status for the benefit of Indians except with the express consent of the beneficiary on whose behalf such land is held in trust or restricted status.

Title II: EPA Hydraulic Fracturing Research - EPA Hydraulic Fracturing Study Improvement Act - (Sec. 202) Requires the EPA Administrator, in conducting the study of the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources, with respect to which a request for information was issued in November 2012, to:

• consider any final or interim report summarizing EPA research on such relationship, before issuing and disseminating them, to be Highly Influential Scientific Assessments requiring peer review in accordance with specified EPA and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) policy documents;
• require the reports to meet the standards and procedures for the dissemination of influential scientific, financial, or statistical information set forth in the EPA's Guidelines for Ensuring and Maximizing the Quality, Objectivity, Utility, and Integrity of Information Disseminated by the Environmental Protection Agency, developed in response to guidelines issued by OMB under the Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2001; and
• ensure that identification of the possible impacts included in such reports be accompanied by objective estimates of the probability, uncertainty, and consequence of each identified impact.

Requires public release of the final report by September 30, 2016.

Title III: Miscellaneous Provisions - (Sec. 301) Directs the Secretary to review annually and report to Congress on all state activities relating to hydraulic fracturing.

Subdivision E: Preventing Government Waste and Protecting Coal Mining Jobs In America - Preventing Government Waste and Protecting Coal Mining Jobs in America - (Sec. 2) Preventing Government Waste and Protecting Coal Mining Jobs in America - Amends the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to require state programs for regulation of surface coal mining to incorporate the necessary rule concerning excess spoil, coal mine waste, and buffers for perennial and intermittent streams published by the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement on December 12, 2008.

Requires the Secretary to: (1) publish notice of a determination when all states that wish to assume exclusive jurisdiction of such mining regulation have incorporated the rule in their programs; (2) assess the effectiveness of the rule's implementation during the five-year period following such notice; (3) carry out all required consultation on the benefits and other impacts of the implementation of the rule to any threatened or endangered species, with the participation of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the USGS; and (4) report to Congress an evaluation of the rule's effectiveness, any ways in which it inhibits energy production, and any proposed changes to the rule.

Prohibits issuance of any regulations regarding stream buffer zones or protection before publication of the report, other than a rule necessary to implement incorporation of the December 2008 rule described in this Act. Requires each state with an approved program for regulation of surface coal mining to submit program amendments incorporating such rule within two years of enactment of this Act.

Division C: Judiciary - Responsibly And Professionally Invigorating Development Act of 2014, or the RAPID Act - (Sec. 2) Amends federal law governing administrative procedure to establish procedures to streamline, increase the efficiency of, and enhance coordination of agency administration of the regulatory review, environmental decision making, and permitting process for major actions that are construction activities undertaken, reviewed, or funded by federal agencies, including interagency coordination regarding permitting.

Authorizes a project sponsor, upon the request of a lead agency (the agency responsible preparing the environmental document), to prepare any document for environmental review required in support of, or for approval of, such an activity if such agency furnishes oversight and independently evaluates, approves, and adopts such document prior to taking action or making any approval based on such document. Defines "environmental review" as federal agency procedures for preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS), environmental assessment (EA), categorical exclusion, or other document under NEPA.

Prohibits requiring more than one EIS and one EA for a project, except for supplemental environmental documents prepared under NEPA or environmental documents prepared pursuant to a court order. Requires the lead agency to prepare the EIS or EA, except as otherwise provided by law. Prohibits, after the lead agency issues a record of decision, any federal agency responsible for making any approval for a project from relying on a document other than the environmental document prepared by the lead agency.

Allows the lead agency, upon the request of a project sponsor, to: (1) adopt, use, or rely upon secondary and cumulative impact analyses included in documents prepared under NEPA for projects in the same geographic area if such documents are pertinent to the NEPA decision for the project under review; and (2) adopt a document that has been prepared for a project under state laws as the EIS or EA for the project if such laws provide environmental protection and opportunities for public involvement that are substantially equivalent to NEPA. Requires the lead agency to publish a supplement to the state document if: (1) a significant change has been made to the project that is relevant for purposes of environmental review of the project, or (2) there have been significant changes in circumstances or availability of information relevant to the environmental review for the project. Requires a lead agency to issue its record of decision or finding of no significant impact based upon such adopted document.

Authorizes a lead agency to adopt for a project an environmental document for a similar project that is in geographical proximity and that was subject to environmental review or similar state procedures within the preceding five years if the agency determines that there is a reasonable likelihood that the projects will have similar environmental impacts.

Requires the lead agency to invite and designate as a participating agency in the preparation of an environmental document for a project any federal agency that is required to adopt such document. Requires such an agency to collaborate on the preparation of such document unless it informs the lead agency that it has no jurisdiction, authority, expertise, or information with respect to, and does not intend to submit comments on, the project. Precludes any agency that declines to participate from submitting comments on such document or taking measures to oppose any permit, license, or approval related to that project based on the environmental review. Prohibits the lead agency from acting upon, responding to, or including in any document prepared under NEPA any comment submitted by a participating agency that concerns matters that are outside of such agency's authority and expertise.

Requires federal agencies to carry out: (1) obligations under other applicable laws concurrently and in conjunction with the review required under NEPA; and (2) such rules, policies, and procedures as may be reasonably necessary to enable such agency to ensure the completion of the environmental review and environmental decision making process in a timely, coordinated, and environmentally responsible manner.

Prescribes requirements for initiating and completing environmental review for a project, especially for: (1) determining the range of alternatives to be considered; (2) methodologies for analyzing such alternatives, including potential effects on employment; (3) a plan for coordinating public and agency participation in the environmental review; (4) periods for public and agency comments on draft EISs; and (5) a schedule for completing the review. Requires all participating agencies to comply with such schedule.

Establishes: (1) for projects requiring preparation of an EA, a one-year deadline for issuing a finding of no significant impact or a Notice of Intent to Prepare an EIS; and (2) for projects requiring preparation of an EIS, a two-year deadline for completing the EIS. Sets forth conditions for extensions.

Sets forth deadlines for decisions required under any other federal law relating to the undertaking of a project being reviewed under NEPA. Deems: (1) a project to be approved in the event that a federal agency fails to approve or otherwise act upon a permit, license, or other similar application for approval related to a project within such deadlines, and (2) such approval to be final agency action that may not be reversed by an agency. Applies the deadlines to environmental reviews and environmental decision making processes initiated after this Act's enactment. Requires any applicable period of time, for purposes of determining a deadline for a review or process initiated prior to this Act's enactment, to be calculated as beginning from the date of this Act's enactment.

Prescribes responsibilities of the lead agency and the participating agencies to work cooperatively to identify and resolve issues that could delay completion of the environmental review or could result in denial of any approvals required for the project under applicable laws.

Prohibits the lead agency from using the social cost of carbon in the any environmental review or environmental decision making process.

Requires the head of each federal agency to report annually on: (1) the projects for which the agency initiated preparation of an EIS or EA; (2) the projects for which the agency issued a record of decision or a finding of no significant impact and the length of time it took the agency to complete the environmental review for each such project; and (3) the filing and resolution of any lawsuits against the agency seeking judicial review of a permit, license, or approval issued by the agency for an action subject to NEPA.

Sets forth limitations to claims arising under federal law seeking judicial review of a permit, license, or approval issued by a federal agency for an action subject to NEPA.

Requires the Council on Environmental Quality and each federal agency to amend NEPA implementing regulations to implement the provisions of this Act.

Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov