Press Releases

The House passed H.R. 3, the Northern Route Approval Act, a bill that approves construction of the Keystone XL pipeline project. 

The legislation ends years of delay and the drawn out process of review by approving construction of the Keystone XL project, creating thousands of American jobs and providing greater U.S. energy security.

Representative Bucshon (IN-08) released the following statement:

“Last week, in a speech to a small business, the President said that many projects ‘take too long to get off the ground’ because of the amount of ‘permits’ and ‘red tape’ that get in the way.  Well Mr. President, the Keystone pipeline is a perfect example of this. 

“In fact, today marks 1,706 days since the initial permits were filed for the Keystone XL project and the State Department has now issued over 15,000 pages of review. This project is the most studied pipeline in history, yet it remains in limbo.  

“The Keystone pipeline will undoubtedly create thousands of American jobs, ease energy prices, and help secure our nation’s energy portfolio.  Instead of moving forward, this administration continues to delay construction for purely partisan political reasons, putting radical environmentalists before hard working middle class Americans. This project simply makes sense and I am proud to vote, yet again, to start construction.” 

Last week, Bucshon and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee passed H.R. 3 out of committee on a bipartisan basis, with no amendments.  Bucshon’s opening statement can be accessed here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ihj7LHD9pQ&list=PL4CE9BC61F1ADA6A6. 

President Obama visited Ellicott Dredges last Thursday and said, “one of the problems that we’ve had in the past is that it takes projects too long to get off the ground. There are all these permits, red tape, planning, and this and that. Some of it is important to do, but we could do it faster.” 24 hours before the President gave this speech, the CEO of Ellicott Dredges testified in front of Congress that the America needs the Keystone pipeline because “it’s all about jobs.”  Video of these excerpts can be found here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5Y9uThGTt4. 

The Facts on Keystone XL: 

According to a newly-released Pew Research Center survey, “two-thirds of Americans (66%) favor building the pipeline.”

During the 112th Congress, the House voted six separate times to allow for construction of the pipeline. 

According to the U.S. State Department, construction of the pipeline would create 42,100 jobs and that it would transport 830,000 barrels of oil per day (nearly half of U.S. imports from the Middle East). 

An estimated $585 million in state and local taxes along the pipeline route will be paid during construction. 

An estimated $5.2 billion in property taxes will be generated during the operating life of the pipeline. 

The State Department and the Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) determined that the Keystone XL pipeline “would have a degree of safety greater than any typically constructed domestic oil pipeline system under current regulations and a degree of safety along the entire length of the pipeline that would be similar to that required in high consequence areas.”