KEYSTONE APPLICATION AT 1,700 DAYS
1,700 days have now passed since TransCanada first applied to the U.S. State Department for a Presidential Permit to construct the Keystone XL pipeline. After over four-and-a-half years of review, this landmark jobs and energy project remains needlessly tied up in red tape. To end the delays, the House will vote next week on legislation authored by Rep. Lee Terry (R-NE) to clear away all remaining roadblocks and allow construction of the project to finally begin.
Below are some notable dates from the last 1,700 days as the application for this privately funded jobs and energy project was submitted, analyzed, and then allowed to languish.
Day 757
Oct. 15, 2010 - Speaking to the Commonwealth Club of San Francisco, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says of approving the Keystone XL, “we are inclined to do so."
Day 1,040
July 25, 2011 - The Obama administration issues a Statement of Administration Policy calling legislation related to the Keystone XL pipeline unnecessary, declaring, “The Department of State has been working diligently to complete the permit decision process for the Keystone XL pipeline and has publicly committed to reaching a decision before Dec. 31, 2011."
Day 1,072
Aug. 26, 2011 - The State Department issues its Final Environmental Impact Statement, which finds that the pipeline will have limited adverse environmental impacts during construction and operation.
Day 1,206
January 7, 2012 - During his weekly address to the nation, President Obama pledged that his New Year’s resolution is to do “whatever it takes to move this economy forward and to make sure that middle class families regain the security they’ve lost over the past decade." 495 days later, the country is still waiting.
Day 1,217
Jan. 18, 2012 - After over three years of review, President Obama formally rejects the pipeline’s Presidential Permit and asks TransCanada to reapply.
Day 1,267
March 8, 2012 - President Obama personally lobbies the Senate to kill an amendment calling for congressional approval of the Keystone XL pipeline.
Day 1,281
March 22, 2012 - On a visit to Cushing, Oklahoma, President Obama takes undue credit for the southern leg of the pipeline from Cushing to the Gulf Coast, ignoring the fact that he rejected the only Keystone permit that requires his approval because it crosses our national boundary with Canada. He stated, “I don’t want the energy jobs of tomorrow going to other countries. I want them here in the United States of America. And that’s what an all-of-the-above strategy is all about."
Day 1,589
Jan. 24, 2013 - The White House urges patience on Keystone after receipt of a bipartisan letter from 53 Senators urging President Obama to swiftly approve the Keystone following the Nebraska Governor’s approval of the pipeline’s reroute through the Cornhusker state.
Day 1,625
March 1, 2013 - The U.S. State Department issued its Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Keystone XL Presidential Permit application, which includes the proposed new route through Nebraska. The SEIS findings confirm pipeline will have limited adverse environmental impacts.
