WASHINGTON, DC - The Energy Subcommittee, chaired by Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), today announced a markup for Thursday, September 6, 2018, at 1:00 p.m. in room 2123 of the Rayburn House Office Building.
Building on the committee’s efforts to modernize the Department of Energy’s (DOE) security missions, #SubEnergy will consider legislation H.R. 6511, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Reform Act, authored by Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX) and Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL). This legislation seeks to preserve and upgrade the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) infrastructure by requiring the Secretary of Energy to carry out a pilot program to lease underutilized SPR capacity that will become available under current, mandated drawdowns.
“The United States is arguably more energy secure today than it’s ever been before," said #SubEnergy Chairman Upton. “This resurgence in American oil and gas production has drastically changed the energy landscape - and has begun to shift how we should view our SPR assets. Even with America’s energy supply abundance, the SPR remains important for energy security. By modernizing this asset, this ensures the nation’s SPR will be more capable of responding to oil supply emergencies for decades to come."
Background:
In December 2016, the Energy and Commerce Committee requested a Government Accountability Office (GAO) examination of DOE’s management of the SPR and U.S. participation in the International Energy Agency. Read the full letter here.
In November 2017, the Subcommittee on Energy held a hearing examining the federal and state response and recovery efforts from the 2017 hurricane season. Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Petroleum Reserves Robert Corbin testified at the hearing about the SPR and its operational challenges. Read his full testimony here.
In June 2018, GAO released a report on its examination, recommending that DOE take several steps to modernize the SPR. Read the full report here.
In July 2018, the Subcommittee on Energy held a legislative hearing discussing draft legislation to modernize the nation’s SPR by requiring the Secretary of Energy to carry out a pilot program to lease underutilized SPR facilities.
A background memo, electronic copies of the legislation, and live stream of the markup can be found online HERE. Amendment text and votes will be available at the same link as they are posted.
