Strategic Petroleum Reserve Reform Act

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6511) to authorize the Secretary of Energy to carry out a program to lease underutilized Strategic Petroleum Reserve facilities, and for other purposes, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials in the Record on this bill.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, in 1995, President Ford signed a bill to ban the sale of crude oil overseas. Two years ago, we repealed that ban, and, last month, we were exporting some days 3 million barrels of oil per day.

We have gone from a nation that was importing up to 80 percent of our oil to a nation that, today, if we absolutely had to, could be totally energy independent.

Because of the Arab oil embargo in the early 1970s, a little before President Ford signed the bill that said you couldn't export crude oil, we established a Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The idea was that we wanted to store oil in underground caverns--crude oil--so that, if there were another supply disruption, we would have the crude oil even if the OPEC cartel cut off oil shipments to the United States.

We have authorized up to a billion barrels of crude oil in this reserve, and there is currently a little under 700 million barrels. But, Madam Speaker, we don't need 700 million barrels of crude oil today because, as I have just pointed out, when we allowed crude oil to be exported, we unleashed a drilling boom in the United States that has driven our oil production on a daily basis from around 6 million barrels of oil per day to, this past month, 11 million barrels of oil per day.

So, hence, the idea embodied in H.R. 6511, cosponsored by my good friend from Chicago, Democrat Bobby Rush. It is pretty straightforward.

We have quite a bit of excess capacity right now in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. We have authorized the sale of about 300 million barrels between now and 2028. If that oil is actually sold, we will have almost half of the SPR without any crude oil in it. So why not set up a program and authorize the Department of Energy to put that vacant space up for bid?

Oil producers all over the United States are scrambling for ways to store all the oil that we are producing while it is waiting to be refined or shipped overseas.

This is not a mandatory program. We are not mandating that the private sector has to lease the space. What we are saying is, if the private sector wants to negotiate with the Strategic Petroleum Reserve managers, and it is a good deal for both sides, they can.

We currently--now, this number may not be exactly right, Madam Speaker, but we spend about $200 million a year, I believe, to store the oil that we are storing in the reserve, that is owned by the taxpayers.

If you have vacant space and you allow the private sector to use that vacant space and you charge whatever the market rate is for the private sector to put oil in the reserve for a short term, those funds will offset the cost of storing the government-owned oil. They will also offset the cost of maintaining the reserve, and they will offset the cost of improving the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

Again, this is not a mandatory program, so we believe that this bill, H.R. 6511, is a win-win. It helps the taxpayers because it might generate some revenue that could be used to offset the cost of maintaining the reserve as it exists. It might save the private sector some money if they decide to utilize it.

And it might--and I would say, probably will--make our energy sector more efficient because the private sector, should they choose to participate in this program, doesn't have to go out and build above- ground storage and maintain the above-ground storage. They can use the existing capacity that has already been hollowed out on the Gulf Coast of the United States that is very conveniently located adjacent to our refineries and/or to our export terminals; and that will, overall, lower costs of the whole system and end up being a win for the consumer both in the United States and overseas. So I would hope that, when the time comes later today, we will pass this unanimously.

I want to thank, again, my original Democratic sponsor, Congressman Rush of Chicago, Illinois. I want to thank the subcommittee chairman, Fred Upton of Michigan; the full committee chairman, Greg Walden of Oregon; and the full committee ranking member, who is on the floor, Mr. Pallone of New Jersey.

We have all worked on a bipartisan basis to pass this, and we think that is why we have put it on the suspension calendar.

As you know, Madam Speaker, suspension bills have to get a two-thirds vote, and I am hoping that this bill gets a 100 percent vote. It is a good bill. It is a win-win.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have been in Congress for 34 years. I am about to retire at the end of this session. I have been on the House floor with many tumultuous battles. I have watched the fight over the Keystone pipeline, drilling in ANWR up in Alaska. My good friend, Senator Markey of Massachusetts, when he was in the House, would come to the floor with his chart, an oil well drilling into the Social Security trust fund.

It is refreshing, Madam Speaker, to be on the floor today in the spirit of bipartisanship where we are all for something which I think really is good for the American people, good for the taxpayer, and good for the consumer.

This is on suspension, so, obviously, we have to have a huge vote. I hope we get it. It looks like we will since we don't have any other speakers.

I would urge a ``yes'' vote, Madam Speaker. Let's do something good for America. Let's vote for this bill. Please vote ``yes'' on H.R. 6511 when the vote is called.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6511, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Reform Act. This bill would set up a pilot program to facilitate the leasing of unused storage space in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, or SPR, while attempting to ensure that the government and taxpayers benefit from these leases. This is a worthy cause, and I commend Representatives Barton and Rush for their efforts.

In recent years, Congress has turned to the SPR repeatedly as an offset for deficits, transportation funding, and other items. In fact, it has been used far more in recent years for those purposes than for energy security. And these SPR sales, which will occur over the next several years, will free up a great deal of physical space in the reserve. This bill puts that empty space to good use.

The bill is part of our committee's ongoing efforts to modernize the SPR. Going forward, we need to rethink its whole structure, including exploring the authorization of regional refined product reserves.

Today, there are two regional supply reserves, both serving the Northeastern States: The Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve and the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve.

The Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve was created by our committee in the Energy Act of 2000; and the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve was created by President Obama and Energy Secretary Moniz in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, using authorities provided to the Secretary in section 171 of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act.

President Trump has proposed eliminating the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve, and I think that is a mistake. I remain committed to authorizing the existing gasoline reserve in statute, and I am convinced that regional reserves are a critical component of any SPR modernization effort.

Madam Speaker, I believe other regions should benefit, or could benefit greatly, from having a refined product reserve. This is particularly true for the Southeast, which is extremely supply constrained. A Southeast regional reserve could provide relief and flexibility in the event of a natural disaster in the region itself or in the Gulf States that supply the Southeast region with refined product.

Now, expanding the number of regional reserves is something that we must do in the future, but I believe this legislation is a good step forward on

the road to SPR modernization, and so I do urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6511, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Reform Act. This bill is another product of the Energy and Commerce Committee's ongoing and bipartisan work to modernize the Department of Energy.

The Committee's DOE modernization efforts are focused on ensuring the Department can more ably address current and future domestic and international energy and security challenges. These challenges range from maintaining nuclear safety and security to protecting the reliable supply and delivery of energy, and they require a DOE that has the appropriate organization, management focus, and authorities to succeed.

H.R. 6511 was developed by Vice Chairman Barton and Ranking Member Rush to modernize the forty-year-old Strategic Petroleum Reserve, so it's prepared to protect our Nation from energy disruptions in the decades ahead.

H.R. 6511 authorizes DOE to lease underutilized storage capacity, which will become available in increasing amounts as DOE conducts mandated drawdowns over the next several years. Rather than have DOE maintain empty caverns at considerable taxpayer expense, H.R. 6511 will allow DOE to develop the spare capacity, attracting much needed capital investments for additional improvements. H.R. 6511 will preserve the SPR's existing capacity, generate revenue for upgrades and maintenance, and improve the operational readiness of the entire SPR complex. H.R. 6511 is truly a win-win, and a perfect example of our bipartisan DOE modernization effort.

I especially want to thank Mr. Barton for his work on this bill. He has been at the forefront of so many defining moments relating to energy security. From his leadership as Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee during passage of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, to his tireless efforts to repeal the ban on crude oil exports, his work on this bill contributes to the great legacy he leaves behind at the Energy and Commerce Committee--and in the United States Congress. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 6511.