Inhofe Says New Energy Bill Will Help Oklahoma’s Energy Industry

The U.S. Senate on Wednesday passed the nation’s first broad energy bill in years on an 85 to 12 vote, drawing praise from Oklahoma U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe, chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. The measure will reportedly align the nation’s oil, gas and electricity infrastructure.

“This bill will improve the production, generation, and transmission of our energy and natural resources, to include streamlining the permitting process for pipelines, which will generate jobs and provide affordable, reliable energy for our nation,” said the Senator following the Wednesday morning vote. “It will also expedite applications of liquefied natural gas exports, creating jobs in Oklahoma while giving our allies another alternative for purchasing affordable energy where Russia has  long dominated the market.”

The measure is officially known as the Energy Policy Modernization Act.

“Energy development and production is a vital component of Oklahoma’s economy and with the passage of the Energy Policy Modernization Act, we are one step closer to updating our nation’s energy policies to address today’s market,” added the Senator.

U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), chairman of the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, today praised Senate passage of the Energy Policy Modernization Act (EPMA), which passed by a vote of 85 to 12.  The EPMA contains valuable provisions from S.659, the Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act of 2016, as well as several amendments sponsored by Inhofe.

One element of the bill is an amendment on geothermal heat pumps and was sponsored by Sen. Inhofe. It amends the definition of “renewable energy” to allow federal agencies to use geothermal heat pump technology when meeting their federal renewable energy procurement requirements.

Another Inhofe amendment allows federal agencies to accept geomatically gathered data for the purposes of considering preliminary approvals of permits and will benefit pipeline, electric transmission, highway and other infrastructure projects.

A third Inhofe amendment modifies the calculation of fuel economy for dual-fueled vehicles to provide manufacturers with a greater regulatory incentive to produce natural gas vehicles.

While the bill had the support of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and the Alliance to Save Energy, some environmental groups opposed it, claiming it was nothing but a move to prop up the fossil fuel industry.senatorjiminhofe1