Washington Digest: Senate defeats bid to speed pipeline work

WASHINGTON -- The Senate last week defeated a bid to speed construction of the Keystone oil pipeline.

Voting 56-42, senators killed an amendment that sought to greenlight the $7 billion TransCanada Corp. plan to connect tar sand fields in Alberta, Canada, to refineries on the Gulf Coast.

The amendment needed 60 votes to advance. Eleven Democrats joined Republicans to approve the amendment, despite President Barack Obama making personal calls urging Democrats to oppose it.

Obama in January rejected a permit for the project, saying he was not necessarily opposed to it but that Congress had passed a law requiring him to make a decision before all studies had been completed.

TransCanada officials since have said they will proceed with a portion of the pipeline from Oklahoma to the Gulf of Mexico, and would submit a new application for the northern segment that requires presidential approval because it crosses into Canada.

Republicans said the president was dragging his feet on a project that would create jobs and supply energy to the United States.

Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., the amendment sponsor, said applicable environmental studies have been completed, and the amendment would allow for TransCanada to redirect the pipeline around the ecologically sensitive Sandhills region of Nebraska, one of the marks against it.

Critics also have challenged estimates of job creation and impact on gasoline prices. They add risk to the environment from pipeline leaks make it "a disaster waiting to happen."

Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., voted to speed the Keystone pipeline. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., voted against expediting the project.

The vote came as senators debated a two-year, $109 billion bill to reauthorize a range of highway and mass transportation programs.

The highway bill had been held up for several weeks when leaders hit an impasse over potential amendments. A deal last week cleared the way for 30 amendments to be debated, including 10 on issues that were extraneous to transportation.

One was a bid to delay Environmental Protection Agency rules on emissions from industrial boilers and incinerators. The Senate voted 52-46 for the delay, but 60 votes were needed to advance.

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said the amendment would ensure new regulations "will be achievable and affordable and that manufacturers will have adequate time to bring their facilities into compliance, thus preserving jobs."

Speaking against the amendment, Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., said it would do more than delay pollution controls; it would "forever change the current standards allowed for mercury, arsenic, lead, chromium, benzene, toxic soot, and other dangerous pollutants."

Heller voted to delay the EPA regulations. Reid voted to keep them on track.

HOUSE PASSES SMALL-BUSINESS BILL

The House voted 390-23 for a package of bills to help small-business owners take their companies public and raise capital.

The broad support came as a result of rare bipartisan cooperation between House Republicans and President Obama, who backed the bill.

It would relax federal regulations on businesses looking to raise capital and put together initial public offerings, with sponsors saying it ultimately would lead to the creation of jobs.

Reps. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., and Joe Heck and Mark Amodei, both R-Nev., voted for the bill.

Before passage, lawmakers defeated an amendment by Rep. Gary Peters, D-Mich., that would require companies to report annually on their numbers of domestic and overseas employees.

Peters said his idea would ensure new jobs "stay here in the United States and in our local communities."

"Responsible investors have a right to know how publicly traded companies are spending their money and whether they are hiring and investing in the United States or are sending their resources overseas," Peters said.

Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, said the requirement would only mean more paperwork for companies.

"How does this amendment help jump-start business start-ups? It is one more cost imposed upon our job creators."

The amendment was defeated, 175-239. Berkley voted for it while Amodei and Heck voted against it.

Contact Stephens Washington Bureau Chief Steve Tetreault at stetreault @stephensmedia.com or 202-783-1760. Follow him on Twitter @STetreaultDC.