Regulatory Activity

Clean Water Act

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will extend its public comment period on the proposed “Clean Water Act Methods Update Rule for the Analysis of Effluent” until May 20. Background on the proposed rule can be found here.

Mineral Activity on the OCS

The Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), has announced an information collection concerning “Prospecting for Minerals Other Than Oil, Gas, and Sulphur on the Outer Continental Shelf.” Comments are due on May 26.

Legislative Activity

Energy

On Tuesday, April 28, Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary, Ernest Moniz, will testify before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee regarding the Administration’sQuadrennial Energy Review (QER). According to DOE, the review focuses on “energy infrastructure and identifies threats, risks, and opportunities for U.S. energy and climate security.”

Energy Efficiency

On Thursday, April 30, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing to consider testimony on three pieces of energy efficiency legislation: Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act of 2015 (S. 720 — Senators Portman (R-OH) and Shaheen (D-NH)); Weatherization Enhancement and Local Energy Efficiency Investment and Accountability Act (S. 703 — Senators Coons (D-DE) and Collins (R-ME)) and Energy Savings Through Public-Private Partnerships Act of 2015 (S. 858 — Senators Gardner (R-CO) and Coons).

Hydraulic Fracturing Rule

Also on Thursday, Apr 30, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining, will hold a hearing concerning the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM’s) Final Hydraulic Fracturing Rule.

Deepwater Horizon

On Wednesday, April 29, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee will hold a full committee hearing tiled, “Five Years After Deepwater Horizon: Improvements and Challenges in Prevention and Response.”

Strategic Petroleum Reserve

On Thursday, April 30, the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Subcommittee on Energy and Power, will hold a hearing to consider a discussion draft concerning the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and Title IV Energy Efficiency. According to the subcommittee, “the draft legislation seeks to ensure that stockpiles of petroleum are kept safely and readily accessible in times of national emergency by directing the Department of Energy to conduct a long-range review of the SPR and recommend an action plan to achieve optimal capacity, location, composition, storage, and distributional capabilities.”