Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SCR32 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	By: Bettencourt S.C.R. No. 32
2		-	(Wu)
	1	+	S.C.R. No. 32
3	2
4	3
5	4		SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
6	5		WHEREAS, The United States is the world's largest producer of
7	6		natural gas, but antiquated trade restrictions limit the potential
8	7		of this industry as an engine of economic growth; and
9	8		WHEREAS, In the wake of the 2008-2009 recession, the
10	9		increasing extraction of natural gas from shale formations helped
11	10		lift the nation's economy; this type of gas development supported
12	11		more than 900,000 jobs in 2012, according to a study sponsored by
13	12		the United States Chamber of Commerce Institute for 21st Century
14	13		Energy; the majority of those jobs had been created even as overall
15	14		unemployment reached some of the highest levels in a generation;
16	15		the booming economy of Texas, a leader in shale gas and liquefied
17	16		natural gas production, is a testament to the importance of this
18	17		industry; and
19	18		WHEREAS, Natural gas exports also play an important
20	19		geopolitical role; Russia has been the dominant provider of
21	20		liquefied natural gas to European countries, and much of the
22	21		liquefied natural gas that they use flows through pipelines that
23	22		cross Ukraine; recent turmoil there has threatened energy supplies
24	23		to Europe, prompting efforts to diversify its sources of liquefied
25	24		natural gas; and
26	25		WHEREAS, Currently, an American company can export liquefied
27	26		natural gas only to the limited group of countries with which the
28	27		United States has existing free trade agreements, unless the firm
29	28		obtains a license by undergoing an onerous application process
30	29		through the Department of Energy; the review of liquefied natural
31	30		gas export applications has been extremely slow, resulting in
32	31		costly and unnecessary delays in exports to many of our trading
33	32		partners; moreover, this barrier contradicts the nation's historic
34	33		trade policy and inhibits compliance with World Trade Organization
35	34		rules; and
36	35		WHEREAS, The expansion of natural gas exports to all
37	36		countries within the World Trade Organization would bring the
38	37		United States in line with its World Trade Organization obligations
39	38		and build ties with East Asia and other parts of the world;
40	39		expediting these exports will spur additional investment in new
41	40		domestic production and increase global supplies of a critical
42	41		energy source; and
43	42		WHEREAS, At present, the costly and time-consuming
44	43		regulatory limitations on the export of natural gas hinder trade
45	44		expansion and job creation and work against the national security
46	45		interests of the United States; by ending these constraints and
47	46		increasing global supplies of a critical energy source, the nation
48	47		can strengthen its position on the world stage while allowing the
49	48		energy sector to amplify its vital contributions to economic
50	49		growth; now, therefore, be it
51	50		RESOLVED, That the 84th Legislature of the State of Texas
52	51		hereby respectfully urge the United States Congress to expedite
53	52		natural gas exports; and, be it further
54	53		RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward official copies
55	54		of this resolution to the president of the United States, to the
56	55		president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of
57	56		Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the
58	57		members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that
59	58		this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a
60	59		memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.
	60	+	______________________________ ______________________________
	61	+	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
	62	+	I hereby certify that S.C.R. No. 32 was adopted by the Senate
	63	+	on April 30, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
	64	+	______________________________
	65	+	Secretary of the Senate
	66	+	I hereby certify that S.C.R. No. 32 was adopted by the House
	67	+	on May 19, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 143, Nays 0, one
	68	+	present not voting.
	69	+	______________________________
	70	+	Chief Clerk of the House
	71	+	Approved:
	72	+	______________________________
	73	+	Date
	74	+	______________________________
	75	+	Governor