On Tuesday, December 6, 2011, the House is scheduled to consider H.R. 2360 under a suspension of the rules requiring a two-thirds majority vote for approval.  H.R. 2360 was introduced by Rep. Jeffry Landry (R-LA) on June 24, 2011, and was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, which reported the bill on October 10, 2011, by voice vote.

H.R. 2360 would amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to expressly authorize the production of energy in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) from sources other than oil and natural gas and allow the siting of facilities for transmitting and transporting such energy resources.  The bill would specify that all U.S. offshore energy-production facilities be covered by U.S. laws, which would thereby require that offshore renewable energy facilities be installed and serviced by U.S. citizens and U.S.-flag vessels.  Current law applies these requirements to oil and gas facilities operating on the OCS, but not specifically to renewable energy facilities such as wind turbines.

Under current law, oil and gas development is regulated by the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (P.L. 83-212) which regulates the drilling industry to ensure that U.S. laws applied to offshore oil and gas development.  Under the law, cargo transported between two U.S. ports or on the OCS must be carried on U.S.-made, owned, and operated vessels.  H.R. 2360 would require that the same standards and laws apply to the production of energy from sources other than oil and gas, such as renewable energy production on the OCS.

According to CBO, “this bill would have no budgetary impact.”