MILLS: Federal Government Overreach Attacked on Many Fronts

Insiders ENERGY REPORT: Petroleum Industry News sends Mixed Signals By Alex Mills AUSTIN Texas (Texas Insider Report)  The President Congress and the Texas Legislature all have been very active in implementing executive orders legislation resolutions and letters to reduce the federal governments massive regulatory overreach. It all started with President Trumps State of the Union address on Feb. 28 in which he said economic recovery must begin by reducing massive regulations on American businesses. The next day he signed an Executive Order directing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to review a controversial water rule. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt said he would quickly withdraw the rule initiated by the Obama Administrations EPA.

• MILLS: NEW EPA HEAD STRESSES COOPERATION WITH STATE OFFICIALS

That same day Texas Cong. Mac Thornberry (left) filed the Federal Regulatory Certainty for Water Act H.R. 1261 which would define navigable waters as waters that are either navigable in fact or those that have a permanent or continuously flowing bodies of water that form streams rivers lakes and oceans that are connected to waters that are navigable in fact. The order will kick off what will likely be a lengthy process to undo the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) Rule which includes a lawsuit filed by a number of states over the regulation along with energy agriculture and development interests. The legal action is in U.S. Court of Appeals. In a related issue Republican leaders from 11 states including governors and attorneys general have urged EPA to stop collecting certain emissions information from oil and gas operators. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton as well as governors and top lawyers from other states sent a letter to EPA Administrator Pruitt asking the new agency leader to halt information requests initiated by the ObamaAadministration. Rep. Thornberry also sent a letter to EPA Administrator Pruitt on March 2 asking the agency to rescind the pending Information Collection Effort for Oil & Gas Facilities" that was issued Nov. 10 2016.

Within your rules and regulations I respectfully ask that you fully rescind the oil and gas ICR Thornberry said.

We believe the EPAs requests to be an unnecessary and onerous burden on oil and gas producers that is more harassment than a genuine search for pertinent and appropriate information the letter stated from the states of Alabama Arizona Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Mississippi Montana Oklahoma South Carolina and West Virginia.

The U.S. House of Representatives got into the act too passing by a 241-184 vote the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs Insight Reform and Accountability Act. The bill seeks to reduce the size of federal regulatory agencies and reduce the authority of unelected bureaucrats. This bill strengthens Congressional authority over the Office of Information & Regulatory Affairs to ensure it functions effectively as the first line of defense to stop overly burdensome regulations. While the Senate was confirming Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.) as Interior Secretary the Interior Department was publishing a notice postponing its regulation amending oil natural gas and coal royalty valuation. The rule which has been embroiled in a legal battle makes significant changes to the royalty valuation methods that impose a complex framework for operating on federal and tribal lands. In the Texas Legislature the chairmen of the Texas House and Senate Energy Committees in the Texas Legislature filed two concurrent resolutions calling on the federal government to work with Texas to unravel the harmful overreaching regulations that have been implemented over the past eight years which were largely aimed at negatively impacting the oil and gas industry." Specifically Senate Concurrent Resolution 26 filed by Senator Craig Estes (R-Wichita Falls) and House Concurrent Resolution 84 filed by Representative Drew Darby (R-San Angelo) strongly urge Congress and the new administration to closely review these onerous regulations in order to determine whether these rules should be revised repealed or alternatively delegated back to the states to implement and enforce. Petroleum Industry News Sends Mixed Signals There was a variety of news regarding the petroleum industry last week that sent mixed signals to industry observers. First petroleum economist Karr Ingham (left) said the Texas Petro Index increased again for the second month in a row. The drilling rig count drilling permits and well completions all increased from the previous month. Next came the news that ExxonMobil will invest $20 billion in the Gulf Coast region during the next 10 years and increase employment by an estimated 45000 jobs. ExxonMobil said it will strategically invest in 11 major chemical refining lubricant and liquefied natural gas projects in Texas and Louisiana to expand its manufacturing and export businesses. More positive news came from a report from the Business Council for Sustainable Energy. According to the report Americans now devote less than four percent of their total annual household spending to energythe lowest since government started keeping records.

That welcome development is in part a result of the fracking revolution and of the declining prices of natural gas" the report stated.

Lower energy prices have also helped to reduce manufacturing costs thus reviving the U.S. economy. Today the United States generates very cheap electricity for industrial use outranking China India and Mexico."

In spite of those low energy costs American producers have become more efficient. The United States" the report notes has decoupled economic growth and energy demand. Since 2007 American GDP grew by 12 while overall energy consumption fell by 3.7 it stated. Then on March 8th the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported an increase in U.S. crude oil inventories. The EIA reported crude stocks rose by 8.21 million barrels to 528.4 million barrels. Compared to the same period last year crude oil stocks are 37.6 million barrels higher than current levels.