November 18, 2014
U.S. Senate
Washington, D.C.  20510
 
Dear Senator,

You will soon vote on S. 2280, sponsored by Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), which would approve the Keystone XL Pipeline.  On November 14, 2014, the House of Representatives voted 252-161 in favor of H.R. 5682, a companion bill sponsored by Rep. Bill Cassidy (R-La.).  On behalf of the more than 1.2 million members and supporters of the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW), I urge you to support this legislation.

S. 2280 authorizes TransCanada to construct and operate the Keystone XL Pipeline from Alberta, Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast.  The pipeline would transport an additional 830,000 barrels of oil per day to U.S. refineries.  According to the State Department’s March 2013 report on Keystone, “construction of the proposed Project would generate temporary, positive socioeconomic impacts as a result of local employment, taxes, spending by construction workers, and spending on construction goods and services.  Including direct, indirect, and induced effects, the proposed Project would potentially support approximately 42,100 average annual jobs across the United States over a 1-to 2-year construction period.”  According to the Canadian Energy Research Institute, the Keystone XL will create at least 117,000 new U.S. jobs over the long term.

Exploring and developing the nation’s energy resources creates jobs.  The U.S. Energy Information Administration stated in an August 8, 2013 report that, “From the start of 2007 through the end of 2012, total U.S. private sector employment increased by more than one million jobs, about 1%.  Over the same period, the oil and natural gas industry increased by more than 162,000 jobs, a 40% increase.”  Due to surging oil and gas production, North Dakota has the lowest unemployment rate in the U.S. of 2.8 percent and had the highest rate of economic growth in 2012.

It is time to support robust domestic energy production and stop the wasteful delay on construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline.  I urge you to support Sen. Hoeven’s legislation.  All votes on S. 2280 will be among those considered in CCAGW’s 2014 Congressional Ratings.

Sincerely,

Tom Schatz
President, CCAGW