Fracking Ban Act
Latest action · Jan 28, 2020 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJan 28, 2020
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Fracking Ban Act
This bill phases out hydraulic fracturing for oil and natural gas. Hydraulic fracturing or fracking is a process to extract underground resources such as oil or gas from a geologic formation by injecting water, a propping agent (e.g., sand), and chemical additives into a well under enough pressure to fracture the geological formation.
The bill prohibits federal agencies from issuing permits for the expansion of fracking or fracked oil and natural gas infrastructure, including infrastructure intended to extract, transport, or burn natural gas or oil.
In addition, the bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency to complete a survey of all oil and natural gas wells to identify the wells where fracking is, or has been, used. The survey must include a variety of data, including data on the proximity of fracking operations to inhabited structures (e.g., homes or schools).
Beginning on February 1, 2021, the bill revokes permits for wells where fracking is, or has been, used within 2,500 feet of inhabited structures. The bill bans all fracking on onshore and offshore land by 2025.
Finally, the bill requires the Department of Labor to establish a Just Transition Committee to make recommendations on ensuring the health and safety of individuals residing in, and the prosperity of, natural gas- and oil-producing regions during the phaseout of fracking.
Cosponsors 1
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Jan 28, 2020.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-OR | Jeff Merkley | Original | Jan 28, 2020 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Energy and Natural Resources Committee | Referred Jan 28, 2020 |
Actions 2
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jan 28, 2020Introduced in Senate
- Jan 28, 2020Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 5857 | Fracking Ban Act | Identical bill | Feb 21, 2020 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to ban the practice of hydraulic fracturing, and for other purposes.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Fracking Ban Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Environmental Protection.
- Aging
- Air quality
- Climate change and greenhouse gases
- Congressional oversight
- Department of Labor
- Disability and paralysis
- Electric power generation and transmission
- Energy storage, supplies, demand
- Environmental health
- Environmental Protection
- Executive agency funding and structure
- Government studies and investigations
- Housing supply and affordability
- Licensing and registrations
- Oil and gas
- Pipelines
- Poverty and welfare assistance
- Racial and ethnic relations
- Rural conditions and development
- Water quality
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jan 28, 2020Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
