Source: United States Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND)
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MEDORA, ND – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), a Senate Banking Committee member and the Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, met with oil producers and service companies at the North Dakota Petroleum Council Board Meeting last night. The senator spoke to the group about his efforts to combat discrimination by financial services providers against American energy producers, and about the need to streamline the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulatory process.
“Energy is key to virtually every part of America’s economic and national security, and North Dakota’s oil and gas producers help drive our energy dominance,” said Senator Cramer. “Rather than running them out of business as some liberals would like, we should support their industry by ensuring they have equal access to capital and first-class infrastructure to get their product to market. I am grateful to the North Dakota Petroleum Council board for giving me the opportunity to speak with them about how to best support the vial work they do for our country.”
Senator Cramer’s remarks centered on the Fair Access to Banking Act, a bill he is leading backed by over 30 senators and a wide array of stakeholders which would prevent financial service providers from discriminating against constitutionally-protected industries and law-abiding, credit worthy businesses. It builds on of the Trump Administration’s Fair Access Rule and expands on legislation the senator introduced last Congress. Senator Cramer has used his Banking Committee assignment to push public officials on this issue. Most recently, he met with five CEOs of major U.S. banks to discuss their policies on providing their services to energy providers and pressed them on their stances during a committee hearing.
Senator Cramer also discussed his bipartisan orphaned wells legislation which would support oilfield workers, and the importance of passing a bipartisan infrastructure package that includes legislation to streamline the NEPA regulatory process so projects are built in a timely, efficient manner. Senator Cramer worked with the Trump Administration on a rule to streamline that process, and the Biden Administration announced this week it is extending the timeline for agencies to implement it. Senator Cramer also helped secure legislation to improve the NEPA process in the historic surface transportation bill the EPW Committee passed unanimously, and he discussed including it in a bipartisan infrastructure package earlier this week with Larry Kudlow on Fox Business.