The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill on Friday to overturn the 40-year-old ban on oil exports, but the measure did not get enough support to overturn any veto by President Barack Obama, and similar legislation in the Senate faces an uphill battle.
The House bill sponsored by Representative Joe Barton, a Texas Republican, passed the House 261 to 159, failing to reach the 280 votes necessary to overturn a presidential veto. The White House last week threatened to veto the House bill, saying Congress should work to move the country to cleaner sources of energy.
The Congressional Budget Office said recently that lifting the ban on U.S. Crude exports could push the price of domestic oil up roughly $2.50 a barrel in the coming decade.
“CBO estimates that authorizing exports of domestically produced crude oil without restrictions would increase wellhead prices of light oil by an average of roughly $2.50 per barrel over the 2016-2025 period, on an expected value basis,” the report said.