Texas Border Business
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Federal Courts, issued a statement after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit reinstated approvals for LNG projects for Rio Grande LNG and Texas LNG Brownsville. The D.C. Circuit had previously vacated the permits for both projects in an August 2024 decision.
Sen. Cruz said, “The D.C. Circuit was right to reexamine its previous decision and restore these permits, which had already been issued and should never have been vacated. The previous decision jeopardized 7,000 high-paying jobs and $24 billion in investment in the Rio Grande Valley, set a dangerous precedent for energy infrastructure development and investment nationwide, and needed to be revisited. I was proud to lead the fight against that terrible decision that hurt Texas jobs, and am deeply gratified that it has now been reversed. I will remain steadfast in championing Texas jobs and Texas energy.”
BACKGROUND
In November, Sen. Cruz led a bicameral and bipartisan amicus brief following regarding the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit’s decision to vacate the authorizations for the Rio Grande LNG and Texas LNG Brownsville projects. Sen. Cruz’s amicus brief is available here and here. Sen. Cruz also sent a letter urging the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to appeal the decision.
Sen. Cruz introduced the Protect LNG Act, which would ensure that a court cannot vacate a previously authorized LNG permit, clarify the venue for LNG lawsuits before federal courts, and mandate that courts grant expedited decisions in these cases, and was joined by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) in introducing the bill.
