The Hill News

When years of lobbying, protests, and debate all come down to a pushing the pause button, it’s frustrating. That’s the situation we’re in now that the Obama Administration has put off deciding about the about the Keystone XL Pipeline â€" which would send Canada’s oil sands to refineries on the American Gulf Coast â€" until 2013.

The Administration says the decision to punt had nothing to do with politics. But let’s face it: Right now, the Keystone Pipeline â€" like every other key energy-policy decision â€" is bogged down in politics.

Here’s a proposal for getting the process un-stuck, not just for Keystone, but also for all decisions made on any American energy facilities. Instead of fighting over every pipeline and drilling decision, set up a national standard that lets oil companies know exactly how clean the fuel they produce must be â€" but that leaves the decisions about how to meet that goal up to the companies themselves.

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