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A bill to amend the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 to remove certain contract duration and right of first refusal requirements.

Public Law 100-439 · H.R. 2701 · 100th Congress · began in the House

Signed by Ronald Reagan (R) on Sep 22, 1988 · Energy

Sponsor: Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX-6)

Cosponsors (8): Rep. Ralph Hall,

Passage votes

  • HouseVoice vote
  • SenateVoice vote
Data notes

The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.

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Summary

The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.

Amends the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 to repeal the requirement that first sale contracts for the purchase of certain natural gas produced on the Outer Continental Shelf must be for a specified duration.

Repeals the statutory restrictions placed upon: (1) natural gas offers of sale; and (2) rights of first refusal.

Committees

The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.

Data notes

A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.

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Timeline

From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 15 actions.

  1. Sep 22, 1988Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 100-439.
  2. Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
  3. Sep 14, 1988PresidentPresident · Presented to President.
  4. Sep 8, 1988FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Voice Vote.
  5. Aug 11, 1988CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
  6. Aug 10, 1988CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
  7. Jun 14, 1988CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
  8. Jun 13, 1988FloorFloor · Passed House by Voice Vote.
  9. Jun 10, 1988CommitteeCommittee · Reported by House Energy and Commerce Committee
  10. May 18, 1988CommitteeCommittee · Markup by House Energy and Commerce Committee
  11. Mar 8, 1988CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Energy Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee
  12. CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Energy Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee
  13. Jul 13, 1987CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Energy Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee
  14. Jun 17, 1987CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Energy and Commerce Committee
  15. IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the House
Data notes

Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.

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Official record

The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.