FracFocus, the online registry of chemicals and other hydraulic fracturing ingredients, will become easier to use when its new version goes into operation on June 1, a witness said during the US Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s final natural gas forum.

Increased flexibility for operators remains an open question in a revised proposal for federal regulation of hydraulic fracturing, according to a May 23 legal update by Roger W. Patrick of the law firm Mayer Brown.

Virginia’s two US senators, Democrats Mark R. Warner and Timothy M. Kaine, introduced legislation that would revise the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s 2012-17 Outer Continental Shelf program by restoring to the schedule a lease sale off the state’s coast.

The US House approved Rep. Lee Terry’s (R-Neb.) bill to bypass the White House and congressionally authorize construction of the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline’s northern segment by 241 to 175 votes on May 22.

European officials and industry leaders have taken steps toward reviving energy-market reform and setting long-term targets for renewable energy.

The US Environmental Protection Agency proposed standards to reduce vehicle emissions and sulfur content in gasoline beginning in 2017. Comments on the so-called Tier 3 requirements will be accepted until June 13, EPA said on May 21.

The European Parliament authorized a new offshore oil and gas operations directive that requires operators to prove their ability to cover potential liabilities and to submit major hazard reports and emergency response plans before operations start.

Alaska’s state government proposed that a new study of potential crude oil resources beneath the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge’s coastal plain be conducted before the Obama administration decides whether to designate more of the refuge as wilderness and wild and scenic rivers.

The US Department of Energy conditionally approved Freeport LNG’s request to export domestically produced LNG from its Quintana Island, Tex., terminal to countries that do not have a free trade agreement with the US.

US Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) introduced legislation on May 16 aimed at correcting what they said was unintentional subsidization of foreign ethanol imports under the federal Renewable Fuels Standard.

The world’s Arctic nations formally agreed to cooperate on marine oil pollution preparedness and response at the Arctic Council’s May 15 meeting in Kiruna, Sweden.