The US Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs has voted to eliminate the injunction on US crude oil exports, US Senator Mark Kirk said in a release on Thursday.
The Committee voted 13 to 9 on getting rid of the ban on US crude oil exports.
'With Iran preparing to flood the global market with oil once sanctions are lifted, and our allies dependent on hostile powers for oil, it makes no sense to block US oil exports any longer,' Kirk said. 'It is time to end this outdated, self-imposed ban that puts us at a disadvantage in the global economy.'
The legislation would lift the oil export forbiddance, while bringing back the ban for around a year if President Barack Obama decides to do so for national security purposes.
The oil ban can also be reintroduced if the departments of Commerce or Energy state there is an oil supply shortage, oil prices are higher than world market prices or a supply shortage or price spike causes unemployment.