Chief Deputy Whip Peter Welch issued the below statement following the announcement by the State Department that it will delay a decision on the Keystone XL pipeline.

Welch led efforts in the House demanding an investigation into whether conflicts of interest tainted the State Department’s process for reviewing the proposed crude oil pipeline. On Monday, the State Department Inspector General agreed to open an investigation. 

“The State Department today raised the correct concerns, but reached the wrong conclusion. The catastrophic environmental risks of this proposed pipeline dictate the project be rejected, not delayed. I look forward to a swift and thorough investigation by the inspector general into the State Department’s review process.”