The House last night easily passed a bill that would clarify the National Park Service's authority to allow maintenance of a natural gas line that runs through a portion of Glacier National Park in Montana.

The chamber voted 286-10 for Rep. Denny Rehberg's (R-Mont.) H.R. 4606, which was unanimously approved by the Natural Resources Committee last July.

The bill would allow work on a 3.5-mile section of a pipeline built in the 1950s and currently owned and maintained by NorthWestern Energy. The 118-mile pipeline serves about 25,000 people and runs parallel to U.S. Highway 2 along Glacier's southern boundary.

A companion bill sponsored by Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) had a hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee in June but has yet to be marked up.

NPS, which backs the bill, is currently authorized to issue permits for electricity and communication lines but needs legislation clarifying its authority to issue permits for natural gas lines, Rehberg's office said.

Yesterday's vote easily cleared the two-thirds majority it needed to pass under suspension of the rules.