LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman says the U.S. State Department decision to reassess the route of the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline expansion was due largely to pressure from Nebraskans.

Heineman told the Associated Press Thursday that he met with a U.S. State Department official on Oct. 18, and was given “a clear indication that they were paying attention to what we were doing in Nebraska.”

Heineman said he called a special session less than a week later to try to address pipeline concerns at the state level and to pressure federal officials.

The Republican governor called it “an exceptional moment for Nebraskans,” and a sign that their voices have been heard. The issue pitted organized labor against environmentalists.

Keystone already moves hundreds of thousands of barrels of Canadian oil across Kansas and Missouri. The expansion would nearly double the pipe’s capacity.

Alaska’s senior senator is criticizing the Obama administration’s plan to delay a decision until after the 2012 election. Senator Lisa Murkowski called the decision “unprecedented”.