[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 58 (Tuesday, May 3, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2623-S2624]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. TESTER:
  S. 870. A bill to amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to 
modify oil and hazardous substance liability, and for other purposes; 
to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
  Mr. TESTER. Mr. President, on April 20, 2010, an explosion and fire 
destroyed BP's Deepwater Horizon oil rig, killing 11 workers and 
causing the largest oil spill in American history.
  A year later, the well is capped and Americans who live near and rely 
on the Gulf of Mexico are still struggling with the ramifications of 
the Deepwater Horizon spill, while facing destruction from 
unprecedented storms ripping across the region. Meantime, BP, the 
second largest oil company in the United States who just reported 7.1 
billion dollars in profits last quarter, is attempting to skirt their 
fines for this unprecedented disaster.
  In early April, BP indicated it is exploring wording in the Federal 
Water Pollution Prevention Act or the Clean Water Act which allows the 
court to determine the fines by either the number of days of the 
incident, or by the number of barrels of oil spilled. Current law 
leaves the determination of which metric to use up to the court. In 
this case, the difference between these two metrics is enormous. At the 
low end, using the per-day charge of $32,500, BP could pay less than $3 
million for the whole incident. This amount of money isn't sufficient 
to change BP's safety culture and improve its workplace and 
environmental safety.
  Per barrel fines range from $1,000 to $4,300 per barrel. Under this 
metric, BP's fines would total between $5 billion and $18 billion, 
which is a much more appropriate fine for the environmental damage that 
was done.
  We must address this outrageous loophole to prevent corporate 
polluters from skirting accountability and responsibility if they wreak 
havoc on our land and in our water. We must speak the only language 
that corporations understand and that is profit. These fines, which are 
the only penalties the corporation cannot write off on their taxes, are 
critically important to sending a message that pollution doesn't 
profit; that corporations act responsibly to protect workers and the 
resources they use. If we accept minimal fines, we are condoning this 
irresponsible behavior.

[[Page S2624]]

  Many will argue that we don't need this legislation, because the 
court will fine them accordingly. But to date, the largest Clean Water 
Act fine ever levied was $13 million. $13 million is less than BP spent 
in 2009 on lobbying.
  That is why I am introducing the Pollution Accountability Act of 
2011, which requires the court to fine violators of the Clean Water Act 
whichever fine is higher, per day or per barrel. If you pollute, there 
will be consequences. There will be accountability. We will demand 
responsibility.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation and 
expeditiously passing it into law.
                                 ______