[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 64 (Wednesday, May 11, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E864]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  THE PUTTING THE GULF OF MEXICO BACK TO WORK ACT (H.R. 1229) AND THE 
    REVERSING PRESIDENT OBAMA'S OFFSHORE MORATORIUM ACT (H.R. 1231)

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                         HON. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 11, 2011

  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, last week the majority rammed through an 
ill-advised measure requiring the sale of four specific offshore 
drilling leases even if appropriate workplace and environmental 
safeguards aren't in place. This week's bills continue the same 
reckless ``pre-spill'' mentality. In the aftermath of the Deepwater 
Horizon tragedy, more drilling with less safety is simply not a 
responsible energy policy, and it will do nothing to enhance America's 
energy security.
  Let's be clear: There is no drilling moratorium in the Gulf of 
Mexico. Since October, the Interior Department has issued 51 shallow 
water permits and 12 deepwater drilling permits--or roughly the same 
pace as before the Deepwater Horizon disaster. The major difference is 
that the Obama Administration is ensuring that future drilling be 
accompanied by safeguards reflecting the lessons learned from the 
Deepwater Horizon.
  The so-called ``Putting the Gulf of Mexico Back To Work Act'' would 
deem drilling permits approved after sixty days with or without a 
completed safety and environmental review. While the intent of H.R. 
1229 is to clearly to expedite permitting, the reality is that this 
kind of ``drill first, ask questions later'' approach could easily 
result in fewer drilling permits being issued as the Interior 
Department could in many cases simply be forced to reject permits that 
are still in process rather than having them ``deem approved'' without 
adequate safeguards in place.
  H.R. 1231 proposes to expand the scope of this initiative's 
overarching recklessness by opening much of the outer continental shelf 
on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts to drilling before Congress has 
enacted a single legislative reform to improve safety. Lost in all of 
the rhetoric is the reality that oil and gas companies are already 
today sitting on more than 60 million acres of public lands with an 
estimated 11.6 billion barrels of oil and 59.2 trillion cubic feet of 
natural gas that have yet to be developed--or nearly as much oil and 
natural gas as could realistically be recovered by drilling up and down 
the east and west coasts.
  Mr. Speaker, this country deserves better than carelessness 
masquerading as an energy policy. We need to end the billions in 
wasteful subsidies for the already highly profitable oil and gas 
industry and accelerate the development and deployment of clean energy 
alternatives that will power the 21st century.

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