[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 53 (Thursday, April 7, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1808-S1809]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS

  The following petitions and memorials were laid before the Senate and 
were referred or ordered to lie on the table as indicated:

       POM-141. A concurrent resolution adopted by the Legislature 
     of the State of Louisiana memorializing the United States 
     Congress to extend Louisiana's seaward boundary in the Gulf 
     of Mexico to three marine leagues; to the Committee on Energy 
     and Natural Resources.

                   Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 4

       Whereas, in United States of America v. States of 
     Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida, 363 U.S. 
     1 (1960), the seaward boundary of the state of Louisiana in 
     the Gulf of Mexico was judicially determined by the United 
     States Supreme Court to be three geographical miles, despite 
     evidence showing that Louisiana's seaward boundary 
     historically consisted instead of three marine leagues, a 
     distance equal to nine geographic miles or 10.357 statute 
     miles; and
       Whereas, the seaward boundaries in the Gulf of Mexico for 
     the states of Texas and Florida were determined to be three 
     marine leagues; and
       Whereas, the unequal seaward boundary imposed upon 
     Louisiana has resulted in (1) economic disparity and hardship 
     for Louisiana citizens and entities; (2) economic loss to the 
     state of Louisiana and its political subdivisions; and (3) 
     the inability of the state of Louisiana and its political 
     subdivisions to fully exercise their powers and duties under 
     the federal and state constitutions and state laws and 
     ordinances, including but not limited to protection and 
     restoration of coastal lands, waters, and natural resources, 
     and regulation of activities affecting them; and
       Whereas, in recognition of all of the above the Legislature 
     of Louisiana in the 2011 Regular Session enacted Act No. 336, 
     which amended Louisiana statutes to provide that the seaward 
     boundary of the state of Louisiana extends a distance into 
     the Gulf of Mexico of three marine leagues from the 
     coastline, and further defines ``three marine leagues'' as 
     equal to nine geographic miles or 10.357 statute miles; and
       Whereas, Act No. 336 further provides that the jurisdiction 
     of the state of Louisiana or any political subdivision 
     thereof shall not extend to the boundaries recognized in such 
     Act until the United States Congress acknowledges the 
     boundary described therein by an Act of Congress or any 
     litigation resulting from the passage of Act No. 336 with 
     respect to the legal boundary of the state is resolved and a 
     final nonappealable judgment is rendered; and
       Whereas, through the federal Submerged Lands Act of 1953, 
     Congress has the power to fix the unequal disparity of the 
     lesser seaward boundary forced upon Louisiana by recognizing 
     and approving that Louisiana's seaward boundary extends three 
     marine leagues into the Gulf of Mexico; and
       Whereas, as shown by the national impact of natural and 
     manmade disasters such as hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 
     and the Deepwater Horizon BP Oil Spill in 2010, the seaward 
     boundary of Louisiana is vital to the economy and well-being 
     of the entire United States, since among other benefits the 
     Louisiana coastal area: (1) serves as both host and corridor 
     for significant energy and commercial development and 
     transportation; (2) serves as a storm and marine forces 
     buffer protecting ports and the vast infrastructure of 
     nationally significant oil and gas facilities located in such 
     area; (3) provides critical environmental, ecological, 
     ecosystem, and fish, waterfowl, and wildlife habitat 
     functions; (4) provides protection from storms for more than 
     400 million tons of water-borne commerce; and (5) offers 
     recreational and eco-tourism opportunities and industries 
     that are known and appreciated throughout the world; and
       Whereas, the Louisiana coastal area accounts for 80% of the 
     nation's coastal land loss, with its valuable wetlands 
     disappearing at a dramatically high rate of between 25-35 
     square miles per year; and
       Whereas, hurricanes Katrina and Rita turned approximately 
     100 square miles of southeast Louisiana coastal wetlands into 
     open water, and destroyed more wetlands east of the 
     Mississippi River in one month than experts estimated to be 
     lost in over 45 years; and
       Whereas, the economic, environmental, and ecological damage 
     of the Deepwater Horizon BP Oil Spill is already calculated 
     in terms of billions of dollars, and potential longer-lasting 
     impacts are still being determined; and
       Whereas, adopted in 2006, the federal Gulf of Mexico Energy 
     Security Act (GOMESA) would provide ongoing revenues to 
     Louisiana from federal oil revenue derived from gulf leasing 
     and drilling, with the first payment in 2017 estimated to be 
     approximately $176 million, and with such monies dedicated to 
     coastal restoration, hurricane protection and coastal 
     infrastructure; and
       Whereas, despite strenuous objection, efforts are now 
     underway to repeal or amend GOMESA that would result in 
     depriving Louisiana and other gulf coast states of such 
     monies; and
       Whereas, the extension of Louisiana's seaward boundary into 
     the Gulf of Mexico for three marine leagues will provide a 
     much-needed stream of revenue for use in the state's ongoing 
     efforts to clean up, rebuild, protect and restore the 
     Louisiana coastal area from losses suffered due to both 
     natural and manmade disasters, and will benefit both the 
     state and the entire nation: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Legislature of Louisiana memorializes 
     the Congress of the United States to extend Louisiana's 
     seaward boundary in the Gulf of Mexico to three marine 
     leagues; and be it further
       Resolved, That a copy of this Resolution shall be 
     transmitted to the President of the United States, to the 
     secretary of the United States Senate and the clerk of the 
     United States House of Representatives, and to each member of 
     the Louisiana delegation to the United States Congress.
                                  ____

       POM-142. A concurrent resolution adopted by the Legislature 
     of the State of Louisiana memorializing the United States 
     Congress to maintain the Outer Continental Shelf revenue 
     sharing arrangements established under the Gulf of Mexico 
     Energy Security Act of 2006 for the creation of a recurring 
     funding stream in support of Louisiana's coastal program; to 
     the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

                   Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 7

       Whereas, the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 
     (GOMESA) provides for the sharing of qualified Outer 
     Continental Shelf (OCS) revenues to Gulf Coast states and 
     their political subdivisions that host energy production in 
     order to help mitigate the demands associated with that 
     production on infrastructure and natural resources; and
       Whereas, GOMESA stipulates that funds can only be used for 
     the purposes of coastal protection including conservation, 
     restoration, hurricane protection, the mitigation of damage 
     to wildlife and natural resources, and the mitigation of 
     effects from Outer Continental Shelf activities through 
     onshore infrastructure projects, and associated 
     administrative costs; and
       Whereas, in 2006, the people of Louisiana voted 
     overwhelmingly to constitutionally dedicate the revenues 
     received through GOMESA to the Coastal Protection and 
     Restoration Fund for the purposes of coastal wetlands 
     conservation, coastal restoration, hurricane protection, or 
     infrastructure directly impacted by coastal wetland losses; 
     and
       Whereas, revenues received by Louisiana and its eligible 
     coastal parishes from 2009 to 2015 under phase one of GOMESA 
     provided only $11.5 million to the state, but phase two is 
     estimated to generate more than ten times as much revenue 
     each year for coastal projects; and
       Whereas, GOMESA revenues have long been seen as a crucial, 
     reliable and recurring revenue stream to support Louisiana's 
     coastal protection and restoration work; and
       Whereas, since 2007, Louisiana has created a framework for 
     its coastal protection and restoration program and set the 
     national standard for utilizing world-class science and 
     engineering and public outreach to meet the challenges of a 
     vanishing coast through its Comprehensive Master Plan for a 
     Sustainable Coast (Coastal Master Plan); and
       Whereas, the 2012 Coastal Master Plan further evolved 
     Louisiana's approach to coastal protection and restoration 
     with the prioritization of projects in a resource-constrained 
     funding and physical environment; and
       Whereas, Louisiana's land loss crisis demands a robust and 
     integrated coastal protection and restoration program that 
     operates effectively and urgently for the safety, livelihood, 
     culture, and enjoyment of its people; and
       Whereas, the entire United States derives fantastic benefit 
     from the natural assets of coastal Louisiana including its 
     energy resources, the commerce and connections provided by 
     its ports and waterways, its seafood production, and many 
     other invaluable ecosystem services; and
       Whereas, Louisiana's coastline has already lost twenty-five 
     percent of its 1932 land area and without the implementation 
     of large scale restoration projects it could lose an 
     additional 1,750 square miles of land at the end of fifty 
     years; and
       Whereas, Louisiana has a science-based plan to meet these 
     challenges that include massive public investments in the 
     restoration of America's largest river delta, structural 
     protection where necessary, and an extensive program to 
     floodproof, elevate, and voluntarily acquire homes and 
     businesses at greatest risk of flooding; and
       Whereas, Louisiana aims to pioneer the engineered 
     replication of natural processes such as the construction of 
     sediment diversions off of the Mississippi River, and develop 
     other expertise that can be exported around the globe to 
     other cities, states, and countries adapting to climate 
     change; and
       Whereas, by maintaining GOMESA, Congress can follow through 
     on a promise nearly ten years old, support Louisiana's 
     efforts to provide for a sustainable coast, help to protect 
     and maintain nationally significant economic and natural 
     resources, and help reduce federal liabilities like insured 
     properties in the National Flood Insurance Program and future 
     hurricane disaster payouts: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Legislature of Louisiana memorializes 
     the Congress of the United States to maintain the Outer 
     Continental

[[Page S1809]]

     Shelf revenue sharing arrangements established under the Gulf 
     of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 for the creation of a 
     recurring funding stream in support of Louisiana's coastal 
     program; and be it further
       Resolved, That a copy of this Resolution shall be 
     transmitted to the secretary of the United States Senate and 
     the clerk of the United States House of Representatives and 
     to each member of the Louisiana delegation to the United 
     States Congress.
                                  ____

       POM-143. A petition by a citizen from the State of Texas 
     urging the United States Congress to propose, for 
     ratification by special conventions held within the 
     individual states, an amendment to the United States 
     Constitution which would clarify that any agreement arrived 
     at between the President of the United States and any foreign 
     government or governments constitutes a ``treaty'' thereby 
     necessitating a two-thirds affirmative vote of 
     ``concurrence'' by the United States Senate as provided in 
     Article II, Section 2, Clause 2 of the Constitution; to the 
     Committee on the Judiciary.

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