[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 84 (Thursday, May 26, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3289-S3290]
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-171. A concurrent resolution adopted by the Legislature 
     of the State of Louisiana memorializing the United States 
     Congress to take such actions as are necessary to treat 
     mineral and gas production in the Gulf Coastal states in a 
     manner that is at least equal to onshore oil, gas, and coal 
     production in interior states for revenue purposes; and to 
     rectify the revenue sharing inequities between coastal and 
     interior energy producing states in order to address the 
     nationally significant crisis of wetland loss in the state of 
     Louisiana; to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

                   House Concurrent Resolution No. 66

       Whereas, since 1920, interior states have been allowed to 
     keep fifty percent of the oil, gas, and coal production 
     revenues generated in their states from mineral production on 
     federal lands within their borders, including royalties, 
     severance taxes, and bonuses; and
       Whereas, coastal states with onshore and offshore oil and 
     gas production face inequities under the federal energy 
     policies because those coastal states have not been party to 
     this same level of revenue sharing partnership with the 
     federal government; and
       Whereas, coastal energy producing states have a limited 
     partnership with the federal government that provides for 
     them to retain very little revenue generated from their 
     offshore energy production, energy that is produced for use 
     throughout the nation; and
       Whereas, in 2006 congress passed the Gulf of Mexico Energy 
     Security Act (GOMESA) that will fully go into effect in 2017; 
     an act that calls for a sharing of thirty-seven and five 
     tenths percent of coastal production revenues with four gulf 
     states with a cap of five hundred million dollars per year; 
     and
       Whereas, the Fixing America's Inequities with Revenues 
     (FAIR) Act would have addressed the inequity suffered by 
     coastal oil and gas producing states by accelerating the 
     implementation of GOMESA as well as by gradually lifting all 
     revenue sharing caps but the legislation died with the close 
     of the previous congress; and
       Whereas, with the state and its offshore waters taken 
     alone, Louisiana is the ninth largest producer of oil in the 
     United States in 2014 while including offshore oil from 
     federal waters, it was the second largest oil producer in the 
     country; and when taken alone Louisiana was the fourth 
     largest producer of gas in the United States in 2013 while 
     including the Gulf of Mexico waters, it was the second 
     largest producer in the United States; and
       Whereas, with nineteen operating refineries in the state, 
     Louisiana was second only to Texas as of January 2014 in both 
     total and operating refinery capacity, accounting for nearly 
     one-fifth of the nation's total refining capacity; and
       Whereas, Louisiana's contributions to the United States 
     Strategic Petroleum Reserve with two facilities located in 
     the state consisting of twenty-nine caverns capable of 
     holding nearly three hundred million barrels of crude oil; 
     and
       Whereas, with three onshore liquified natural gas 
     facilities, more than any other state in the country, and the 
     Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, the nation's only deepwater oil 
     port, Louisiana plays an essential role in the movement of 
     natural gas from the United States Gulf Coast region to 
     markets throughout the country; and
       Whereas, it is apparent that Louisiana plays an essential 
     role in supplying the nation with energy and it is vital to 
     the security of our nation's energy supply, roles that should 
     be recognized and compensated at an appropriate revenue 
     sharing level; and
       Whereas, the majority of the oil and gas production from 
     the Gulf of Mexico enters the United States through coastal 
     Louisiana with all of the infrastructure necessary to receive 
     and transport such production, infrastructure that has for 
     many decades damaged the coastal areas of Louisiana, an 
     impact that should be compensated through appropriate revenue 
     sharing with the federal government; and
       Whereas, because Louisiana is losing more coastal wetlands 
     than any other state in the country, in 2006 the people of 
     Louisiana overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment 
     dedicating revenues received from Outer Continental Shelf oil 
     and gas activity to the Coastal Protection and Restoration 
     Fund for the purposes of coastal protection, including 
     conservation, coastal restoration, hurricane protection, and 
     infrastructure directly impacted by coastal wetland losses; 
     and
       Whereas, the state of Louisiana has developed a science-
     based ``Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast'' 
     which identifies and prioritizes the most efficient and 
     effective projects in order to meet the state's critical 
     coastal protection and restoration needs; and
       Whereas, the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority 
     is making great progress implementing the projects in the 
     ``Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast'' with 
     all available funding, projects that are essential to the 
     protection of the infrastructure that is critical to the 
     energy needs of the United States; and
       Whereas, in order to properly compensate the coastal states 
     for the infrastructure demands that result from production of 
     energy and fuels that heat and cool the nation's homes, 
     offices, and businesses and fuel the nation's transportation 
     needs, revenue sharing for coastal states needs to be at the 
     same rate as interior states that produce oil, gas, and coal: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby 
     memorialize the United States Congress to take such actions 
     as are necessary to treat mineral and gas production in the 
     Gulf Coastal states in a manner that is at least equal to 
     onshore oil, gas, and coal production in interior states for 
     revenue purposes; and to rectify the revenue sharing 
     inequities between coastal and interior energy producing 
     states in order to address the nationally significant crisis 
     of wetland loss in the state of Louisiana; and be it further
       Resolved, That a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to 
     the presiding officers of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives of the Congress of the United States of 
     America and to each member of the Louisiana congressional 
     delegation.
                                  ____

       POM-172. A concurrent resolution adopted by the General 
     Assembly of the State of Ohio urging the United States 
     Congress to increase NIH funding levels for research in and 
     development of the closed-loop system and islet cell 
     transplantation so that those who are suffering from type 1 
     diabetes will have expedited access to such technology; to 
     the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

                 Senate Concurrent Resolution Number 2

       Whereas, More than one million Americans have been 
     diagnosed with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, also 
     known as type 1 diabetes; and
       Whereas, Type 1 diabetes is a disease that frequently 
     strikes children suddenly, makes them dependent on insulin 
     for life, and carries the constant threat of life-threatening 
     complications; and
       Whereas, The number of diagnoses of type 1 diabetes is 
     growing at an alarming rate; and

[[Page S3290]]

       Whereas, The cost of type 1 diabetes, including medical 
     expenses and lost productivity, is billions of dollars per 
     year; and
       Whereas, Type 1 diabetes is a leading cause of blindness, 
     kidney failure, amputations, heart disease, and death; and
       Whereas, Medical and technological advances in the 
     development of the closed-loop insulin delivery system, or 
     ``artificial pancrease,'' and in the development of islet 
     cell transplantation therapy have created meaningful and 
     realistic pathways to a cure of type 1 diabetes; and
       Whereas, Adequate federal funding for research and 
     development involving the closed-loop system and islet cell 
     transplantation will result in positive medical outcomes for 
     millions of americans who are affected by type 1 diabetes 
     and, thereby, ameliorate widespread human suffering and 
     preserve billions of dollars in taxpayer funds; and
       Whereas, Current levels of funding designated for the 
     efforts of The National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 
     advancing the technology associated with the closed-loop 
     system and islet cell transplantation are inadequate, and an 
     increase in funding for NIH's efforts will expedite the 
     refining of and access to these important medical treatments 
     and procedures: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That we, the members of the 131st general 
     assembly of the state of Ohio, in adopting this resolution, 
     urge the Congress of the United States to increase NIH 
     funding levels for research in and development of the closed-
     loop system and islet cell transplantation so that those who 
     are suffering from type i diabetes will have expedited access 
     to such technology, thus enhancing health care while saving 
     billions of dollars in health care costs and lost 
     productivity; and be it further
       Resolved, That the clerk of the Senate transmit duly 
     authenticated copies of this resolution to the President Pro 
     Tempore and Secretary of the United States Senate, the 
     Speaker and Clerk of the United States House of 
     Representatives, each member of the Ohio Congressional 
     delegation, and the news media of Ohio.
                                  ____

       POM-173. A resolution adopted by the House of 
     Representatives of the State of Illinois urging the President 
     of the United States to select and nominate a candidate to be 
     an Associate Justice for the Supreme Court of the United 
     States; urging the United States Senate Judiciary Committee 
     to promptly schedule confirmations hearings for the 
     President's nominee followed by a recorded vote recommending 
     confirmation; and urging the full Senate to vote to confirm 
     such nomination; to the Committee on the Judiciary.

                       House Resolution No. 1022

       Whereas, Article III, Section I of the United States 
     Constitution vests judicial authority ``in one supreme Court, 
     and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to 
     time ordain and establish''; and
       Whereas, The United States Congress passed the Judiciary 
     Act of 1789, fixing the number of Supreme Court justices at 
     6; and
       Whereas, In an effort to avoid an evenly divided Court, the 
     Judiciary Act of 1869 increased membership on the Court to 
     one Chief Justice, and 8 Associate Justices; that number has 
     remained unchanged; and
       Whereas, Antonin Scalia became an Associate Justice on the 
     Supreme Court after being nominated by President Ronald 
     Reagan in 1986; Justice Scalia was confirmed by the United 
     States Senate 98-0; he was sworn in on September 26, 1986; 
     and
       Whereas, The death of Justice Scalia has effectively placed 
     the Court in ideological gridlock with respect to liberal and 
     conservative interpretations of the Constitution; and
       Whereas, The Court now consists of 4 members appointed by 
     Republican presidents: Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice 
     Anthony Kennedy, Justice Clarence Thomas, and Justice Samuel 
     Alito; and 4 members appointed by Democratic presidents: 
     Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Justice Stephen Breyer, Justice 
     Sonia Sotomayor, and Justice Elena Kagan; and
       Whereas, A Supreme Court term begins on the first Monday in 
     October, and continues until late June or early July of the 
     following year; the final day of the 2016 term will be June 
     26, 2016; the Court continues to hear oral arguments until 
     April 26, 2016; and
       Whereas, There are currently 74 cases on the Court docket; 
     with the absence of Justice Scalia, many of those cases could 
     be decided 4-4; in that event, the decisions of the lower 
     courts will stand; and
       Whereas, In its current term, the Court will hear cases on 
     a variety of issues affecting millions of Americans, such as 
     affirmative action, immigration, reproductive rights, 
     redistricting, and labor practices; and
       Whereas, Pursuant to Article II, Section 1 of the 
     Constitution, Barack Obama was elected President of the 
     United States in 2008, and again in 2012; his presidency will 
     end on January 20, 2017; and
       Whereas, Article II, Section II of the Constitution 
     provides that the President ``shall nominate'' judges of the 
     Supreme Court with the ``Advice and Consent of the Senate''; 
     and
       Whereas, The Democratic and Republican Presidential 
     nominating conventions will take place in July of 2016; the 
     Presidential election will take place on November 8, 2016; a 
     new President will not be inaugurated until January 20, 2017, 
     at which time that President will have the power to nominate 
     judges; however, until that time, the power to nominate 
     remains with President Barack Obama; and
       Whereas, In 1916, Justice Louis Brandeis was confirmed as 
     the 67th Associate Justice of the Supreme Court after 4 
     months of scrutiny, representing the longest confirmation 
     process in American history; during which time, the Senate 
     Judiciary Committee held the first public hearings on the 
     nomination of a justice; he was sworn in on June 6, 1916, a 
     presidential election year: and
       Whereas, Justice Anthony Kennedy is the most senior member 
     of the Court today; he was nominated by President Ronald 
     Reagan on November 30, 1987; he was confirmed unanimously by 
     a Senate controlled by Democrats on February 3, 1988 and was 
     sworn in on February 18, 1988, during the last year of 
     Reagan's presidency; and
       Whereas, Additional Supreme Court justices nominated and 
     confirmed during the final year of a presidency include: 
     Oliver Ellsworth, Samuel Chase, William Johnson, Philip 
     Barbour, Roger Taney, Melville Fuller, Lucius Lamar, George 
     Shiras. Mahlon Pitney, John Clarke, Benjamin Cardozo, and 
     Frank Murphy: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, by the House of Representatives of the Ninety-
     Ninth General Asssembly of the State of Illinois, That we 
     urge President Barack Obama to select and nominate a 
     candidate to be an Associate Justice for the U.S Supreme 
     Court in a timely manner and that the nominee both liberalize 
     and truly diversify the Court; and be it further
       Resolved, That we urge the Judiciary Committee of the 
     United States Senate to promptly schedule confirmation 
     hearings for the President's nominee followed by a recorded 
     vote recommending confirmation; and be it further
       Resolved, That we urge the full Senate to vote to confirm 
     such nomination; and be it further
       Resolved, That suitable copies of this resolution be 
     delivered to President of the United States, Barack Obama; 
     Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Chuck Grassley; 
     Vice-President, Joe Biden; Chief Justice of the Supreme 
     Court, John Roberts: and Senators Dick Durbin and Mark Kirk 
     of Illinois.

                          ____________________