[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 69 (Monday, April 24, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2485-S2486]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            OPENS ALASKA ACT

  Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, Senator Sullivan and I introduced a 
bill, S. 883, the Offshore Production and Energizing National Security 
Alaska Act of 2017, to lift a damaging Federal moratorium, reopen 
Alaska's energy-rich Arctic waters to responsible production, and 
ensure our home State receives a fair share of the revenues from 
development off our coasts.

[[Page S2486]]

  According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the Arctic contains 22 
percent of the world's undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and 
gas resources. The Federal Government projects that the Beaufort and 
Chukchi Seas alone contain an estimated 23.6 billion barrels of oil and 
104.4 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Yet, despite that prolific 
potential, the Obama administration spent much of the past 8 years 
systematically putting the region off limits.
  It began with the cancellation of lease sales scheduled for our 
Arctic Outer Continental Shelf. It continued with critical habitat 
designations, the imposition of burdensome new rules, and a constantly 
shifting administrative approach that seemed designed to make 
commercial operations impossible. We saw new withdrawals in our Arctic 
OCS in early 2015, followed by a decision by President Obama, just days 
before he left office, to withdraw nearly all of the region from future 
leasing. Those decisions ran directly contrary to the views of the vast 
majority of Alaskans, who overwhelmingly support the responsible 
development of our Arctic OCS. Those decisions ran contrary to the 
promises made to Alaskans, at statehood and repeatedly in the years 
since then, that we would be allowed to access our resources to help 
build our State. Those decisions have already cost Alaskans jobs and 
revenues and today continue to deprive us of a golden opportunity to 
provide for our families, end our economic recession, and refill our 
Trans-Alaska Pipeline System.
  Our bill, the OPENS Alaska Act, recognizes our needs and 
opportunities in Alaska, it rejects the heavy-handed decisions made 
against our State in recent years, and it puts our policies for the 
Arctic OCS on a better track.
  First, it repeals President Obama's so-called 12(a) withdrawal of 
nearly all of the offshore Arctic. This is a simple necessity, before 
leasing can occur. It is not a statement about the President's current 
legal authority to amend, modify, or revoke a withdrawal made under 
section 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. I believe our 
new President has all the authority he needs to revoke the Alaska 
withdrawals, and I hope he will do just that. If he does, precedent 
will be on his side. In the meantime, our legislation makes clear the 
position of Alaska, which is that we do not support the withdrawal and 
want it gone by any possible legal means.
  Next, our bill would create a new nearshore Beaufort Planning Area. 
The State of Alaska currently conducts annual lease sales in the area 
from zero to 3 miles offshore. The establishment of a separate planning 
area in the adjacent nearshore zone will provide a real, near-term 
opportunity to provide vital throughput into the Trans-Alaska Pipeline 
System, known as TAPS, because of its proximity to existing 
infrastructure. Projects in this area are easier, faster, and less 
expensive.
  Our bill would also provide for additional lease sales in the 
Nearshore Beaufort Sea and Cook Inlet Planning Areas. By lifting the 
withdrawals in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas, those areas would be 
eligible for leasing in the next Five-Year OCS Leasing Program or a 
supplement to our current program. Frequent and predictable lease sales 
are needed to create stability and certainty for investors, Alaska, and 
the United States.
  It is also important that Alaska and Alaskans receive fair 
compensation for any exploration, development, and production that 
occurs in the Arctic OCS. Under current law, no matter how much energy 
we provide for the rest of the Nation, Alaska will receive none of the 
revenues. That arrangement is widely recognized as unfair, and so my 
bill devotes a reasonable share of the revenues that will only be 
generated as a result of this bill, and as a result of the waters that 
are only part of the United States by virtue of Alaska, with our State.
  We have divided revenue sharing into two time periods, from 2017 to 
2027 and from 2027 onwards, to reflect our differing needs during the 
exploration, development, and production phases. During the initial 10-
year period, our bill proposes that 7.5 percent of the revenues be 
shared with the State and 7.5 percent of revenues be divided between 
coastal political subdivisions. The division between coastal political 
subdivisions is based on distance from the lease tracts, with 90 
percent of the funds going to areas within 200 miles and 10 percent 
reserved for coastal political subdivisions that are beyond 200 miles 
but determined by the State of Alaska to be staging areas.
  In addition, our bill would allocate 2.5 percent of the revenues it 
generates to fund competitive grants for workforce development in 
support of OCS development, 2.5 percent to fund the North Slope Science 
Initiative, 2.5 percent to the Secretary of the Interior to support 
offshore development and the establishment of pipeline rights-of-way on 
Federal land associated with Beaufort and Chukchi development, and 2.5 
percent to the Tribal Resilience Program established by the act. The 
remaining 75 percent would go to the U.S. Treasury, to help pay down 
our national debt.
  Following the initial 10-year period, we propose to divide the 
revenues slightly differently, with 50 percent going to the Treasury, 
30 percent to the State, 7.5 percent to coastal political subdivisions, 
and 12.5 percent to the Tribal Resilience Program established by the 
act. These divisions do not apply to what is known as the 8(g) zone, 
such as the Nearshore Beaufort, where Alaska currently receives 27 
percent of revenues.
  The Tribal Resilience Program established by our bill, which is 
national in scope, would provide grants for a number of critical 
purposes. These funds could be used to relocate villages or communities 
experiencing or susceptible to coastal or river erosion, to construct 
infrastructure to support emergency evacuations, to restore or repair 
infrastructure damaged by melting permafrost or coastal or river 
erosion, to install and manage energy systems that reduce energy costs 
and greenhouse gas emissions, and to construct and maintain social or 
cultural infrastructure that supports resilient communities.
  The OPENS Alaska Act will allow our home State to produce more of its 
vast offshore energy resources, which is a priority for the vast 
majority of Alaskans. It will help us create good jobs, generate 
billions of dollars in new revenues, and ensure a stable footing for 
our State for generations to come. I urge the Senate to recognize the 
improvements this bill makes to our current policies and to join 
Senator Sullivan and I in supporting its passage in this Congress.

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