[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 18 (Friday, January 27, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E63-E64]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   STRATEGIC PRODUCTION RESPONSE ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. BETTY McCOLLUM

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 26, 2023

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 21) to 
     provide for the development of a plan to increase oil and gas 
     production under oil and gas leases of Federal lands under 
     the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Agriculture, the 
     Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of the Interior, and the 
     Secretary of Defense in conjunction with a drawdown of 
     petroleum reserves from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve:

  Ms. McCOLLUM. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to H.R. 21, the 
Strategic Production Response Act. Republicans brought H.R. 21 to the 
House Floor today to prohibit the Department of Energy from releasing 
oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) until it expands oil and 
gas drilling on federal lands by the same percentage that it releases 
oil from the SPR.
  House Republicans are once again doing the bidding of their Big Oil 
friends at Americans' expense, while threatening the President's 
ability to take timely action to lower prices for American consumers. 
When Putin invaded Ukraine and the oil prices soared worldwide, 
President Biden acted quickly to release oil from the SPR helping to 
lower gas prices for American families by $1.69 per gallon since their 
peak. Restricting the federal government's best tool in the middle of a 
global energy crisis--with no benefit other than increasing the profits 
of the fossil fuel industry--is a disservice and will harm working 
families who will bear the brunt of this decision.
  The fossil fuel industry is already sitting on approximately 9,000 
approved but unused permits for drilling on public lands because they 
are more concerned with keeping supply artificially low so that prices 
can stay artificially high to line their own pockets. This legislation 
could result in giving the fossil fuel industry an additional over 30 
million acres of public lands for new oil and gas drilling--that is 
over 5 times the size of Minnesota, and 8 times the amount of public 
lands and waters currently available for oil and gas development.
  This bill will only make us more dependent on fossil fuels. The 
growing threat of climate change is real, and in order to protect our 
planet, we must reduce carbon emissions and embrace a sustainable 
energy future. Congress should use its power to invest in developing 
alternative energy sources and expanding federal incentives making them 
more affordable for American consumers.

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