[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Page 12297]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             OIL SPILL LIABILITY TRUST FUND MAINTENANCE ACT

  Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I am very pleased to cosponsor this 
legislation, the ``Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund Maintenance Act'', 
with my friend and Commerce Committee Chairman, Ted Stevens, as well as 
my other Senate colleagues. As most people know, after the terrible 
incident involving the Exxon Valdez, Senator Stevens championed the 
passage of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, OPA 90, as well as the 
mechanism for providing funding for the cleanup of oil spills.
  That mechanism, known as the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, is now 
in danger. In a recent report to Congress, the United States Coast 
Guard predicted that the Fund will run out of money before 2009. Given 
the recent spate of costly spills around the country, it may run out 
sooner. We simply cannot allow this to happen. The fund provides a 
critically important safety net. It aids the cleanup of oil spills and 
provides compensation to those harmed, particularly where no 
responsible party is identified or the responsible parties have 
insufficient resources.
  Since the passage of OPA 90, we have significantly reduced the number 
and volume of oil spills in the U.S. Unfortunately, thousands of 
gallons of oil continue to be spilled into our waters every year, and 
the cost of cleanup has increased substantially. The amount of oil 
carried by tank vessels to and within the U.S. is predicted to 
increase. While we pray that we will never have another major oil 
spill, we must be ready to respond if necessary.
  The bill introduced today would reinstate an expired fee on oil 
companies of 5 cents per barrel of oil. The fee, which ceased January 
1, 1995, would increase the maximum principal amount of the fund from 
$1 billion to $3 billion, and if the fund drops below $2 billion, the 
fee would automatically be reinstated without the need for additional 
legislative action. Five cents a barrel translates to approximately 
$0.0011 per gallon of gas--or one eighth of one cent--and is worth 
about 3 cents per barrel in 1990 dollars. This is substantially less 
than the original rate of 5 cents.
  I urge my Senate colleagues to take up this issue and pass this 
legislation without delay.

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