[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 14]
[Senate]
[Pages 19363-19365]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                                 ENERGY

  Mr. VITTER. Mr. President, I stand to join with all other Senators, 
in fact, to join with all the American people, in offering our strong 
support for all of

[[Page 19364]]

the hurricane victims Senator Cornyn talked about.
  In fact, there is enormous devastation, enormous loss and continuing 
suffering in those parts of the country, particularly in southeast 
Texas, hit hard by Ike, following right on the heels of Hurricane 
Gustav. Our hearts go out to all of those folks. Our best wishes, our 
prayers are with them and our intent and focus here in Congress to meet 
their basic needs, their key needs, is here as well.
  Representing Louisiana, of course, I have spent most of the last 3 
weeks touring Louisiana and looking at hurricane damage there. Of 
course we were first hit by Hurricane Gustav, which had enormous winds, 
caused major power outages, significant wind damage in many parts of 
the State. And then right on the heels of that came Hurricane Ike. 
While Hurricane Ike slammed into southeast Texas, it pushed floodwaters 
in the Gulf all through coastal Louisiana, from the western edge at the 
Texas border all the way to the eastern edge, Plaquemines Parish, where 
Louisiana meets Mississippi.
  We are still struggling with those challenges. But again, I want to 
acknowledge the even greater suffering, the even greater devastation 
that others face from Hurricane Ike, particularly folks in Galveston 
and southeast Texas. Our hearts and prayers go out to them and our 
commitment to help in every reasonable way possible goes out to them as 
well. I trust Congress will act on that key priority as those folks 
face a true moment of crisis and extreme need.
  As we act in that regard in the next couple of weeks, I also hope we 
notice something Senator Cornyn mentioned, that part of our country, 
the gulf coast, the Gulf of Mexico, particularly the western gulf, is 
enormously vital in terms of meeting our nation's energy needs. We are 
proud to offer that service to the Nation. We have a long, storied 
tradition in terms of that. We are very proud of that tradition. We 
want it to continue. But, quite frankly, we do not want to continue to 
be the only part of the country that meets our Nation's energy needs 
right here at home. We need to expand that activity. We need to bring 
that same activity to other parts of the country, diversify, if you 
will, have more activity and more places so we are not so singularly 
vulnerable to gulf hurricanes and storms as we are now, as we have 
lived through with the experiences of Katrina and then Rita, and now 
Gustav and now Ike.
  So as this Congress responds to the immediate needs of hurricane 
victims in southeast Texas in the gulf coast, including Louisiana, I 
hope we also continue to focus and start acting on energy, and what 
remains a top priority for all of America.
  I know there is a great rush to get out of here for the elections. I 
know the leadership is pushing to adjourn for the elections as early as 
the end of next week. But before we do that, we need to address the 
Nation's business. We need to pass immediate relief for suffering 
hurricane victims, and we need to act, not just talk, not just debate, 
certainly not fight or finger-point, but act on energy. Even in that 
limited time period, I believe we can do all of those things in a 
substantial way.
  With regard to developing an aggressive national energy plan, I have 
four key priorities, and all of those priorities, I believe, are 
absolutely achievable, even in that very tight timeframe.
  No. 1, we must lift the current moratorium on offshore oil and gas 
production. The American people have spoken in a clear and resounding 
way. They think that current moratorium is crazy. They think we are 
nuts to take 85 percent or more of our domestic energy resources off 
the table, not allow energy companies and producers to access or touch 
them.
  The way you change that is lifting the current moratorium under 
Federal law. Now, as we all know, that does not take action by 
Congress, it simply takes inaction by Congress. We need to make sure 
that that moratorium, which expires on its own October 1, is not 
renewed.
  I urge all of my colleagues, Democratic and Republican, to listen to 
the clear, crystal clear, clarion call of the American people: Do not 
extend that moratorium. We cannot put that moratorium in any continuing 
law such as a continuing resolution. We must lift that moratorium and 
allow the American people to access their own energy resources right 
here at home.
  No. 2, I think we should match aggressive action in that regard with 
aggressive action with regard to new forms of energy, including 
renewables. And the most significant, quickest thing we can do with 
regard to that is pass the major tax incentives that virtually all of 
us support with regard to new technology, new forms of energy, 
renewables.
  As we all know, that robust package of tax incentives is a major 
component of the so-called tax extenders bill. We need to come together 
around a bipartisan version of that tax package, including those 
important incentives for new technology and renewable energy and pass 
that into law.
  Again, even in this very tight timeframe in which we operate, we can 
do that. We must do that. We must act for the American people.
  Third, I believe we should pass revenue sharing for offshore 
production to create an incentive for more States to get into that 
business. As we lift the moratorium, as we open up all of our offshore 
to potential energy production, we should give participating States an 
incentive. And that powerful incentive would be royalty sharing, 
revenue sharing, so they get 37.5 percent of the royalties produced 
from offshore production.
  We set that policy, we set that precedent 2 years ago, with regard to 
new production in the Gulf of Mexico. We should expand that precedent. 
We should expand that policy as we allow and encourage offshore 
production in all parts of the country: the western gulf, the east 
coast, the west coast, and elsewhere.
  Finally, let me end with a fourth key point. My fourth key priority 
is something that is very important. It is not something we should do, 
it is something we should not do. If we are serious about domestic 
energy production, if we are serious about energy independence, getting 
away from our reliance on foreign sources, we should not raise taxes on 
domestic energy production.
  The first rule of economics is that if you want more of something, 
you do not tax it. Because when you tax something, you get less of it, 
not more. I urge my colleagues, Democrats and Republicans, not to 
increase taxes in a significant way on domestic energy production. We 
want more domestic energy production, we do not want less. So it is 
simple economics that we do not tax what we want more of in a more 
onerous way because that will produce less of it.
  This is not an economics theory, this is history and practice. This 
is our experience. President Jimmy Carter passed a windfall profits tax 
during his tenure as President. What did that produce? It produced 
exactly what one might expect, less domestic production, less energy.
  The proposals that are being floated now with regard to section 199 
and other energy tax provisions are a windfall profits tax by another 
name. They will have precisely the same effect. They will drive down 
domestic energy production when we want to drive it up. They will 
discourage activity at home in the energy sector when we want to 
encourage and expand it. It simply does not make any sense.
  So I urge us not just to talk, not just to debate, certainly not to 
argue and finger-point and play partisan politics. I urge us to act. I 
urge us to come together in a bipartisan, responsible way and act as 
the American people want us to act.
  They support hurricane victims in East Texas and elsewhere who are 
devastated by these storms, and we should support those victims too 
through concrete, responsible action. The American people support 
energy independence. They support doing more for ourselves right here 
in this country with regard to energy. We should reflect

[[Page 19365]]

their wisdom and act in that regard as well.
  Specifically with regard to the four points I mentioned, No. 1, we 
must ensure that the current moratorium on offshore production is 
lifted, that it is not renewed. All we have to do there is let the 
moratorium expire and not renew it.
  No. 2, we need to encourage new technology, renewables, through a 
robust set of tax incentives in the tax bill. We need to pass that and 
do it now. We need to act.
  No. 3, we must create an incentive for more States to get into the 
business of offshore oil and gas production through revenue sharing. We 
must expand that policy which we started 2 years ago in new production 
in the gulf.
  No. 4, the last thing we should do if we want to increase domestic 
energy production is tax it at higher and higher rates. Let us not pass 
a new windfall profits tax by another name. Let us not discourage the 
domestic energy sector and discourage domestic energy production, when 
we all profess that we want to do the opposite.
  I will be fighting for these four key priorities. We can accomplish 
all of them in the next 10 days. Let us show the American people we do 
get it, that we are responsible, that we can come together and work 
together, and that we can act in positive ways for their benefit.
  I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that 
the order for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to 
speak in morning business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I want to bring to the 
attention of the Senate a little known fact, as the clock continues to 
tick for us to take up drilling legislation off the Outer Continental 
Shelf, in particular, the proposal that has been cast by the so-called 
Gang of 10 as a compromise, which is looking at a comprehensive 
approach, which I applaud, that includes revenues. But it also includes 
tax incentives for alternative fuels and so forth.
  The part the two Senators from Florida extremely object to is the 
fact of intruding in the military mission, the only testing and 
training area that is the largest for our U.S. Department of Defense, 
and all other agencies, including for classified and black programs 
that go on for testing and evaluation in this training range.
  But what is particularly egregious is that in opening up all of that 
area that is now closed pursuant to the statute we passed 2 years ago, 
the 2006 statute--that we closed all of that area to drilling because 
of the military--in the opening of that area, and in the so-called 
giving of revenue to the adjacent State--in this case Florida--well, lo 
and behold, all the revenue allocated to the State does not go to the 
State of Florida, even though it is the waters of the Gulf of Mexico 
off of the State of Florida.
  What happens in the complicated formula that is there is that 10 
percent of all the revenues from the leasing of Federal lands for oil 
and gas production goes to each State on the gulf. That would include 
Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. In other words, the revenue 
does not go to the State of Florida, even though it is off the coast of 
Florida. Forty percent of that State revenue due to the State would go 
to the other States instead of Florida.
  That is simply not fair. When I explain that to Senators, they are 
surprised, and in some cases aghast, because common sense would tell 
you it is not fair. That is another reason this Senator has put his 
foot down that we are not going to let Florida, nor the Department of 
Defense, be the sacrificial lamb for some kind of proposal so people 
can say we are drilling out there.
  I want to drill. I want to drill offshore. But I want to drill where 
it makes sense. The formula that has been concocted certainly does not 
make sense.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak as in 
morning business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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