[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 8]
[House]
[Pages 11455-11456]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 THE TIDE IS TURNING: AMERICANS SUPPORT INCREASING OUR DOMESTIC ENERGY 
                                 SUPPLY

  (Mr. TIAHRT asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. TIAHRT. Mr. Speaker, gas is over $4 a gallon and people are 
upset. According to a May 20 Gallup poll, 57 percent of Americans 
support drilling in U.S. coastal and wilderness areas that are now off-
limits. The tide is turning. Americans know we can solve this problem 
of high gas prices.
  Just this week the Sioux City Journal reported the results of what 
they called the ``most important election in the county's history.'' By 
a solid 58-42 percent, the voters of Union County approved a zoning 
ordinance that will keep alive the county's chances of landing the 
Nation's first oil refinery in 32 years. They know we need to increase 
our energy supply, and that's why I introduced the Refinery Streamlined 
Permitting Act, H.R. 2471, a bill

[[Page 11456]]

that would require agencies to give high priority to refinery 
applications that would result in greater capacity, a cleaner-burning 
fuel, and a reduction in refinery's pollution output.
  Mr. Speaker, Americans need substantive solutions to secure our 
Nation's energy future. Let's join together in our efforts to open up 
the coasts, the wilderness areas, and drill for more oil to increase 
our domestic supply and bring down the price of gasoline.

                          ____________________