[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 5193]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




   INTRODUCTION OF THE VIRGINIA ACCESS TO ENERGY ACT (VA ENERGY ACT)

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BOB GOODLATTE

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, April 5, 2011

  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, each week, folks across Virginia and the 
nation are confronted with the rising cost of energy. However, 
Virginians understand that a major component in lessening energy costs 
is to produce more energy.
  I believe that Virginia should have every tool available to access 
their energy supplies. For many years, the Commonwealth of Virginia has 
seriously been considering the potential positive impact that Outer 
Continental Shelf (OCS) development off Virginia's coast would have on 
the Commonwealth. In fact, there has been wide support for 
environmentally responsible energy production by the Governor of 
Virginia, the Virginia General Assembly and by many local governments 
in the Commonwealth.
  The Commonwealth of Virginia has made it clear that they want to 
access their energy resources. I believe that we should access these 
resources and we can do it while being environmentally responsible. 
Therefore, I rise today, with the majority of the Virginia 
Congressional Delegation, to introduce the ``Virginia Access to Energy 
Act,'' to give the Commonwealth access to these energy supplies. This 
legislation would start energy production off of Virginia's coast based 
on the Department of Interior's own proposal. This legislation simply 
requires that the Department of Interior proceed with their proposed 
Virginia lease sale no later than one year after passage of this 
legislation.
  Passage of this legislation and development of VA's OCS will 
significantly boost the economy of the Commonwealth of Virginia. It has 
been estimated by the U.S. Department of Interior that Virginia's OCS 
has 130 million barrels of recoverable oil and 1.14 trillion cubic feet 
of recoverable natural gas. This translates into a significant boost to 
the economy of the Commonwealth of Virginia. In fact, some estimates 
have shown that development of Virginia's OCS will create 2,578 full-
time equivalent positions on an annual basis, induce capital investment 
of $7.84 billion, yield $644 million in direct and indirect payroll, 
and result in $271 million in state and local taxes. While exploration 
activities alone will infuse the Virginia economy with a significant 
amount of new capital, this legislation will also authorize any 
qualified revenues generated by the lease sales to be shared between 
the federal government and the Commonwealth of Virginia. Additionally, 
the legislation sets up revenue-sharing for the Commonwealth for any 
future lease sales off of Virginia's coast.
  My legislation, the Virginia Access to Energy Act, is an important 
component to any long-term strategy to reduce our dangerous dependence 
on foreign oil. This legislation ensures that Virginia has every tool 
available to access its energy supplies, while at the same time 
creating thousands of jobs for Virginians and infusing the Commonwealth 
with new capital growth. I urge Congress to pass this legislation to 
allow Virginia to move towards a path of energy independence.

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