182 members send bipartisan letter calling on obama admin to open new offshore areas to american...

8/3/2019 182 Members Send Bipartisan Letter Calling on Obama Admin to Open New Offshore Areas to American Energy Pro

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The Honorable Ken SalazarSecretaryUS Department of the Interior1849 C Street, NWWashington, DC 20240

Dear Mr. Secretary:

February 7, 2012

With the release of the Proposed Outer Continental Shelf Plan for 2012-20 I 7 , we write to express strongbipartisan support in the House for the consideration of new and expanded access to the OCS for theproduction of oil and natural gas.

Opening up new areas of the OCS will bring new jobs , new energy, and new revenues to the Treasuryall at a time where each of these benefits is de sperately needed. When finalized , this will be the first fiveyear plan since the presidential and congressional moratoria were lifted in 2008. At the time thesemoratoria were removed, it was anticipated by the public and the Congress that without these obstacles inplace the result would be that future five year plans would include significant new access to the OCSthereby laying the groundwork for new jobs , energy, and revenues. Together, these moratoria had keptmore than three quarters of the OCS of f limits to exploration and production activities for more than 30years. Consequently, we were disappointed that the proposed plan announced by your Department onNovember 8

thwould open no new areas of the OCS for assessment and leave exploration and

development activities focused in the same places where we have been looking for a generation. Wecontinue to believe that any new five year leasing plan should allow for the consideration of expandinginto new areas , such as offshore Virginia, as envisioned when the moratoria were lifted .

We recognize that in the wake of the Gulf spill , your Department has moved aggressively to implementnew safety and environmental regulations and that you have stated publicly that your Department wouldnot be authorizing new activity i f you did not believe it was being done safely. Given these regulatorychanges, as well as actions taken by industry to restore confidence, we believe it is time to move ahead infacilitating new access to the OCS and that waiting until 2017 at the earliest to initiate these activitiesdoes not serve the public interest. Moreover, the public is strongly supportive of new offshore access andis anxious to realize the promised economic benefits from new access to American resources rather thancontinuing our overreliance upon foreign sources of energy.

We ask that you take into account these views as you consider the Proposed Five Year Plan for 2012-20 I 7 . Thank you in advance for your consideration.

Sincerely,

PAINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER


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182 members send bipartisan letter calling on obama admin to open new offshore areas to american...

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