Congressman Releases Statement to the Speaker of the House

WASHINGTON, D.C. –Congressman Mac Thornberry (R-Clarendon) today issued the following statement as Congress debates H.R. 6899, the Comprehensive American Energy Security and Consumer Protection Act, an omnibus energy bill developed by House Democrats.

Madam Speaker,

The approval ratings for Congress are at record lows, and it is no wonder.  The American people see that too often this Congress has played partisan games rather than confronting the issues head-on in a straightforward way.  Today the games continue.

The Democrat’s Energy Bill is a fig-leaf designed to cover a political problem.  It is not real.  Rather than untie our hands so we can produce more energy of all kinds here at home, in many ways this bill makes it harder. 

In several important areas of energy production, this bill does nothing.

This bill does nothing to develop more nuclear energy.

This bill does nothing to build more refineries.

This bill extends the wind tax credit by only one year, but does nothing to make it easier to plan and finance the large investments that are necessary to build wind farms.

Even on drilling off our coasts, this bill replaces a temporary ban that will expire two weeks from today with a permanent ban on exploring and producing where most of the oil is.  It prohibits all drilling within 50 miles of the coast line, where the Minerals Management Service says 88% of the oil is located.

From 50 to 100 miles, states can choose to drill, but get no royalty payments – None.  So there is little incentive for them to allow drilling even for the 12% of the oil that may be there.

Drilling can occur more than 100 miles away – which is technologically impossible in some areas.  But even where it is possible, this very same bill repeals the existing tax incentives which encourage deep water drilling.

Of course, should a new drilling opportunity slip through these new regulations and restrictions, lawsuits are ready and waiting to shut it down, and this bill does nothing to limit them.

There are many good, serious energy proposals that have been introduced in this Congress. Over a year ago, for example, I introduced the “No More Excuses Energy Act,” a bill that would encourage energy production of all kinds here at home.  Unfortunately, the legislation that we are discussing today is just another excuse not to take real action to solve our energy shortfalls.

It hardly seems too much to ask to allow this House two or three days to go through the various ideas, allowing members to vote according to their districts and their consciences.  Energy is that important, that central to our country’s security and quality of life.  Instead, this charade will disappoint the American people yet again on the issue that most directly affects their family and well-being.  We can and should do better.

 For more information on H.R. 6899, please click here.