With the price of gasoline over $4.30 per gallon in the Hudson Valley, it’s clear that working families are facing a crisis that threatens their economic security.  The situation requires serious solutions that will deliver real results.

 

Unfortunately, the oil companies and their allies in the Bush Administration aren’t interested in advancing such solutions.  Instead, they have chosen to exploit the anxiety Americans are feeling to make another push to open lands like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) for drilling.

 

The facts show that drilling in ANWR is not a solution to spiking gas prices.  Even under the most aggressive Department of Energy projections, almost 20 years from now ANWR oil would only lower gas prices by a nickel.  The companies selling oil would benefit, but American drivers need help now.

 

To bolster their efforts, oil industry advocates try to create a false choice between drilling in places like ANWR and not drilling at all.  The reality is that many in Congress, myself included, would like to see oil companies drill right now, in the right places.

 

Oil companies already hold leases on 68 million acres of federal lands that aren’t being drilled.  If they were, the oil companies could produce an additional 4.8 million barrels of oil per day, nearly doubling U.S. oil production, cutting imports of foreign oil by one third, and far exceeding ANWR’s potential output.  The government has already given them the green light.  Over the last eight years, the number of drilling permits has gone up by 361%.  The question is: Why won't the oil companies start drilling?

 

That’s why I’m a cosponsor of the Responsible Federal Oil and Gas Lease Act.  This bill will force the oil companies to put their money where their mouths are by telling them to use the leases they already hold or lose them.  Companies holding leases would have to start working to produce, give up their leases so someone else can do the job, or be barred from obtaining any more leases.  The overwhelming majority of Democrats voted for this bill in June, but not enough Republicans, many of whom claim to be advocates of domestic drilling, supported it to ensure its passage.

 

Although responsible domestic exploration must be part of the answer, we cannot drill our way to energy independence.  We are the world’s biggest oil consumer, but have less than two percent of its proven reserves.  As long as we are dependent on oil, we will be at the mercy of the oil companies and OPEC.

 

I have been working hard to advance new energy solutions and consumer protections.  I co-sponsored a law to bring about the first fuel economy increase in 32 years, and supported increased production of cellulosic biofuels. I pushed for sweeping new tax incentives for renewable fuels and advanced vehicle technologies, and advocated for bills that go after price-gouging and market speculation at home and abroad.  These are the steps we need to take for a comprehensive, forward-looking approach to break our oil addiction.  By rejecting oil company rhetoric in favor of real solutions we can achieve this vital goal together.

 

Congressman John Hall has represented New York's 19th Congressional District since January 2007.  Congressman Hall, a member of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, has been an advocate for clean, renewable energy since the late 1970s when he co-founded the group Musicians United for Safe Energy (MUSE).