June 17, 2010

Washington, DC - Congressman Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) questioned BP CEO Tony Hayward today in a hearing conducted by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.  Braley is vice-chairman of the Subcommittee.

Watch Braley question Hayward here.

Braley's opening statement is below and also available here.

"Mr. Hayward, you're not going to get a lecture from me today, and you're not going to get an apology, either. We are here to get to the bottom of the decision-making process that BP followed, and I think, quite frankly, the people who live along the affected area of the Gulf Coast deserve those answers from you.

"We were in Chalmette, Louisiana last week and had the opportunity to hear from a variety of individuals whose lives have been devastated by this oil disaster, and I use the word disaster specifically because I don't think ‘spill' quite captures the magnitude of what's going on.

"The American people are frustrated because we were first told that this was a thousand barrel per day release. Then, about a week later, that was updated to 5,000 barrels per day, and at the end of May it was adjusted upward to 15,000 to 19,000 barrels per day. This week we were warned that it could be as high as 60,000 barrels per day. That works out to 2.5 million gallons a day, 17.5 million gallons per week, and over the length of this disaster, it could be up to the level of the largest release of oil in the North American continent in history-unintended.

"One of the things I think we need to know about today is the decisions that your company made and who made them that led to this explosion and the subsequent disaster, what your company is doing to fix this enormous problem and about your future commitments to all the affected workers, families and communities who have been devastated by this disaster. I think it would be helpful for you and everyone in this hearing room to hear from the two women who testified at our hearing in Louisiana last week because they raised some very pointed questions that were directed to your company, sir. They were questions that were raised after they gave passionate testimony of wanting the oil and gas business to continue in Louisiana and the Gulf Coast regions. So, I'd like to have you listen to their comments in the hearing.

This is Natalie Roshto:

(Roshto) I would like to leave here today knowing that because of the tratgic death of my husband, we can begin to focus on making safety the most important priority. Not to focus on making more safety regulations, but on ways to effectively implement the ones already in place. This tragedy will not be in vain-because of right now, my husband's death is in vain-it will not be in vain if it makes the lives of every man and woman working in the oil field the top priority and cause the powerful oil companies to know that they will be held accountable for their actions.

This is Courtney Kemp:

(Kemp) While I understand companies must make a profit, I do not believe it should be at the expense of risking lives and destroying families. I am asking you to please consider harsh punishments on companies who choose to ignore safety standards before other families are destroyed. My family can never, and never will be, adequately compensated for our loss. 

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