Washington, DC--Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY-17) issued the following statement today in response to President Barack Obama’s announcement of offshore oil and gas exploration expansion along the East Coast, Gulf Coast and Alaska. Rep. Engel is a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and serves on the Energy Subcommittee.

“I am disappointed to see a change in policy from the Administration in regards to offshore drilling. One small victory for the environment was the fact that the Alaskan ANWAR region was excluded from exploration. While I agree that economic growth and job creation is vital, we should not solve one problem by creating another. I am concerned that this step could lead to pressures to open up other areas which have larger environmental concerns.

“The best way to ensure both energy independence and long-term job creation would be for the Senate to follow the House’s lead in passing comprehensive energy policy reform. The President said that the nation needs to move ‘from an economy that runs on fossil fuels and foreign oil, to one that relies more on homegrown fuels and clean energy.’ I wholeheartedly agree, but we should not take a step back by authorizing more drilling, in order to take a giant step forward towards energy independence.

“I call on my colleagues in the Senate to move energy reform to a vote so we may be able to combine our two bills in a joint House-Senate conference committee. I specifically challenge Republican Senators to cease their constant ‘no’ votes and see the President’s move as an olive branch. Despite all of the concessions and compromises made during the health care debate, not one Republican voted for reform. I sincerely hope they will not do the same in this case, and will follow Senator Lindsey Graham’s lead and work with Democrats in bringing this important issue to a vote.

“We need an ‘all-of-the-above’ approach to meet our nation's current and future energy needs. I detailed many of those ideas in my DRIVE (Dependence Reduction through Innovation in Vehicles and Energy) Act, a bipartisan bill to require the U.S. to use less oil, to encourage U.S. automakers to manufacture more efficient vehicles, to develop a domestic alternative fuel economy by mandating incentives for biofuels, and to create a fund for alternative fueling infrastructure. Much of the DRIVE Act was signed into law in December 2007, but we need to do more.

“It is an undeniable truth that we eventually need to make liquid fuel from renewable resources such as switchgrass, algae, sugarcane, or agricultural waste. As a nation, we must cease our dependence on fossil fuels and the hostile states that too often produce them. We must establish a renewable electricity standard requiring utility companies to generate their electricity from renewable sources. We must also invest in clean energy technologies and energy efficiency, and establish new and better energy-saving standards for buildings and appliances. These steps will help drastically reduce carbon emissions from major U.S. sources.

“I applaud the President’s commitment to that comprehensive view. But I do not support expanded drilling at this time, while we still have so much work to do on climate, renewable energy, and efficiency. ’Drill baby drill’ is not, never has been, and never will be the answer to our energy and climate crises.”