Democrat Drill Bill Charade: No New Drilling
Today, after weeks of House Republicans urging that a meaningful and productive energy bill be brought to the floor, the Democrat Leadership brought the DRILL Bill (H.R. 6515) to the floor which is neither productive nor responsible. In all actuality this bill, better known as the Use-It-Or-Lose-It' bill, would not lead to any new oil or gas production or lower gas prices for the American people.
"Speaker Pelosi once again ignored the overwhelming call from the American public to move towards increasing our domestic energy supply," said Conaway. "The bill that I voted against today would do nothing to increase supplies. By using "energy" legislation as a handout to unions, we are actually hampering the progress of producing a real energy solution."
Under current law, energy companies are already required to utilize acquired leases within the five to 10 year primary term of the leases. The expired leases revert back to the federal government. H.R. 6515 would duplicate current law by requiring that a company or individual must work towards developing any existing leases on federal lands. The bill would also require annual lease sales in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A). There is already an ongoing leasing program in the NRP-A, and the legislation considered today would not open any new areas for development. Among other provisions is one that would ban the export of Alaskan oil. It should be noted that no oil has been exported from Alaska since 2000.
Today, Conaway, along with 68 other House Republicans, sent a letter to Speaker Pelosi urging her to immediately schedule legislation to increase energy supply in the market. We must open up Alaska, the Intermountain West region, and the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) to potentially develop millions of barrels per day.
Conaway went on to say, "It is time that we stop placing the blame on speculators, oil companies, OPEC, various conspiracy theories. If Congress wants to find the true obstructionist to increased American-made energy, the Democratic Leadership needs to look no further than in the mirror. It's high-time for Democrats in Congress to follow our lead, act on real solutions and cease pointing fingers and playing the blame game. The American people want and deserve better."