Date: 2010-07-30
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Chair. I rise to speak on H.R. 3534. the Consolidated Land. Energy and Aquatic Resources (CLEAR) Act. I would like to recount the facts of April 30th. 2010 for this House and the American people. First. let us remember the names of the eleven brave men who tragically lost their lives in the Deepwater Horizon explosion: 1. Jason Anderson. 35. 2. Aaron Dale Burkeen. 37. 3. Donald Clark. 34. 4. Stephen Curtis. 39. 5. Gordon Jones. 28. 6. Roy Wyatt Kemp. 27. 7. Karl Klepping. 38. 8. Blair Manuel. 56. 9. Dewey Revette. 48. 10. Shane Roshto. 22. and 11. Adam Weise. 24. What the eleven names do not reveal is that there are families with children. widows. and many other family members who are still mourning the loss of their loved ones. I believe we have a moral obligation to remember all of the lives affected by the loss of these eleven dedicated oil rig workers. They were tough workers. but also gentle fathers. brothers. husbands. as well as friends to many. Congress must always consider how to best protect American lives. and in doing so protect the safety of the American oil industry worker. In addition to the lives lost. every individual. business and community adversely affected by the oil spill must be taken into account as we consider legislative responses. Unfortunately. now with more than 92 million estimated gallons of oil spilled and the fishing. tourism. boating. shrimping industries. and the oil industry itself brought to a grinding halt. we can anticipate other losses. This tragedy begs the American people to act to promote safety. spur technology. and to protect people in the Gulf Region. We owe it to them to provide the kind of protection and legal framework that will ease their minds. and help them receive what they are entitled to through the claims process. Unfortunately. the original claims system was an abomination with numerous claims unresolved. unpaid and ignored. BP has received many claims and has issued many statements and reports. but the fact of the matter is they have not delivered on those early promises. We must make sure that they do what is right. and meet their financial obligations to the many claimants still waiting to reconstruct their lives and livelihoods. The urgency of the energy situation in our country calls for immediate action by Congress in developing a national energy policy. I would have fully supported targeting the culprits in the Gulf oil spill and getting the Gulf region back on track. as long as we also develop effective policies to ensure that we set a high bar of expectations for these companies in a system based on culpability. The people in the Gulf region need to be assured that we will preserve their way of life. while ensuring that their best interests are taken to heart. Their jobs must be restored and preserved for future generations who may want a livelihood in the oil and gas industry. I do not believe you can graft a broader national energy policy for the future onto a bill meant primarily to address the myriad of complex issues currently facing the energy industry. Regarding the Remedies Act. on July 1. 2010. I introduced a bill to address some of the larger issues raised by oil spill related developments in the Gulf of Mexico. Although a pronouncement of the issue. I believe it captures the most substantive matters. I have tried to adapt some of the provisions of that bill as amendments to the CLEAR Act. to try and make a weak bill better. I introduced an amendment under which applicants for permits to drill in the Gulf of Mexico will be required to have spill prevention. mitigation. and recovery plans that are vetted by impartial experts. rather than rubber stamped by industry friendly regulators. the amendment would also require that there be legitimate. effective backup plans in case the first response is ineffective. Another of my amendments would allow the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish. immediately. an independent claims process for those whose property and livelihoods have been damaged by oil spills much like the process only now being set up under Special Master Feinberg. Finally. I am proud to cosponsor Representative TEAGUEs (NM2D) amendment. introduced the same Amendment which will allow several small companies working together in joint venture and partnerships to pool their financial resources for the necessary Certificate of Oil Field Responsibility. the price of admission to work in the Gulf. Without the option of pooling their resources. or joint insurance. independent oil companies will be driven from the Gulf. leaving it the province of only three or four massive. multinational oil companies. If we can not preserve the independent oil companies. responsible for 80 percent of the drilling in the Gulf and 30 percent of the oil. then we are likely to doom an industry that is one of the most prolific job generators in the nation. particularly at a time when job creation in most American industries is stagnant or minimal at best. We must also take into consideration the importance of the environment as it relates to our national energy policy and the quality of life in the Gulf and the rest of the country. not to mention the rest of the globe. We have no idea what the longterm impact of the Gulf oil spill will be. as we are just beginning to understand the issues of connectivity related to the environment and ecological system. When birds nest in polluted wetlands and migrate to other parts of the U.S. and the globe. what impact might their exposure to oil have on the environmental quality of the environment in that part of the world? There are many complicated questions that we must answer before we proclaim that we have a solution to protecting the environment to massive oil spill in one bill. It is impossible to accomplish. and at best any environmental strategy is merely a bandaid approach rather than the comprehensive environmentally policy we need to consider. For example we really need a major direct cleanup fund. and we have to provide for environmental inspections. I urge a sense of immediacy as it relates to the environment and to protect the people of the Gulf from the longterm health consequences of the spill. As a person who has lived in. worked in. and knows the Gulf region well. I see the vibrant mixture of businesses there. from fishermen to oil workers. who represent the quintessential hardworking American. These Americans deserve applause for their contribution to our productivity. We owe it to them to demand of the oil companies the same high level of excellence that these hardworking men and women have demonstrated. We must provide for appropriate penalties for safety violations and breaches of compliance. while recognizing the importance of the industry to job creation and job growth. As we did in this tragic incident. we must come down hard on BP. but not eliminate them from the picture. lest the whole industry be penalized. There are some good things in this bill. although some of my ideas were not adopted as part of the managers amendment. For example. one amendment would have required that businesses applying for permits to drill and produce crude oil in the Gulf of Mexico submit detailed spill mitigation and recovery plans as part of the permitting process. Not only must they have recovery plans. but they will be required to have backup plans. in case their first response fails. Additionally. those plans must be vetted by impartial experts. rather than rubberstamped by insufficiently vigilant regulators. Most important Representative TEAGUEs amendment. which I cosponsored. will prevent small. independent oil companies from being driven out of the Gulf of Mexico. The problem with the current requirements for the Certificate of Oil Field Responsibility (COFR) is that smaller operators will be unable to establish the $300 million necessary COFR to even begin exploration and development. By allowing smaller companieswho frequently work together in joint venturesto pool their resources for COFR purposes. we will prevent the Gulf from becoming the exclusive province of companies big enough to selfinsure. and allow the small businesses of the Gulf Coast communities to continue to provide jobs and drive our economy. Again. Mr. Chair. my central concern is that we promote job creation. ensure long term investment and fiscal discipline. guarantee safety. focus on the industry and accountability as we work to craft an effective energy policy. and utilize energy related to fossil fuels in a more responsible way. while we continue to make investments in research and development. rather than pitting industries against each other. We just witnessed the development of a prescriptive policy related to the coal industry. as a result of a tragedy with the mines in West Virginia. That legislative business model is a useful example of how we can develop energy policy related to oil. We must also continue to promote new forms of green energy. while we keep our promise to the American people to protect jobs in the oil and gas industry. Unfortunately. our job is made very difficult when we see major global energy companies and domestic industry excluded from a sensible national energy policy. We must promote a strong process that will help us deliver on these promises. both to the stakeholders and to the American people. Everyone needs to buyin to a national energy policy in order for it to be successful. Let me say that we must establish a seamless energy policy that all sectors of the energy industry can support. cementing the United States in the energy industry as the most independent producer globally. while making it the worlds leader in green energy. Mr. Chair. I look forward to working with my Colleagues on this approach to Americas energy future. In addition. I strongly support the Buy America Provision in the bill and the American Worker Provision. As the CLEAR Act moves to the Senate. we must remember the interests of the communities of the Gulf Coast. and of all those affected by the devastation of the oil spill. We must remain committed to protecting lives. protecting jobs and protecting the environment.