House Proceeding on Jul 17th, 2008 :: 3:44:09 to 4:04:09
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3:41:46 to 3:44:09( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Joe Barton

3:43:53 to 3:44:09( Edit History Discussion )

Joe Barton: 10 billion barrels of oil in a 2,000 acre section of anwr, 10 billion barrels. drl 10 wells, get a billion bare barrels a well. if we drill in an expedited basis in anpr, there's oil to be found,

3:44:09 to 3:44:20( Edit History Discussion )

John Hall: but we can already drill there and we went goat a billion barrels per well. i urge a no vonet this legislation. mr. rahall: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from new york, mr. hall, who

3:44:09 to 3:46:08( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: John Hall

3:44:20 to 3:44:32( Edit History Discussion )

John Hall: has been very involved in our debate we had the other night. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york is recognized for two minutes. mr. hall: mr. speaker, thank you. mr. chairman,

3:44:32 to 3:44:45( Edit History Discussion )

John Hall: thank you. i assure you that this member is serious and sincere, and i strongly support the drill bill. gas in my district in the hudson valley is over $4.40 and families are paying and really

3:44:45 to 3:44:57( Edit History Discussion )

John Hall: being hurt by this. they need serious solutions that deliver real results, and that's why i support the dll responsibly in leased lands act to take action right now to extract more american

3:44:57 to 3:45:09( Edit History Discussion )

John Hall: oil in the right places. oil company advocates have been preying on the anxiety of americans to push the failed anwrrilling plan that would only lower prices by a nickel in 20 years. 20 years

3:45:09 to 3:45:22( Edit History Discussion )

John Hall: in the future. our drivers need more help than that and they need it faster. the drill act answers the call telling oil companies to drill for oil that can give more relief than anwr ever could.

3:45:22 to 3:45:33( Edit History Discussion )

John Hall: the use it or lose it measure requires oil companies to drill on land they have already leased or make way for someone who will. if they did that they could double production and cut imports

3:45:33 to 3:45:44( Edit History Discussion )

John Hall: by one third. it also makes it easier to lease the 20 million acres of the national petroleum reserve in alaska. already approved for drilling. it calls on the president to build pipelines to

3:45:44 to 3:45:54( Edit History Discussion )

John Hall: bring that 10.6 billion barrels of oil to market. the bill will pave the way to get at the most oil in the shortest time with the greatest responsibility. i hope all of my colleagues will

3:45:54 to 3:46:08( Edit History Discussion )

John Hall: support it, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from new mexico. mr. pearce: thank you, mr. chairman. one of the issues that is not dealt

3:46:08 to 3:46:21( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: with in the drill now bill, drill -- someone says that may mean democrats changing lives instead of drilling now, but we have a t process that takes a long time. this process is part of what

3:46:08 to 3:48:07( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Stevan Pearce

3:46:21 to 3:46:35( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: creates the 68 million acres, the 68 million acres of idle land or not idle at all, they're involved in this process. this process has not changed one bit by the bill in front of us.

3:46:35 to 3:46:46( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: again, if the bill had come through committee, if we had had hearings, we could have talked about it. we don't have the ability to amend the bill today. we do not have the ability to offer

3:46:46 to 3:47:04( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: a substitute bill, no motion to recommit, and so we're tasked with by simply explaining why the bill should receive a no vote. but the process today has not changed at all, and you cannot

3:47:04 to 3:47:16( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: read every single element in this box. you can see -- the chart is available on the screen what the steps are that are required to drill any single well. this bill does absolutely nothing to

3:47:16 to 3:47:31( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: stop any of this regulatory process that exists today. mr. chairman, there is not really such a thing as a third world country. there are only overregulated countries, and when we look at this chart

3:47:31 to 3:47:45( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: we see why america is moving towards the status of a third world country because we are overregulating to the extreme and it is winding up with millions of idle acres. and our democratic friends

3:47:45 to 3:47:58( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: say take it away. because of external litigation, there are very good reasons that acres are idle. i think our friends on the other side of the aisle are avoiding the real question of why

3:47:58 to 3:48:07( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: we're not drilling in this country, why we're giving preferential treatment to opec rather than this country. i would reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves.

3:48:07 to 3:48:17( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: the gentleman from west virginia. mr. rahall: mr. speaker, i yield myself one minute to respond to the gentleman from new mexico. if he was listening to my opening statement, i fully

3:48:17 to 3:48:28( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: understand it's a lengthy process. the regulatory framework was put into place in this and many other laws in this land for a very specific reason, to protect the public, health and safety

3:48:28 to 3:48:42( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: and the environment. it's a lengthy process to go through this leasing, but i must tell the gentleman, and he knows once you obtain that lease you've overcome most of the hard obstacle of

3:48:42 to 3:48:52( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: achieving production. and the lands we're talking about are mostly lands already under lease. mr. pearce: will the gentleman yield? mr. rahall: yes. mr. pearce: will the gentleman yield?

3:48:52 to 3:49:02( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: i really appreciate and respect what the gentleman says. but when youive the figure 68 million acres are idle, i wonder how many acres are in this -- mr. rahall: and under lease. reclaiming

3:49:02 to 3:49:14( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: my time. and under lease. if they are in that process, that is called due diligence. we don't penalize them. we don't take away at all. mr. speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from

3:49:14 to 3:49:24( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: texas, ms. sheila jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. jackson lee: i ask to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection.

3:49:24 to 3:49:33( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: ms. jackson lee: i thank the distinguished gentleman from the great state of west virginia. i thank you for your leadership. speaking of history, i just want to make mention of the fact that

3:49:24 to 3:51:41( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Sheila Jackson-Lee

3:49:33 to 3:49:44( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: we have many americans to care for, and i'm delighted that some 23,000 women from alpha kappa alpha are here. americans who are believing in their government and asking for change and asking

3:49:44 to 3:49:54( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: for the leadership that is here on the floor of the house. to them, i believe we have an obligation, and to all americans, and it's important to note that i come from oil country. i represent

3:49:54 to 3:50:07( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: large numbers of energy companies in the city of houston. i practice oil and gas law and had the experience of stripper well legislation or litigation, if you will, worked on take or pay and curtailment.

3:50:07 to 3:50:17( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: i know very well about the alaskan pipeline because it was being worked on in the 1970's. so we do have a right, and this legislation, h.r. 651 to ask that the alaskan pipeline for natural gas for

3:50:17 to 3:50:28( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: americans be utilized, to be put in place. and it might be time now to declare a national emergency and take control of that pipeline and get it working. but what this bill stands for is

3:50:28 to 3:50:40( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: for working men and women, families, and what says is it's simply asking for due diligence. and that is to come to the national petroleum reserve and go ahead and ack knowledge the fact that

3:50:40 to 3:50:58( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: there are 22.6 million acres that can be leased. only three million acres have been leased. and only 25 exploratory wells have been drilled. we're simply saying that this is part of the

3:50:58 to 3:51:08( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: larger piece, the drilling off the gulf of texas and louisiana of which we in those areas applaud and salute. they've been done environmentally safely. i am asking the people to engage

3:51:08 to 3:51:18( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: in the process of doing what the building trades have said, let us address the question of affordable energy and national security. this is a national security issue. and so the question has to be

3:51:18 to 3:51:29( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: if we have federal plands, we need to be able to drill, this legislation said so, we need to be able to have due diligence and come together and expire the kind of energy policy that

3:51:29 to 3:51:41( Edit History Discussion )

Sheila Jackson-Lee: is for our national security. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new mexico. mr. pearce: mr. chairman, before i yield to mr. brady, i would point out that this is hi the area

3:51:41 to 3:51:54( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: that we're talking about leasing. it is not some area up in alaska that doesn't have any infrastructure, no pipelines. the majority is still avoiding the real question in front of this country

3:51:54 to 3:52:05( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: why we have $4 gasoline is becauswe can't get access to supplies that have an effect on the market today. i would recognize mr. brady for three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman

3:52:05 to 3:52:15( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: from texas is recognized for three minutes. mrmr. brady: thank you, mr. speaker. it is very unfortunate, a time when families are struggling to try to make ends meet with these energy prices,

3:52:15 to 3:52:27( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: small businesses, too, that basically congress is debating a bait and switch piece of legislation. democrats are opening that the -- hoping that the american public isn't smart enough to

3:52:15 to 3:55:17( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Kevin Brady

3:52:27 to 3:52:41( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: realize there's two oil fields in alaska. anwr, the one that's been put off-limits, that's fertile with what we believe is vast oil and gas reserves, and the alaska -- or the national petroleum

3:52:41 to 3:52:55( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: reserve. which, by the way, has been explored now for 70 years. the difference between anwr and the national petroleum reserve is the difference between jimmy carter and his brother billy

3:52:55 to 3:53:05( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: carter. anwr holds vast reserves in a small amount of land that can be accessed much more affordably and quickly. the national petroleum reserve was first drilled for two decades by the u.s.

3:53:05 to 3:53:19( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: navy, the federal government. then for the next two decades it was drilled again by the u.s. geological service, again, the federal government. and for the recent decades, it's been drilled by companies,

3:53:19 to 3:53:34( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: three principally, two of them in the texas area. unfortunately, no major finds were there. that's why most of this area, it's big, but most of it hasn't been leased because most of it is

3:53:34 to 3:53:48( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: a dry hole. what they found instead is that there are some very -- there's some small finds along the edge, which are very expensive to explore, costs about $1 billion to put oil well there,

3:53:48 to 3:54:01( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: and $10 million a mile to try to connect it back to the existing fields. unfortunately, even doing that, even stringing those small finds together to try to produce oil has been held up by environmental

3:54:01 to 3:54:14( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: lawsuits and red tape. so the claim that oil companies aren't exploring and doing their best, they're investing billions of dollars there. the claim that there are vast reserves that need

3:54:14 to 3:54:29( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: to be leased, the whole world has passed on these leases year and year and year again. and you can offer them every five minutes and they are going to pass on them again. we need to quit playing

3:54:29 to 3:54:38( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: games with the american public. we need to open up anwr, the other alaskan oil field, that holds the real ability for us to take more responsibility for america's own energy needs, for us

3:54:38 to 3:54:51( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: to have some say in that price of energy to make sure that when families are filling up, they aren't filling up from oil from the middle east or from venezuela or that they are paying prices

3:54:51 to 3:55:03( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: dictated by iran and nigeria and russia but more american-made energy. ignore this bait and switch. let's get to real energy policy, real american-made energy in anwr. i yield back, mr.

3:55:03 to 3:55:17( Edit History Discussion )

Kevin Brady: speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from west virginia. mr. rahall: i'm reminded by my colleague from mississippi, mr. gene taylor, and thinking back

3:55:17 to 3:55:29( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: over history when this moratoria was passed by a democratic congress in the early 1980's that it was one ronald reagan that occupied the white house and signed it into law. my colleagues

3:55:29 to 3:55:41( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: are attacking ronald reagan, his holiness? i am rather sorry. i yield three minutes to the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. markey. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts

3:55:41 to 3:55:54( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: is recognized for three mutes. mr. markey: i thank the gentleman, and i congratulate him on this excellent piece of legislation. i think we know why we're here. we're here because the american

3:55:54 to 3:56:11( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: consumers is being pummeled at the gasoline pump on a daily basis. and they want to know, how did we get from $30 a barrel of oil and $1.50 for a gallon on the day that george bush and

3:55:54 to 3:59:06( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Edward J. Markey

3:56:11 to 3:56:25( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: dick cheney was sworn in to a point now where it's $140 a barrel and more than $4 a gallon gasoline now. well, it's a very simple formula during the bush-cheney formula. it's two oil men in

3:56:25 to 3:56:38( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: the white n house for two terms equals $4 a gallon gasoline. oil math in the united states is very simple. they put together a secret energy plan, dick cheney and george bush on day one in

3:56:38 to 3:56:55( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: the white house and today we're out here debating whether or not it's a success. now, from the oil industry perspective, it is, and they were the only ones allowed into these secret meetings

3:56:55 to 3:57:08( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: with the president and the vice president. but for the american people, they're being tipped upside down at the pump. and when we democrats say you can go right now and drill up in the petroleum

3:57:08 to 3:57:19( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: reserve, can go offshore, you can go into all of these other locations that are already permitted -- i will not yield at this time. no, there is absolutely no interest on the part of the oil

3:57:19 to 3:57:33( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: industry. and when we say to the oil industry and to the bush administration, instead of drilling off of the beaches of the united states first, how about going to the strategic petroleum

3:57:33 to 3:57:46( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: reserve? how about taking 70 million barrels there and starting to deploy it to put the fear of god into the oil industry, into speculators, into traders? the president says i would never use

3:57:46 to 3:57:57( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: that because it's a free market the price of oil out in the marketplace. so what we're saying, don't go to the beaches, go to the strategic petroleum reserve, but they won't do it. so the drill bill --

3:57:57 to 3:58:13( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: the drill bill of mr. rahall is very simple. he says instead of drilling somewhere 20 years from now to give an insignificant relief, mr. rahall is saying, drill now in the 68 million acres

3:58:13 to 3:58:24( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: that you already have, which has oil. we need instead of drilling for 20 years from now, we need to tap, tap, tap the oil where we have it on the land, in the united states. we need to tap

3:58:24 to 3:58:38( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: the strategic petroleum reserve today, immediately, to protect the american consumer. we need to tap into renewable energy resources in order to protect the american people now with wind and solar.

3:58:38 to 3:58:52( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: the bush administration says no, no, no, i'm with the american petroleum institute, not the american consumer at the pump, and that's why we are out here in order to say to the oil industry

3:58:52 to 3:59:06( Edit History Discussion )

Edward J. Markey: and to the republican party, stop your coalition which has driven the price of oil to a point where consumers are being tipped upside down at the pump. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman

3:59:06 to 3:59:19( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: from new mexico. >> thank you, mr. chairman. the lease in alaska was sold in 1996, 12 years later over $2 billion has been spent before we even produced one drop of oil. that's 34,000 acres that

3:59:19 to 3:59:33( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: according to our friends are idle. and yet $2 billion has basketball spent. another $1 billion has to be spent before that can be produced and what is going to happen with this bill is

3:59:33 to 3:59:43( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: that people are going to say, i'm afraid i might lose my lease. 12 years to produce not even one drop of oil on 34,000 acres and people are going to stop whying leases. this bill is going to

3:59:43 to 3:59:53( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: -- buying leases. this bill is going to kill production, not assist production. we'd like to recognize mr. westmoreland from georgia for two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman

3:59:53 to 4:00:01( Edit History Discussion )

Stevan Pearce: from georgia is recognized for two minutes. mr. westmoreland: i thank the gentleman for yielding. here's a real chart of what the gas prices are doing. you have the republican congress 12

4:00:01 to 4:00:19( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: years and then you've got the democrat congress in just 18 months. i was really surprised to hear that the chairman of the resource committee talked about exporting alaskan oil. there's not been

4:00:01 to 4:02:20( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Lynn A. Westmoreland

4:00:19 to 4:00:31( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: any alaskan oil exported in eight years. eight years. and we talk about, you know, if we're going to drill, i want to know, and this is shameful, but this is snake oil. this is snake oil. mr.

4:00:31 to 4:00:43( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: speaker, what the american people are being sold today is snake oil. they set up a snake oil shop about two weeks ago over here and it was shut down by the republican minority because we would

4:00:43 to 4:00:53( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: not go along with a suspension bill that did not allow drilling. here we are right back again trying to set up another snake oil shop with new ingredients, new facts, being stirred around

4:00:53 to 4:01:04( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: in the same thing to try to come up with a different result. su it's not going to come up with a different result because we're not going to cave in to these snake oil salesmen. we're going

4:01:04 to 4:01:21( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: to stand up for the american people and demand that we drill, that we open up our areas, that we use our own natural resources, that we don't go hat in hand to foreign countries that we, that

4:01:21 to 4:01:35( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: we don't give hugo chavez $170 million a year, that we use our own resources and we're not going to be tricked by these he is can paids that's being put on by the majority party today. i feel

4:01:35 to 4:01:50( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: like i'm watching a "whose line is it?" because they are off on so many different things, i don't even know, mr. speaker, if they have read their own bill. they call it the drill bill.

4:01:50 to 4:02:01( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: this is not about drilling. this is about tricking the american people. mr. speaker, i hope, i hope that we can pay attention to their words, because i want to show you, this is a quote from

4:02:01 to 4:02:11( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: january of 2007. it is sad to s -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. westmoreland: well, hopefully, mr. speaker, they can read this quote and see that there's no

4:02:11 to 4:02:20( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn A. Westmoreland: sincerity. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from west virginia. mr. rahall: thank you, mr. speaker. i would

4:02:20 to 4:02:32( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: remind the gentleman from new mexico when he brings up these bureaucratic delays and environmental lawsuits and that big, long chart of his, i was here when we passed the policy act of 2005

4:02:32 to 4:02:42( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: when that side of the aisle was in control as well as their party in control of the white house. i thought one of the purposes of epac as passed by the republican congress was to speed up this

4:02:42 to 4:02:52( Edit History Discussion )

Nick J. Rahall: whole mess. >> would the gentleman yield? you mr. rahall: i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from california, mrs. capps. the speaker pro temporspe: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes.

4:02:52 to 4:03:01( Edit History Discussion )

Lois Capps: mrs. capps: thank you, chairman rahall, for his excellent leadership of this drill act which i strongly support. the oil companies would have us believe they have nowhere to drill. that's plain

4:02:52 to 4:05:05( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Lois Capps

4:03:01 to 4:03:10( Edit History Discussion )

Lois Capps: wrong. according to the bush administration, 80% of our oil and gas resources are available for drilling. the industry is sitting on 68 million acres of public lands where it could be

4:03:10 to 4:03:21( Edit History Discussion )

Lois Capps: drilling but isn't. and with this bill today we are speeding up the effort to drill in the alaska national petroleum reserve. we don't need to open up more areas for drilling when industry

4:03:21 to 4:03:32( Edit History Discussion )

Lois Capps: is dragging its feet on producing where it already could. this recent push by president bush to open up the rest of our coast to offshore drilling is a political stunt. it's not about lowering

4:03:32 to 4:03:46( Edit History Discussion )

Lois Capps: gas prices today or even in the near future. it's just a cynical attempt to change the subject from in this administration's abject failure on energy. the great oil men rode into the white house

4:03:46 to 4:03:58( Edit History Discussion )

Lois Capps: boast being their new energy policy, their great plan now 95% implemented, has now resulted in $4 a gallon of gas. $500 billion in oil company profits and an economy in crisis. i can't yield

4:03:58 to 4:04:10( Edit History Discussion )

Lois Capps: now, thank you. those of white house oppose bush-cheney energy plan did so because we knew this was the likely result. mr. speaker, democrats have a better idea. one that meets today's crisis