WASHINGTON, DC - House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) praised today’s House passage of the Restarting American Offshore Leasing Now Act, H.R. 1230, legislation requiring the Secretary of the Interior to conduct offshore oil and gas lease sales that have been stymied by the Obama Administration.
Chairman Upton made the following statement on the House Floor in support of increasing domestic energy production:
Most Americans understand the concept of supply and demand. And, in fact, a third of our oil now comes from the Gulf.
The Department of Energy Information Agency tells us that last year’s production in the Gulf was 20 percent less than projected in 2007. And in 2012, we are going to be getting a half-a-million-barrels-a-day decline in production from 2010.
What happens when the production goes down and the demand goes up? The price goes up - way up. Add to that the uncertainty and unrest in the Middle East, and there is no surprise that we have gas prices at $4 and $5 now in this country, and who knows where they are headed.
This legislation - if we pass it today, get it enacted - helps turn the key to unlocking the door on domestic energy production. This legislation is not about new lease sales, it simply catches up with the leases already approved.
Watch Chairman Upton’s remarks HERE.
