Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2017

Floor Speech

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Chairman, as the designee of the gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms. Michelle Lujan Grisham), I offer amendment No. 11.

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Chairman, this amendment strikes section 122 from the underlying bill. That section would prevent the BLM from meeting its statutory obligations under the Mineral Leasing Act to ensure operators ``use all reasonable precautions to prevent waste of oil or gas.''

The BLM would also be prevented, if this underlying provision remains, from modernizing the existing 30-year-old oil and gas production rules to bring them into line with technological advancements in the industry. If that provision stays in the bill, States, tribes, and Federal taxpayers stand to lose royalty revenues when natural gas is wasted, which a 2010 GAO report estimated could amount to as much as $23 million, annually, in royalty revenue.

If this provision remains in the bill, BLM will not be able to update the current royalty rate or raise it as conditions may warrant. A recommendation has been made by both the GAO and the inspector general that they do that, that the conditions do indicate that an increase is in order.

So it is just good government to take this provision out, to update a 30-year-old set of regulations in order to better reflect the current operating climate and to ensure a fair royalty return.

I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. McCollum).

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Chairman, I urge a ``yes'' vote.

I yield back the balance of my time.
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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Chairman, I am glad that my colleague from Florida brought up the Deepwater Horizon tragedy because it was 6 years ago this week, actually, after 87 terrible days of the worst oil spill in history, that the BP Deepwater Horizon's wellhead was finally capped. The toll of that disaster, as everyone knows, was horrific--11 workers killed, untold economic damage to communities around the Gulf of Mexico, and, of course, devastating and ongoing impacts on fish and wildlife.

This is a good time for us to reflect and to discuss the role of the Federal Government in reviewing the environmental impacts of oil and gas development, not just in the Gulf of Mexico, but in a place where the environmental damage could be even worse if and when something went wrong, say, in the Arctic Ocean.

My amendment would strike section 127 of the underlying bill. Doing that would allow the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to move forward with its proposed update of regulation on air quality control reporting and compliance. It would allow that proposed rule to serve its intended purpose, which is to bring decades-old rules on offshore air emissions into the 21st century.

The BOEM, itself, is a new agency. It was born out of the response to the BP Deepwater Horizon spill, but it was also born out of an awareness that the old agency--the Minerals Management Service--was, frankly, too cozy with Big Oil, and that that is why that old agency never updated these old rules. These existing air pollution rules have been in place since 1988, and it is past time that we moved forward with new pollution standards, new modeling, and new technology.

The proposed rule, in this case, seeks to address the emissions of several very harmful air pollutants, including volatile organic compounds, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, carbon monoxide, and particulate matter. The proposed rule does that with flexibility. Actually, in some cases, it reduces regulatory burdens by eliminating redundant reporting requirements and by allowing operators to use emissions credits.

The residents of the Arctic and other oil-producing regions and the workers in the industry shouldn't be subjected to additional air pollution from oil and gas development simply because of where they live and work. We should let these new rules go forward. If history teaches us anything, it teaches us that Big Oil cannot be trusted to do the right thing when it is left unregulated. I would hope that my colleagues on both sides of the aisle would agree that strong and consistent oversight is necessary. I ask for a ``yes'' vote.

Mr. Chairman,

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Chairman, it always warms my heart to hear my Republican colleagues embrace science. It is a beautiful thing. I wish it happened a lot more often.

In this case, we have had 30 years of study. We know a lot. The administration has developed this rule to the point at which it believes it is ready. It is an important rule; it is long overdue; and it is time to move forward. I continue to request a ``yes'' vote.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

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