Strategic Production Response Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. LEVIN. 18.

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Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Chair, my amendment would exclude the Southern California Planning Area from being leased for oil and gas production as part of any proposed plan under this bill.

It is just over 1 year ago that our community experienced an oil spill that posed a grave ecological disaster that devastated local wildlife, our coasts and our ocean, and small business owners who rely on our coastal activity for their livelihoods.

This kind of disaster is exactly why I introduced my American Coasts and Oceans Protection Act to prohibit any new leasing for the exploration, development, or production of oil or natural gas along the southern California coast, from San Diego up to San Luis Obispo.

As I said when I introduced the bill last Congress, it is time to put our environment and our coastal economy first, not the out-of-state fossil fuel companies that profit while polluting our coastline.

It is also important to note that our southern California economy relies heavily on ocean-based businesses. In San Diego and Orange County alone, the ocean economy accounts for roughly $7.7 billion in economic activity and sustains more than 140,000 jobs in coastal tourism and recreation.

Along California's coastline, fishing, tourism, and recreation supports nearly 600,000 jobs and roughly $42.3 billion in economic activity. For every massive oil spill our region experiences, we are not only adding to the pollution of our oceans, but directly jeopardizing thousands of jobs.

Mr. Chair, the latest oil spill wasn't the first time our community has experienced such a disaster. More than 4 million gallons of oil have been released in the Pacific Ocean as a result of the 1969 Santa Barbara blowout, and the Refugio oil spill of 2015, and other leaks from oil rig and pipeline activity affecting more than 935 square miles of ocean. This most recent spill pushed that number even higher.

Californians have made it clear that they are strongly opposed to additional offshore oil and gas drilling along our coast.

The last administration repeatedly pushed to expand offshore drilling and rolled back crucial safety regulations that help prevent spills, and now here we are once again as Big Oil seeks to expand drilling off our coast, even as they sit on thousands of unused permits across the country.

With so much ecological disaster and so many jobs threatened by offshore drilling, southern Californians have had enough. We need to be focusing on cutting emissions and protecting coastal communities from rising sea levels, not extracting more oil so fossil fuel executives can profit even more. Just yesterday, Chevron announced it is tripling its stock buyback program to $75 billion while reporting record profits.

How much profit do they really need?

The reality is, we need to end all new offshore oil and gas leasing in southern California, off the Pacific Coast and beyond. This amendment represents a start to making that happen.

Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this amendment and respect the will of the vast majority of Californians, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents alike who oppose drilling off our coasts.

Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

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

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Mr. LEVIN. 21.

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Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Chairman, my amendment would prohibit any new leases under this plan that do not provide a fair return for taxpayers.

For far too long, our oil and gas leasing program has offered a sweetheart deal for the industry at the expense of taxpayers. One fossil fuel company recently even went so far as to outline in a press release the many benefits of extraction on public land compared to private land. Their release highlighted that leases on public lands are cheaper, they last longer, and they are more expansive.

While these statements may be music to the ears of those who care most about Big Oil special interests, they represent a raw deal for the American people.

Increasing the royalty rate to a fair level will generate billions of dollars in revenue for taxpayers.

The Government Accountability Office and Congressional Budget Office both agree and have suggested that this is good policy. That is why last Congress I introduced the Restoring Community Input and Public Protections in Oil and Gas Leasing Act, to protect taxpayers by eliminating noncompetitive oil and gas leasing and raising the onshore oil and gas royalty rate, rental fee, and minimum bid amount.

I am proud that the Inflation Reduction Act includes significant provisions of that bill, including eliminating noncompetitive leasing for oil and gas sales, raising annual rental rates, and increasing the minimum bid for public lands. These provisions will go a long way in ensuring the American people see a more fair return on the use of our cherished public lands.

But we have more work to do to provide a fair return. States like Texas and Oklahoma charge higher royalty rates on their State lands than are charged on Federal public lands, leading to lost revenue for Federal taxpayers.

This amendment builds on those provisions and will help end giveaways of our public lands to fossil fuel companies and ensure that taxpayers receive a fair return on any private profit that oil and gas companies extract from our public lands.

The American people deserve to see a fair financial return on the profits that fossil fuel companies make from their use of our cherished public lands, and this amendment will require that these companies provide that return instead of simply ripping the public off.

Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

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