Fleming to Secretary Salazar: "Immediately Move Forward With Outer Continental Shelf Development"

Statement

Today, Congressman John Fleming submitted the following written statement to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. Secretary Salazar will be in New Orleans tomorrow for a regional meeting on the future of resource development on the Outer Continental Shelf.

"In Louisiana, oil and gas production means jobs, royalties and tax revenue to the state. Continuing to delay the development of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) will only serve to propagate our dependence on foreign oil and put hundreds of thousands of jobs further out of reach for the families hit hardest by this recession.

In 2008, Louisiana received hundreds of millions of dollars in royalty and bonus payments. This revenue is used to build vital infrastructure, improve schools for our children, keep taxes low on our workers, and fund many other vital projects and programs. Simply said, this industry has been a lifeline to our State's economy during a tough economic period.

The continuous attempts to shut down further oil and gas leasing and production, coupled with the punitive tax policies in President Obama's budget, will ultimately result in some of the same spikes in energy costs Americans felt this past year. When families are struggling to make ends meet and the threat of job loss looms, the federal government should be aiding industries that are creating good paying jobs and pumping billions of dollars in spending and tax revenue into our economy. Instead, we are continuing to block access to resources that have the potential to generate well over a trillion dollars in revenue.

Extending the OCS moratoria will do nothing to lift this country out of recession and will undeniably harm America's long-term national security by delaying our energy independence. It is past time that we get serious about reducing our dependence on foreign oil and expanding domestic production. I urge Secretary Salazar to stop these diversionary tactics and immediately move forward with development of OCS resources."

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