Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3534, the Consolidated Land, Energy, and Aquatic Resources (CLEAR) Act and H.R. 5851, the Offshore Oil and Gas Worker Whistleblower Protection Act.  Over 100 days ago, millions of gallons of oil began spilling into the Gulf Mexico after an explosion on a BP deepwater drilling rig, which tragically killed eleven workers.  In the months since this accident, the Committees of jurisdiction in the House of Representatives have held numerous hearings to determine what went wrong and how to prevent similar disasters in the future.  I believe both the CLEAR Act and Whistleblower Protection Act take critical steps to properly reform our oil and gas drilling policies, as well as to protect the safety of oil and gas workers.

This comprehensive legislation will end years of misaligned priorities at the Minerals Management Service (MMS) at the Department of the Interior (DOI) by dividing its responsibilities into three different departments: the Bureau of Energy and Resource Management to manage leasing and permitting; the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement to police health and safety regulations; and the Office of Natural Resource Revenue to collect the American people’s energy revenues earned on public lands.   The bill further addresses misconduct by the MMS by implementing strong “revolving door” provisions that would ban MMS employees from accepting employment with oil and gas companies for two years. 

The CLEAR Act imposes strong new safety standards for offshore drilling, including increased inspections, stricter penalties for safety violations, and independent certifications of critical equipment.  I am also pleased that this comprehensive legislation includes many provisions of legislation which I cosponsored after the spill; including the elimination of the liability limit on oil companies, subpoena power to enable the President’s bipartisan Commission to fully investigate the Deepwater Horizon spill, and the establishment of a Gulf of Mexico Restoration Program.

Additionally, this bill will use the revenues received from energy development to provide full funding to the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF), both of which contribute greatly to conservation efforts and open space preservation in Rhode Island. 

In addition to the modifications included in the CLEAR Act, it is vitally important to the workers in our country to ensure that they have access to safe working conditions, and when they do not, have the opportunity to report their concerns without fear of retribution.  The Offshore Oil and Gas Worker Whistleblower Protection Act would strengthen whistleblower protections for oil and gas workers by prohibiting an employer from discriminating against an employee who reports a violation or testifies about an alleged violation.  It also establishes a process for an employee to appeal an employer’s retaliation by filing a complaint with the Secretary of Labor. 

I have long said that our nation cannot drill its way out of our energy crisis. We can no longer sit idly by as greenhouse gas emissions increase, our ecosystem is harmed, and our public health deteriorates from increased pollution.  It is long past time that our nation moves away from our reliance on fossil fuels, both foreign and domestic, and invests in renewable energy and energy efficient technologies. 

While I do not believe we needed any more evidence to move in this direction, it is my hope that we will learn from this tragedy and seek better and safer solutions that will preserve our ecosystem and protect the health and lives of our citizens by passing a comprehensive clean energy jobs bill, such as the American Clean Energy and Security (ACES) Act.  But as we continue to move towards clean energy, I urge my colleagues to support both H.R. 3534 and H.R. 5851 to make vast improvements to our nation’s domestic energy development and protect workers who put safety first.  Thank you.