Politics

Update on Congressional Action on the Disastrous Oil Spill

By Karina

Yesterday afternoon, Speaker Pelosi met with House Committee Chairs to discuss the House’s ongoing oversight and legislative response to the BP Oil Spill:

The Speaker thanked the Chairs for their ongoing oversight efforts saying:

I am here to express my gratitude for the leadership that our chairmen and subcommittee chairs have demonstrated on the issues relating to the tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico. In the past few weeks, they have held hearings, written legislation, visited the region on more than one occasion and have given us, on an ongoing basis, the benefit of their thinking?whether we are talking about leasing reform, liability reform, the safety of the workers, the integrity of the certification process; whether we are talking about preparedness of the private sector to help respond to the spill; whether we are talking about research and development into new technologies; whether we are talking about the confidence that the people in the region have about what the response is from around; whether we are talking about the Coast Guard, and the Coast Guard having responsibility but none of the opportunity to help write these readiness plans.

…

So I thank them, and I want my colleagues to know that we are assured that the intellectual resources to address this issue, the experience from other spills and other tragedies has taught us well how to go forward and we need to exploit and enforce the laws that are there, change them if necessary, and pass others to make us stronger in terms of protecting the interest of the taxpayer?the economy, the ecology, the quality of life in the region of the Gulf of Mexico.

The Speaker also asked the Chairs to continue their legislative work in response to this crisis expeditiously with the goal of completing committee consideration of legislation by July 4 and on the House floor by the August work period, explaining:

We are ready?some of the bills that have passed out of committee, some of them have passed the House and gone to the Senate and not come back. I think, I don?t know what further evidence anyone would need that we need a new energy policy in our country as we go forward?what further evidence than what has happened in the Gulf of Mexico. We are told the technology is there to do the drilling. When it doesn?t work, there is no technology to correct it and no technology to clean it up. Instead of digging deeper into the core of the earth, we should be looking to the sun, the wind, and the soil for renewables and alternatives to that. And as the President has said, countries know that the country that prevails in the green economy will be the country, the nation that prevails in the global economy. We want America to be that country.

Today at 2pm, the Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Environment will hold a briefing entitled “Beneath the Surface of the BP Spill: What?s Happening Now, What?s Needed Next” with the following witnesses:

Tadeusz W. Patzek, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering, University of Texas, Austin

Thomas M. Leschine, Ph.D., Director, School of Marine Affairs, University of Washington

Samantha B. Joye, Ph.D., Professor of Marine Sciences, University of Georgia

Richard Haut, Ph.D., Senior Research Scientist, Houston Advanced Research Center

Philippe Cousteau, CEO, EarthEcho International

Watch the live webcast at 2pm»

Earlier today, the Science Committee held a hearing to explore the research, development, and technology needs for the recovery of oil and effective cleanup of oil spills and to examine the current gaps in spill response research and technology development, and what is needed to improve the coordinated federal response going forward. Read witness statements»

In addition, the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee held a hearing this morning on the liability requirements for oil spills?the damages from the Deepwater Horizon spill already far exceed current liability limits on offshore facilities. Read witness statements»

Full transcript of the press availability from the meeting with Committee Chairs yesterday: (more…)

Full post as published by The Gavel on June 09, 2010 (boomark / email).