Congressman Lee Terry

Washington –

Rep. Lee Terry today commented on his support of a pair of bills designed to allow producers to explore for American energy resources.  Both bills have passed the House of Representatives with bipartisan support and now head to the Senate for approval.The first bill, H.R. 1229 – the Putting the Gulf Back to Work Act, passed yesterday by a vote of 263-163 and sets a firm 30 day timeline (with two 15 day extensions) for the Secretary of the Interior to act on a permit to drill in the Gulf of Mexico.  This will help end the de facto drilling moratorium imposed on energy exploration in the Gulf by the Obama Administration on May 27, 2010.

The second bill, H.R. 1231 passed today and calls on the Administration to move forward with American energy production in offshore areas already opened for exploration containing the most oil and natural gas resources.  This bill is expected to help create 1.2 million long-term jobs while reducing our reliance on foreign sources of oil.

The bills come just a week after the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1230, the Restarting American Offshore Leasing Now Act.  The legislation expands American energy production and creates jobs by requiring the Secretary of the Interior to facilitate oil and natural gas lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico and offshore Virginia which have been blocked by the Administration.  
 
"The offshore oil bans by this Administration have directly undermined American energy production and have done nothing to reduce our reliance on foreign sources of oil.  If anything, they've done the opposite.  These two bills – both of which passed with the support of like-minded Democrats – send the message that it is time to move forward by increasing our American energy production," Terry said.