US House Approves Oil Spill Reform Bill
Photo: AP
Demonstrator John Moore holds a sign during a protest in Berkeley, California on 30 Jul 2010 to mark the 100th day anniversary of BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico
The U.S. House of Representatives has passed legislation that would
impose new safety regulations on the offshore oil-drilling industry.
House members voted 209 to 193 in favor of the Democrat-backed
legislation late Friday, siding largely along party lines.
The bill, which now goes to the Senate, would remove a $75 million limit
on liability for oil spill damages and put a new tax on the industry to
fund nationwide conservation projects.
Chellie Pingree, a Democratic Party congresswoman from Maine, said the
legislation will have a number of positive consequences.
"In addition to cleaning up the mess, repairing the damage and cracking
down on big oil companies, we also have to get serious about ending our
dependence on oil and creating new sources of clean energy," she said.
"If we had a clean energy economy powered by wind and solar and tidal
power we probably would not be here having this discussion today."
Republican Congressman Pete Sessions of Texas argued against the
legislation, saying it will stifle job growth and hurt the economy.
"The Obama moratorium on deep water oil drilling has already cost tens
of thousands of jobs," said Sessions. "And this bill will eliminate
even more American energy jobs, making it harder and more expensive to
produce both energy on and offshore. Additionally, this legislation will
only further enhance our economic troubles in the Gulf region and
throughout the nation."
Jim McGovern, the Democratic Party congressman from Massachusetts
disagreed.
"My friend talks about jobs. How many jobs have been lost because of
this oil spill? How many fishermen are out of business, how many hotels
and restaurants have lost business because of this terrible crisis? So
this is a good bill, and it is a smart bill. And if you want to
apologize to big oil go right ahead, but the American people are not on
your side on this one," said McGovern.
The bill faces strong opposition in the Senate. The upper house of
Congress is not expected to take up the issue until September.
Earlier Friday, BP's incoming CEO Bob Dudley, said it is time to scale
down the vast operation to clean up the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, but he
stressed his company's commitment to fully restore the environment.
Among other things, he said the company will establish a $100 million
fund to support drilling-rig workers in the Gulf of Mexico who are
unemployed because of the oil giant's massive spill.
