HLS 16RS-4066 ORIGINAL
2016 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 139
BY REPRESENTATIVE COUSSAN
ENERGY/OIL & GAS: Urges the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to maintain
region-wide leasing in the Gulf of Mexico in the 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf
Oil and Gas Leasing Program
1 A RESOLUTION
2To urge and request the United States Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to maintain
3 region-wide leasing in the Gulf of Mexico in the 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf
4 Oil and Gas Leasing Program.
5 WHEREAS, the United States Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has
6released its 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Draft Proposed Program
7which is now in its public comment period; and
8 WHEREAS, the Louisiana oil and gas industry and its workers, suppliers, and the
9entire business community have expressed their strong support for offshore energy
10exploration in comments filed with BOEM concerning the development of the federal
11government's "Five-Year Plan" for offshore oil and gas leasing program for 2017-2022; and
12 WHEREAS, the American economy is truly dependent on and stimulated by the oil
13and gas production of the Gulf of Mexico; and
14 WHEREAS, the Gulf of Mexico provides nearly twenty percent of the nation's crude
15oil supply, an energy supply that powers our entire country; and
16 WHEREAS, the oil and gas industry in the United States remains a stable force
17around the globe due to the Gulf's output of natural resources; and
18 WHEREAS, in Fiscal Year 2014 alone, Gulf of Mexico energy development
19supported over six hundred fifty thousand jobs, contributed over $64 billion in gross
20domestic product, and provided over $7 billion in revenue to the federal government; and
Page 1 of 3 HLS 16RS-4066 ORIGINAL
HR NO. 139
1 WHEREAS, offshore energy development and production in the Gulf of Mexico is
2vital to the economic well-being of the Gulf Coast states, coastal communities, and the entire
3nation; and
4 WHEREAS, as BOEM itself recognizes in their 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf
5Oil and Gas Leasing Draft Proposed Program, the Gulf is ". . . one of the richest oil and
6natural gas regions in the world . . ." and concluded that removal of the Gulf of Mexico from
7the next leasing program would cause incremental environmental and social costs estimated
8between $5 billion to $13 billion due to a greater reliance on energy from other sources; and
9 WHEREAS, Louisiana has been consistently ranked number two in the nation in
10natural gas production, ranked in the top five in oil production, and our refining capability
11is second only to Texas, our closer friend and neighbor-state; and
12 WHEREAS, because of Louisiana's enviable energy infrastructure, the state and its
13citizens not only benefit from the production of oil and natural gas but additionally benefit
14from the transportation of hydrocarbons via pipelines to Louisiana's refineries and
15petrochemical plants; and
16 WHEREAS, our nation's energy policy is dependent on a thriving oil and natural gas
17industry in the Gulf of Mexico and requires continued and expanded access to all areas of
18the Gulf of Mexico to increase and improve the economic well-being of residents, workers,
19and businesses in the Gulf states region; and
20 WHEREAS, our nation's energy policy directly affects our trade policy with other
21countries, our workforce, our economy, and our position as a global super-power to protect
22our interests at home and abroad.
23 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Louisiana House of Representatives
24does hereby recognize that it is in the best interest of Louisiana's citizens and businesses and
25those of the entire nation and does hereby respectfully urge and request the Bureau of Ocean
26Energy Management to maintain region-wide leasing in the Gulf of Mexico in the
272017-2022 program without any further exclusions or restrictions.
28 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
29Secretary of the United States Department of the Interior and the members of Louisiana's
30congressional delegation, and be submitted to the appropriate Federal Register comment
Page 2 of 3 HLS 16RS-4066 ORIGINAL
HR NO. 139
1docket related to the 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Draft Proposed
2Program (BOEM-2016-0003) and Draft Programmatic Environmental Statement
3(BOEM-2016-0002).
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HR 139 Original 2016 Regular Session Coussan
Urges and requests the U. S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to maintain
region-wide leasing in the Gulf of Mexico in the 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and
Gas Leasing Program.
Page 3 of 3