House subcommittee holds legislative hearing on offshore energy bill
The Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources held a legislative hearing Wednesday regarding a discussion draft of the Accessing Strategic Resources Offshore Act (ASTRO Act), which aims to increase access Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) energy resources.
The ASTRO Act would establish a revenue sharing framework for states in the Mid and Southern Atlantic planning areas. It would also give the Secretary of the Interior the authority to conduct lease sales in areas excluded from approved 5 Year Plans and limit the president’s authority to withdraw OCS areas from leasing.
“Our offshore oil and gas industry provides our nation and the world with a safe and reliable source of energy, billions of dollars in revenues to the government, and has resulted in the creation of millions of direct and indirect jobs across the country,” Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources Chairman Paul Gosar (R-AZ) said. “It is critical that we maintain and increase access to offshore exploration and production to improve upon these trends.”
Studies show that opening the OCS in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Eastern Gulf would create 840,000 new jobs and over $200 billion in revenues, according to a press release from the House Committee on Natural Resources. The releases also stated that the ASTRO Act is part of a “broader overhaul of federal lands energy policy.”
“Our nation should produce more of the oil and natural gas Americans need here at home. And it can,” Erik Milito, director of Upstream and Industry Operations at the American Petroleum Institute, said. “This would strengthen our energy security and help put downward pressure on prices while also providing many thousands of new jobs for Americans and billions of dollars in additional revenue for our government.”
