Washington – The Senate voted Tuesday to open 8.3 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico to oil and gas exploration in a bid to boost domestic production and stabilize natural-gas prices that have driven up the costs of home heating, agriculture, manufacturing and alternative fuel.
But supporters cautioned that it may not become law unless energy and manufacturing lobbyists convince the House of Representatives to scale back its broader ambition to scrap a 25-year-old nationwide moratorium on all new offshore drilling from Alaska and California to the East Coast.
After the vote, House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill, and Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, congratulated the Senate for taking a “good first step,” but they emphasized that “House Republicans strongly support our bill” as superior. They said they look forward to crafting a compromise with the Senate.
Eighteen Democrats joined 53 Republicans in the 71-25 Senate vote.
Sens. Wayne Allard, R-Colo. and Ken Salazar, D-Colo., both voted for the bill.
“Instead of talking about high energy costs, we actually did something about them today,” Allard said. “This legislation will have a positive impact on consumers who are experiencing the burden of near-record high natural-gas prices.”
Salazar said his support came because “I believe we must move forward on bringing additional domestic oil and gas supplies online.
“At the same time, we cannot drill our way to energy independence,” he said. “Regardless of the additional capacity this bill may create, we must make progress on renewable energy initiatives if we are to meaningfully reduce our addiction to foreign oil.”
Denver Post staff writer Anne C. Mulkern contributed to this report.
