July 31, 2006: Debate Ends on Gulf Coast Drilling Bill

The Senate is back in session this week for a few days before taking off the rest of August for the Summer Recess. The topic today after morning business is the Gulf Coast Energy Bill, S.3711, which would open up eight million acres of offshore lands to drilling for oil and natural gas. Officially, S.3711 is described as, "A bill to enhance the energy independence and security of the United States by providing for exploration, development, and production activities for mineral resources in the Gulf of Mexico, and for other purposes."

[15:10 est]
Sen. Mary Landrieu (LA) says that the price of natural gas must come down. It is a raw material for so many goods. She validates the revenue sharing (Gulf coast states would get 37 % of the revenues, putatively redirected for purposes of wetland restoration, etc.).

She is wearing a bright pink jacket with a bright pink blouse underneath. She is talking about devestation of the wetlands. She has said how the revenue sharing is justified because the Gulf States serve as the "platform" by which the federal government even has access to the offshore mineral wealth. The revenues will go a long way to restoring the wetlands, she says. 37% for these purposes; 15% shared for another similar purpose, The Land and Water Conservation Fund. So, Gulf States would get half of the revenue pulled in from selling the right to drill for oil and gas in these areas offshore.

Then, the other 50% goes to the Federal Treasury, to help reduce the deficit, etc. She believes we can minimize the environmental footprint, acknowledges past mistakes.
She yields the floor.

[15:16 est]

Now, Asst. Minority Leader Sen. Richard Durbin (IL). He speaks as if in morning business. Noting upcoming one-year anniversary of Katrina. Notes how much Sen. Landrieu has done to help the state to recover.

But his purpose is to introduce a bipartisan piece of legislation regarding Lebanon, the Lebanese Temporary Protection Status Act. Durbin speaks to the camera. He says he woke up in Springfield, IL, yesterday. Talking about the Qana bombing yesterday, the death of children.

Sen. Kit Bond (MO) is presiding this morning, colorful striped tie.

[15:25 est]

Sen. John Warner (VA) is offering an amendment. He's talking about coastal states, and asserting rights to mineral wealth out on the outer continental shelf. How coastal states can help the country meet its energy crisis. He knows he can't actually offer the amendment, but he still wants to talk about it. More must be done than will be done on the bill before us, he says. He wants coastal states to be allowed to open up areas on the outer continental shelf for exploration. Each state would have a choice under his amendment as to whether it participated.

A vote for cloture is scheduled for 17:30 est. Repeat, cloture vote at 17:30 tonight.

Warner still supports the bill before the Senate, and he will vote for it. But more must be done, he says. We must diversify our geographic supply. The Gulf of Mexico is vulnerable to weather, e.g. platforms being shut down for long periods of time. He calculates potentially 350 million acres opened under his amendment.

[15:39 est]

Warner suggested the absence of a quorum so the Senate is now in a quorum call. Mr. Akaka...

[15:41 est]

Sen. Edward Kennedy (MA) gets time from Sen. Landrieu. But he is not talking just about the energy bill but about the important upcoming week. He wants to talk about the pension bill and the minimum wage/estate tax bill. Said how conference on pensions went till one o'clock in the morning on Thursday night. He strongly supports the pensions legislation.

But also coming over is an estate tax bill with a minimum wage increase attached. Sen. Kennedy has long been a champion of a minimum wage increase. Seven Republicans voted for an increase in the minimum wage last time it was voted on in the Senate, but it has not come to a vote in the senate in nine years. There appears to be a discoloration in the skin on Senator Kennedy's right cheek. It is white colored while his skin is ruddy.

The American people support an increase in the min. wage. He is now putting up a graphic. He is talking about how the estate tax issue has been attached to the min. wage legislation and he is going to fight it, he says. It is a staining and a dishonoring of hard-working Americans. Only 22% of Americans support reducing estate tax, while min. wage increase gets 86% support. Estate tax will benefit 8,200 of richest heirs, some call it the Paris Hilton Tax Giveaway. Compared to a very modest increase in the minimum wage.

Now a new graphic. More Americans living in poverty under Bush Administration. More children in poverty. And the list goes on, Mr. President. Decrease in purchasing power of minimum wage. Disparity. The Senate is not given the opportunity to vote on a pure minimum wage bill he says. You either take both or you get neither. Contemptuous, he says. Men and women of dignity, you can't have what ought to be a right in the richest country in the world. Raising his voice, getting red. A contemptuous attitude, Mr. President.

Now, getting to the Tips issue. The idea under the bill coming from the House is, People making $5.25/hr in tips only need a salary of $2.13 to reach the new minimum wage level. What some states have done is refuse to count tips toward minimum wage, i.e. a tip is a tip. The min. wage bill now before the Senate prohibits states from requiring that a minimum salary meet the federal minimum wage. The Congress will pre-empt the states as to that point under this bill. Effectively, a person making the minimum wage in tips need receive a salary only of $2.13/hr. The Republican Party says, We know better, We know better. Wonderful Republican ingenious concept tied on to this proposal. We'll get to this in greater detail, he says.

[16:20]

Sen. Byron Dorgan (ND) is talking about allowing States to import drugs from Canada. He supports it. He wants to offer this legislation as an amendment on the current bill. He knows it will be rejected but he still wants it considered. Apparently, the "tree is filled" when it comes to the current bill. For any new amendment to be added, one of the two amendments on the current bill would need to be set aside. He asks permission but a voice from the floor objects, sufficient to knock it away for the moment.

Sen. Olympia Snowe (ME) is a co-sponsor of the amendment with Dorgan. It's an enormous savings in all respects, she says, not just for consumers but also for the government.

[17:49 est]

The cloture motion to end debate on the Gulf of Mexico drilling bill will pass. Plenty of Democrats have voted to end debate, including Sens. Levin, Stabenow, Lincoln, Carper, etc. Now debate will end on the bill. A final vote on the bill could come tomorrow.

Indeed, the cloture motion passed 72 in favor to 23 opposed. Cloture motions needs 60 votes to pass.

After ending of debate, Sen. Barbara Boxer (CA) spoke about the bill. She voting against it, along with Sens. Feinstein (CA) and Feingold (WI). Her opposition was twofold:

First, she pointed out that the House version of the bill was much more broad. It was not limited to the Gulf of Mexico but pertained to the entire coast of the United States. It says that States have their say up to 100 miles from the coast; past that, the federal government can lease drilling rights. Sen. Boxer is adamantly opposed to such a measure because she is fearful that California's coast could be threatened by exploration activity.

Second, she thinks the revenue sharing proportion favors the Gulf coast states too heavily. She cites the billion or so dollars that would otherwise go to the Treasury but instead will go to the Gulf State coffers. She doesn't understand why such a high percentage 37 to 50% would go to the Gulf States when it is federal lease rights that are being freed up with the bill.


Miscellaneous
Sen. Chuck Hagel implored President Bush to call for an immediate cease-fire in the Israeli/Lebanese conflict.