HR0724 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0724 LRB102 26654 MST 37444 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The United States relies, and will continue to rely for many years, on gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel despite the recent focus on renewable and alternative sources of energy; and

WHEREAS, In order to fuel our economy, the United States will need more oil and natural gas, while also requiring additional alternative energy sources; and

WHEREAS, The United States currently depends on foreign imports for more than one half of its petroleum usage and is the largest consumer of petroleum in the world; U.S. dependence on overseas oil has created difficult geopolitical relationships, with potentially damaging consequences for our national security; and

WHEREAS, Oil deposits in the Bakken Reserves of Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota are an increasingly important crude oil resource, representing an estimated 11 billion barrels of recoverable crude oil; there is not enough pipeline capacity for crude oil supplies from Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Oklahoma, and Texas to American refineries; and

WHEREAS, Canadian oil reserves contain an estimated 170 billion barrels of recoverable oil; Canada is the single-largest supplier of oil to the United States at four million barrels per day and has the capacity to significantly increase that rate; and

WHEREAS, The Keystone XL pipeline will, when completed, carry 700,000 barrels of North American crude oil to American refineries; and

WHEREAS, Construction of the project will create 120,000 jobs nationwide, including 20,000 in construction and manufacturing, create $20 billion in economic growth, and generate millions of dollars' worth of government receipts; and

WHEREAS, Studies have found that increasing delivery of crude oil from Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Alberta, as well as Texas and Oklahoma, to American refineries has the potential to substantially reduce our country's dependency on sources outside of North America; and

WHEREAS, Canada sends more than 99 percent of its oil exports to the United States, the bulk of which goes to Midwestern refineries, and oil companies are investing huge sums to expand and upgrade refineries in the Midwest and elsewhere to make gasoline and other refined products from Canadian oil derived from oil sands; the expansion and upgrade projects will create many new construction jobs and substantially add to the gross product of Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Ninety percent of the money used to buy Canadian oil will likely later be spent directly on U.S. goods and services in contrast with increasing the trade relationship with unstable regions; supporting the continued shift toward reliable and secure sources of North American oil is of vital interest to the United States and the State of Illinois; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we support the continued and increased development and delivery of oil derived from North American oil reserves to American and Illinois refineries; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge Congress to support continued and increased development and delivery of oil from Canada to the United States; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge approval of the Keystone XL pipeline project to ensure America's oil independence, improve our national security, reduce the cost of gasoline, create new jobs, and strengthen ties between the United States and Canada; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to the President of the United States, the United States Secretary of the Interior, the United States Secretary of Transportation, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and all members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation.