HR0739 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0739 LRB102 26675 MST 37480 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The oil and natural gas industry is a vital part of the United States' economy, and increasing domestic energy production and reducing dependence on foreign supplies are in the best interest of our nation's strategic and economic well-being; and

WHEREAS, High oil and gas prices, our growing reliance on imported oil, and price volatility clearly demonstrate the imperative to change course and expand domestic oil and gas production; and

WHEREAS, Expanding domestic production will reduce our dependence on foreign oil and natural gas and significantly reduce the billions of dollars we send abroad each year; and

WHEREAS, As our reliance on oil and natural gas will necessarily continue for the foreseeable future, we can no longer rule out the value of our own significant proven oil and gas reserves nor the value of a future significant discovery anywhere in or off the shores of the United States; taking advantage of our own resources will create new investment and new jobs here at home; and

WHEREAS, The Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) is an area of some 1.76 billion acres submerged off the United States' coasts that is controlled by the federal government; approximately 97% of the OCS is under federal moratoria preventing any exploration or production of oil and natural gas; and

WHEREAS, The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) estimates that the OCS contains 86 billion barrels of oil and 420 trillion cubic feet of natural gas; because exploration is prohibited on the vast majority of the OCS, these estimates are primarily based on survey projections and are likely quite conservative; additionally, approximately 83% of federal lands onshore, containing some 28 billion barrels of oil and 207 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, are under moratoria or severely restricted; and

WHEREAS, In the 26 years since the OCS moratoria were put into place, the technology utilized to extract oil and gas has evolved, significantly reducing the environmental impact of producing the resources; advanced multidimensional seismic imaging allows a much higher degree of accuracy in locating oil and gas deposits, which reduces the amount of drilling necessary while increasing the amount of resources recovered; pressure gauges and safety valves incorporated into offshore production facilities diminish the possibility of spills; these technologies have reduced the spillage rate to just 0.001%; and

WHEREAS, The U.S. has significant reserves of liquid fuels derived from coal, oil sands, and oil shale as well as expanded infrastructure to enable greater access to these resources located throughout North America; and

WHEREAS, According to the Department of Energy, the United States has recoverable reserves of coal equivalent in energy value to nearly six trillion barrels of oil, oil shale amounting to more than two trillion barrels of oil, and heavy oil and oil sands equal to another 154 billion barrels of oil, some portion of which can be converted to liquid fuels such as gasoline and diesel; and

WHEREAS, Unfortunately, much like the moratoria on energy development on the OCS, there is also a legal prohibition against the federal government leasing much of this land for exploration for oil shale; keeping these lands off limits is stunting the investments necessary to improve the technology to extract these valuable resources in an environmentally responsible manner; and

WHEREAS, If the United States could embark on new domestic oil and gas exploration efforts and invest in building its domestic energy infrastructure, it would not only help with the energy transition here at home, it would also help keep costs down for American families, strengthen our economy, create jobs, and make American energy secure; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we strongly urge the President of the United States to develop and implement new sound domestic energy exploration and production policies to strengthen U.S. energy security and ensure that the United States can provide its people with stable, affordable, and reliable energy prices; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge the U.S. to undertake a sustained and enduring federal research and development effort, in partnership with private industry, universities, and national laboratories to evaluate technologies and practices to minimize the impact of the development of these underutilized fuels on the land and water resources of the United States, while also evaluating technologies and practices to reduce the energy intensity and carbon footprint of these fuel sources; 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.