FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 19, 2008
CONTACT:
Brian Kennedy (202) 346-8826
IER Letter to President-elect Obama:
Americans Say No to New Energy Bans
Washington, DC – Spokesmen have already expressed President-elect Barack Obama’s intention to issue an executive order to block energy production on taxpayer-owned federal lands in Utah. Many speculate that he may also exercise the power of executive order to reinstate the recently-expired ban on Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) energy production. Today the Institute for Energy Research (IER) released a letter to President-elect Obama urging him to consider that the overwhelming majority of Americans opposition to a “veto” of America’s energy security, and its president, Thomas Pyle, issued the following statement:
“The United States has no hope of achieving real economic and energy security if our new president issues unilateral orders banning energy production on federal lands. Such actions do not and will not constitute change; they will simply veto recent progress and starve our economy of the stimulus it needs for a full and fast recovery. From the creation of good jobs to strengthening demand for U.S. goods and services and generating massive revenues for the Treasury, more oil and gas production on federal lands – not less – is the change we need today.”
According to data from the Department of Interior, that the amount of federal lands and waters made available for new energy exploration by the outgoing Bush Administration is very close to the amount offered during the 8 years of the Clinton Administration. Overall, opportunities to lease government lands for energy production have been steadily and significantly reduced by legislation, regulation and litigation since the end of the Reagan Administration. IER’s letter calls on President-Elect Obama to take immediate actions to reverse this disturbing trend.
The IER letter to President-Elect Obama can be viewed by clicking here.
The Institute for Energy Research (IER) is a not-for-profit organization that conducts intensive research and analysis on the functions, operations, and government regulation of global energy markets. IER maintains that freely-functioning energy markets provide the most efficient and effective solutions to today’s global energy and environmental challenges and, as such, are critical to the well-being of individuals and society.
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www.InstituteforEnergyResearch.org
