The consequences of this effort to open our coasts to more drilling are very serious, both environmentally and economically. I would defer to those of my colleagues who oppose the expansion of oil development off the shores of their States to discuss the potential environmental impacts. For my part, I would point out some of the adverse economic aspects of this proposal, unless, of course, one is from Louisiana or Texas.

At a time when our Nation is staggering under the weight of record deficits, the bill before us today would throw open the doors to the Treasury. It would toss fiscal responsibility to the wind by creating a massive new entitlement, diverting Federal money to States, and creating several new mandatory spending programs, the true cost of which are unknown at this time.

The pending legislation purports to offer coastal States billions of dollars to allow controversial drilling off their coastlines. I do not envy governors, struggling with the added burdens already placed on them as a result of our Federal budgetary mess, who will have money waved under their noses as a result of this proposal.

What they are not being told is that this bill raids even more Federal funds, compounding our fiscal problems, and, in turn, their own. Time and time again this has been proven to be the case. As Federal cutbacks occur, increased burdens are placed on State and local governments.

Even the Administration last week during a hearing held by this Committee expressed budgetary concerns over this bill when the the Minerals Management Service stated: "The revenue sharing provisions of H.R. 4761 are inconsistent with the President’s budget priorities and would have a significant, long-term impact on the budget deficit."

While neither CBO nor the Administration has scored this bill, one estimate predicts that Louisiana alone would receive $10 billion during the first 10 years of the revenue-sharing program, increasing to $50 billion over the first 30 years. And that is just one State.

Meanwhile, the Federal government gets a pittance share of revenues on resources that belong to, and help to fund programs, for all the American people including, I might add, the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which is not held harmless in the pending measure.

All of this takes place within the context of an OCS leasing program awash in fiscal irresponsibility, one plagued with a documented and endless history of royalty holidays and royalty underpayments.

The American taxpayer has not been and is not receiving a fair share of these OCS royalties. While the pending legislation attempts to address royalty underpayments from a certain class of leases, when one considers the legislation’s massive proposed diversion of federal royalties to coastal States, its lease buy-back provisions and its outright ban on any fee increases for both offshore and onshore mineral leases, I can assure you that the American taxpayer comes out in the red.

Mr. Chairman, with all due respect to you and those on both sides of the aisle who support the pending bill, I urge a no vote. Thank you.