Joe Pitts, July 18, 2008

On June 8, the nationwide average for a gallon of gasoline hit $4.00 a gallon. Since that day, the House of Representatives has been in session for five weeks. During that time, Congressmen have been able to vote on one bill that provides for increased use of American-made oil and natural gas resources, and that bill was defeated because it also included a provision that would simultaneously make it more difficult for companies to extract oil from federal lands.

The American people are being pinched by high gas prices. In all of my communications with constituents, I hear about how high gas prices are forcing families to make difficult budgetary decisions. The high cost of fuel is increasing prices for other goods as well, from a gallon of milk to a loaf of bread. Congress needs to act.

And we have many good ideas to address the issue. I wish nothing more than to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to reduce the price of gas. This is a natural problem and needs to be solved in a bipartisan way.

This is why I have a difficult time explaining to my constituents why Congress has not voted to increase production of energy resources here in America. During the five weeks since gas hit $4 a gallon, the House has voted on legislation that would direct the Secretary of the Interior to continue stocking fish in certain lakes in the North Cascades National Park, Ross Lake National Recreation Area, and Lake Chelan National Recreation Area. We have voted on legislation honoring the goal of the International Year of Astronomy, commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Space Foundation, a resolution expressing support for the designation of a "National Cowboy Day," and a bill called The America’s Beautiful National Parks Quarter Dollar Coin Act. The lack of a serious attempt to pass legislation to address the energy crisis has reached the level of negligence.

The truth is, the House Democratic Leadership controls the floor agenda and Speaker Pelosi has made well known she simply does not believe we should increase oil and natural gas production here in America. She will not allow the House to vote on this issue despite the fact that her party has the majority.

A bipartisan majority exists in the House that would be willing to vote for increased production of American-made energy in environmentally responsible ways.

There is no lack of good ideas or legislation already introduced to address the energy crisis. I have sponsored legislation that would encourage the construction of new oil refineries on closed military bases. I support legislation to extend renewable energy tax credits for the production of wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, waste-to-energy, and hydropower. Additionally, I support legislation to increase American oil production by allowing environmentally sound exploration in Alaska, the Outer Continental Shelf, and the Gulf of Mexico.

House Republicans have been forced to use procedural moves in an effort to get votes on legislation that we know is so critical to American families. It does not need to come to this. I am confident that bipartisan compromise can take place to move this issue forward, but we cannot make that happen until Speaker Pelosi removes the stranglehold she has on the House floor schedule.

We can start by following the lead of the President and lifting the Congressional ban on accessing oil in the deep waters off our coasts. According to the Department of the Interior, 86 billion barrels of oil are available in the Outer Continental Shelf. Congress has voluntarily shut off 85 percent of the deep waters off our coasts from oil exploration.

America needs energy now. We cannot simply hope new sources of energy will appear. The roadblocks to development of our own resources should be removed. We need to act in environmentally friendly ways using both traditional sources of energy and new, clean, renewable technologies. This issue is too important to fall victim to partisan bickering or election year politics. The American people deserve a Congress that is responsive to the issue they care about most. I stand ready to work with my colleagues in either party to accomplish this goal, if Speaker Pelosi should deem it acceptable.

Congressman Joe Pitts, a Republican, represents Pennsylvania's 16th Congressional District, which includes Lancaster County and parts of Chester County and Berks County.