CIVIC Concern

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Oil Drilling Off Florida's Coasts?

It started with Republican presidential nominee John McCain. Then Governor Charlie Crist voiced cautious support. Opening the Gulf of Mexico to increased drilling for oil and natural gas has suddenly become a hot topic. Now, President Bush has lifted the executive moratorium on drilling and is urging Congress to do the same.

McCain's proposal is to lift federal bans and allow states to decide whether to allow drilling off their coasts. Florida's elected officials in both parties have been almost entirely united in opposing Gulf drilling. But recently, some Republican leaders have begun voicing support for increased drilling, including Senate President Ken Pruitt (D-Port St. Lucie).

Most drilling proponents cite skyrocketing gas prices, the need for consumer relief and reducing our dependence on foreign oil as reasons to lift the ban and authorize leases for new drilling in the Atlantic, Pacific and eastern Gulf of Mexico. What they fail to mention, however, is that even energy experts within the Bush Administration admit new drilling will do nothing to lower gas prices or reduce foreign oil dependence anytime in the near future. The U.S. Department of Energy has already stated that even if the moratorium were lifted immediately, it "would not have a significant impact on domestic crude oil and natural gas production or prices before 2030." (U.S. Department of Energy Annual Energy Outlook 2007 at p. 50, see below for link)

So far, Congress has resisted pressure to lift the moratorium and repeal the law that affords Florida's coasts even greater protection. House leadership offered a bill that would have required oil and gas companies to drill on lands they have already leased from the federal government before applying for leases in new areas. While a majority supported the bill, it failed to garner the necessary two-thirds on a procedural vote.

Learn More:

U.S. Dept. of Energy Annual Energy Outlook 2007

Read the Department of Energy's analysis of the impact of new drilling. More

St. Petersburg Times: Partisan Battle Lines Are Drawn Over Oil Drilling

President Bush's call for Congress to end a ban on offshore drilling sharpened the partisan divide over energy policy and reversed a position he had held publicly through his presidency. More

St. Petersburg Times: GOP Legislators Split Over Drilling

The high price of gasoline has cracked the once solid wall of antidrilling sentiment in the Florida Legislature. More

New York Times: House Republicans Block Democratic Effort on Oil Leases, Calling Bill a Sham

House Republicans on Thursday blocked a Democratic effort to pressure energy companies into drilling for oil on lands they already leased from the federal government, calling the legislation a sham. More