Steven Holt: “I thank the gentleman from Virginia and join with him in our concern for the workers, the restaurateurs, the small…”

“I thank the gentleman from Virginia and join with him in our concern for the workers, the restaurateurs, the small business owners, all those who depend on the Gulf of Mexico for their livelihoods. This gives us ample motivation to close this loophole which allows oil companies to shift the cost for cleanup from the oil company to the taxpayers. Current law would allow an oil company subsidiary that is responsible for an oil spill to declare bankruptcy. We must not depend just on the good word of the oil companies. We have been given ample reason to question that good word. Even today, the new CEO of BP says he's entertaining the idea of scaling back the cleanup in the gulf. We must close every loophole. This amendment of Mr. Connolly, Mr. Welch and I, and others, would ensure that companies like BP pay every last cent that they are liable for, that the spill not spill over to the taxpayer.”