Alan Lowenthal: “The first question is, what do all governors, Republican and Democratic, along the entire East Coast and along the…”

“The first question is, what do all governors, Republican and Democratic, along the entire East Coast and along the entire West Coast of the United States and over 330 municipalities and counties from these States all have in common? You know what they have in common? They are all opposed to expanding offshore oil and gas development off their shores. Today we are here to ensure that these coasts, the Atlantic and the Pacific, receive the assurance and the protection that they deserve. H.R. 1941, the Coastal and Marine Economies Protection Act would permanently protect the Atlantic and Pacific Coasts from offshore oil and gas drilling. From Maine down to Florida, from Washington to California, over 3,000 miles of the United States' coasts are threatened by the fossil fuel industry-driven agenda, which is driven by the Trump administration. One of President Trump's first actions upon taking office was mandating the development of a new and totally unnecessary 5-year plan for offshore oil and gas lease sales. In January 2018, former Interior Secretary Zinke released a draft of that plan, which proposed opening more than 90 percent of the Outer Continental Shelf to oil and gas development. This proposal included the entirety of America's Atlantic and Pacific Coasts, and if enacted, drilling could endanger more than 72,000 miles of U.S. shorelines.…”