Ken Calvert: “Mr. Speaker, I want to reiterate, my bill expressly provides that the statute of limitations created herein is…”

“Mr. Speaker, I want to reiterate, my bill expressly provides that the statute of limitations created herein is prospective only and, of course, in cases of fraud and concealment of records, it is void anyway. The leases at issue in the interagency task force report involved production from 1980 through 1993 or so. H.R. 1975 will in no way bar the Federal Government from pursuing the allegations of underpayment if that is what the Secretary of Interior decides to do. My bill says, act in a timely manner, Mr. Secretary, the taxpayers deserve no less or, alternatively, delegate your responsibility for royalty collection to those States that wish to do the job more efficiently and more timely.”