On the recordFebruary 10, 2011
However, the Obama administration is crippling American energy and mineral production through restrictive new policies, rules, and regulations. President Obama's de facto moratorium on offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico has left many thousands of people out of work. Since last spring, the administration has issued only a handful of new shallow water permits, and they have issued no new permits for deepwater leases. Why are no new permits being issued? The reason is simple: it's regulatory confusion. The administration is attempting to create new rules for oil and gas permitting and has repeatedly changed the rules and moved the goal posts on companies operating on both Federal lands and waters. Instead of thoughtful, reasoned rulemaking that seeks public comments and engagement, the administration unilaterally directed the change of over 14,000 engineering requirements.
