Lois Capps: “I thank my colleague from Colorado for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this rule and to the two…”

“I thank my colleague from Colorado for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this rule and to the two underlying bills. In fact, these bills are, themselves, solutions in search of problems. They tear down environmental protections and they restrict public participation in an attempt to expand oil and gas production. But the truth is, oil production on Federal lands has gone up significantly since 2008, and Federal regulations have not stopped States from implementing their own fracking rules. These bills are nothing more than reckless giveaways to big oil and gas companies that put American families and the environment at risk. H.R. 2728, for example, would preemptively prohibit the Federal Government from setting even minimal safety standards for fracking. Fracking, whether onshore or offshore, poses serious environmental and public health risks that we don't fully understand now. We know very little about the environmental and public health impacts of onshore fracking, and we know even less about offshore fracking. Offshore fracking has been occurring for over 20 years off the California coast, with at least four fracs approved as recently as this year. Federal regulators and the public only recently became aware of these activities, thanks to FOIA requests released last summer. We know virtually nothing about the size of these fracs, the chemicals being used, or the impacts on the marine environment.…”