Ron Kind: “Our vote today is a very simple choice. It's a choice of whether we're going to stand with the workers of the oil and…”

“Our vote today is a very simple choice. It's a choice of whether we're going to stand with the workers of the oil and gas industry, with the families of the gulf region, with the taxpayers of this country, or whether we choose to stand with the powerful special interests known as Big Oil. I choose to stand with the American people. And here is why. This legislation is going to increase safety standards to protect workers. It's going to increase the liability limits so that those responsible pay. It's going to reform the ethics standards to end the revolving door between industry and oversight functions. And it's also going to live up to the promise of funding the Land and Water Conservation Fund so that those companies extracting resources on our public lands help conserve and protect our natural resources. In a little bit, I and others will offer an amendment under the Land and Water Conservation Fund so that a dedicated portion of that increases access for hunters, fishermen and outdoor recreationists to the 35 million acres that are currently cut off and isolated from our use. This is a good bill. It's necessary in the shadow of the worst oil disaster in our Nation's history. I encourage my colleagues to support it and the amendment that I will be offering.”