[Page H7605]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       WHEN WILL AMERICANS LEARN

  (Ms. DEAN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. DEAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1941, H.R. 1146, and 
H.R. 205, three bills which will prevent oil and gas leasing on our 
Outer Continental Shelf, in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge 
and near Florida's Gulf Coast.
  In 1969, America suffered a disastrous oil spill off Santa Barbara. 
Two decades later, Exxon Valdez devastated Prince William Sound. In 
2010, Deepwater Horizon ravaged the Gulf of Mexico.
  When will we learn? How much more of our coastline will have to be 
ruined? How many more local economies will be shattered? How many more 
lives will be lost?
  Republican and Democratic officials oppose the administration's 
expanded drilling plans. They know the health, environmental, and 
economic costs of oil spills and that those accidents occur thousands 
of times each year. There is no reason to take such risks, especially 
when we have cleaner, safer ways of producing the energy we need.
  I applaud Representatives Cunningham, Huffman, and Rooney for 
offering this legislation to protect our planet and in the spirit of 
Pennsylvania's Constitution, which guarantees the people the right to 
clean air, clean water, and the preservation of our natural aesthetic.
  I urge Members to support these bills. And I, too, say God bless 
America this day and all days.

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