House committee approves drilling off Florida's coast

WASHINGTON — With little hesitation, the U.S. House Resources Committee approved legislation Wednesday that would allow oil and gas drilling 100 miles — and even closer if some states allow it — off Florida shorelines, a move that has divided the once-united state delegation.

The bill, which passed through committee by a vote of 29-9, was not as grand a deal as the one some Florida lawmakers had reached with Resources Chairman Richard Pombo last November. That bill would have pushed drilling back about 125 miles off the Florida coast.

The current legislation immediately would eliminate a presidential and congressional moratorium and open up drilling 50 miles off the coast, unless state legislators enact legislation to prevent it. Those states would have a year to pass legislation preventing natural gas production and three years for oil production.

The bill is expected to go to the full House next week, during “Energy Week.” Some Florida lawmakers — all of the state’s Democrats and several Republicans — quickly denounced the legislation and accused some of their Florida colleagues of hammering “a backroom deal.”

“I think Floridians deserve better,” said Rep. Jim Davis, D-Tampa, who is running for governor.

Other lawmakers said their state colleagues should not even be at the negotiating table.

“I remain steadfast to any negotiations,” said Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fort Pierce, one of a handful of delegation Republicans who oppose the legislation. “It’s premature. It’s unnecessary. It’s potentially lethal for our shorelines, and it’s a risk not worth taking.”

But with rising gas prices and increasing pressure to open up domestic resources, some lawmakers argued this compromise was the best they could do.

“I think we have to put everything in perspective,” said Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, the Miami Republican who represents part of Collier County. “The moratorium goes away next year and the pressure to drill is not going to diminish. For some reason, some people refuse to see that, but the writing is on the wall.”

At the hearing Wednesday, Pombo, a California Republican, made his viewpoint very clear. Domestic resources have been “kept under lock and key.” If he had his way, that policy quickly would change.

“We have exported millions of U.S. jobs,” Pombo said, red in the face, his voice growing louder, his fists pounding the lectern.

“We are dependent on foreign countries for natural resources when we have our own national resources. This is ridiculous,” he barked. “It is time we adopted an energy policy that makes sense for America.”

Pombo wasn’t the only one.

One after another, lawmakers criticized some members of the Florida delegation who have opposed drilling off the state’s shores.

“We gotta get our head out of the Florida sands,” said Rep. John Peterson, R-Pa., who has led the charge to open up drilling along the Outer Continental Shelf, constantly denouncing Florida lawmakers. “Is offshore (drilling) dangerous? Ask Canada, England, Denmark, New Zealand, Australia.

“This bill doesn’t go as far as I’d like but I’m supporting it as a damn good compromise.”

Rep. Connie Mack, R-Fort Myers, who participated in the closed-door negotiations on the drilling issue, was at one time leaning toward supporting the legislation. But, in a surprise move, he denounced the bill Wednesday.

“I believe we can and must do better,” Mack said.

The legislation, Mack added, “doesn’t provide Florida with the necessary control on matters related to drilling and creates a maze of new complexities, hierarchies and false promises about drilling off our fragile shore.”