| 00:00:00 | THE COAST OF LOUISIANA. |
| 00:00:04 | MR. CHAIRMAN, THE COAST OF LOUISIANA -- SINCE 1950 HAD SENT TO THE AMERICAN TREASURY ALMOST $150 BILLION, AND UP UNTIL 2006, WE DIDN'T RECEIVE ANY REVENUES BACK FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR DRILLING ON OUR OUT OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF. |
| 00:00:23 | WHAT WE DO TODAY IS ASK FOR THE ABILITY TO HELP OURSELVES, PROTECT OUR CITIZENS, AND MAKE THIS COUNTRY SAFER. |
| 00:00:29 | AT THE END OF THE DAY I'D LIKE TO REMIND THE CHAIR THAT OUR STATE HAS OVER 40% OF THE NATION'S WETLAND LOSSES, BUT WE HAVE 80% OF WETLAND LOSS BUT ONLY 40% OF THE NATION'S WETLANDS. |
| 00:00:44 | BUT IF YOU LOOK AT WHAT WE GIVE BACK TO THIS COUNTRY, I THINK THAT YOU WILL SEE THAT A $10 MILLION INVESTMENT WOULD BE A VERY GOOD INVESTMENT INTO OUR COUNTRY, INTO OUR STATE. |
| 00:00:56 | IF YOU LOOK AT THE COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS. |
| 00:00:59 | OUR WETLANDS PRODUCE A THIRD OF THE NATION'S SEAFOOD SUPPLY AND MUCH OF OUR DOMESTIC ENERGY. |
| 00:01:04 | OUR COAST IS THE HOME TO THE COUNTRY'S LARGEST PORT SYSTEM. |
| 00:01:08 | THESE PORTS MOVE THE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY OF OUR IMPORTS AND EXPORTS IN THIS COUNTRY. |
| 00:01:13 | IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT THE OIL AND GAS PRODUCTION, IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT LOUISIANA'S IMPORTANCE IN TERMS OF OUR ENERGY PRODUCTION FOR THIS COUNTRY, BUT IT ALSO MAKES THE RESIDENTS OF LOUISIANA SAFER. |
| 00:01:26 | THOSE COASTAL --THAT COASTAL LAND AND THOSE BARRIER ISLANDS PRODUCE THE FIRST DEFENSE TO HURRICANES. |
| 00:01:33 | WE ALL SAW DURING HURRICANE KATRINA THE DEVASTATION THAT COULD BE CAUSED. |
| 00:01:37 | SO WE ARE JUST ASKING THIS BODY TO APPROVE THIS AMENDMENT WHICH WILL HELP PLAFMENT, PROTECT OUR CITIZENS, PROTECT AMERICA'S ENERGY PRODUCTION, AND WITH THAT, MR. |
| 00:01:49 | CHAIRMAN, I YIELD THE BALANCE OF THE TIME BACK TO THE GENTLEMAN FROM LOUISIANA. |
| 00:01:53 | THE CHAIR: THE GENTLEMAN FROM LOUISIANA IS RECOGNIZED. |
| 00:01:55 | MR. |
| 00:01:56 | SCALISE: THANK YOU AGAIN, MR. |
| 00:01:57 | CHAIRMAN. I THANK MY COLLEAGUE FROM LOUISIANA FOR HIS COMMENTS AND I JUST |
Mr. RICHMOND. Thank you to my colleague from Louisiana. We have the great honor and awesome responsibility of representing the coast of Louisiana.
Mr. Chairman, the coast of Louisiana, since 1950, has sent to the American Treasury almost $150 billion. Up until 2006, we didn't receive any revenues back from the Federal Government for drilling off of our Outer Continental Shelf.
What we do today is ask for the ability to help ourselves, protect our citizens, and make this country safer. At the end of the day, I'd like to remind the Chair that our State has over 40 percent of the Nation's wetland losses. We have 80 percent of wetland loss, we only have 40 percent of the Nation's wetlands.
If you look at what we give back to this country, I think that you will see that a $10 million investment would be a very good investment into our country, into our State, if you look at the cost-benefit analysis.
Our wetlands produce a third of the Nation's seafood supply and much of our domestic energy. Our coast is the home to the port, the country's largest port system. These ports move the overwhelming majority of our imports and exports in this country.
It's not just about the oil and gas production, it's not just about Louisiana's importance in terms of our energy production for this country, but it also makes the residents of Louisiana safer. That coastal land and those barrier islands produce the first defense against hurricanes. We also saw during Hurricane Katrina, the devastation that could be caused.
We're just asking this body to approve this amendment, which will help [Page: H3368] Louisiana protect our citizens, protect America's energy production.