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By Don Briggs

President, Louisiana Oil and Gas Association

As the summer months approach and consumers are now paying in excess of $4.00 per gallon for gasoline at the pump, the Obama administration is pulling out all stops to win votes during this presidential campaign season. President Obama has announced yet another oversight committee that will allegedly allow for better coordination of federal oversight for the natural gas industry. According to the Associated Press, the committee includes representatives from multiple agencies that oversee various aspects of drilling, including the Interior, Transportation and Energy departments, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency and White House Council on Environmental Quality.

While this committee’s formation is indeed a peace offering to the oil and gas industry, the Obama administration has yet to produce action that supports their rhetoric. Thus far in 2012, the Administration has continually touted the United States’ need to reduce its dependence on foreign resources, yet they are still attempting to stifle the industry by calling for the removal of the so-called “tax subsidies”.  By creating the oversight committee, this will simply allow for more opportunity for instances like the drilling moratorium after the BP oil spill. Due to the federal government denying those offshore drilling permits in 2010, billions of dollars were lost, thousands of employees were sent home, and all the while the US economy was in a massive economic recession.

One Executive Order at a time, agencies like the EPA are inching closer and closer to their goal of taking the regulation of practices such as hydraulic fracturing from the states. The EPA is set to release its report on hydraulic fracturing and the use of water, sand and chemicals to break apart the ground to extract gas. Once the EPA releases their report, industry leaders all fear the same thing – more restrictions on this revolutionary drilling method. It will only take one accident or mishap for the EPA to step in and halt all hydraulic fracturing in the United States. If this were to happen, 85% of all wells in the United States would be shut down. So, while this new oversight committee sounds appealing, it is merely a slippery slope that gives the EPA another foot in the door to accomplish the goal that they adamantly deny having – complete oversight of the industry.

Across the country, opinions differ on the necessity of the oversight committee. Jack Gerard, president of the American Petroleum Institute, said, “We’re pleased the White House recognizes the need to coordinate the efforts of 10 federal agencies that are reviewing, studying or proposing new regulations on natural gas development and fracking.” However, on Capitol Hill, House Speaker John Boehner’s office says that a “working group is not needed”. Whether this working group turns out to be a positive thing or not, the oil and gas industry must continue to produce consumer-ready resources, create thousands of jobs for our workforce, and remain committed to the safety of our communities and the preservation of our environment to which we have been entrusted.