PLEASE NOTE: Legislative Information cannot perform research, provide legal advice, or interpret Maine law. For legal assistance, please contact a qualified attorney.
JOINT RESOLUTION MEMORIALIZING THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO EXCLUDE THE STATE OF MAINE FROM OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS DRILLING AND EXPLORATION ACTIVITIES
WE, your Memorialists, the Members of the One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Legislature of the State of Maine now assembled in the Second Regular Session, most respectfully present and petition the President of the United States and the United States Congress as follows:
WHEREAS, the United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management 2019-2024 National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Draft Proposed Program has already been released and the programmatic environmental impact statement could be released as early as May 2018; and
WHEREAS,  over 46,319 jobs and more than $2,300,000,000 of the State's gross domestic product depend on clean, oil-free water and beaches and abundant fish and wildlife; and
WHEREAS,  over 65% of the State's ocean-derived income stems from our tourism and recreation sector, contributing over $1,200,000,000 to the State's economy, and this economic sector benefits from and depends upon a healthy ocean and coast; and
WHEREAS,  offshore oil and gas drilling and exploration activities place coastal communities at economic and ecological risk from oil spills and the pollution brought by routine drilling operations and onshore industrialization, threatening the quality of life and livelihoods of the State's citizens and important industries, such as tourism and recreation and commercial and recreational fishing, and small businesses that rely on a clean and healthy ocean and beaches; and
WHEREAS,  the State recognizes that our communities and industries depend on a healthy coastal environment for the benefit of current and future residents, property owners and visitors; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED: That We, your Memorialists, believe that offshore oil and gas drilling and exploration risks our economic and ecological health and therefore oppose any plan or legislation that encourages oil and gas exploration offshore that would negatively affect the citizens of the State; and be it further
RESOLVED: That We, your Memorialists, on behalf of the people we represent, take this opportunity to respectfully request that the President of the United States and the United States Congress direct the United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to exclude the State and its offshore areas from the 2019-2024 National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Draft Proposed Program; and be it further
RESOLVED: That suitable copies of this resolution, duly authenticated by the Secretary of State, be transmitted to the Honorable Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, to Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, to National Oil and Gas Leasing Program Development and Coordination Branch Chief Kelly Hammerle, to the President of the United States Senate, to the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives and to each Member of the Maine Congressional Delegation.