00                 CS FOR SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 16(RES)                                                              
01 Expressing support for responsible development of the oil and gas resources in federal                                  
02 waters offshore of Alaska's coast as a means to ensure energy independence, security for                                
03 the nation, and jobs for Alaskans; and urging the United States Congress to provide a                                   
04 means for consistently sharing with all coastal energy-producing states, on an ongoing                                  
05 basis, revenue generated from oil and gas development on the outer continental shelf, to                                
06 ensure that those states develop, support, and maintain necessary infrastructure and                                    
07 preserve environmental integrity.                                                                                       
08 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
09       WHEREAS there are presently 697 active oil and gas leases off Alaska's coast,                                   
10 covering more than 1,500,000 hectares; and                                                                              
11       WHEREAS the United States Department of the Interior, Minerals Management                                       
12 Service, estimates there are nearly 27,000,000,000 barrels of oil and 132,000,000,000,000                               
13 cubic feet of natural gas that are technically recoverable offshore of Alaska; and                                      
14       WHEREAS responsible oil and gas development in federal waters off Alaska's coast                                
01 would significantly decrease reliance by the United States on foreign oil and gas, making the                           
02 United States more energy independent and enhancing our national security; and                                          
03       WHEREAS, under the Mineral Lands Leasing Act of 1920, the federal government                                    
04 shares with the states 50 percent of revenue from mineral production on federal land within                             
05 each state's boundaries; and                                                                                            
06       WHEREAS the shared mineral production revenue is distributed to the states                                      
07 automatically, outside of the budget process, and is not subject to appropriation; and                                  
08       WHEREAS, other than in water immediately adjacent to a state's coastline, there is                          
09 not a similar authority for the federal government to share federal oil and gas revenue                                 
10 generated on the outer continental shelf with adjacent coastal states, despite the vital                                
11 contribution made by those states to our nation's energy, economic, and national security                               
12 needs in support of production from the outer continental shelf; and                                                    
13       WHEREAS the states that sustain this critical energy production and development                                 
14 deserve a share of the revenue generated because they provide infrastructure to support                                 
15 offshore operations and because of the environmental effects and other risks associated with                            
16 oil and gas development on the outer continental shelf; and                                                             
17       WHEREAS, under the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006, the federal                                    
18 government recognized the contributions made by Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and                                    
19 Texas to national security and agreed to give them 37.5 percent of revenue from oil and gas                             
20 development in newly leased federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico; and                                                   
21       WHEREAS other coastal states, including Alaska and California, also support and                                 
22 should receive, on a regular and ongoing basis, a fair share of revenue generated through                               
23 development on the outer continental shelf as compensation and reward for their contributions                           
24 to the nation's energy supply, security, and economy; and                                                               
25       WHEREAS, since statehood, oil and gas lease sales from the outer continental shelf                            
26 off Alaska's coast have generated millions of dollars in revenue for the federal government;                            
27 and                                                                                                                     
28       WHEREAS the February 2008 lease sale in the Chukchi Sea generated an additional                                 
29 $2,600,000,000 in revenue for the federal government;                                                                   
30       BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature supports responsible                                           
31 development of the oil and gas resources in federal waters offshore of Alaska's coast as a                              
01 means to ensure energy independence, security for the nation, and jobs for Alaskans; and be it                          
02       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States                                      
03 Congress to provide a means for consistently sharing, on an ongoing basis, revenue generated                            
04 from oil and gas development on the outer continental shelf with all coastal energy-producing                           
05 states to ensure that those states develop, support, and maintain necessary infrastructure and                          
06 preserve environmental integrity.                                                                                       
07       COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Barack Obama, President of                             
08 the United States; the Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr., Vice-President of the United States and                          
09 President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Ken Salazar, United States Secretary of the                                 
10 Interior; the Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; the                                 
11 Honorable Steny H. Hoyer, Majority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives; the                                     
12 Honorable John Boehner, Minority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives; the                                       
13 Honorable Harry Reid, Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Mitch McConnell,                                
14 Minority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Jeff Bingaman, Chair of the U.S. Senate                               
15 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources; the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the                                         
16 Honorable Mark Begich, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative,                                 
17 members of the Alaska delegation in Congress; and all other members of the 111th United                                 
18 States Congress.