SJR 5: Urging the United States Congress to provide a means for consistently sharing with all coastal energy-producing states, on an ongoing basis, revenue generated from oil and gas development on the outer continental shelf to ensure that those states develop, support, and maintain necessary infrastructure and preserve environmental integrity.
00 SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 5 01 Urging the United States Congress to provide a means for consistently sharing with all 02 coastal energy-producing states, on an ongoing basis, revenue generated from oil and 03 gas development on the outer continental shelf to ensure that those states develop, 04 support, and maintain necessary infrastructure and preserve environmental integrity. 05 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 WHEREAS there are presently 670 active oil and gas leases off Alaska's coast, 07 covering more than 3,700,000 acres; and 08 WHEREAS, under the Mineral Lands Leasing Act of 1920, the federal government 09 shares with the states 50 percent of revenue from mineral production on federal land within 10 each state's boundaries; and 11 WHEREAS mineral production revenue shared under the Mineral Lands Leasing Act 12 is distributed to the states automatically, outside of the budget process, and is not subject to 13 appropriation; and 14 WHEREAS the federal government possesses no similar authority to share federal oil 15 and gas revenue generated on the outer continental shelf with adjacent coastal states to
01 support production from the outer continental shelf, despite the vital contribution made by 02 those states to meet our nation's energy, economic, and national security needs; and 03 WHEREAS the states that sustain this critical energy production and development 04 deserve a share of the revenue generated because they provide infrastructure to support 05 offshore operations and because of the environmental effects and other risks associated with 06 oil and gas development on the outer continental shelf; and 07 WHEREAS, under the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006, the federal 08 government recognized the contributions to national security made by the oil-producing states 09 of Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas and agreed to distribute to those states 37.5 10 percent of revenue from oil and gas development in newly leased federal waters in the Gulf of 11 Mexico; and 12 WHEREAS other oil-producing coastal states, including Alaska and California, 13 which similarly contribute to the national interest, should receive, on a regular and ongoing 14 basis, a fair share of revenue generated through development on the outer continental shelf as 15 compensation and reward for the states' contributions to the nation's energy supply, security, 16 and economy; and 17 WHEREAS, over the years since statehood, federal oil and gas lease sales from the 18 outer continental shelf off Alaska's coast have consistently generated millions of dollars in 19 revenue for the federal government; and 20 WHEREAS recent lease sales in the federal waters off the coast of the state have 21 generated billions of dollars in revenue for the federal government; and 22 WHEREAS additional lease sales are scheduled for 2016 in the Chukchi Sea and for 23 2017 in the Beaufort Sea; 24 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States 25 Congress to provide a means for consistently sharing, on an ongoing basis, revenue generated 26 from oil and gas development on the outer continental shelf with all coastal energy-producing 27 states to ensure that those states develop, support, and maintain necessary infrastructure and 28 preserve environmental integrity. 29 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Barack Obama, President of 30 the United States; the Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr., Vice-President of the United States and 31 President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Ken Salazar, United States Secretary of the
01 Interior; the Honorable John Boehner, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; the 02 Honorable Eric Cantor, Majority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives; the Honorable 03 Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives; the Honorable Harry 04 Reid, Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Mitch McConnell, Minority Leader 05 of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Ron Wyden, Chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on 06 Energy and Natural Resources; the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the Honorable Mark 07 Begich, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the 08 Alaska delegation in Congress; and all other members of the 113th United States Congress.