2011 is the year to ban new offshore drilling and permanently protect Florida and all U.S. coastlines from the dangers of offshore drilling and potential oil spills. Take action today by making a 30 second phone call to your Representative!
Yesterday, Tuesday, January 11th, Representative Frank Pallone (D-NJ) introduced the “No New Drilling Act of 2011” (H.R. 261). This is the bill Oceana and all our volunteers will focus on gaining co-sponsors onto and pushing through Congress in early 2011. Please make a call to your Representative today and ask a few friends to do the same, details below:
The bill is simple and the goal is, “to amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to prohibit the leasing of any area of the outer Continental Shelf for the exploration, development, or production of oil, gas, or any other mineral.”
(For more details on the bill: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h112-261)
The Outer Continental Shelf includes waters off the Pacific, Atlantic, Alaskan coasts and the entire Gulf of Mexico. A good map of the Outer Continental Shelf waters is located here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outer_Continental_Shelf
To pass this bill means there will be no new offshore drilling and we won our campaign, but we have a lot of work to do before we celebrate. First we need Florida members of the House of Representatives to co-sponsor the bill; then we need the bill to pass the House, then pass the Senate, then finally get signed by the President.
We can get started on our campaign today by making calls into Florida Representative’s offices and urging them to co-sponsor and support H.R 261- the “No New Drilling Act of 2011” introduced by Representative Pallone. Let them know you’re a Floridian that wants to see offshore drilling banned in 2011!
Our initial targets to be co-sponsors of this bill are:
1. Representative Debbie Wasserman Shultz of Florida’s District 20 including: Wilton Manors, downtown Fort Lauderdale, Plantation, Davie, Weston, Aventura, Sunny Isles, and portions of North Miami Beach. Check out the district map here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:FL20_109.PNG to see if Representative Wasserman Shultz is within your district. If so you should give her a call today!
Representative Debbie Wasserman Shultz: 1-866-306-3420
2. Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida’s District 18 including: Miami Beach, the city of Miami, Coral Gables and throughout the Florida Keys. If Representative Ros-Lehtinen is in your district you can give her a call today!
Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen: 1-866-306-3433
If you have a different Representative than those listed in this e-mail you can call the Congressional Switchboard at (866) 306-3552 and ask to speak with your representative!
If you have any questions please contact Katie at kparrish@oceana.org or at 305-741-9416.
For our Oceans,
Katie Parrish
Florida Organizer
Climate & Energy Campaign
Oceana | http://oceana.org
Facebook | http://facebook.com/OceanaFlorida
c: (305) 741-9416
kparrish@oceana.org