Democrats

Virginia’s senators, both Democrats, on Wednesday introduced legislation to provide an alternative to the Obama administration’s proposed 2012-2017 offshore oil and gas leasing plan, which excludes Virginia. According to the Energy Information Administration, “resource assessments show that substantial oil and gas reserves could underlie the land beneath Virginia’s offshore waters, which are part of the federally administered Mid-Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf.”

In a stunning setback for shale development in the Empire State, the New York State Assembly voted 95-40 on Wednesday to enact a two-year moratorium on high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF). The bill, A5424, now moves to the state Senate.

Support for hydraulic fracturing (fracking) among New Yorkers remained unchanged overall, as a sharp increase in backing among suburbanites canceled out flagging support from Upstate voters, according to a Siena College Research Institute poll released Wednesday.

A coalition of New York landowners that supports natural gas development has endorsed a slate of candidates — all of them Republicans — for election to state office.

State officials squared off with House subcommittee Democrats last Thursday over the role, if any, that the Obama administration should have in regulating hydraulic fracturing (fracking).

State officials squared off with House subcommittee Democrats Thursday over the role, if any, that the Obama administration should have in regulating hydraulic fracturing (fracking).

President Obama has signed into law pipeline safety legislation (HR 2845), which was one of the few energy issues that congressional Democrats and Republicans were able to agree on in 2011 (see NGI, Dec. 19, 2011).

President Obama Monday signed into law pipeline safety legislation (HR 2845), which was one of the few energy issues that congressional Democrats and Republicans were able to agree on in 2011 (see Daily GPI, Dec. 15, 2011).

A coalition of 20 Senate Democrats has called on Vice President Joe Biden to make sure a provision stripping major oil and natural gas producers of an estimated $21 billion in tax breaks over the next decade is included in any deficit-reduction package negotiated with Republicans.The coalition led by Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) made the request in a letter to Biden, who is representing the administration in efforts to reach a deficit-cutting deal with Republicans, The Hill reported. On May 17 “a majority of the Senate voted for legislation to close these loopholes for the Big Five oil companies, and this mandate cannot be ignored,” the group told the vice president. While 52 senators, including three Republicans, voted for the bill to repeal the tax breaks, the measure was blocked because the majority failed to get the 60 votes needed to advance the bill. The bill, sponsored by Menendez, sought to revoke the tax breaks for Chevron Corp., BP plc, Royal Dutch Shell plc, ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil Corp. Following the bill’s defeat, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) said he expected the legislation to resurface.