From The Washington Post:
One law enforcement official said criminal investigators will look for evidence that MMS [Minerals Management Service] inspectors were bribed or promised industry jobs in exchange for lenient treatment. "Every instinct I have tells me there ought to be numerous indictable cases in that connection between MMS and the industry," said this official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is unfolding.
Today at 4 o'clock the House Rules Committee is considering amendments to the Consolidated Land, Energy, and Aquatic Resources Act of 2010. As an update to yesterday's post, the full list of amendments can be found here.
There are a lot of great opportunities to make sure that reform in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon disaster effectively targets the problems that plagued the Minerals Management Service (MMS) for years. Some of the amendments under consideration would:
- include safety training firms when establishing a National Oil and Gas Health and Safety Academy (Rep. Lincoln Davis, D-TN),
- prevent industry representatives from acting as instructors for training (Rep. Phil Hare, D-IL),
- several provisions would increase citizen involvement in the Gulf Coast's recovery (Reps. Hare; Kathy Castor, D-FL; Alcee Hastings, D-FL; and Gwen Moore, D-WI),
- improve royalty measurement and accuracy (Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-NY), and
- require companies to pay all royalties on oil discharged from a well, including spilled oil (Reps. Chellie Pingree, D-ME; Rush Holt, D-NJ; Mazie Hirono, D-HI; Lois Capps D-CA, Tom Quigley R-IL), though we believe this is already required.
There are also several provisions to increase oversight at other levels of the federal government, including provisions that would ask the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to evaluate:
- the effectiveness of Interior Department reforms (Rep. Hare),
- the ability of citizens to participate in the development of federal energy policy (Rep. Moore), and
- the biological and ecological effects of the spill (Rep. Joseph Cao, R-LA).
The Rules Committee will also be considering H.R. 5851, the Offshore Oil and Gas Worker Whistleblower Protection Act of 2010, introduced by Rep. George Miller (D-CA).
-- Mandy Smithberger
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