The new Congress has signaled it will take on global warming and offshore drilling and will start by addressing the root of the problems. On Wednesday, January 18, within its first 100 hours, the House is expected to vote on a bill to roll back billions of dollars in oil industry tax breaks and subsidies and invest the money in a renewable and alternative energy fund. It will be the first vote in the new Congress on a bill to confront global warming.

According to the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), one goal is to fix a multi-billion dollar loophole that has allowed oil companies to enjoy royalty-free exploitation of the resources in public waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

“The oil industry is dodging between $9 billion and $11 billion in royalty payments to the U.S. Treasury for offshore drilling in the Gulf because the statutes passed in 1998 and 1999 governing it mistakenly waived all royalty payments once oil hit a price floor of $35 a barrel,” says Jerry Karnas, NWF’s regional outreach coordinator.

“This legislation should seal that loophole shut so taxpayers get a fair return from industry in terms of royalty payments on oil that today draws over $50 a barrel.”

Due to the threats to that global warming and oil dependence pose to national security and fish and wildlife and wildlife habitats, experts suggest that surest path to combating global warming lies in steering the nation toward energy independence using cleaner, cheaper and safer forms of energy develop responsibly here at home. For more information, visit: www.first100.org.