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To urge Congress to support the continued and | 1 |
increased importation of oil derived from Canadian | 2 |
oil sands and urge Congress to ask the U.S. | 3 |
Secretary of State to approve the TransCanada | 4 |
Keystone XL pipeline project from Alberta to | 5 |
Oklahoma. | 6 |
WHEREAS, The United States is still many years away from | 7 |
ending its dependence on nonrenewable energy resources despite the | 8 |
recent focus on renewable energy. In order to fuel our economy, | 9 |
the United States will need more oil and natural gas while also | 10 |
requiring additional alternative energy sources such as ethanol | 11 |
and other renewable energy sources; and | 12 |
WHEREAS, The United States currently depends on foreign | 13 |
imports for more than half of our petroleum usage. As the largest | 14 |
consumer of petroleum in the world, our dependence on foreign oil | 15 |
has created difficult geopolitical relationships with damaging | 16 |
consequences for our national security; and | 17 |
WHEREAS, Canadian oil reserves are vast and are second only | 18 |
to Saudi Arabia as determined by using current measurements and | 19 |
technology. Oil sands now account for more than half of western | 20 |
Canada's total oil output; and | 21 |
WHEREAS, A recent study by the U.S. Department of Energy | 22 |
found that increasing importation of oil derived from Canadian oil | 23 |
sands by the United States has the potential to substantially | 24 |
reduce our country's dependency on sources outside of North | 25 |
America. Canada is a friendly neighbor with whom the United States | 26 |
has an excellent trading and political relationship. Canadian oil | 27 |
sands provide greater fuel supply reliability and reduce the risk | 28 |
of supply disruptions to consumers; and | 29 |
WHEREAS, Canada sends more than 99% of its oil exports to the | 30 |
United States, the bulk of which goes to Midwestern refineries. | 31 |
Oil companies are investing huge sums to expand and upgrade | 32 |
refineries in the Midwest and elsewhere to make gasoline and other | 33 |
refined products from Canadian oil derived from oil sands. The | 34 |
expansion and upgrade projects will create many new construction | 35 |
jobs over the next five years and, in Ohio, substantially add to | 36 |
our states's gross state product; and | 37 |
WHEREAS, The same money used to buy Canadian oil will likely | 38 |
later be spent directly on U.S. goods and services in contrast | 39 |
with the money sent to hostile oil-producing governments that is | 40 |
later used to further anti-democratic agendas. Supporting the | 41 |
continued shift towards reliable and secure sources of Canadian | 42 |
oil is of vital interest to the United States and the state of | 43 |
Ohio; now therefore be it | 44 |
RESOLVED, That we, the members of the House of | 45 |
Representatives of the 129th General Assembly of the state of | 46 |
Ohio, support continued and increased importation of oil derived | 47 |
from Canadian oil sands, urge Congress to support that continued | 48 |
and increased importation, and urge Congress to ask the U.S. | 49 |
Secretary of State to approve the TransCanada Keystone XL pipeline | 50 |
project from Alberta to Oklahoma that has been awaiting a | 51 |
presidential permit since 2008 to reduce dependence on unstable | 52 |
governments, improve our national security, and strengthen ties | 53 |
with an important ally; and be it further | 54 |
RESOLVED, That the Clerk of the House of Representatives | 55 |
transmit duly authenticated copies of this resolution to the | 56 |
Speaker and Clerk of the United States House of Representatives, | 57 |
to the President Pro Tempore and Secretary of the United States | 58 |
Senate, to the members of the Ohio Congressional delegation, and | 59 |
to the news media of Ohio. | 60 |