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Oil, natural gas supports 9 million American jobs, 7.5 percent of GDP

The economic impact of the oil and natural gas industry reaches all 50 states and the District of Columbia a new study by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) found. The study entitled “The Economic Impacts of the Oil and Natural Gas Industry on the U.S. Economy: Employment, Labor Income and Value Added” notes the U.S. oil and natural gas industry supports more than 9 million American jobs, and added more than $1 trillion to the national economy, or 7.5 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product, in 2007, the most recent year for which data was available. Click here to read the report.

Senators Send Letter to Interior Secretary Urging Offshore Drilling for Oil and Natural Gas

The Interior Department said that the Minerals Management Service received some 535,000 public comments for its OCS 2010-2015 5-year plan during the 6-month comment period that expired on September 21, and according to the Consumer Energy Alliance, over 60% of the comments supported responsible drilling. Key comments were also sent from members of Congress, including a letter from 35 Senators (30 Republicans and five Democrats) to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar urging him to open up new offshore areas in the Atlantic and Pacific for oil and natural gas drilling. Click here to read the letter.

API opposes Waxman-Markey climate change legislation

Addressing climate change is important, and the oil and natural gas industry has made serious commitments to reducing emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG). API supports legislation to reduce GHG emissions. Unfortunately, the approach taken by the Waxman-Markey bill is so fundamentally flawed that it should be rejected. The Waxman-Markey climate change legislation will drive up the cost of gasoline and other petroleum fuels for consumers and businesses and should be set aside, API President Jack Gerard said in a letter to Congress. Click here to read Gerard’s letter.