Thursday, February 05, 2009

Notes from Richmond ... Saxman off-shore drilling royalties bill passes House

By Del. Chris Saxman
R-20th House District

As I mentioned in my last email, we're just days away from Crossover -- our half-way point for the General Assembly session -- and that means things are happening quickly!

I wanted to share with you some exciting news from today's floor session. With bipartisan support, the House of Delegates approved my HB1633: Offshore Drilling royalties bill, 58-41.

This bill dedicates any royalties that the Commonwealth might receive from offshore drilling for natural gas and oil among the Transportation Trust Fund, the Renewable Electricity Production Grant Fund, the Virginia Coastal Energy Research Consortium, the Home Energy Assistance Fund, the Biofuels Production Fund and programs developed by the Secretary of Natural Resources to clean up the Chesapeake Bay.

After Crossover next week, the bill will move to the Senate for their consideration. I appreciate the support this bill has received from my House colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and I look forward to the opportunity to share this legislation with the members of the Senate in the coming weeks.

As always, thank you for your calls and emails during the session. Please continue to email me any time to share you thoughts on the session, or if there is anything I can do to be of service.

More coverage of the off-shore drilling royalties bill from the Harrisonburg Daily News Record.

Cross-posted at SixtyFour81.com

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