On December 3rd, 2014, OurEnergyPolicy.org hosted “Abundance or Scarcity? Re-examining U.S. Oil & Gas Policy,” a panel event at the Capitol Visitor Center in Washington, DC. The panel discussed how recent growth in domestic oil and gas production is transforming the U.S. energy sector and challenging the paradigm of energy scarcity that has underpinned federal policy for the last 40 years. Topics covered include policy issues related to exports, finance, climate change, infrastructure, natural gas as a transportation fuel and politically viable energy legislation. Find the full video below and the transcript here.

Introduction: Bill Squadron, President, OurEnergyPolicy.org

Opening remarks:

  • Congressman Gene Green (D-TX)
  • Congressman Pete Olson (R-TX)

Speakers:

  • Karen Harbert, President and CEO, Institute for 21st Century Energy, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
  • Elgie Holstein, Senior Director for Strategic Planning, Environmental Defense Fund
  • Steven Rattner, Chairman, Willett Advisors LLC; Former Head of the President’s Auto Task Force
  • Joe Cannon, President and CEO, Fuel Freedom Foundation
  • Amy Harder (Moderator), Energy Reporter, Wall Street Journal

The questions posed during the event by moderator Amy Harder (and their corresponding locations in the video and transcript) are listed below. Please share your own answers to the following:

     1)     How do you think the U.S. can leverage the oil and natural gas boom more than it is right now? [21:30, p.5]
     2)     Do you think the oil export ban needs to be lifted entirely? [23:05, p.6]
     3)     What benefits and risks does the oil and natural gas boom and its climate implications present to the investment community? [23:55, p.6]
     4)     How are the environmentalists responding to the recent abundance of oil and natural gas and do you think it makes addressing climate change much more difficult? [26:13, p.7]
     5)     How has the oil boom and plummeting oil prices impacted efforts to open transportation fuel markets to alternative fuels? [31:31, p.8]
     6)    What do you think are the policy upshots to these low oil and gasoline prices? [33:20, p.8]
     7)     Do laws governing energy exports and pipelines need to change in order for the U.S. to capitalize and respond to the oil and natural gas boom? Should Congress step in and do that or does the administration have enough legal power and political will to do it? [44:56, p.11]
     8)     Do you support either a gasoline, diesel or carbon tax? [52:18, p.13]
     9)     What energy legislation, that has either already been introduced or might be in the next Congress, could pass both Chambers of Congress, and then be signed by President Obama? [58:18, p.15]