PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
February 1, 2011
Congressman Rivera Signs On to Bill to Block Cuba From Drilling For Oil Near Florida
Washington, DC- Foreign Affairs Committee and Natural Resources Committee Member Congressman David Rivera (FL-25) announced today that he has signed on as an original co-sponsor to the bill that aims to prevent the Cuban dictatorship’s plan of building a deepwater oil rig 50 miles from the coast of Florida.
If passed, the bill introduced by Congressman Vern Buchanan (FL-13) would deny leases and permits to companies that do business with foreign governments that are subject to sanctions or embargoes from the U.S. government.
Currently, Cuba is having an oil rig built in China by Repsol, a Spanish oil and gas firm that currently has oil rigs in the Western Gulf of Mexico near Texas and Louisiana.
During a Natural Resources Committee oversight hearing on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Rivera put a spotlight on the issue of Cuba preparing to drill 50 miles off the coast of Florida.
“The Deepwater Horizon oil spill hurt the economy of my state. It especially affected the tourism and fishing industries that employ so many people in Florida,” Rivera said following the hearing. “While we try to prevent another similar disaster from occurring off our coasts, other countries are preparing to drill much closer to American shores without the same concern for safety.
“I expressed my concerns about the need for additional international standards so that the United States does everything possible to ensure that a spill from a Cuban oil rig does not adversely affect the people of Florida,” continued Rivera. “We also need to be cognizant of the fact that if that rig is built by the Cuban dictatorship, they are not going to abide by the same safety standards as American rigs. We have to develop additional oil spill capabilities that can be used in the Gulf, as well as off the coast of Southeast Florida.”
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