After nearly two decades of efforts to open Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling, advocates appear closer to getting their way than ever before.
On the eve of a key Senate vote, both sides were scrambling to gain a last-minute advantage. Republican leaders are seeking authority to open the area to oil companies as part of the budget resolution for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. But they are being opposed by Democrats and some moderate Republicans, who fear that the drilling will damage an environmentally sensitive area.
Although the Republicans picked up strength in the last election and now hold a 55 to 44 majority, lawmakers and special interest groups say the vote will be very close.
"It's as hard a fight as we've ever engaged in terms of drilling in the refuge," said Melinda Pierce, a lobbyist for the Sierra Club, which opposes drilling. "It's going to come down to one vote."
The Bush administration has long sought to open the refuge as part of the president's national energy policy, but the proposal has repeatedly run into opposition on Capitol Hill.
Supporters say opening 1.5 million acres in the coastal plain of the 19 million-acre refuge is needed to produce billions of barrels of oil and reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil, while opponents argue that not enough would be pumped to make an appreciable difference. Supporters take issue with opponents' environmental objections, saying drilling could be done in a small area and in a way that will not cause damage.
Because the refuge drilling provision is attached to the budget, supporters need only a 51-vote majority for approval. If opening the refuge were considered as separate legislation, a 60-vote majority would be needed to block a filibuster, a delaying tactic that has previously been used to defeat drilling.
Democrats charge that the GOP parliamentary tactic is unfair and have vowed to try to strip out the measure during floor action today. Debate in the Senate began last night.
"This administration doesn't want to play by the rules," said Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.). "They don't have the votes to be able to do it one way, so they're going to break up the system, write their own rules and try to do it another way."
"It's the only way around the filibuster," said Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), who backs drilling. "It's become a way of life with the Democrats. They refuse to accept a majority vote."
In the House, the drilling plan was not included in the 2006 budget resolution. Republican leaders plan to include a measure opening the refuge as part of a separate energy bill. The chairman of the House Budget Committee, Rep. Jim Nussle (R-Iowa), prefers to keep policy matters out of the budget, said Sean Spicer, a committee spokesman. Spicer said any negotiations over the issue would occur in conference committee and there is no reason to discuss the matter until after the Senate vote. "Why put it in the House-side budget at this point?" Spicer said. "It's a Senate issue. Until they get it done, why bother?"
With oil imports gradually increasing and oil and gas prices at near record highs -- unadjusted for inflation -- supporters of opening the refuge said the time is right.
Sen. Pete V. Domenici (R-N.M.), chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee who recently visited Alaska, said the country needs to come to grips with its increasing reliance on foreign oil.
"It's time for America to wake up," Domenici said. "We're in a terrible, terrible predicament. This great country is now at the mercy of oil from overseas. And it is a terrible dependence and it is growing worse. I'm not telling you this will solve it. A million barrels of oil a day and another million barrels of oil a day, pretty soon it adds up."
The government estimates that by 2025 the refuge could produce nearly 1 million barrels of oil a day. With oil from the refuge, the United States would import oil to meet 65 percent of its needs in 2025, compared with 68 percent without it, according to the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration.
Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), who opposes drilling, said the United States should develop alternative sources of energy and focus on conservation to reduce reliance on foreign oil.
