"State lawmakers from nine states introduced bills Jan. 8 aimed at blocking oil and gas drilling off their coasts, and a group of House Democrats meanwhile unveiled measures that would ban drilling in federal waters off much of the country.
The congressional bills would put a moratorium or permanently prohibit drilling in the Straits of Florida and the eastern Gulf of Mexico and off the Atlantic Coast, the West Coast and the Arctic Ocean.
The legislation would likely get a chilly reception in the Republican-controlled Senate, as it runs counter to the promotion of fossil fuel development by the White House.
The White House has a draft proposal to open lease sales in 98 percent of the federal offshore from 2019 to 2024. Environmental groups said they expect a final version in the coming weeks. The Trump administration has said it wants to wrap up the plan by the end of 2019."
Stephen Lee and Dean Scott report for Bloomberg Environment January 8, 2019.
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