841 



are very aware of them. I will say that 85 percent df California's 20 

 million people live within 30 miles of the coast and, in their behalf, I 

 urg'e an "aye" vote on H.R. 3981. 



Mr. Lagomarsino. Mr. Chairman, it is a rare occasion when a 

 politician cannot be found to say that some event or another represents 

 a milestone. Yet that is precisely what the bill before us today, H.R. 

 3981, represents. These amendments to the Coastal Zone Management 

 Act are formal recognition of the fact that there is a social cost asso- 

 ciated with energy development. 



This is a lesson which Santa Barbara bad the misfortune to learn 

 more than 7 years ago, when crude oil from offshore wells spilled on 

 our shores. Many marked that event as the start of a new era in man's 

 relation to his environment. This bill, in a sense, is an outgrowth of 

 that era. Yet in another sense, it is much more. It is an acknowledge- 

 ment of the complex interrelationship between the Government's deci- 

 sion to develop a resource, and the social, economic, and environmental 

 effects which can result from that decision. 



In a sense, this is not a new principle. We have recognized for years 

 that Government has an obligation to local school districts to help 

 with the education of children associated with a military base. In fact, 

 that program is even known as impact aid. This bill deals with a 

 similar type of impact — on Government institutions, on services, on 

 the local economy and environment as it is affected by large-scale 

 energy development projects. The principle that a portion of the 

 funds generated by such operations should be used to prevent or 

 repair any damages is both just and necessary, if we are to continue 

 such large-scale development. 



In effect, this bill is an honesty-in-accounting act, which says that 

 you have to subtract the cost of mitigating adverse impacts from the 

 benefits of a particular project. If that principle is not followed, then 

 you are just shifting the cost of energy development from one level 

 of government to another; from a larger class of taxpayers at the 

 Federal level to a smaller class at the local level. 



I hope each of the Members will consider what this principle means 

 for your own district. Every area of the country has some resource 

 which may become necessary at some point to the national interest. 

 The realization that a fair accounting entails a weighing of both the 

 benefits and the costs of sucli an undertaking, is one of the underlying 

 principles of this bill. I hope you will give it your support. I strongly 

 support this legislation. 



Mr. DoMiNiCK V. Daniels. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support 

 of H.R. 3981, a bill which makes significant and important amend- 

 ments to the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, and I commend 

 the Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee for their diligence 

 and effort in perfecting this vital legislation. 



As most of my colleagues may be aware, the Senate approved similar 

 legislation in July of 1975. This action was designed to improve our 

 energy resource supply but at the same time, protect our Nation's 

 coastal environment. 



This legislation establishes a framework in which our dual concerns 

 for environmental protection and increased energy self-sufficiency can 

 \yQ addressed. The framework will be federally assisted, but State 

 administered. 



