Perry Wants More Offshore Oil Production

Texas Gov. Rick Perry is joining forces with three other Republican governors from states bordering the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska to advocate for more oil production offshore, the Houston Chronicle reported Tuesday.

Perry is teaming up with Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour in the new Outer Continental Shelf Governors Coalition.

In an invitation to other coastal state governors, the four said they want the coalition to “foster an appropriate dialogue between the coastal states and the administration” about offshore drilling. The group would give the governors a vehicle to lobby for expanded drilling offshore.

“All federal decisions regarding exploration and production must be made in consultation with affected states,” the governors said. “In recent months, however, the federal government has taken sweeping actions regarding offshore oil and gas activities with little consultation with the states.”

Representatives from Louisiana, Texas and other states Monday announced the new group during a session at the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston.