"Dear Colleague" letter from Reps. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) and Janice Schakowsky (D-Illinois), May 21, 2002

"Dear Colleague" letter from Reps. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) and Janice Schakowsky (D-Illinois), May 21, 2002
May 21, 2002

Support the Kaptur-Schakowsky Pipeline Amendment

Americans should not be forced to pay for the protection of pipelines abroad. We must act now to defeat this dangerous and wasteful pipeline protection proposal.

Dear Colleague:

Later this week, we will offer an amendment to the Supplemental Appropriations bill to strike the unprecedented $6 million down payment to the Colombian army to protect the Cano Limon oil pipeline operated by U.S. based Occidental Petroleum (Oxy), along with Repsol (a Spanish-Argentine combine) and Ecopetrol, which is owned by the government of Colombia.

The $6 million is the first installment in the Administration's $104 million scheme to pay the Colombian army to guard the Cano Limon oil pipeline that has been attacked repeatedly in Colombia's 38-year long civil war.

Occidental Petroleum has earned profits of more than $2.5 billion in the last two years. Why should Americans foot the bill for this multinational giant?

This gift to Big Oil is a waste of taxpayers' money and will only lead to other Big Oil giants lining up for similar corporate handouts. Where do we draw the line?

The army brigade to be trained with these funds will protect a pipeline that, when operational, pumps about 35 million barrels per year. This adds up to $3 per barrel in costs to U.S. taxpayers to protect a pipeline for which Occidental currently pays security costs of about 50 cents per barrel.

Moreover, as Occidental Oil spokesman Larry Meriage admitted before Congress in February 2000, "the pipeline is 483 miles long, and so there aren't enough troops in all of Colombia to protect that pipeline along its corridor."

If the $6 million is provided now, it will be extremely difficult to stop the $98 million later on when the FY03 Foreign Operations bill is debated.

We urge you to vote YES on our amendment. Please contact Julie Little with Rep. Kaptur (5-4146) or Jon Samuels (5-2111) with Rep. Schakowsky for additional information or with any questions.

s/: Marcy Kaptur s/: Jan Schakowsky
Member of Congress Member of Congress