WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., today commented on President Bush's lifting the executive order, imposed in 1990, that bans offshore oil exploration everywhere in the United States, with the exception of certain areas in the Gulf of Mexico.

Sen. Landrieu said:

"I support President Bush's decision to lift the executive ban on offshore oil and gas exploration off the coasts of the United States. I only wish he would have taken this important step earlier, which would have helped to negate these high prices, and had not waited until the waning days of his presidency.

"Congress should respond by strategically lifting the congressional moratoria, and providing the option to states to expand drilling off their shores. Since I led the last and only bipartisan effort to lift moratoria in the past 25 years, I stand ready to work with my Senate and House colleagues to build on this success.

"This aggressive move forward on expanded drilling must be accompanied by an equally aggressive push on the conservation side, particularly as it relates to fuel efficiency in our automobiles and new fuels of the future. Any offshore drilling also must include a minimum of a 37.5 percent revenue share of lease royalties with the host states and host coastal communities that support this exploration."