At the last minute, the Democrat Majority on the House Natural Resources Committee unexpectedly and suddenly canceled tomorrow’s Energy and Minerals Subcommittee oversight hearing on the President's Fiscal Year 2011 budget requests.

The leaders of federal agencies that oversee offshore and onshore energy and mineral production on federal lands, including Minerals Management Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, the United States Geological Survey, and the Forest Service, were scheduled to testify.

“Democrats cancelled this hearing literally the night before Administration officials were going to have to answer tough questions on how the President’s budget will increase energy prices and squelch energy job creation in the United States,” said House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Doc Hastings. “This budget includes dangerous proposals that will raise energy prices, stall our economy, block job creation and put millions of existing energy jobs at risk. The decision to cancel is very disappointing considering that Secretary Salazar isn’t even scheduled to appear before the Natural Resources Committee to explain and defend the President’s budget. At this time, not a single person from this Administration will have to answer for the destructive energy policy in this budget.”

Republicans were poised to ask tough questions regarding the President’s proposed budget that includes nearly $40 billion in tax and fee increases on American energy, a decrease in revenues from new offshore drilling leases, and an elimination of the profitable royalty in-kind (RIK) program for collecting oil and gas royalties.

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