New Jersey Lawmakers Oppose Trump Coastal Drilling Plan
NEW JERSEY (CBS) -- The Trump administration's plans to permit drilling for oil in coastal waters, such as those at the Jersey Shore, is meeting bi-partisan resistance in the Garden State.
New Jersey Governor-elect Phil Murphy did not mince words when it came to his thoughts on oil and gas drilling on New Jersey's coast.
"It's an awful idea. It's just an awful awful idea," he said.
Murphy, Governor Chris Christie, and Senators Bob Menendez and Cory Booker sent a letter to the Department of the Interior to immediately withdraw New Jersey from consideration for a newly proposed program expanding offshore oil and gas drilling in nearly all federal waters.
The lawmakers cite the administration's announcement that Florida is being taken off the list because of the possible negative impact on that state's tourism-dependant economy.
"If you're in the business of giving states passes, we want a pass. I think that's a passion that both Governor Christie and myself and folks on both sides of the aisle feel strongly about," said Murphy.
New Jersey officials say, just like Florida, their state's economy is heavily driven by tourism so drilling could be devastating to the state.
