mr. chairman , i yield myself such time as i may consume . 
mr. chairman , i offer this amendment to address what is a critical shortage of labor within the oil and gas industry and the mineral industries . 
since 1999 there has been a significant drop in the number of jobs in the oil field . 
as the price of oil and natural gas have fluctuated , workers have come and gone in this industry . 
we are now at a point where we are at a critical shortage of workers across the spectrum , roughnecks , well service hands , pulling unit hands and others , as well as the technical engineers , geologists , geophysicists . 
they are key to continuing the search for domestic production . 
as an example , one community in my district , kermit , texas , in 1998-1999 had some 9 , 000 people living there . 
as a result of the downturn in those years and the loss of jobs , that community now has 6 , 000 people living there . 
even with the significant increases in the price of natural gas and crude oil that we are experiencing today , those people have not come back to kermit , texas . 
we are facing this critical shortage . 
my amendment would simply require the energy department , in consultation with the interior department as well as the labor department , to conduct a study of the impact that this shortage is having and to present possible solutions to the shortage . 
by way of trying to be a bit dramatic , each barrel of oil we import , each mcf of natural gas we import , adds to our trade deficit each and every day . 
the need to import a barrel of oil or the need to import an mcf of natural gas causes us to remain dependent on those foreign sources . 
i speak in favor of this amendment . 
mr. chairman , i yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from new mexico ( mr. pearce ) xz4003130 , a former oil and gas company owner . 
