In the two months since the Deepwater Horizon accident, numerous investigations have been launched, several congressional hearings have been held, and many statements have been made about oil and natural gas industry regulation. Unfortunately, many statements about industry regulations have had little or no basis in fact.

Today, API's Erik Milito set the record straight.

In written testimony for the House Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources, Erik explained some basic facts about the offshore oil and natural gas industry and its relationship with the federal government:

• The industry is heavily regulated. There are 27 statutory authorities, 88 Code of Federal Regulations provisions, and 24 approvals and permits that apply to offshore operations. (Click here to see a simple illustra... more »

While oil company officials were being questioned by Congress today, a bolt of lightning started a small fire on the Discoverer Enterprise, the drillship that is collecting oil and flaring gas from the leaking Macondo well.

BP reports the fire occurred at the top of the ship's derrick and was extinguished quickly. There were no injuries, but the lower marine riser package (LMRP) containment operation was shut down temporarily. Collection of oil and gas was expected to resume today.

The responders' Joint Information Center has released an interactive map, allowing users to track the response efforts real-time. The map shows the locations of response centers, claims offices and fishing bans, in addition to providing information about beach conditions.

BP is moving forward with its plans to... more »

Five top-ranking oil company officers are testifying on Capitol Hill at this hour before the House Subcommittee on Energy and Environment. Early in the hearing, they expressed their heartfelt concern for the 11 men who lost their lives in the Deepwater Horizon tragedy and some briefly described their companies' safety procedures.

Chairman and CEO Rex W. Tillerson of ExxonMobil mentioned the 1989 Exxon Valdez tanker spill and explained its impact on the company's safety procedures:

"That accident was the low-point in ExxonMobil's history. But it was also a turning point. In the aftermath, we launched a full-scale, top-to-bottom review of our operations, and implemented far-reaching actions that today guide every operating decision we make on a daily basis. An overriding commitment to safet... more »