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For Immediate Release
Contact:

Molly Haigh, 907-750-1999, molly@fitzgibbonmedia.com

10 KXL Amendment Co-Sponsors Took $8 Million from Fossil Fuel Industry

Average KXL Amendment Co-Sponsor has Taken 2.5 Times More Money from Industry Than Non-Sponsors, New Research Shows Ahead of Today's Vote

WASHINGTON

New research from Oil Change International today found that the 10 Senators co-sponsoring the pro- Keystone XL Pipeline Amendment (Hoeven Amendment 494) in the Senate today have on average taken $807,517 from the fossil fuel industry. That works out to 254% more money than the average Senator not sponsoring the amendment, and a total haul of over $8 million dollars, based on data from DirtyEnergyMoney.org.

The non-binding Hoeven amendment -- co-sponsored by Senators Hoeven, Baucus, Cornyn, Manchin, Roberts, Heitkamp, Barrasso, Landrieu, Murkowski, and Begich -- supports approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, prejudging the ongoing review process currently being undertaken by President Obama's State Department.

David Turnbull, Campaigns Director of Oil Change International, issued the following statement in regards to the new research ahead of today's vote on the pipeline:

"This puts to rest any delusions we might have that the Keystone XL pipeline is about anything but money for the fossil fuel industry and their allies in Congress.

"If approved, this non-binding amendment will not change anything in the process of the State Department's review of the Keystone XL proposal. And it certainly will not change the fact that this pipeline risks our communities and our climate just to ship toxic oil through our country for export around the globe.

"The only thing this amendment would actually do is show which Senators would rather follow Big Oil's money rather than listen to the people who elected them."

For more information on the above research, see: https://priceofoil.org/2013/03/22/oily-keystone-xl-amendment-expected-to...

Oil Change International is a research, communications, and advocacy organization focused on exposing the true costs of fossil fuels and facilitating the ongoing transition to clean energy.

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