Bromwich to coastal govs: Let’s talk

The Interior Department’s top offshore drilling regulator is inviting a quartet of GOP governors who have criticized his policies to Washington for a chat as early as next week.

Michael Bromwich sent a letter Tuesday to the governors that Monday launched the Outer Continental Shelf Governors Coalition.

“As the elected leaders of your states, you understandably have a strong interest in offshore exploration and production,” writes Bromwich, director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement.

The letter notes that, “Although many opportunities for your participation in federal decision-making on offshore activities already exist,” Bromwich’s “door is open” to meet with them individually or as a coalition to discuss offshore energy.

The group was launched Monday by Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour and Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell – state executives that have accused the Interior Department of stymieing offshore drilling.

They quartet sent a letter to other coastal governors inviting them to join – correspondence that claimed the Obama administration has not worked closely enough with states on major decisions related to offshore oil-and-gas drilling.

“In recent months ... the federal government has taken sweeping actions regarding offshore oil and gas activities with little consultation with the states. Unfortunately, many of these federal actions have been in conflict with our states’ and citizens’ interests,” the governors’ letter states.