Jeb Bush opposes lifting drill ban.

Byline: Lesley Clark

Sep. 29--Gov. Jeb Bush on Wednesday criticized parts of a fast-moving Republican effort to lift a ban on oil and gas exploration off the Florida coast, lending his clout to an issue that is splintering the state's congressional delegation.

In a letter to U.S. Rep. Richard Pombo, the Republican chairman of the House Resources Committee, Bush lauded the proposal passed by the committee for establishing new protections for some areas of the state's coastline. But he expressed reservations about part of the measure that he believes could "encourage drilling activities in the protected areas."

Bush noted in the letter that the proposal does not address existing leases in the Gulf of Mexico -- raising the potential that drilling could occur within 100 miles of the Florida coast, something Bush said he has long opposed.

"With these leases outstanding, the threat remains," said Bush, who along with his brother, President George W. Bush, pledged during his 2002 reelection campaign to prevent drilling along Florida's coastline.

An amendment adopted by the committee would lift the presidential and congressional ban on natural gas production along the country's Outer Continental Shelf, and Bush wrote in the letter, that "Floridians cannot support your efforts . . . [if the provision] remains a part of your bill."

Bush's stance comes as efforts to defend Florida's moratorium on drilling off its coastline faces its most serious threat in decades.