In 1981, Congress acted to protect America's shores, beaches, and marine ecosystems by adopting a moratorium on oil and gas development in coastal waters. Since then, Congress has annually reaffirmed that moratorium.

During Senate consideration of H.R. 6, the energy bill, Senator John Warner (R-VA) offered an amendment that would have authorized Virginia to petition for natural gas drilling and exploration in its coastal waters. The amendment would have paved the way for drilling just a few miles from Assateague Island National Seashore, Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, and the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. It would also have overridden the objections of neighboring states at risk from the drilling.

On June 14, 2007, the Senate rejected the Warner amendment by a 43-44 vote (Senate roll call vote 212). NO IS THE PRO-ENVIRONMENT VOTE.