Washington - Today, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar wrote to British Petroleum, requesting that the corporation officially commit to paying for all economic damage resulting from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill - including damage beyond the $75 million liability cap. U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), a member of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and author of the Big Oil Bailout Prevention legislation to raise the liability cap from $75 million to $10 billion, released the following statement:

"BP has been careful to use qualifying words when discussing its financial responsibility for the damage it is causing, which raises concerns that the corporation will evade paying for it in full. This is an important and welcome action by the administration to help guarantee that the responsible corporation is held accountable for damage it is causing to the coastal economy. My hope is that, not only will BP finally accept its financial responsibility without equivocation, but that our Republican colleagues will cease to obstruct quick passage of my Big Oil Bailout Prevention legislation. Regardless of what BP ends up committing to pay for this disaster, there is no such thing as a 'Too Safe To Spill' oil rig, and there should be no legal wiggle room for oil companies that devastate coastal businesses and communities -- now or in the future."

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