The dangers posed by a vast oil slick approaching the Louisiana coastline have produced a welter of activity on the Hill, and several congressional hearings examining the accident are slated for the days ahead.

Next Tuesday, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will convene to review the spill in the context of the Obama administration's proposed expansion of offshore drilling. Witnesses will include representatives of the companies involved in the leasing and operation of the ruptured well, as well as a former official at the Minerals Management Service, an agency that took some blowback today for reportedly ceding some of its regulatory authority to oil companies. Later that afternoon, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will hear testimony from a battery of experts.

On Wednesday, a subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee will inquire into the spill, followed two weeks later by a full committee hearing of the House Natural Resources Committee. The witnesses for both hearings have yet to be announced.

Complete details after the jump.

Tuesday, May 11

• Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, full committee; "To Review Current Issues Related To Offshore Oil and Gas Development" (10 a.m.; 325 Russell Senate Office Building).

Panel 1:
F.E. Beck, associate professor, Texas A&M University
Bud Danenberger, former chief, Offshore Regulatory Program, Minerals Management Service

Panel 2:
Lamar McKay, president and chairman, BP America
Steven Newman, president and CEO, Transocean Ltd.
Tim Probert, chief health, safety and environmental officer, Halliburton

• Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, full committee; "Economic and Environmental Impacts of the Recent Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico" (2:30 p.m.; 406 Dirksen Senate Office Building).

Panel 1:
McKay
Newman
Probert

Panel 2:
Steve Bortone, executive director, Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council
Garret Graves, director, Governor's Office of Coastal Activities, State of Louisiana
Keith Overton, chairman of the board, Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association; COO, TradeWinds Island Resorts
Eric May, distinguished research scientist, Living Marine Resources Cooperative Science Center, University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Meg Caldwell, executive director, Center for Ocean Solutions; senior lecturer in law and environmental and natural resources, Stanford University
Lt. Gen. Thomas G. McInerney, Air Force (ret.)

Wednesday, May 12

• House Energy and Commerce Committee, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations; "Inquiry into the Deepwater Horizon Gulf Coast Oil Spill" (10 a.m., 2123 Rayburn House Office Building).

Witness list to be determined.

Wednesday, May 26

• House Natural Resources Committee, full committee; "Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Strategy and Implications of the Deepwater Horizon Rig Explosion" (10 a.m.; 1324 Longworth House Office Building).

Witness list to be determined.

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