Public support for increased access to domestic offshore oil and natural gas resources is at an all-time high. But can a focus on expanding offshore drilling really help stimulate the economy?

According to the results of a poll released today by Harris Interactive and commissioned by the American Petroleum Institute, most American voters support increasing access to domestic offshore oil and natural gas resources and would oppose any new laws or regulations that blocked development of those national resources.

The poll found that 61 percent of Americans who voted in the 2008 presidential election support access to offshore oil and natural gas resources. Only 26 percent of those polled opposed exploration and development of those resources. Around 57 percent would oppose regulations or laws that either delay or block domestic oil and natural gas production, while only 28 percent would support such actions. And 50 percent said they would oppose delaying the offshore oil and gas drilling plan, referring to a recent decision by the Obama administration to delay by six months the regulatory process leading to offshore leasing.

The Department of the Interior’s Minerals Management Service estimates that the Outer Continental Shelf holds 86 billion barrels of oil and 420 trillion cubic feet of natural gas that have yet to be discovered.

In addition, expanding oil and natural gas development in newly opened offshore areas will generate $1.7 trillion in federal tax revenue and almost $600 million in state and local taxes throughout the life span of the new fields, according to a separate study conducted by the American Energy Alliance. The increased offshore energy production would also support 1.2 million jobs annually.

It’s further proof that significant support exists for developing America’s vast energy resources, and evidence of a more general desire for the US to move towards energy independence.

What do you think? Can a focus on expanding offshore drilling really help stimulate the economy? And what would need to happen for this potential to become a reality?