Status
The Biden administration is continuing to hold lease sales in the onshore and offshore leasing programs.
Why it Matters
Drilling for oil and gas presents risks to human health, coastal and fishing industries, and vulnerable conservation areas. Drilling on federal lands and waters is regulated by the Department of the Interior (DOI) and its bureaus, which control who may drill on federal lands and waters by awarding leases to bidders and by regulating where and how drilling occurs.
The Trump administration prioritized domestic oil production by expanding both onshore and offshore leasing. Trump’s Executive Order 13783 directed federal agencies to ease regulations slowing down the oil and gas leasing process and his Executive Order 13795 instructed DOI to limit offshore energy regulation.
When the Biden administration entered office in January 2021, it prioritized limiting offshore and onshore drilling. Biden revoked both Trump Executive Orders, and DOI announced a 60-day suspension of all new federal oil and gas leases. In Executive Order 14008, President Biden also announced that his administration would continue to pause all offshore and onshore leasing pending a full review of the federal leasing and permitting program. The pause was extensively litigated.
The IRA makes it hard for the Biden administration to implement the pause given that renewable development hinges on continued oil and gas lease auctions.
Resources
The IRA Offshore Energy Leasing Provisions’ Potential Impacts
Potential Impacts of the IRA’s Onshore Energy Leasing Provisions
Timeline of Events
OBAMA ADMINISTRATION
Jan. 27, 2015 President Obama withdrew areas in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas off the coast of Alaska from consideration for oil and gas leasing.
Dec. 20, 2016 President Obama issued two Presidential Memoranda withdrawing 3.8 million acres of OCS oil and gas development in the Atlantic and 115 million acres in the Arctic.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
March 2017 President Trump issued Executive Order 13783 which directed agencies to review and revise regulations that burden domestic energy production. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke issued Secretarial Order 3349 which directed the Department to review and revise regulations in line with EO 13783.
April 28, 2017 President Trump signed Executive Order 13795 to “encourage energy exploration and production” on the outer continental shelf. It directed agencies to reconsider actions taken under the Obama administration to limit or regulate offshore oil and gas development, including efforts to limit areas available for leasing.
July 6, 2017 Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke issued Secretarial Order 3354 which directs the Bureau of Land Management to more regularly implement oil and gas lease sales and to make its permitting processes more efficient.
March 29, 2019 A federal judge in Alaska vacated Sec. 5 of President Trump’s EO 13795, reinstating former President Obama’s Jan. 27, 2015 and Dec. 20, 2016 withdrawals of Arctic and Atlantic coastal areas from oil and gas leasing. League of Conservation Voters v. Trump, No. 3:17-cv-00101-SLG (D. Alaska).
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
Jan. 20, 2021 President Biden revoked Trump’s Executive Order 13783. DOI issued Secretarial Order No. 3395, temporarily suspending any onshore or offshore fossil fuel authorizations, including new lease sales, for 60 days.
Jan. 27, 2021 President Biden signed Executive Order 14008, pausing all new federal offshore and onshore oil and gas leasing pending a comprehensive review of the program. EO 14008 also revoked Trump’s Executive Order 13795.
Jan. 27, 2021 Western Energy Alliance filed a lawsuit challenging President Biden’s suspension of the oil and gas leasing program in the District of Wyoming. Western Energy Alliance v. Biden, No. 0:21-cv-00013 (D. Wyo.).
March 24, 2021 Louisiana and twelve other states filed a lawsuit challenging President Biden’s pause on new federal oil and gas lease sales arguing that the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) and the current 5-year Leasing Program prohibit the moratorium. Louisiana v. Biden, Docket No. 2:21-CV-00778 (W.D. La.).
June 15, 2021 The Western District of Louisiana issued a preliminary injunction blocking President Biden’s pause on oil and gas lease sales and holding that the DOI may not continue to pause upcoming Lease Sales 257 or 258. Louisiana v. Biden, Docket No. 2:21-CV-00778 (W.D. La.).
Aug. 24, 2021 DOI announced that it will continue to prepare lease sales during its appeal of the pause. Louisiana v. Biden, Docket No. 2:21-CV-00778 (W.D. La.).
Nov. 26, 2021 DOI issued a report reviewing the federal oil and gas leasing process and making recommendations for reform.
Jan.-Feb. 2022 Over 360 environmental groups sent a legal petition to the Biden administration to reduce oil and gas drilling to 98% lower than current levels by 2035, 80 environmental organizations sent a letter to the Biden administration, urging the DOI to ban lease sales starting in 2022, and 310 environmental groups filed a petition asking the DOI to stop new drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.
Feb. 14, 2022 The Biden administration asked the 5th Circuit to reverse the Western District of Louisiana’s decision that blocked the Biden administration moratorium on new oil and gas drilling on federal lands and waters. Louisiana v. Biden, Docket No. 21-30505 (5th Cir.)
Apr. 15, 2022 To comply with the preliminary injunction issued by the court in Louisiana v. Biden, the DOI announced that BLM will issue notices for lease sales, increase royalty rates from 12.5% to 18.75%, and limit the acreage available for leasing.
April 18, 2022 The BLM published final environmental assessments and sale notices for June 2022 lease sales. The final sale notices reduced the acreage of land available for leasing on public lands by 80% and increased royalty rates.
June 29, 2022 For the first time during the Biden administration, BLM held lease sales for oil and gas drilling on federal lands.
July 1, 2022 BOEM published the 2023-2028 Proposed Program for the National Outer Continental Shelf Drilling and Leasing Program and its draft environmental impact statements. The plan proposed up to eleven potential lease sales over the next five years, with ten potential sales in the Gulf of Mexico and one potential sale in Cook Inlet in Alaska.
Aug. 16, 2022 President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law. The Act raises minimum royalty rates and adds new fees for lease auctions, reinstates lease sales 257, 258, 259, and 261, and requires minimum acres to be offered for oil and gas development before DOI can issue rights-of-way for solar or leases for wind development. Read more about these requirements.
Aug. 17, 2022 The 5th Circuit vacated the preliminary injunction that blocked the Biden administration’s pause on new oil and gas leases. Louisiana v. Biden, No. 21-30505 (5th Cir.).
Aug.18, 2022 The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana issued a permanent injunction blocking President Biden’s pause on new oil and gas leases, holding that the executive order exceeded the president’s authority. The permanent injunction applies only to the thirteen plaintiff states: Louisiana, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia. Louisiana v. Biden, No. 2:21-CV-00778 (W.D. La.).
Sept. 14, 2022 BOEM accepted bids for Lease Sale 257 to comply with the IRA.
Nov. 21, 2022 BLM issued updated guidance on implementing the IRA’s changes to the onshore oil and gas leasing program.