Rulemaking to update oil and gas program still needed as Biden admin announces guidance, more onshore lease sales

The Department of the Interior announced plans to offer more than 95,000 acres of federal lands across Nevada and Utah for oil and gas lease sales scheduled for the second quarter of 2023. The news comes a little over a month after plans to offer more than 260,000 acres of federal public lands across New Mexico and Wyoming in oil and gas lease sales were announced. 

The Inflation Reduction Act became law this summer and made the biggest climate investment in U.S. history. It also established long-overdue rate increases for oil and gas development on public lands and waters, but harmfully tethered renewable energy development on public lands and waters to new oil and gas leasing. Per the Inflation Reduction Act, the Department of the Interior must hold onshore oil and gas lease sales (and issue a lease) in order to issue wind or solar right-of-way permits. 

Although Interior is continuing to offer sizeable chunks of public lands to fossil fuel companies, today’s announcement also includes positive steps by providing guidance on how the administration will begin to implement several Inflation Reduction Act provisions.  

In response to DOI’s joint announcements, The Wilderness Society Director & Senior Staff Attorney Ben Tettlebaum said: 

“The Inflation Reduction Act made several long-overdue reforms to the federal oil and gas program, but it also complicated a just ramp-up of responsible renewable energy development on these lands and waters. This means it is more critical than ever that the Interior Department use its authorities to put public health and safety, climate and conservation first,” said Ben Tettlebaum, Director and Senior Staff Attorney at The Wilderness Society. “Interior’s implementation guidance released today takes steps in the right direction, but DOI must release a draft rule to comprehensively reform its oil and gas program before proceeding with leasing.” 

The Department of the Interior released several instruction memoranda providing guidance on the impacts of the Inflation Reduction Act, what will count as expressions of interest, parameters for permit extensions, and other DOI requirements and preferences around the oil and gas program. 

The Department of the Interior has begun to announce new lease sales but has yet to release the draft rule updating the federal oil and gas program. A rulemaking – and subsequent final rules – are critical because they establish more binding regulations for administrative agencies and help ensure the longevity of the reforms. 

A rulemaking is needed to:  

• Favorably and durably implement the important, necessary policy changes included in the Inflation Reduction Act, which established the long-overdue increases to the fiscal rates and terms for leasing and development on public lands and eliminated the wasteful practice of leasing lands noncompetitively (for just $1.50/acre);  

• Address all of the remaining core problems that the Department highlighted in its report from November of last year by 1) requiring oil and gas companies to fully pay for potential clean-up costs so that communities aren’t stuck with the bill for well clean-up; 2) avoiding the massive leasing of areas with low potential for oil and gas development; and 3) creating and ensuring a more transparent process that provides meaningful opportunity for public engagement and Tribal consultation;  

• Utilize all available discretion to take lands off the table for oil and gas development; and 

• Hold bad industry actors accountable by preventing oil and gas companies with a history of violating the terms of federal oil and gas leases from getting new leases. 

A recent analysis by Apogee Economics and Policy emphasizes how the administration must use its authority to take strong action to limit new leasing on culturally and ecologically vital lands from oil and gas development and be in-line with Biden’s climate goals. 

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For more information, contact Tony Iallonardo at newsmedia@tws.org