This bill requires oil and natural gas lease sales that include certain public land and waters, prohibits lease sales in other areas, and establishes related requirements.
Beginning in FY2025, the Department of the Interior must conduct a minimum of four onshore lease sales annually in each state that has federal land available for oil and natural gas leasing. If a lease sale is canceled, delayed, or deferred, Interior must conduct a replacement sale during the same year.
Beginning in FY2026, Interior must conduct a minimum of two offshore, region-wide lease sales annually in the Gulf of Mexico Region of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) by specified dates. The sales must include the Central Gulf of Mexico Planning Area and the Western Gulf of Mexico Planning Area.
Interior must also conduct a minimum of six offshore lease sales of at least 1 million acres each over a 10-year period in the Cook Inlet Planning Area. The bill sets a 12.5% royalty rate for such leases.
Interior must plan and approve the subsequent OCS oil and gas leasing programs by specified deadlines.
The bill extends through 2035 a moratorium on oil and gas leasing in certain eastern and central portions of the Gulf of Mexico and expands the moratorium to include the South Atlantic Planning Area and the Straits of Florida Planning Area.
The bill also requires the President to obtain congressional approval before impeding or circumventing certain federal energy mineral leasing processes.