18 Apr Western Advocates Rejoice Concerning The Department of Interior Oil & Gas Rule Being Finalized
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 16, 2024
CONTACT: Amber Falgout, afalgout@battlebornprogress.org
Western Advocates Rejoice Concerning The Department of Interior Oil & Gas Rule Being Finalized
LAS VEGAS, NV – On April 12th, the Department of the Interior (DOI) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its final “oil and gas rule.” The rule ensures oil and gas companies will pay to clean up their messes and the rule reduces conflict between leasing and other uses of our public lands essential to supporting Westerners’ way of life: open land, hunting, fishing, recreation, and conservation.
Shelbie Swartz, Executive Director of the Institute for a Progressive Nevada, issued the following statement:
“We are excited that the Department of the Interior finally took important action to reform the federal oil and gas leasing program. These historic, common-sense reforms will provide relief for taxpayers, protect wildlife habitat, and ensure oil and gas polluters pay their fair share to clean up the messes they make after drilling on public lands. This rule provides a fair return to taxpayers by increasing fees for oil and gas development, bringing them in line with the levels required by many states. The rule also reduces “speculative leasing,” a practice that allows the oil and gas industry to tie up land in leases where drilling will never occur due to limited resources. We are thankful that the Biden administration listened to Western taxpayers, conservationists, and community leaders to create a fair system that benefits all public land uses, not just oil and gas.”
ABOUT DOI/BLM RULE: On April 12th, the Department of the Interior (DOI) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released their final “oil and gas rule.” This announcement follows a years-long push by Westerners to bring federal oil and gas leasing policies into the 21st century. These celebrated reforms take the necessary step of codifying provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act to secure a fair return to U.S. taxpayers. The rule also ensures that oil and gas companies will pay to clean up their messes – a burden taxpayers have shouldered for too long. Moreover, the rule reduces conflict between leasing and other uses of our public lands essential to supporting Westerners’ way of life: open land, hunting, fishing, recreation, and conservation.
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