U.S. House Passes Key Public Lands Energy Permitting Bill

Posted at 13:13h in Federal Lands, Infrastructure, Press Releases by Jennifer Pett

"H.R. 7831 reauthorizes a longstanding policy that is an important framework for federal land producers. IPAA has championed this concept since its origins in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and proudly testified in support of the bill during its committee hearing earlier this year," said Dan Naatz, IPAA executive vice president and chief policy officer. "The PPIF program has garnered bipartisan support in both the House and Senate in previous reauthorizations because the concept is sound - industry pays its own way. Extending the program preserves an industry-funded permitting system with a fee that is indexed to inflation, designed to improve agency resources, and reduce permitting delays. We applaud Rep. Kennedy's leadership and look to the Senate to follow suit."

"The Permit Processing Improvement Fund is 100% paid for by fees on oil and natural gas drilling permits. It's a balanced approach that Congress created to develop energy resources on public lands while supporting the federal employees who manage the process. Their roles are important because 10% of the oil and natural gas produced in the United States comes from BLM public lands," said Melissa Simpson, president of the Alliance. "Republicans and Democrats in Congress may not agree on much at the moment, but there's strong agreement on extending support for the federal employees who perform the daily work that goes into managing oil and natural gas production. We're thankful for the leadership of Rep. Kennedy in moving a bill critical to producing the oil and natural gas our country needs and gaining strong bipartisan support."

Background

The Permit Processing Improvement Fund was created in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 as a pilot program. Following 10 years of success, Congress renewed it for an additional 10 years and expanded the program. Authorization to use drilling permit fees to fund portions of the PPIF expires in September.

Congress prioritized funding for high-volume BLM offices to support federal and tribal oil and natural gas activities. The offices are in Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. The PPIF supports BLM staff working on approvals for oil and natural gas activities, including permits, rights of way, environmental analysis, sundry notices and surface use plans. The money is also used for interagency coordination with other federal agencies, staff hiring and training.

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