The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wants to weaken financial assurances for Oil & Gas wells on federal land and reduce public participation.<\/p>\n
A proposed rule, announced June 22<\/a> and formally published June 24<\/a>, would make major changes to the federal onshore oil and gas leasing program that could leave taxpayers and communities to shoulder more of the costs of cleaning up oil and gas wells. The proposed rule would reduce minimum federal bond requirements for oil and gas operators, returning them to decades-old levels that previously left taxpayers exposed to billions in potential cleanup liabilities.<\/p>\n The rule would also reduce companies\u2019 filing fees while creating a new fee for members of the public filing protests, shorten public comment period, remove leasing preference criteria that guide which lands are offered for leasing, give BLM greater discretion in granting lease suspensions, and codify the noncompetitive leasing and replacement sale processes.<\/p>\n