29–006 

113TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1st Session 113–197 

NATIONAL PETROLEUM RESERVE ALASKA ACCESS ACT 

SEPTEMBER 10, 2013.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 

State of the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington, from the Committee on Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

together with 

DISSENTING VIEWS 

[To accompany H.R. 1964] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred the 

bill (H.R. 1964) to amend the Naval Petroleum Reserves Production 

Act of 1976 to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct an expeditious program of competitive leasing of oil and gas in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, including at least one lease 

sale in the Reserve each year in the period 2013 through 2023, and 

for other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably 

thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. 

PURPOSE OF THE BILL

The purpose of H.R. 1964 is to amend the Naval Petroleum Reserves Production Act of 1976 to direct the Secretary of the Interior 

to conduct an expeditious program of competitive leasing of oil and 

gas in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, including at least 

one lease sale in the Reserve each year in the period 2013 through 

2023. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

The largest state in the union, Alaska, is home to abundant natural resources including oil and natural gas. Most have heard 

about Alaska’s onshore resources contained in the 1002 area of the 

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) or the National Petroleum 


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Reserve—Alaska (NPRA) areas that have long been part of the energy debate on Capitol Hill. 

NPRA

In 2008, the Department of the Interior anticipated that production from the NPRA would finally be realized. Actions taken by the 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have delayed that production indefinitely. 

EPA declared the Colville River Delta an ‘‘aquatic resource of national importance’’ (ARNI) after applications were filed to build a 

bridge over the river to provide access to the Conoco-Phillips development project in the NPRA and used the ARNI designation to 

deny and override an Army Corps of Engineers 404 permit under 

the Clean Water Act. 

TRANS ALASKA PIPELINE SYSTEM (TAPS)

TAPS is an 800 mile long pipeline that is vital to United States 

energy production. Since 1977, TAPS has successfully transported 

more than 16 billion barrels of oil. 

At its peak of production, Prudhoe Bay produced 2.1 million barrels of oil per day that was transported via TAPS, providing onethird of the nation’s oil production. Today approximately 620,000 

barrels of oil per day flow through TAPS. Without new production 

from Alaska’s North Slope, ANWR, NPRA, and the Beaufort and 

Chukchi Seas, there will not be enough oil flowing through the 

pipeline to sustain it. If the pipeline shuts down because oil production has not been allowed to take place, the pipeline system will 

have to be removed, thus eliminating a valuable national resource 

and leaving billions of barrels of oil stranded in the North Slope 

of Alaska. 

CURRENT STATUS

In November 2012, the Administration held a lease sale in the 

NPRA. While the Administration claimed to make available 400 

tracts comprising approximately 4.5 million acres, due to the regulatory uncertainty and administrative roadblocks to development in 

the NPRA, only two companies submitted 14 bids for 160,000 acres. 

Development of the NPRA was further compromised with their 

recent announcement of the Record of Decision for the final NPRA 

Integrated Activity Plan and Environmental Impact Statement. 

This obstructive plan effectively serves to take land off the table for 

development that would be essential to transport crude oil out of 

the NPRA, and any production will be endlessly held up in environmental law suits and bureaucratic red tape. 

This legislation requires the Secretary of the Interior to conduct 

at least one annual lease sale in the reserve and directs the Secretary to issue permits for all surface development activities, including pipeline and roads, which are necessary to develop the 

NPRA to transport oil and natural gas from the reserve and secure 

the continued operation of TAPS. The legislation also nullifies the 

obstructive Environmental Impact Statement and requires the Secretary to issue a new proposed integrated activity plan, requires 

the issuance of new regulations for production and timely permit 


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processing, and requires an assessment of recoverable fossil fuel resources in the NPRA. 

COMMITTEE ACTION

H.R. 1964 was introduced on May 14, 2013, by Congressman Doc 

Hastings (R–WA). The bill was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee on 

Energy and Mineral Resources. On May 22, 2013, the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources held a hearing on the 

bill. On June 12, 2013, the full Natural Resources Committee met 

to consider the bill. The Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources was discharged by unanimous consent. No amendments 

were offered, and the bill was then adopted and ordered favorably 

reported to the House of Representatives by a bipartisan roll call 

vote of 26 to 14, as follows: 


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Date: June 12, 2013 

Committee on Natural Resources 

u.s. House of Representatives 

113th Congress 

Recorded Vote #: 13 

Meeting on I Amendment on: H.R. 1964 - To adopt and favorably report the bill to the House agreed to by a vote 

of26 yeas to 14 nays 

MEMBERS Yea Nay Pres MEMBERS Yea Nay Pres 

Mr. Hastings, WA, Chairman X Mr. Duncan ofSC X I 

Mr. Markey. MA, Ranking My. Hanahusa, HI I X 

Mr. Young, AK X Mr. Tipton, CO X 

Mr. D~fazio, OR X Mr. Cardenas, CA X 

Mr. Gohmert, TX X Mr. Gosar, AZ X 

Mr. Faleomavaega, AS X Mr. Hor4ord, NV X 

Mr. Bishop, UT X Mr. Labrador, ID 

Mr. Pallone, NJ X Mr. Huffman, CA X 

Mr. Lamborn, CO X Mr. Southerland, FL X 

Mrs. Napolitano. CA X Mr. Ruiz, CA X 

Mr. Wittman, V A X Mr. Flores, TX X 

Mr. Holt, NJ X M" Shea-Porter. NH =r= Mr. Brouu, GA X Mr. Runyan, NJ X 

Mr. Grijalva, AZ X Mr. Lowenthal, CA X 

Mr. Fleming, LA X Mr. Amodei, NV 

Ms. Bordallo, GU X Mr. Garcia. FL 

Mr. McClintock, CA X Mr. Mullin, OK X 

Mr. Costa, CA X Mr. Cartwright. PA X 

Mr. Thompson, PA X Mr. Stewart, UT X 

Mr. Sablan, CNMI Mr. Daines, MT X 

Ms. Lummis, WY X Mr. Cramer, ND X 

Ms. Tsongas. MA X Mr. LaMalfa, CA 

Mr. Benishek, MI X Mr. Smith, MO X 

Mr. Pierl"isi, PR 

TOTALS 26 14 
5 

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII 

of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee on 

Natural Resources’ oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in the body of this report. 

COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII 

1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of 

the House of Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(2)(B) of that rule provides 

that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. Under clause 

3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 

section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate for this bill from the 

Director of the Congressional Budget Office: 

H.R. 1964—National Petroleum Reserve Alaska Access Act 

H.R. 1964 would require the Secretary of the Interior to conduct 

certain activities aimed at facilitating the development of oil and 

gas in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR–A). Based 

on information from the Department of the Interior and assuming 

appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would cost $2 million over the 2014–2015 

period. Enacting H.R. 1964 could affect direct spending; therefore, 

pay-as-you-go procedures apply. However, CBO estimates that any 

such effects would be negligible. Enacting the legislation would not 

affect revenues. 

The bill would require the United States Geological Survey 

(USGS) to complete a comprehensive assessment of oil and gas resources in the NPR–A. The agency recently completed many of the 

assessments that would be required under the bill. Based on information from the agency, CBO expects that the USGS would need 

to complete two additional assessments. Based on information regarding the cost of similar USGS assessments and assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, we estimate that those assessments would cost $2 million over the 2014–2015 period. 

H.R. 1964 also would require the Bureau of Land Management 

(BLM) to conduct annual lease sales in the NPR–A. Historically, 

such sales were held every two years; however, because the agency 

began conducting annual sales in 2011 and plans to continue them 

in the future, CBO estimates that implementing this provision 

would not affect the federal budget. 

Finally, the bill would require BLM to reassess a recent decision 

to offer 52 percent of the NPR–A region for oil and gas leasing and 

choose another development option that the agency has evaluated. 

Under the bill, CBO expects that the agency would select an alternative development plan for NPR–A that would make similar 

amounts of acreage available for oil and gas leasing. In addition. 

gross annual proceeds from oil and gas leasing activities in the 

NPR–A have been below $5 million in recent years. Consequently, 


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CBO expects that requiring BLM to select a new resource development plan would have a negligible impact on direct spending. 

H.R. 1964 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contacts for this estimate are Jeff LaFave. The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director 

for Budget Analysis. 

2. Section 308(a) of Congressional Budget Act. As required by 

clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, 

this bill does not contain any new budget authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in revenues or tax expenditures. 

Based on information from the Department of the Interior and assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO estimates 

that implementing the legislation would cost $2 million over the 

2014–2015 period. 

3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 

clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or objective 

of this bill is to amend the Naval Petroleum Reserves Production 

Act of 1976 to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct an expeditious program of competitive leasing of oil and gas in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, including at least one lease 

sale in the Reserve each year in the period 2013 through 2023. 

EARMARK STATEMENT

This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks, limited 

tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined under clause 9(e), 

9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives. 

COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104–4 

This bill contains no unfunded mandates. 

COMPLIANCE WITH H. RES. 5 

Directed Rule Making. The Chairman estimates that this bill directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct one rulemaking. 

Duplication of Existing Programs. This bill does not establish or 

reauthorize a program of the federal government known to be duplicative of another program. Such program was not included in 

any report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress 

pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111–139 or identified in the 

most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance published pursuant to the Federal Program Information Act (Public Law 95–220, 

as amended by Public Law 98–169) as relating to other programs. 

PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or tribal law. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the bill, 

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ted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is printed in italic, 

existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in roman): 

NAVAL PETROLEUM RESERVES PRODUCTION ACT OF 

1976 

* * * * * * * 

TITLE I—NATIONAL PETROLEUM RESERVE IN ALASKA 

* * * * * * * 

SEC. 107. COMPETITIVE LEASING OF OIL AND GAS. 

ø(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall conduct an expeditious 

program of competitive leasing of oil and gas in the Reserve in accordance with this Act.¿ 

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall conduct an expeditious program of competitive leasing of oil and gas in the reserve in accordance with this Act. Such program shall include at least one lease 

sale annually in those areas of the reserve most likely to produce 

commercial quantities of oil and natural gas each year in the period 

2013 through 2023. 

(b) MITIGATION OF ADVERSE EFFECTS.—Activities undertaken 

pursuant to this Act shall include or provide for such conditions, 

restrictions, and prohibitions as the Secretary deems necessary or 

appropriate to mitigate reasonably foreseeable and significantly adverse effects on the surface resources of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. 

(c) LAND USE PLANNING; BLM WILDERNESS STUDY.—The provisions of section 202 and section 603 of the Federal Lands Policy 

and Management Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 2743) shall not be applicable to the Reserve. 

(d) FIRST LEASE SALE.—The first lease sale shall be conducted 

within twenty months of the date of enactment of this Act: Provided, That the first lease sale shall be conducted only after publication of a final environmental impact statement if such is deemed 

necessary under the provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 

(e) WITHDRAWALS.—The withdrawals established by section 102 

of Public Law 94-258 are rescinded for the purposes of the oil and 

gas leasing program authorized under this section. 

(f) BIDDING SYSTEMS.—Bidding systems used in lease sales shall 

be based on bidding systems included in section 205(a)(1)(A) 

through (H) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendments 

of 1978 (92 Stat. 629). 

(g) GEOLOGICAL STRUCTURES.—Lease tracts may encompass identified geological structures. 

(h) SIZE OF LEASE TRACTS.—The size of lease tracts may be up 

to sixty thousand acres, as determined by the Secretary. 

(i) TERMS.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.—Each lease shall be issued for an initial period of not more than 10 years, and shall be extended for so 

long thereafter as oil or gas is produced from the lease in paying quantities, oil or gas is capable of being produced in paying 

quantities, or drilling or reworking operations, as approved by 

the Secretary, are conducted on the leased land. 


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(2) RENEWAL OF LEASES WITH DISCOVERIES.—At the end of 

the primary term of a lease the Secretary shall renew for an 

additional 10-year term a lease that does not meet the requirements of paragraph (1) if the lessee submits to the Secretary 

an application for renewal not later than 60 days before the expiration of the primary lease and the lessee certifies, and the 

Secretary agrees, that hydrocarbon resources were discovered 

on one or more wells drilled on the leased land in such quantities that a prudent operator would hold the lease for potential future development. 

(3) RENEWAL OF LEASES WITHOUT DISCOVERIES.—At the end 

of the primary term of a lease the Secretary shall renew for an 

additional 10-year term a lease that does not meet the requirements of paragraph (1) if the lessee submits to the Secretary 

an application for renewal not later than 60 days before the expiration of the primary lease and pays the Secretary a renewal 

fee of $100 per acre of leased land, and— 

(A) the lessee provides evidence, and the Secretary 

agrees that, the lessee has diligently pursued exploration 

that warrants continuation with the intent of continued 

exploration or future potential development of the leased 

land; or 

(B) all or part of the lease— 

(i) is part of a unit agreement covering a lease described in subparagraph (A); and 

(ii) has not been previously contracted out of the 

unit. 

(4) APPLICABILITY.—This subsection applies to a lease that is 

in effect on or after the date of enactment of the Energy Policy 

Act of 2005. 

(5) EXPIRATION FOR FAILURE TO PRODUCE.—Notwithstanding 

any other provision of this Act, if no oil or gas is produced from 

a lease within 30 years after the date of the issuance of the 

lease the lease shall expire. 

(6) TERMINATION.—No lease issued under this section covering lands capable of producing oil or gas in paying quantities 

shall expire because the lessee fails to produce the same due 

to circumstances beyond the control of the lessee. 

(j) UNIT AGREEMENTS.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of conservation of the natural resources of all or part of any oil or gas pool, field, reservoir, or like area, lessees (including representatives) of the 

pool, field, reservoir, or like area may unite with each other, 

or jointly or separately with others, in collectively adopting and 

operating under a unit agreement for all or part of the pool, 

field, reservoir, or like area (whether or not any other part of 

the oil or gas pool, field, reservoir, or like area is already subject to any cooperative or unit plan of development or operation), if the Secretary determines the action to be necessary 

or advisable in the public interest. In determining the public 

interest, the Secretary should consider, among other things, 

the extent to which the unit agreement will minimize the impact to surface resources of the leases and will facilitate consolidation of facilities. 


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(2) CONSULTATION.—In making a determination under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consult with and provide opportunities for participation by the State of Alaska or a Regional 

Corporation (as defined in section 3 of the Alaska Native 

Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602)) with respect to the 

creation or expansion of units that include acreage in which 

the State of Alaska or the Regional Corporation has an interest 

in the mineral estate. 

(3) PRODUCTION ALLOCATION METHODOLOGY.—(A) The Secretary may use a production allocation methodology for each 

participating area within a unit that includes solely Federal 

land in the Reserve. 

(B) The Secretary shall use a production allocation methodology for each participating area within a unit that includes 

Federal land in the Reserve and non-Federal land based on the 

characteristics of each specific oil or gas pool, field, reservoir, 

or like area to take into account reservoir heterogeneity and 

area variation in reservoir producibility across diverse leasehold interests. The implementation of the foregoing production 

allocation methodology shall be controlled by agreement among 

the affected lessors and lessees. 

(4) BENEFIT OF OPERATIONS.—Drilling, production, and well 

reworking operations performed in accordance with a unit 

agreement shall be deemed to be performed for the benefit of 

all leases that are subject in whole or in part to such unit 

agreement. 

(5) POOLING.—If separate tracts cannot be independently developed and operated in conformity with an established well 

spacing or development program, any lease, or a portion thereof, may be pooled with other lands, whether or not owned by 

the United States, under a communitization or drilling agreement providing for an apportionment of production or royalties 

among the separate tracts of land comprising the drilling or 

spacing unit when determined by the Secretary of the Interior 

(in consultation with the owners of the other land) to be in the 

public interest, and operations or production pursuant to such 

an agreement shall be deemed to be operations or production 

as to each such lease committed to the agreement. 

(k) EXPLORATION INCENTIVES.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.— 

(A) WAIVER, SUSPENSION, OR REDUCTION.—To encourage 

the greatest ultimate recovery of oil or gas or in the interest of conservation, the Secretary may waive, suspend, or 

reduce the rental fees or minimum royalty, or reduce the 

royalty on an entire leasehold (including on any lease operated pursuant to a unit agreement), whenever (after consultation with the State of Alaska and the North Slope 

Borough of Alaska and the concurrence of any Regional 

Corporation for leases that include land that was made 

available for acquisition by the Regional Corporation 

under the provisions of section 1431(o) of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 3101 et 

seq.)) in the judgment of the Secretary it is necessary to 

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ment of the Secretary the leases cannot be successfully operated under the terms provided therein. 

(B) APPLICABILITY.—This paragraph applies to a lease 

that is in effect on or after the date of enactment of the 

Energy Policy Act of 2005.. 

(2) SUSPENSION OF OPERATIONS AND PRODUCTION.—The Secretary may direct or assent to the suspension of operations and 

production on any lease or unit. 

(3) SUSPENSION OF PAYMENTS.—If the Secretary, in the interest of conservation, shall direct or assent to the suspension of 

operations and production on any lease or unit, any payment 

of acreage rental or minimum royalty prescribed by such lease 

or unit likewise shall be suspended during the period of suspension of operations and production, and the term of such 

lease shall be extended by adding any such suspension period 

to the lease. 

(l) RECEIPTS.—All receipts from sales, rentals, bonuses, and royalties on leases issued pursuant to this section shall be paid into 

the Treasury of the United States: Provided, That 50 percent thereof shall be paid by the Secretary of the Treasury semiannually, as 

soon thereafter as practicable after March 30 and September 30 

each year, to the State of Alaska for: (1) planning; (2) construction, 

maintenance, and operation of essential public facilities; and (3) 

other necessary provisions of public service: Provided further, That 

in the allocation of such funds, the State shall give priority to use 

by subdivisions of the State most directly or severely impacted by 

development of oil and gas leased under this Act. 

(m) EXPLORATIONS.—Any agency of the United States and any 

person authorized by the Secretary may conduct geological and geophysical explorations in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska 

which do not interfere with operations under any contract maintained or granted previously. Any information acquired in such explorations shall be subject to the conditions of 43 U.S.C. 

1352(a)(l)(A). 

(n) ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENTS.— (1) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Any action seeking judicial review of 

the adequacy of any program or site-specific environmental impact statement under section 102 of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332) concerning oil and 

gas leasing in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska shall be 

barred unless brought in the appropriate District Court within 

60 days after notice of the availability of such statement is 

published in the Federal Register. 

(2) INITIAL LEASE SALES.—The detailed environmental studies and assessments that have been conducted on the exploration program and the comprehensive land-use studies carried 

out in response to sections 105 (b) and (c) of Public Law 94- 

258 shall be deemed to have fulfilled the requirements of section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental Policy Act (Public 

Law 91-190), with regard to the first two oil and gas lease 

sales in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska: Provided, 

That not more than a total of 2,000,000 acres may be leased 

in these two sales: Provided further, That any exploration or 

production undertaken pursuant to this section shall be in accordance with section 104(a). 


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(o) REGULATIONS.—As soon as practicable after the date of enactment of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the Secretary shall issue 

regulations to implement this section. 

(p) WAIVER OF ADMINISTRATION FOR CONVEYED LANDS.— (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 14(g) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1613(g))— 

(A) the Secretary of the Interior shall waive administration of any oil and gas lease to the extent that the lease 

covers any land in the Reserve in which all of the subsurface estate is conveyed to the Arctic Slope Regional 

Corporation (referred to in this subsection as the ‘‘Corporation’’); 

(B)(i) in a case in which a conveyance of a subsurface estate described in subparagraph (A) does not include all of 

the land covered by the oil and gas lease, the person that 

owns the subsurface estate in any particular portion of the 

land covered by the lease shall be entitled to all of the revenues reserved under the lease as to that portion, including, without limitation, all the royalty payable with respect to oil or gas produced from or allocated to that portion; 

(ii) in a case described in clause (i), the Secretary of 

the Interior shall— 

(I) segregate the lease into 2 leases, 1 of which 

shall cover only the subsurface estate conveyed to 

the Corporation; and 

(II) waive administration of the lease that covers the subsurface estate conveyed to the Corporation; and 

(iii) the segregation of the lease described in clause 

(ii)(I) has no effect on the obligations of the lessee 

under either of the resulting leases, including obligations relating to operations, production, or other circumstances (other than payment of rentals or royalties); and 

(C) nothing in this subsection limits the authority of the 

Secretary of the Interior to manage the federally-owned 

surface estate within the Reserve. 

* * * * * * * 


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(12) 

DISSENTING VIEWS 

Democrats support the responsible management of the National 

Petroleum Reserve Alaska (NPR–A) under the Department of Interior Bureau of Land Management’s 2013 Integrated Activity Plan, 

which makes approximately 11.8 million acres available for oil and 

gas leasing. However, we oppose H.R. 1964 because it would prevent the Department of the Interior from conducting proper review 

of oil and gas drilling activities in the NPR–A by imposing artificial 

and unnecessary deadlines. 

H.R. 1964 would set an arbitrary clock to issue such permits. 

This provision could prohibit proper NEPA review of proposals to 

construct major oil and gas pipelines in the Reserve in the future. 

This directive would also appear to require the Interior Department to compel other Cabinet-level agencies to act, something far 

beyond the scope of the Secretary’s authority. 

H.R. 1964 would further require the Secretary to develop regulations to require action on drilling permits within 60 days. However, 

this provision is largely unnecessary because existing regulations 

already place a timeframe on the Department of 90 days to consider applications to drill in the NPR–A. 

H.R. 1964 would also waste taxpayer resources by requiring the 

Interior Department to conduct unnecessary and duplicative studies. The legislation would require the BLM to develop a plan to ‘ensure that all leasable tracts in the Reserve are within 25 miles of 

an approved road and pipeline right-of-way.’ Requiring the BLM to 

map out a spider-web of roads and pipelines across the entire reserve before we even know where future oil and gas production 

may take place would be wasteful and counterproductive. 

H.R. 1964 would also require the U.S. Geological Survey to complete an assessment of the technically recoverable oil and gas in 

the Reserve. The USGS just completed such an assessment of the 

undiscovered oil and gas reserves in the NPR–A in October of 2010 

and also completed a study of the economically recoverable oil and 

gas in the Reserve earlier this year. According to the USGS, the 

average cost of an oil and gas assessment is $2.75 million. We 

shouldn’t be wasting millions of taxpayer dollars to require the 

USGS to redo an assessment completed less than one year ago, as 

the majority’s legislation would do. 

President Obama and House Democrats have already taken steps 

to encourage drilling in the NPR–A. President Obama announced 

in May of 2011 that he would direct the Department of the Interior 

to conduct annual lease sales in the NPR–A and the Department 

is already moving forward on that schedule. While H.R. 1964 includes a similar requirement to hold at least one lease sale per 

year in the NPR–A, we should make sure that we are drilling in 

challenging environments like the Arctic responsibly, not seeking 

to truncate proper review as this bill would do. We therefore oppose this effort. 

PETER DEFAZIO. RUSH HOLT. 

Æ 


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