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[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 52 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 H. R. 52

    To amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to require that 
    treatment of the issuance of any exploration plans, development 
  production plans, development operation coordination documents, and 
 lease sales required under Federal law for offshore drilling activity 
on the outer Continental Shelf as a major Federal action significantly 
affecting the quality of the human environment for the purposes of the 
   National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 5, 2011

  Mr. Connolly of Virginia (for himself and Mr. Tonko) introduced the 
    following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural 
                               Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
    To amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to require that 
    treatment of the issuance of any exploration plans, development 
  production plans, development operation coordination documents, and 
 lease sales required under Federal law for offshore drilling activity 
on the outer Continental Shelf as a major Federal action significantly 
affecting the quality of the human environment for the purposes of the 
   National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Oil Pollution Environmental Review 
Act'' or ``OPERA''.

SEC. 2. APPLICATION OF NEPA TO OFFSHORE DRILLING ACTIVITY.

    (a) In General.--The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 
1331 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
section:

``SEC. 32. APPLICATION OF NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT OF 1969.

    ``(a) In General.--The head of any Federal agency shall treat the 
issuance of any exploration plans, development production plans, 
development operation coordination documents, and lease sales required 
under Federal law for offshore drilling activity on the outer 
Continental Shelf as a major Federal action significantly affecting the 
quality of the human environment for the purposes of section 102 of the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, and requiring detailed 
environmental analysis of such proposed actions and reasonably 
foreseeable subsequent actions.
    ``(b) Definitions.--In this section the term `offshore drilling 
activity'--
            ``(1) means drilling for oil or gas under a lease, or 
        conducting a major geophysical seismic survey, under the Outer 
        Continental Shelf Lands Act; and
            ``(2) includes such drilling or surveying for exploration, 
        development, or production.''.
    (b) Repeal of 30-Day Deadline for Approval of Exploration 
Activities.--Section 11(c)(1) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 
(43 U.S.C. 1340(c)(1)) is amended by striking ``The Secretary shall 
approve such plan, as submitted or modified, within thirty days of its 
submission, except that the'' and by inserting ``The''.
                                 <all>
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