IB 

Union Calendar No. 452 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 1503 

[Report No. 117–628, Part I] 

To amend the Mineral Leasing Act to make certain adjustments in leasing 

on Federal lands for oil and gas drilling, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 2, 2021 

Mr. LEVIN of California (for himself, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. 

NADLER, Ms. NORTON, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. GARCI ́A of Illinois, Ms. LEE

of California, Ms. PORTER, and Ms. BROWNLEY) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in 

addition to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently 

determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

DECEMBER 14, 2022 

Additional sponsors: Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. WELCH, Mr. CLEAVER, Ms. 

DEGETTE, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. COHEN, and Mr. SOTO

DECEMBER 14, 2022 

Reported from the Committee on Natural Resources with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

DECEMBER 14, 2022 

Committee on Agriculture discharged; committed to the Committee of the 

Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on March 2, 2021] 


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A BILL 

To amend the Mineral Leasing Act to make certain adjustments in leasing on Federal lands for oil and gas drilling, 

and for other purposes. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Restoring Community 

5 Input and Public Protections in Oil and Gas Leasing Act 

6 of 2021’’. 

7 SEC. 2. LEASING PROCESS. 

8 (a) ONSHORE OIL AND GAS LEASING.—Section 17 of 

9 the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(a)) is amended by 

10 striking the matter preceding ‘‘(a) All lands’’ and all that 

11 follows through the end of subsection (a) and inserting the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 17. LEASING OF LAND CONTAINING OIL OR GAS DE14 POSITS. 

15 ‘‘(a) LEASING AUTHORITY.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—All lands subject to disposi17 tion under this Act that are known or believed to con18 tain oil or gas deposits may be leased by the Sec19 retary. 

20 ‘‘(2) RECEIPT OF FAIR MARKET VALUE.—Leas21 ing activities under this Act shall be conducted to as22 sure receipt of fair market value for the lands and re23 sources leased and the rights conveyed by the United 

24 States.’’. 


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1 (b) COMPETITIVE BIDDING.—Section 17(b)(1) of the 

2 Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(b)(1)(A)) is amended 

3 by striking all that precedes ‘‘(A) All lands’’ and all that 

4 follows through the end of subparagraph (A) and inserting 

5 the following: 

6 ‘‘(b) BIDDING.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

8 ‘‘(A) COMPETITIVE BIDDING.— 

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—All lands to be 

10 leased under this section shall be leased as 

11 provided in this paragraph to the highest 

12 responsible qualified bidder by competitive 

13 bidding by sealed bid. 

14 ‘‘(ii) GEOGRAPHIC LIMITATION.—The 

15 Secretary shall lease lands under this para16 graph in units of not more than 2,560 

17 acres, except in Alaska, where units shall be 

18 not more than 5,760 acres. Such units shall 

19 be as nearly compact as possible. 

20 ‘‘(iii) FREQUENCY.—Lease sales under 

21 this section shall be held for each State in 

22 which there are lands eligible for leasing no 

23 more than 3 times each year and on a ro24 tating basis such that the lands under the 

25 responsibility of any Bureau of Land ManVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:24 Dec 14, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H1503.RH H1503

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1 agement field office are available for leasing 

2 no more than one time each year. 

3 ‘‘(iv) ROYALTY.—A lease under this 

4 section shall be conditioned upon the pay5 ment of a royalty at a rate of not less than 

6 18.75 percent in amount or value of the 

7 production removed or sold from the lease, 

8 except as otherwise provided in this Act. 

9 ‘‘(v) ISSUANCE OF LEASE.—The Sec10 retary may issue a lease under this section 

11 to the responsible qualified bidder with the 

12 highest bid that is equal to or greater than 

13 the national minimum acceptable bid. The 

14 Secretary shall decide whether to accept a 

15 bid and issue a lease within 90 days fol16 lowing payment by the successful bidder of 

17 the remainder of the bonus bid, if any, and 

18 annual rental for the first lease year. 

19 ‘‘(vi) REJECTION OF BID.—The Sec20 retary may reject a bid above the national 

21 minimum acceptable bid if, after evaluation 

22 of the value of the lands proposed for lease, 

23 the Secretary determines that the bid 

24 amount does not ensure that fair market 

25 value is obtained for the lease.’’. 


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1 (c) NATIONAL MINIMUM ACCEPTABLE BID.—Subpara2 graph (B) of section 17(b)(1) of the Mineral Leasing Act 

3 (30 U.S.C. 226(b)(1)), is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(B) NATIONAL MINIMUM ACCEPTABLE

5 BID.— 

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 

7 in clause (ii), for purposes of subparagraph 

8 (A), the national minimum acceptable bid 

9 shall be $10 per acre. All bids under this 

10 section for less than the national minimum 

11 acceptable bid shall be rejected. 

12 ‘‘(ii) RAISING THE NATIONAL MINIMUM

13 ACCEPTABLE BID.—The Secretary may es14 tablish a higher national minimum accept15 able bid— 

16 ‘‘(I) beginning at the end of the 4- 

17 year period that begins on the date of 

18 enactment of the Restoring Community 

19 Input and Public Protection in Oil 

20 and Gas Leasing Act of 2021, and once 

21 every 4 years thereafter, to reflect the 

22 change in the Consumer Price Index 

23 for All Urban Consumers published by 

24 the Bureau of Labor Statistics; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) at any time, if the Secretary 

2 finds that such a higher amount is nec3 essary to enhance financial returns to 

4 the United States or to promote more 

5 efficient management of oil and gas re6 sources on Federal lands. 

7 ‘‘(iii) NOT A MAJOR FEDERAL AC8 TION.—The proposal or issuance of any reg9 ulation to establish a higher national min10 imum acceptable bid under clause (ii) shall 

11 not be considered a major Federal action 

12 that is subject to the requirements of section 

13 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental 

14 Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

15 4332(2)(C)).’’. 

16 (d) RENTALS.—Section 17(d) of the Mineral Leasing 

17 Act (30 U.S.C. 226(d)) is amended to read as follows: 

18 ‘‘(d) ANNUAL RENTALS.—All leases issued under this 

19 section shall be conditioned upon the payment by the lessee 

20 of a rental of— 

21 ‘‘(1) not less than $3.00 per acre per year during 

22 the 5-year period beginning on the date the lease be23 gins for new leases, and after the end of such 5 year 

24 period not less than $5 per acre per year; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) such higher rental rate as the Secretary 

2 may establish if the Secretary finds that such action 

3 is necessary to enhance financial returns to the 

4 United States and promote more efficient manage5 ment of oil and gas and alternative energy resources 

6 on Federal lands.’’. 

7 (e) ELIMINATION OF NONCOMPETITIVE LEASING.—The 

8 Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 et seq.) is amended— 

9 (1) in section 17(b) (30 U.S.C. 226(b)), by strik10 ing paragraph (3); 

11 (2) by amending section 17(c) (30 U.S.C. 226(c)) 

12 to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(c) LANDS FOR WHICH NO BID IS ACCEPTED.— 

14 Lands made available for leasing under subsection (b)(1) 

15 but for which no bid is accepted may be made available 

16 by the Secretary for a new round of sealed bidding under 

17 such subsection.’’; 

18 (3) in section 17(e) (30 U.S.C. 226(e))— 

19 (A) by striking ‘‘Competitive and non20 competitive leases’’ and inserting ‘‘Leases, in21 cluding leases for tar sand areas,’’; and 

22 (B) by striking ‘‘Provided, however’’ and all 

23 that follows through ‘‘ten years.’’; 

24 (4) in section 31(d)(1) (30 U.S.C. 188(d)(1)) by 

25 striking ‘‘or section 17(c)’’; 


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1 (5) in section 31(e) (30 U.S.C. 188(e))— 

2 (A) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘, or the 

3 inclusion’’ and all that follows and inserting a 

4 semicolon; and 

5 (B) in paragraph (3) by striking ‘‘(A)’’ and 

6 by striking subparagraph (B); 

7 (6) by striking section 31(f) (30 U.S.C. 188(f)); 

8 and 

9 (7) in section 31(g) (30 U.S.C. 188(g))— 

10 (A) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘as a 

11 competitive’’ and all that follows through the pe12 riod and inserting ‘‘in the same manner as the 

13 original lease issued pursuant to section 17.’’; 

14 (B) by striking paragraph (2) and redesig15 nating paragraphs (3) and (4) as paragraphs 

16 (2) and (3), respectively; and 

17 (C) in paragraph (2), as redesignated, by 

18 striking ‘‘, applicable to leases issued under sub19 section 17(c) of this Act (30 U.S.C. 226(c)) ex20 cept,’’ and inserting ‘‘, except’’. 

21 (f) LEASE TERM.—Section 17(e) of the Mineral Leas22 ing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘10 

23 years:’’ and inserting ‘‘5 years.’’. 


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1 (g) OTHER LEASING REQUIREMENTS.—Section 17(g) 

2 of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(g)), as amended 

3 by section 8 of this Act, is further amended— 

4 (1) by striking ‘‘(g) The Secretary of the Inte5 rior’’ and inserting the following: 

6 ‘‘(g) OTHER LEASING REQUIREMENTS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte8 rior’’; and 

9 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall not issue 

11 a lease or approve the assignment of any lease to any 

12 person, or to any subsidiary or affiliate of such per13 son or any other person controlled by or under com14 mon control with such person, unless such person has 

15 the demonstrated capability to explore and produce 

16 oil and gas under the lease. 

17 ‘‘(3) PROTECTION OF LEASED LANDS FOR OTHER

18 USES.—Each lease under this section shall include 

19 such terms as are necessary to preserve the United 

20 States flexibility to control or prohibit activities that 

21 pose serious and unacceptable impacts to the value of 

22 the leased lands for uses other than production of oil 

23 and gas.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. TRANSPARENCY AND LANDOWNER PROTECTIONS. 

2 (a) DISCLOSURE OF IDENTITIES FILING DISCLOSURES

3 OF INTEREST AND BIDS.—Section 17(b) of the Mineral 

4 Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(b)), as amended by this Act, 

5 is further amended by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(3) BIDDER IDENTITY.—The Secretary— 

7 ‘‘(A) shall require that each expression of 

8 interest to bid for a lease under this section and 

9 each bid for a lease under this section shall in10 clude the name of the person for whom such ex11 pression of interest or bid is submitted; and 

12 ‘‘(B) shall promptly publish each such 

13 name.’’. 

14 (b) NOTICE REQUIREMENTS.—Section 17(f) of the 

15 Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(f)) is amended by 

16 striking ‘‘(f) At least’’ and all that follows through ‘‘agen17 cies.’’ and inserting the following: 

18 ‘‘(f) REQUIREMENTS PRIOR TO OFFERING LANDS FOR

19 LEASE.— 

20 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED NOTICE.—At least 45 days before 

21 offering lands for lease under this section, and at least 

22 30 days before approving applications for permits to 

23 drill under the provisions of a lease, modifying the 

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1 lation of a lease issued under this section, the Sec2 retary shall provide notice of the proposed action to— 

3 ‘‘(A) the general public by posting such no4 tice in the appropriate local office and on the 

5 electronic website of the leasing and land man6 agement agencies offering the lands for lease; 

7 ‘‘(B) all surface land owners in the area of 

8 the lands being offered for lease; and 

9 ‘‘(C) the holders of special recreation per10 mits for commercial use, competitive events, and 

11 other organized activities on the lands being of12 fered for lease. 

13 ‘‘(2) REQUIRED INFORMATION.—’’. 

14 (c) SURFACE OWNER PROTECTION.—Section 17 of the 

15 Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226), is amended by add16 ing at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(r) POST-LEASE SURFACE USE AGREEMENT.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para19 graph (2), the Secretary may not authorize any oper20 ator to conduct exploration and drilling operations on 

21 lands with respect to which title to oil and gas re22 sources is held by the United States but title to the 

23 surface estate is not held by the United States, until 

24 the operator has filed with the Secretary a document, 

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1 ers, showing that the operator has secured a written 

2 surface use agreement between the operator and the 

3 surface owner or owners that meets the requirements 

4 of subparagraph (B). 

5 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The surface use agreement 

6 shall provide for— 

7 ‘‘(A) the use of only such portion of the sur8 face estate as is reasonably necessary for explo9 ration and drilling operations based on site-spe10 cific conditions; 

11 ‘‘(B) the accommodation of the surface es12 tate owner to the maximum extent practicable, 

13 including the location, use, timing, and type of 

14 exploration and drilling operations, consistent 

15 with the operator’s right to develop the oil and 

16 gas estate; 

17 ‘‘(C) the reclamation of the site to a condi18 tion capable of supporting the uses which such 

19 lands were capable of supporting prior to explo20 ration and drilling operations; and 

21 ‘‘(D) compensation for damages as a result 

22 of exploration and drilling operations, includ23 ing— 

24 ‘‘(i) loss of income and increased costs 

25 incurred; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) damage to or destruction of per2 sonal property, including crops, forage, and 

3 livestock; and 

4 ‘‘(iii) failure to reclaim the site in ac5 cordance with clause (iii). 

6 ‘‘(3) AUTHORIZED EXPLORATION AND DRILLING

7 OPERATIONS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) AUTHORIZATION WITHOUT SURFACE

9 USE AGREEMENT.—The Secretary may authorize 

10 an operator to conduct exploration and drilling 

11 operations on lands covered by paragraph (1) in 

12 the absence of an agreement with the surface es13 tate owner or owners, if— 

14 ‘‘(i) the Secretary makes a determina15 tion in writing that the operator made a 

16 good faith attempt to conclude such an 

17 agreement, including referral of the matter 

18 to arbitration pursuant to paragraph 

19 (1)(C), but that no agreement was con20 cluded within 90 days after the referral to 

21 arbitration; 

22 ‘‘(ii) the operator submits a plan of 

23 operations that provides for the matters 

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1 pliance with all other applicable require2 ments of Federal and State law; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) the operator posts a bond or 

4 other financial assurance in an amount the 

5 Secretary determines to be adequate to en6 sure compensation to the surface estate 

7 owner for any damages to the site, in the 

8 form of a surety bond, trust fund, letter of 

9 credit, government security, certificate of 

10 deposit, cash, or equivalent. 

11 ‘‘(B) SURFACE OWNER PARTICIPATION.— 

12 The Secretary shall provide surface estate owners 

13 with an opportunity to— 

14 ‘‘(i) comment on plans of operations in 

15 advance of a determination of compliance 

16 with this Act; 

17 ‘‘(ii) participate in bond level deter18 minations and bond release proceedings 

19 under this section; 

20 ‘‘(iii) attend an on-site inspection dur21 ing such determinations and proceedings; 

22 ‘‘(iv) file written objections to a pro23 posed bond release; and 

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1 lieve there is a violation of the terms and 

2 conditions of a plan of operations. 

3 ‘‘(C) PAYMENT OF FINANCIAL GUAR4 ANTEE.—A surface estate owner with respect to 

5 any land subject to a lease may petition the Sec6 retary for payment of all or any portion of a 

7 bond or other financial assurance required under 

8 this section as compensation for any damages as 

9 a result of exploration and drilling operations. 

10 Pursuant to such a petition, the Secretary may 

11 use such bond or other guarantee to provide com12 pensation to the surface estate owner for such 

13 damages. 

14 ‘‘(D) BOND RELEASE.—Upon request and 

15 after inspection and opportunity for surface es16 tate owner review, the Secretary may release the 

17 financial assurance required under this section if 

18 the Secretary determines that exploration and 

19 drilling operations are ended and all damages 

20 have been fully compensated. 

21 ‘‘(4) SURFACE OWNER NOTIFICATION.—The Sec22 retary shall notify surface estate owners in writing— 

23 ‘‘(A) not less than 45 days before lease sales; 

24 ‘‘(B) of the identity of the lessee, not more 

25 than 10 business days after a lease is issued; 


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1 ‘‘(C) concerning any subsequent request or 

2 decision regarding a lease not more than 5 busi3 ness days after such request or decision, includ4 ing regarding modification of a lease, waiver of 

5 a stipulation, or approval of a right of way; and 

6 ‘‘(D) not more than 5 business days after 

7 issuance of a drilling permit under a lease.’’. 

8 SEC. 4. LEASE STIPULATIONS. 

9 (a) ENERGY POLICY ACT OF 2005.—Section 

10 363(b)(3)(C) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 

11 15922(b)(3)(C)) is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(C) adequately protective of the resource 

13 for which the stipulations are applied;’’. 

14 (b) REVISION OF EXISTING MEMORANDUM.—Not later 

15 than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act 

16 the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agri17 culture shall revise the memorandum of understanding 

18 under section 363(b)(3)(C) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 

19 (42 U.S.C. 15922) in accordance with the amendment made 

20 by subsection (a). 

21 SEC. 5. PARCEL REVIEW. 

22 Section 17(a) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

23 226(a)), as amended by section 2 of this Act, is further 

24 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(3) PARCEL REVIEW.—The Secretary shall issue 

2 oil and gas leases under this Act only in accordance 

3 with subsections C through I of section III of Bureau 

4 of Land Management Instruction Memorandum No. 

5 2010–117, dated May 17, 2010, as in effect on April 

6 24, 2017.’’. 

7 SEC. 6. ACREAGE LIMITATIONS. 

8 Section 27(d)(1) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

9 184(d)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘, and acreage under any 

10 lease any portion of which has been committed to a federally 

11 approved unit or cooperative plan or communitization 

12 agreement or for which royalty (including compensatory 

13 royalty or royalty in-kind) was paid in the preceding cal14 endar year,’’. 

15 SEC. 7. LAND MANAGEMENT. 

16 Section 17(g) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

17 226(g)), as amended by section 2(g) of this Act, is further 

18 amended by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(4) MULTIPLE-USE MANAGEMENT.—The Sec20 retary, and for National Forest lands, the Secretary 

21 of Agriculture, shall manage lands that are subject to 

22 an oil and gas lease under this Act in accordance 

23 with the principles, policies, and requirements relat24 ing to multiple use under the Federal Land Policy 

25 and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et 


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1 seq.), until the beginning of operations on such 

2 lease.’’. 

3 SEC. 8. TRANSPARENCY IN MANAGEMENT OF LEASES. 

4 Section 17(a) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

5 226(a)), as amended by sections 2 and 5 of this Act, is fur6 ther amended by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(4) TRANSPARENCY IN MANAGEMENT OF

8 LEASES.—For each lease under this section, the Sec9 retary shall make available on a public website— 

10 ‘‘(A) the identity of— 

11 ‘‘(i) each person who is or has been a 

12 lessee under the lease; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) each person who is or has been an 

14 operator under the lease; 

15 ‘‘(B) notice of each transfer of the lease; and 

16 ‘‘(C) notice of each suspension of operations, 

17 each suspension of production, and each suspen18 sion of operations and production.’’. 

19 SEC. 9. LEASE CANCELLATION FOR IMPROPER ISSUANCE. 

20 Section 31(b) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

21 188(b)) is amended by inserting ‘‘if the lease was improp22 erly issued or’’ after ‘‘30 days notice’’. 

23 SEC. 10. FEES FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall charge any per25 son who submits an expression of interest, as that term is 


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1 defined by the Secretary, a fee, in an amount determined 

2 by the Secretary under paragraph (2). 

3 (b) AMOUNT.—The fee authorized under paragraph (1) 

4 shall be established by the Secretary in an amount that is 

5 determined by the Secretary to be appropriate to cover the 

6 aggregate cost of processing an expression of interest under 

7 this section, but not less than $15 per acre of the area cov8 ered by the applicable expression of interest. 

9 (c) ADJUSTMENT OF FEES.—The Secretary shall, by 

10 regulation at least every 4 years, establish a higher expres11 sion of interest fee— 

12 (1) to reflect the change in the Consumer Price 

13 Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Bu14 reau of Labor Statistics; and 

15 (2) as the Secretary determines to be necessary 

16 to enhance financial returns to the United States or 

17 to promote more efficient management of oil and gas 

18 resources on Federal land. 

19 SEC. 11. PROTECTION OF WATER RESOURCES. 

20 (a) MINERAL LEASING ACT REQUIREMENTS.—Section 

21 17 of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226) is amend22 ed— 

23 (1) in subsection (g) by striking ‘‘lands or sur24 face waters adversely’’ and inserting ‘‘surface or 

25 ground waters or lands adversely’’; 


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1 (2) by redesignating subsection (p) as subsection 

2 (q); and 

3 (3) by inserting after subsection (o) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(p) WATER REQUIREMENTS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) An operator producing oil or gas (including 

7 coalbed methane) under a lease issued under this Act 

8 shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) replace the water supply of a water 

10 user who obtains all or part of such user’s sup11 ply of water from an underground or surface 

12 source that has been affected by contamination, 

13 diminution, or interruption proximately result14 ing from drilling, fracking, or production oper15 ations for such production; 

16 ‘‘(B) ensure that if a surface or ground 

17 water source is affected by contamination, dimi18 nution, or interruption proximately resulting 

19 from such production, best management practices 

20 and appropriately available technologies are 

21 used to prevent, to the maximum extent possible, 

22 the long-term or permanent degradation of the 

23 surface or ground water source; and 

24 ‘‘(C) comply with all applicable require25 ments of Federal and State law with respect to— 


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1 ‘‘(i) discharge of any water produced 

2 under the lease; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) activities that would divert or 

4 otherwise alter a surface or ground water 

5 source or lead to a discharge not covered by 

6 clause (i). 

7 ‘‘(2) An application for a permit to drill under 

8 a lease under this Act shall be accompanied by a pro9 posed water management plan including provisions 

10 to— 

11 ‘‘(A) protect the quantity and quality of 

12 surface and ground water systems, both on-site 

13 and off-site, from adverse effects of the explo14 ration, development, and reclamation processes 

15 or to provide alternative sources of water if such 

16 protection cannot be assured; 

17 ‘‘(B) protect the rights of present users of 

18 water that would be affected by operations under 

19 the lease, including the discharge of any water 

20 produced in connection with such operations that 

21 is not reinjected; and 

22 ‘‘(C) identify any agreements with other 

23 parties for the beneficial use of produced waters 

24 and the steps that will be taken to comply with 

25 State and Federal laws related to such use. 


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1 ‘‘(3) The Secretary may not approve an applica2 tion if the Secretary determines that the applicant 

3 did not submit a water management plan that meets 

4 the requirements described in paragraph (2).’’. 

5 (b) RELATION TO STATE LAW.—Nothing in this sec6 tion or any amendment made by this section shall be con7 strued as— 

8 (1) impairing or in any manner affecting any 

9 right or jurisdiction of any State with respect to the 

10 waters of such State; or 

11 (2) limiting, altering, modifying, or amending 

12 any of the interstate compacts or equitable apportion13 ment decrees that apportion water among and be14 tween States. 

15 SEC. 12. FRACKING REGULATION ON FEDERAL LANDS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

17 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior, act18 ing through the Bureau of Land Management, shall issue 

19 regulations governing the use of hydraulic fracturing under 

20 oil and gas leases for Federal lands. 

21 (b) INCLUDED PROVISIONS.—The regulations under 

22 this section shall require— 

23 (1) baseline water testing, the results of which 

24 shall be posted on an appropriate internet website; 

25 and 


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1 (2) public disclosure of each chemical used for 

2 hydraulic fracturing on an appropriate internet 

3 website. 

4 (c) INTERIM APPLICATION OF PRIOR RULE.—The final 

5 rule entitled ‘‘Oil and Gas; Hydraulic Fracturing on Fed6 eral and Indian Lands’’, as published in the Federal Reg7 ister March 26, 2015 (80 Fed. Reg. 16128), and corrected 

8 by the rule published on March 30, 2015 (80 Fed. Reg. 

9 16577), shall apply until the effective date of a final rule 

10 under subsection (a). 

11 SEC. 13. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS. 

12 Any environmental analysis pursuant to the National 

13 Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) required 

14 under this Act shall include the estimated total cost of pre15 paring the environmental analysis, including full-time 

16 equivalent personnel hours, contractor costs, and other di17 rect costs. 

18 SEC. 14. TAXPAYER FUNDING STEWARDSHIP. 

19 In an effort to be good stewards of taxpayer dollars 

20 and conscientious of the demands placed upon public serv21 ants, no provisions contained within this Act shall require 

22 a duplication of analysis by any government agency, indi23 vidual, or contractor, at any level including federal, state, 

24 local, or tribal and, if so determined, such provision shall 

25 be considered non-binding. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
Union Calendar No. 452 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 1503 

[Report No. 117–628, Part I] 

A BILL 

To amend the Mineral Leasing Act to make certain 

and gas drilling, and for other purposes. adjustments in leasing on Federal lands for oil 

DECEMBER 14, 2022 

Reported from the Committee on Natural Resources with 

an amendment 

DECEMBER 14, 2022 

Committee on Agriculture discharged; committed to the 

Union and ordered to be printed Committee of the Whole House on the State of the 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS