I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 39
To establish and implement a competitive oil and gas leasing program that 
will result in an environmentally sound and job creating program for 
the exploration, development, and production of the oil and gas resources 
of the Coastal Plain, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 7, 2003
Mr. YOUNG of Alaska introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Resources 
A BILL 
To establish and implement a competitive oil and gas leasing 
program that will result in an environmentally sound 
and job creating program for the exploration, develop-
ment, and production of the oil and gas resources of 
the Coastal Plain, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Arctic Coastal Plain 
Domestic Energy Security Act of 2003’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act:
(1) COASTAL
PLAIN.—The term ‘‘Coastal 
Plain’’ means that area identified as such in the 
map entitled ‘‘Arctic National Wildlife Refuge’’, 
dated August 1980, as referenced in section 1002(b) 
of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation 
Act of 1980 (16 U.S.C. 3142(b)(1)), comprising ap-
proximately 1,549,000 acres, and as described in ap-
pendix I to part 37 of title 50, Code of Federal Reg-
ulations. 
(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’, except 
as otherwise provided, means the Secretary of the 
Interior or the Secretary’s designee. 
SEC. 3. LEASING PROGRAM FOR LANDS WITHIN THE 
COASTAL PLAIN. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall take such ac-
tions as are necessary—
(1) to establish and implement in accordance 
with this Act a competitive oil and gas leasing pro-
gram under the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 
et seq.) that will result in an environmentally sound 
program for the exploration, development, and pro-
duction of the oil and gas resources of the Coastal 
Plain; and 
(2) to administer the provisions of this Act 
through regulations, lease terms, conditions, restric-
tions, prohibitions, stipulations, and other provisions 
that ensure the oil and gas exploration, development, 
and production activities on the Coastal Plain will 
result in no significant adverse effect on fish and 
wildlife, their habitat, subsistence resources, and the 
environment, and including, in furtherance of this 
goal, by requiring the application of the best com-
mercially available technology for oil and gas explo-
ration, development, and production to all explo-
ration, development, and production operations 
under this Act in a manner that ensures the receipt 
of fair market value by the public for the mineral re-
sources to be leased. 
(b) REPEAL.—Section 1003 of the Alaska National 
Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 (16 U.S.C. 
3143) is repealed. 
(c) COMPLIANCE WITH REQUIREMENTS UNDER CER-
TAIN OTHER LAWS.—
(1) COMPATIBILITY.—For purposes of the Na-
tional Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 
1966, the oil and gas leasing program and activities 
authorized by this section in the Coastal Plain are 
deemed to be compatible with the purposes for which 
the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge was established,
and that no further findings or decisions are re-
quired to implement this determination. 
(2) ADEQUACY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE 
INTERIOR’S LEGISLATIVE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT 
STATEMENT.—The 
‘‘Final 
Legislative 
Environ-
mental Impact Statement’’ (April 1987) on the 
Coastal Plain prepared pursuant to section 1002 of 
the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation 
Act of 1980 (16 U.S.C. 3142) and section 102(2)(C) 
of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)) is deemed to satisfy the re-
quirements under the National Environmental Policy 
Act of 1969 that apply with respect to actions au-
thorized to be taken by the Secretary to develop and 
promulgate the regulations for the establishment of 
a leasing program authorized by this Act before the 
conduct of the first lease sale. 
(3) COMPLIANCE WITH NEPA FOR OTHER AC-
TIONS.—Before conducting the first lease sale under 
this Act, the Secretary shall prepare an environ-
mental impact statement under the National Envi-
ronmental Policy Act of 1969 with respect to the ac-
tions authorized by this Act that are not referred to 
in paragraph (2). Notwithstanding any other law,
the Secretary is not required to identify nonleasing
alternative courses of action or to analyze the envi-
ronmental effects of such courses of action. The Sec-
retary shall only identify a preferred action for such 
leasing and a single leasing alternative, and analyze 
the environmental effects and potential mitigation 
measures for those two alternatives. The identifica-
tion of the preferred action and related analysis for 
the first lease sale under this Act shall be completed 
within 18 months after the date of the enactment 
of this Act. The Secretary shall only consider public 
comments that specifically address the Secretary’s 
preferred action and that are filed within 20 days 
after publication of an environmental analysis. Not-
withstanding any other law, compliance with this 
paragraph is deemed to satisfy all requirements for 
the analysis and consideration of the environmental 
effects of proposed leasing under this Act. 
(d) RELATIONSHIP TO STATE AND LOCAL AUTHOR-
ITY.—Nothing in this Act shall be considered to expand 
or limit State and local regulatory authority. 
(e) SPECIAL AREAS.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary, after con-
sultation with the State of Alaska, the city of 
Kaktovik, and the North Slope Borough, may des-
ignate up to a total of 45,000 acres of the Coastal
Plain as a Special Area if the Secretary determines 
that the Special Area is of such unique character 
and interest so as to require special management 
and regulatory protection. The Secretary shall des-
ignate as such a Special Area the Sadlerochit Spring 
area, comprising approximately 4,000 acres as de-
picted on the map referred to in section 2(1). 
(2) MANAGEMENT.—Each such Special Area 
shall be managed so as to protect and preserve the 
area’s unique and diverse character including its 
fish, wildlife, and subsistence resource values. 
(3) EXCLUSION
FROM
LEASING
OR
SURFACE 
OCCUPANCY.—The Secretary may exclude any Spe-
cial Area from leasing. If the Secretary leases a Spe-
cial Area, or any part thereof, for purposes of oil 
and gas exploration, development, production, and 
related activities, there shall be no surface occu-
pancy of the lands comprising the Special Area. 
(4) DIRECTIONAL DRILLING.—Notwithstanding 
the other provisions of this subsection, the Secretary 
may lease all or a portion of a Special Area under 
terms that permit the use of horizontal drilling tech-
nology from sites on leases located outside the area. 
(f) LIMITATION
ON
CLOSED
AREAS.—The Sec-
retary’s sole authority to close lands within the Coastal
Plain to oil and gas leasing and to exploration, develop-
ment, and production is that set forth in this Act. 
(g) REGULATIONS.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall pre-
scribe such regulations as may be necessary to carry 
out this Act, including rules and regulations relating 
to protection of the fish and wildlife, their habitat, 
subsistence resources, and environment of the Coast-
al Plain, by no later than 15 months after the date 
of the enactment of this Act. 
(2) REVISION
OF
REGULATIONS.—The Sec-
retary shall periodically review and, if appropriate, 
revise the rules and regulations issued under sub-
section (a) to reflect any significant biological, envi-
ronmental, or engineering data that come to the Sec-
retary’s attention. 
SEC. 4. LEASE SALES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Lands may be leased pursuant to 
this Act to any person qualified to obtain a lease for depos-
its of oil and gas under the Mineral Leasing Act (30 
U.S.C. 181 et seq.). 
(b) PROCEDURES.—The Secretary shall, by regula-
tion, establish procedures for—
(1) receipt and consideration of sealed nomina-
tions for any area in the Coastal Plain for inclusion
in, or exclusion (as provided in subsection (c)) from, 
a lease sale; 
(2) the holding of lease sales after such nomina-
tion process; and 
(3) public notice of and comment on designa-
tion of areas to be included in, or excluded from, a 
lease sale. 
(c) LEASE SALE BIDS.—Bidding for leases under 
this Act shall be by sealed competitive cash bonus bids. 
(d) ACREAGE MINIMUM IN FIRST SALE.—In the first 
lease sale under this Act, the Secretary shall offer for lease 
those tracts the Secretary considers to have the greatest 
potential for the discovery of hydrocarbons, taking into 
consideration nominations received pursuant to subsection 
(b)(1), but in no case less than 200,000 acres. 
(e) TIMING
OF
LEASE
SALES.—The Secretary 
shall—
(1) conduct the first lease sale under this Act 
within 22 months after the date of the enactment of 
this Act; and 
(2) conduct additional sales so long as sufficient 
interest in development exists to warrant, in the Sec-
retary’s judgment, the conduct of such sales.
SEC. 5. GRANT OF LEASES BY THE SECRETARY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may grant to the 
highest responsible qualified bidder in a lease sale con-
ducted pursuant to section 4 any lands to be leased on 
the Coastal Plain upon payment by the lessee of such 
bonus as may be accepted by the Secretary. 
(b) SUBSEQUENT
TRANSFERS.—No lease issued 
under this Act may be sold, exchanged, assigned, sublet, 
or otherwise transferred except with the approval of the 
Secretary. Prior to any such approval the Secretary shall 
consult with, and give due consideration to the views of, 
the Attorney General. 
SEC. 6. LEASE TERMS AND CONDITIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—An oil or gas lease issued pursu-
ant to this Act shall—
(1) provide for the payment of a royalty of not 
less than 121⁄2 percent in amount or value of the 
production removed or sold from the lease, as deter-
mined by the Secretary under the regulations appli-
cable to other Federal oil and gas leases; 
(2) provide that the Secretary may close, on a 
seasonal basis, portions of the Coastal Plain to ex-
ploratory drilling activities as necessary to protect 
caribou calving areas and other species of fish and 
wildlife;
(3) require that the lessee of lands within the 
Coastal Plain shall be fully responsible and liable for 
the reclamation of lands within the Coastal Plain 
and any other Federal lands that are adversely af-
fected in connection with exploration, development, 
production, or transportation activities conducted 
under the lease and within the Coastal Plain by the 
lessee or by any of the subcontractors or agents of 
the lessee; 
(4) provide that the lessee may not delegate or 
convey, by contract or otherwise, the reclamation re-
sponsibility and liability to another person without 
the express written approval of the Secretary; 
(5) provide that the standard of reclamation for 
lands required to be reclaimed under this Act shall 
be, as nearly as practicable, a condition capable of 
supporting the uses which the lands were capable of 
supporting prior to any exploration, development, or 
production activities, or upon application by the les-
see, to a higher or better use as approved by the 
Secretary; 
(6) contain terms and conditions relating to 
protection of fish and wildlife, their habitat, and the 
environment as required pursuant to section 3(a)(2);
(7) provide that the lessee, its agents, and its 
contractors use best efforts to provide a fair share, 
as determined by the level of obligation previously 
agreed to in the 1974 agreement implementing sec-
tion 29 of the Federal Agreement and Grant of 
Right of Way for the Operation of the Trans-Alaska 
Pipeline, of employment and contracting for Alaska 
Natives and Alaska Native Corporations from 
throughout the State; 
(8) prohibit the export of oil produced under 
the lease; and 
(9) contain such other provisions as the Sec-
retary determines necessary to ensure compliance 
with the provisions of this Act and the regulations 
issued under this Act. 
(b) PROJECT LABOR AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary, 
as a term and condition of each lease under this Act and 
in recognizing the Government’s proprietary interest in 
labor stability and in the ability of construction labor and 
management to meet the particular needs and conditions 
of projects to be developed under the leases issued pursu-
ant to this Act and the special concerns of the parties to 
such leases, shall require that the lessee and its agents 
and contractors negotiate to obtain a project labor agree-
ment for the employment of laborers and mechanics on
production, maintenance, and construction under the 
lease. 
SEC. 7. COASTAL PLAIN ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION. 
(a) NO SIGNIFICANT ADVERSE EFFECT STANDARD 
TO GOVERN AUTHORIZED COASTAL PLAIN ACTIVITIES.—
The Secretary shall, consistent with the requirements of 
section 3, administer the provisions of this Act through 
regulations, lease terms, conditions, restrictions, prohibi-
tions, stipulations, and other provisions that—
(1) ensure the oil and gas exploration, develop-
ment, and production activities on the Coastal Plain 
will result in no significant adverse effect on fish 
and wildlife, their habitat, and the environment; and 
(2) require the application of the best commer-
cially available technology for oil and gas explo-
ration, development, and production on all new ex-
ploration, development, and production operations. 
(b) SITE-SPECIFIC ASSESSMENT AND MITIGATION.—
The Secretary shall also require, with respect to any pro-
posed drilling and related activities, that—
(1) a site-specific analysis be made of the prob-
able effects, if any, that the drilling or related activi-
ties will have on fish and wildlife, their habitat, and 
the environment;