HR 6108 IH 
coastal county-equivalent political subdivision as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(A) One-third shall be allocated to the 
coastal county-equivalent political subdivision. 
‘‘(B) Two-thirds shall be allocated on a per 
capita basis to the municipal political subdivi-
sions and the county-equivalent political sub-
division, with the allocation to the latter based 
upon its population not included within the 
boundaries of a municipal political subdivision. 
‘‘(e) INVESTMENT OF DEPOSITS.—Amounts depos-
ited under this section shall be invested by the Secretary 
of the Treasury in securities backed by the full faith and 
credit of the United States having maturities suitable to 
the needs of the account in which they are deposited and 
yielding the highest reasonably available interest rates as 
determined by the Secretary of the Treasury. 
‘‘(f) USE OF FUNDS.—A recipient of funds under this 
section may use the funds for one or more of the following: 
‘‘(1) To reduce in-State college tuition at public 
institutions of higher learning and otherwise support 
public education, including career technical edu-
cation. 
‘‘(2) To make transportation infrastructure im-
provements. 
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‘‘(3) To reduce taxes. 
‘‘(4) To promote, fund, and provide for— 
‘‘(A) coastal or environmental restoration; 
‘‘(B) fish, wildlife, and marine life habitat 
enhancement; 
‘‘(C) waterways construction and mainte-
nance; 
‘‘(D) levee construction and maintenance 
and shore protection; and 
‘‘(E) marine and oceanographic education 
and research. 
‘‘(5) To promote, fund, and provide for— 
‘‘(A) infrastructure associated with energy 
production activities conducted on the outer 
Continental Shelf; 
‘‘(B) energy demonstration projects; 
‘‘(C) supporting infrastructure for shore- 
based energy projects; 
‘‘(D) State geologic programs, including 
geologic mapping and data storage programs, 
and state geophysical data acquisition; 
‘‘(E) State seismic monitoring programs, 
including operation of monitoring stations; 
‘‘(F) development of oil and gas resources 
through enhanced recovery techniques; 
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‘‘(G) alternative energy development, in-
cluding bio fuels, coal-to-liquids, oil shale, tar 
sands, geothermal, geopressure, wind, waves, 
currents, hydro, and other renewable energy; 
‘‘(H) energy efficiency and conservation 
programs; and 
‘‘(I) front-end engineering and design for 
facilities that produce liquid fuels from hydro-
carbons and other biological matter. 
‘‘(6) To promote, fund, and provide for— 
‘‘(A) historic preservation programs and 
projects; 
‘‘(B) natural disaster planning and re-
sponse; and 
‘‘(C) hurricane and natural disaster insur-
ance programs. 
‘‘(7) For any other purpose as determined by 
State law. 
‘‘(g) NO ACCOUNTING REQUIRED.—No recipient of 
funds under this section shall be required to account to 
the Federal Government for the expenditure of such 
funds, except as otherwise may be required by law. How-
ever, States may enact legislation providing for accounting 
for and auditing of such expenditures. Further, funds allo-
cated under this section to States and political subdivi-
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sions may be used as matching funds for other Federal 
programs. 
‘‘(h) EFFECT OF FUTURE LAWS.—Enactment of any 
future Federal statute that has the effect, as determined 
by the Secretary, of restricting any Federal agency from 
spending appropriated funds, or otherwise preventing it 
from fulfilling its pre-existing responsibilities as of the 
date of enactment of the statute, unless such responsibil-
ities have been reassigned to another Federal agency by 
the statute with no prevention of performance, to issue 
any permit or other approval impacting on the OCS oil 
and gas leasing program, or any lease issued thereunder, 
or to implement any provision of this Act shall automati-
cally prohibit any sharing of OCS Receipts under this sec-
tion directly with the States, and their coastal political 
subdivisions, for the duration of the restriction. The Sec-
retary shall make the determination of the existence of 
such restricting effects within 30 days of a petition by any 
outer Continental Shelf lessee or producing State. 
‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) COASTAL COUNTY-EQUIVALENT POLITICAL 
SUBDIVISION.—The term ‘coastal county-equivalent 
political subdivision’ means a political jurisdiction 
immediately below the level of State government, in-
cluding a county, parish, borough in Alaska, inde-
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pendent municipality not part of a county, parish, or 
borough in Alaska, or other equivalent subdivision of 
a coastal State, that lies within the coastal zone. 
‘‘(2) COASTAL MUNICIPAL POLITICAL SUBDIVI-
SION.—The term ‘coastal municipal political subdivi-
sion’ means a municipality located within and part 
of a county, parish, borough in Alaska, or other 
equivalent subdivision of a State, all or part of which 
coastal municipal political subdivision lies within the 
coastal zone. 
‘‘(3) COASTAL POPULATION.—The term ‘coastal 
population’ means the population of all coastal coun-
ty-equivalent political subdivisions, as determined by 
the most recent official data of the Census Bureau. 
‘‘(4) COASTAL ZONE.—The term ‘coastal zone’ 
means that portion of a coastal State, including the 
entire territory of any coastal county-equivalent po-
litical subdivision at least a part of which lies, within 
75 miles landward from the coastline, or a greater 
distance as determined by State law enacted to im-
plement this section. 
‘‘(5) BONUS
BIDS.—The term ‘bonus bids’ 
means all funds received by the Secretary to issue 
an outer Continental Shelf minerals lease. 
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‘‘(6) ROYALTIES.—The term ‘royalties’ means 
all funds received by the Secretary from production 
of oil or natural gas, or the sale of production taken 
in-kind, from an outer Continental Shelf minerals 
lease. 
‘‘(7) PRODUCING STATE.—The term ‘producing 
State’ means an Adjacent State having an Adjacent 
Zone containing leased tracts from which OCS Re-
ceipts were derived. 
‘‘(8) OCS RECEIPTS.—The term ‘OCS Receipts’ 
means bonus bids, royalties, and conservation of re-
sources fees.’’. 
SEC. 11. RESERVATION OF LANDS AND RIGHTS. 
Section 12 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 
(43 U.S.C. 1341) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a) by adding at the end the 
following: ‘‘The President may partially or com-
pletely revise or revoke any prior withdrawal made 
by the President under the authority of this section. 
The President may not revise or revoke a withdrawal 
that is extended by a State under subsection (h), nor 
may the President withdraw from leasing any area 
for which a State failed to prohibit, or petition to 
prohibit, leasing under subsection (g). Further, in 
the area of the outer Continental Shelf more than 
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100 miles from any coastline, not more than 25 per-
cent of the acreage of any OCS Planning Area may 
be withdrawn from leasing under this section at any 
point in time. A withdrawal by the President may be 
for a term not to exceed 10 years. When considering 
potential uses of the outer Continental Shelf, to the 
maximum extent possible, the President shall accom-
modate competing interests and potential uses.’’; 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(g) AVAILABILITY FOR LEASING WITHIN CERTAIN 
AREAS OF THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF.— 
‘‘(1) PROHIBITION AGAINST LEASING.— 
‘‘(A) UNAVAILABLE
FOR
LEASING
WITH-
OUT
STATE
REQUEST.—Except as otherwise 
provided in this subsection, from and after en-
actment of the Deep Ocean Energy Resources 
Act of 2008, the Secretary shall not offer for 
leasing for oil and gas, or natural gas, any area 
within 50 miles of the coastline that was with-
drawn from disposition by leasing in the Atlan-
tic OCS Region or the Pacific OCS Region, or 
the Gulf of Mexico OCS Region Eastern Plan-
ning Area, as depicted on the maps referred to 
in this subparagraph, under the ‘Memorandum 
on Withdrawal of Certain Areas of the United 
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States Outer Continental Shelf from Leasing 
Disposition’, 34 Weekly Comp. Pres. Doc. 
1111, dated June 12, 1998, or any area within 
50 miles of the coastline not withdrawn under 
that Memorandum that is included within the 
Gulf of Mexico OCS Region Eastern Planning 
Area as indicated on the map entitled ‘Gulf of 
Mexico OCS Region State Adjacent Zones and 
OCS Planning Areas’ or the Florida Straits 
Planning Area as indicated on the map entitled 
‘Atlantic OCS Region State Adjacent Zones and 
OCS Planning Areas’, both of which are dated 
September 2005 and on file in the Office of the 
Director, Minerals Management Service. 
‘‘(B) AREAS BETWEEN 50 AND 100 MILES 
FROM
THE
COASTLINE.—Unless an Adjacent 
State petitions under subsection (h) within one 
year after the date of the enactment of the 
Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act of 2008 for 
natural gas leasing or by June 30, 2010, for oil 
and gas leasing, the Secretary shall offer for 
leasing any area more than 50 miles but less 
than 100 miles from the coastline that was 
withdrawn from disposition by leasing in the 
Atlantic OCS Region, the Pacific OCS Region, 
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or the Gulf of Mexico OCS Region Eastern 
Planning Area, as depicted on the maps re-
ferred to in this subparagraph, under the 
‘Memorandum on Withdrawal of Certain Areas 
of the United States Outer Continental Shelf 
from Leasing Disposition’, 34 Weekly Comp. 
Pres. Doc. 1111, dated June 12, 1998, or any 
area more than 50 miles but less than 100 
miles of the coastline not withdrawn under that 
Memorandum that is included within the Gulf 
of Mexico OCS Region Eastern Planning Area 
as indicated on the map entitled ‘Gulf of Mexico 
OCS Region State Adjacent Zones and OCS 
Planning Areas’ or within the Florida Straits 
Planning Area as indicated on the map entitled 
‘Atlantic OCS Region State Adjacent Zones and 
OCS Planning Areas’, both of which are dated 
September 2005 and on file in the Office of the 
Director, Minerals Management Service. 
‘‘(2) REVOCATION OF WITHDRAWAL.—The pro-
visions of the ‘Memorandum on Withdrawal of Cer-
tain Areas of the United States Outer Continental 
Shelf from Leasing Disposition’, 34 Weekly Comp. 
Pres. Doc. 1111, dated June 12, 1998, are hereby 
revoked and are no longer in effect. Any tract only 
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partially added to the Gulf of Mexico OCS Region 
Central Planning Area by this Act shall be eligible 
for leasing of the part of such tract that is included 
within the Gulf of Mexico OCS Region Central Plan-
ning Area, and the remainder of such tract that lies 
outside of the Gulf of Mexico OCS Region Central 
Planning Area may be developed and produced by 
the lessee of such partial tract using extended reach 
or similar drilling from a location on a leased area. 
Further, any area in the OCS withdrawn from leas-
ing may be leased, and thereafter developed and pro-
duced by the lessee using extended reach or similar 
drilling from a location on a leased area located in 
an area available for leasing. 
‘‘(3) PETITION FOR LEASING.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Governor of the 
State, upon concurrence of its legislature, may 
submit to the Secretary a petition requesting 
that the Secretary make available any area that 
is within the State’s Adjacent Zone, included 
within the provisions of paragraph (1), and that 
(i) is greater than 25 miles from any point on 
the coastline of a Neighboring State for the 
conduct of offshore leasing, pre-leasing, and re-
lated activities with respect to natural gas leas-
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HR 6108 IH 
ing; or (ii) is greater than 50 miles from any 
point on the coastline of a Neighboring State 
for the conduct of offshore leasing, pre-leasing, 
and related activities with respect to oil and gas 
leasing. The Adjacent State may also petition 
for leasing any other area within its Adjacent 
Zone if leasing is allowed in the similar area of 
the Adjacent Zone of the applicable Neigh-
boring State, or if not allowed, if the Neigh-
boring State, acting through its Governor, ex-
presses its concurrence with the petition. The 
Secretary shall only consider such a petition 
upon making a finding that leasing is allowed 
in the similar area of the Adjacent Zone of the 
applicable Neighboring State or upon receipt of 
the concurrence of the Neighboring State. The 
date of receipt by the Secretary of such concur-
rence by the Neighboring State shall constitute 
the date of receipt of the petition for that area 
for which the concurrence applies. 
‘‘(B) LIMITATIONS
ON
LEASING.—In its 
petition, a State with an Adjacent Zone that 
contains leased tracts may condition new leas-
ing for oil and gas, or natural gas for tracts 
within 25 miles of the coastline by— 
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‘‘(i) requiring a net reduction in the 
number of production platforms; 
‘‘(ii) requiring a net increase in the 
average distance of production platforms 
from the coastline; 
‘‘(iii) limiting permanent surface occu-
pancy on new leases to areas that are more 
than 10 miles from the coastline; 
‘‘(iv) limiting some tracts to being 
produced from shore or from platforms lo-
cated on other tracts; or 
‘‘(v) other conditions that the Adja-
cent State may deem appropriate as long 
as the Secretary does not determine that 
production is made economically or tech-
nically impracticable or otherwise impos-
sible. 
‘‘(C) ACTION BY SECRETARY.—Not later 
than 90 days after receipt of a petition under 
subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall approve 
the petition, unless the Secretary determines 
that leasing the area would probably cause seri-
ous harm or damage to the marine resources of 
the State’s Adjacent Zone. Prior to approving 
the petition, the Secretary shall complete an en-
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vironmental assessment that documents the an-
ticipated environmental effects of leasing in the 
area included within the scope of the petition. 
‘‘(D) FAILURE TO ACT.—If the Secretary 
fails to approve or deny a petition in accordance 
with subparagraph (C) the petition shall be con-
sidered to be approved 90 days after receipt of 
the petition. 
‘‘(E) AMENDMENT OF THE 5-YEAR LEAS-
ING
PROGRAM.—Notwithstanding section 18, 
within 180 days of the approval of a petition 
under subparagraph (C) or (D), after the expi-
ration of the time limits in paragraph (1)(B), 
and within 180 days after the enactment of the 
Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act of 2008 for 
the areas made available for leasing under 
paragraph (2), the Secretary shall amend the 
current 5-Year Outer Continental Shelf Oil and 
Gas Leasing Program to include a lease sale or 
sales for at least 75 percent of the associated 
areas, unless there are, from the date of ap-
proval, expiration of such time limits, or enact-
ment, as applicable, fewer than 12 months re-
maining in the current 5-Year Leasing Program 
in which case the Secretary shall include the as-
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sociated areas within lease sales under the next 
5-Year Leasing Program. For purposes of 
amending the 5-Year Program in accordance 
with this section, further consultations with 
States shall not be required. For purposes of 
this section, an environmental assessment per-
formed under the provisions of the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 to assess the 
effects of approving the petition shall be suffi-
cient to amend the 5-Year Leasing Program. 
‘‘(h) OPTION
TO
EXTEND
WITHDRAWAL
FROM 
LEASING WITHIN CERTAIN AREAS OF THE OUTER CON-
TINENTAL SHELF.—A State, through its Governor and 
upon the concurrence of its legislature, may extend for a 
period of time of up to 5 years for each extension the with-
drawal from leasing for all or part of any area within the 
State’s Adjacent Zone located more than 50 miles, but less 
than 100 miles, from the coastline that is subject to sub-
section (g)(1)(B). A State may extend multiple times for 
any particular area but not more than once per calendar 
year for any particular area. A State must prepare sepa-
rate extensions, with separate votes by its legislature, for 
oil and gas leasing and for natural gas leasing. An exten-
sion by a State may affect some areas to be withdrawn 
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from all leasing and some areas to be withdrawn only from 
one type of leasing. 
‘‘(i) EFFECT OF OTHER LAWS.—Adoption by any 
Adjacent State of any constitutional provision, or enact-
ment of any State statute, that has the effect, as deter-
mined by the Secretary, of restricting either the Governor 
or the Legislature, or both, from exercising full discretion 
related to subsection (g) or (h), or both, shall automati-
cally (1) prohibit any sharing of OCS Receipts under this 
Act with the Adjacent State, and its coastal political sub-
divisions, and (2) prohibit the Adjacent State from exer-
cising any authority under subsection (h), for the duration 
of the restriction. The Secretary shall make the determina-
tion of the existence of such restricting constitutional pro-
vision or State statute within 30 days of a petition by any 
outer Continental Shelf lessee or coastal State. 
‘‘(j) PROHIBITION ON LEASING EAST OF THE MILI-
TARY MISSION LINE.— 
‘‘(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of 
law, from and after the enactment of the Deep 
Ocean Energy Resources Act of 2008, prior to Janu-
ary 1, 2022, no area of the outer Continental Shelf 
located in the Gulf of Mexico east of the military 
mission line may be offered for leasing for oil and 
gas or natural gas unless a waiver is issued by the 
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Secretary of Defense. If such a waiver is granted, 
62.5 percent of the OCS Receipts from a lease with-
in such area issued because of such waiver shall be 
paid annually to the National Guards of all States 
having a point within 1000 miles of such a lease, al-
located among the States on a per capita basis using 
the entire population of such States. 
‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘military mis-
sion line’ means a line located at 86 degrees, 
41minutes West Longitude, and extending south 
from the coast of Florida to the outer boundary of 
United States territorial waters in the Gulf of Mex-
ico.’’. 
SEC. 12. OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF LEASING PROGRAM. 
Section 18 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 
(43 U.S.C. 1344) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a), by adding at the end of 
paragraph (3) the following: ‘‘The Secretary shall, in 
each 5-year program, include lease sales that when 
viewed as a whole propose to offer for oil and gas 
or natural gas leasing at least 75 percent of the 
available unleased acreage within each OCS Plan-
ning Area. Available unleased acreage is that portion 
of the outer Continental Shelf that is not under 
lease at the time of the proposed lease sale, and has 
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not otherwise been made unavailable for leasing by 
law.’’; 
(2) in subsection (c), by striking so much as 
precedes paragraph (3) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(c)(1) During the preparation of any proposed leas-
ing program under this section, the Secretary shall con-
sider and analyze leasing throughout the entire Outer 
Continental Shelf without regard to any other law affect-
ing such leasing. During this preparation the Secretary 
shall invite and consider suggestions from any interested 
Federal agency, including the Attorney General, in con-
sultation with the Federal Trade Commission, and from 
the Governor of any coastal State. The Secretary may also 
invite or consider any suggestions from the executive of 
any local government in a coastal State that have been 
previously submitted to the Governor of such State, and 
from any other person. Further, the Secretary shall con-
sult with the Secretary of Defense regarding military oper-
ational needs in the outer Continental Shelf. The Sec-
retary shall work with the Secretary of Defense to resolve 
any conflicts that might arise regarding offering any area 
of the outer Continental Shelf for oil and gas or natural 
gas leasing. If the Secretaries are not able to resolve all 
such conflicts, any unresolved issues shall be elevated to 
the President for resolution. 
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‘‘(2) After the consideration and analysis required by 
paragraph (1), including the consideration of the sugges-
tions received from any interested Federal agency, the 
Federal Trade Commission, the Governor of any coastal 
State, any local government of a coastal State, and any 
other person, the Secretary shall publish in the Federal 
Register a proposed leasing program accompanied by a 
draft environmental impact statement prepared pursuant 
to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. After 
the publishing of the proposed leasing program and during 
the comment period provided for on the draft environ-
mental impact statement, the Secretary shall submit a 
copy of the proposed program to the Governor of each af-
fected State for review and comment. The Governor may 
solicit comments from those executives of local govern-
ments in the Governor’s State that the Governor, in the 
discretion of the Governor, determines will be affected by 
the proposed program. If any comment by such Governor 
is received by the Secretary at least 15 days prior to sub-
mission to the Congress pursuant to paragraph (3) and 
includes a request for any modification of such proposed 
program, the Secretary shall reply in writing, granting or 
denying such request in whole or in part, or granting such 
request in such modified form as the Secretary considers 
appropriate, and stating the Secretary’s reasons therefor. 
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All such correspondence between the Secretary and the 
Governor of any affected State, together with any addi-
tional information and data relating thereto, shall accom-
pany such proposed program when it is submitted to the 
Congress.’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(i) PROJECTION OF STATE ADJACENT ZONE RE-
SOURCES AND STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT SHARES 
OF OCS RECEIPTS.—Concurrent with the publication of 
the scoping notice at the beginning of the development of 
each 5-year outer Continental Shelf oil and gas leasing 
program, or as soon thereafter as possible, the Secretary 
shall— 
‘‘(1) provide to each Adjacent State a current 
estimate of proven and potential oil and gas re-
sources located within the State’s Adjacent Zone; 
and 
‘‘(2) provide to each Adjacent State, and coast-
al political subdivisions thereof, a best-efforts projec-
tion of the OCS Receipts that the Secretary expects 
will be shared with each Adjacent State, and its 
coastal political subdivisions, using the assumption 
that the unleased tracts within the State’s Adjacent 
Zone are fully made available for leasing, including 
long-term projected OCS Receipts. In addition, the 
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Secretary shall include a macroeconomic estimate of 
the impact of such leasing on the national economy 
and each State’s economy, including investment, 
jobs, revenues, personal income, and other cat-
egories.’’. 
SEC. 13. COORDINATION WITH ADJACENT STATES. 
Section 19 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 
(43 U.S.C. 1345) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a) in the first sentence by in-
serting ‘‘, for any tract located within the Adjacent 
State’s Adjacent Zone,’’ after ‘‘government’’; and 
(2) by adding the following: 
‘‘(f)(1) No Federal agency may permit or otherwise 
approve, without the concurrence of the Adjacent State, 
the construction of a crude oil or petroleum products (or 
both) pipeline within the part of the Adjacent State’s Ad-
jacent Zone that is withdrawn from oil and gas or natural 
gas leasing, except that such a pipeline may be approved, 
without such Adjacent State’s concurrence, to pass 
through such Adjacent Zone if at least 50 percent of the 
production projected to be carried by the pipeline within 
its first 10 years of operation is from areas of the Adja-
cent State’s Adjacent Zone. 
‘‘(2) No State may prohibit the construction within 
its Adjacent Zone or its State waters of a natural gas pipe-
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line that will transport natural gas produced from the 
outer Continental Shelf. However, an Adjacent State may 
prevent a proposed natural gas pipeline landing location 
if it proposes two alternate landing locations in the Adja-
cent State, acceptable to the Adjacent State, located with-
in 50 miles on either side of the proposed landing loca-
tion.’’. 
SEC. 14. ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES. 
Section 20(d) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands 
Act (43 U.S.C. 1346) is amended— 
(1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(d)’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(2) For all programs, lease sales, leases, and 
actions under this Act, the following shall apply re-
garding the application of the National Environ-
mental Policy Act of 1969: 
‘‘(A) Granting or directing lease suspen-
sions and the conduct of all preliminary activi-
ties on outer Continental Shelf tracts, including 
seismic activities, are categorically excluded 
from the need to prepare either an environ-
mental assessment or an environmental impact 
statement, and the Secretary shall not be re-
quired to analyze whether any exceptions to a 
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categorical exclusion apply for activities con-
ducted under the authority of this Act. 
‘‘(B) The environmental impact statement 
developed in support of each 5-year oil and gas 
leasing program provides the environmental 
analysis for all lease sales to be conducted 
under the program and such sales shall not be 
subject to further environmental analysis. 
‘‘(C) Exploration plans shall not be subject 
to any requirement to prepare an environmental 
impact statement, and the Secretary may find 
that exploration plans are eligible for categor-
ical exclusion due to the impacts already being 
considered within an environmental impact 
statement or due to mitigation measures in-
cluded within the plan. 
‘‘(D) Within each OCS Planning Area, 
after the preparation of the first development 
and production plan environmental impact 
statement for a leased tract within the Area, fu-
ture development and production plans for 
leased tracts within the Area shall only require 
the preparation of an environmental assessment 
unless the most recent development and produc-
tion plan environmental impact statement with-
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in the Area was finalized more than 10 years 
prior to the date of the approval of the plan, in 
which case an environmental impact statement 
shall be required.’’. 
SEC. 15. FEDERAL ENERGY NATURAL RESOURCES EN-
HANCEMENT ACT OF 2008. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 
(1) Energy and minerals exploration, develop-
ment, and production on Federal onshore and off-
shore lands, including bio-based fuel, natural gas, 
minerals, oil, geothermal, and power from wind, 
waves, currents, and thermal energy, involves signifi-
cant outlays of funds by Federal and State wildlife, 
fish, and natural resource management agencies for 
environmental studies, planning, development, moni-
toring, and management of wildlife, fish, air, water, 
and other natural resources. 
(2) State wildlife, fish, and natural resource 
management agencies are funded primarily through 
permit and license fees paid to the States by the 
general public to hunt and fish, and through Federal 
excise taxes on equipment used for these activities. 
(3) Funds generated from consumptive and rec-
reational uses of wildlife, fish, and other natural re-
sources currently are inadequate to address the nat-
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ural resources related to energy and minerals devel-
opment on Federal onshore and offshore lands. 
(4) Funds available to Federal agencies respon-
sible for managing Federal onshore and offshore 
lands and Federal-trust wildlife and fish species and 
their habitats are inadequate to address the natural 
resources related to energy and minerals develop-
ment on Federal onshore and offshore lands. 
(5) Receipts derived from sales, bonus bids, and 
royalties under the mineral leasing laws of the 
United States are paid to the Treasury through the 
Minerals Management Service of the Department of 
the Interior. 
(6) None of the receipts derived from sales, 
bonus bids, and royalties under the minerals leasing 
laws of the United States are paid to the Federal or 
State agencies to examine, monitor, and manage 
wildlife, fish, air, water, and other natural resources 
related to natural gas, oil, and mineral exploration 
and development. 
(b) PURPOSES.—It is the purpose of this section to— 
(1) authorize expenditures for the monitoring 
and management of wildlife and fish, and their habi-
tats, and air, water, and other natural resources re-
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lated to energy and minerals development on Fed-
eral onshore and offshore lands; 
(2) authorize expenditures for each fiscal year 
to the Secretary of the Interior and the States; and 
(3) use the appropriated funds to secure the 
necessary trained workforce or contractual services 
to conduct environmental studies, planning, develop-
ment, monitoring, and post-development manage-
ment of wildlife and fish and their habitats and air, 
water, and other natural resources that may be re-
lated to bio-based fuel, gas, mineral, oil, wind, or 
other energy exploration, development, transpor-
tation, transmission, and associated activities on 
Federal onshore and offshore lands, including, but 
not limited to— 
(A) pertinent research, surveys, and envi-
ronmental analyses conducted to identify any 
impacts on wildlife, fish, air, water, and other 
natural resources from energy and mineral ex-
ploration, development, production, and trans-
portation or transmission; 
(B) projects to maintain, improve, or en-
hance wildlife and fish populations and their 
habitats or air, water, or other natural re-
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sources, including activities under the Endan-
gered Species Act of 1973; 
(C) research, surveys, environmental anal-
yses, and projects that assist in managing, in-
cluding mitigating either onsite or offsite, or 
both, the impacts of energy and mineral activi-
ties on wildlife, fish, air, water, and other nat-
ural resources; and 
(D) projects to teach young people to live 
off the land. 
(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘En-
hancement Program’’ means the Federal Energy 
Natural Resources Enhancement Program estab-
lished by this section. 
(2) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the Gov-
ernor of the State. 
(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out the Enhance-
ment Program $150,000,000 for fiscal year 2009 and 
each fiscal year thereafter. 
(e) ESTABLISHMENT
OF FEDERAL ENERGY NAT-
URAL RESOURCES ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM.— 
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(1) IN
GENERAL.—There is established the 
Federal Energy Natural Resources Enhancement 
Program. 
(2) PAYMENT
TO
SECRETARY
OF
THE
INTE-
RIOR.—Beginning with fiscal year 2009, and in each 
fiscal year thereafter, one-third of amounts appro-
priated for the Enhancement Program shall be avail-
able to the Secretary of the Interior for use for the 
purposes described in subsection (b)(3). 
(3) PAYMENT TO STATES.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Beginning with fiscal 
year 2009, and in each fiscal year thereafter, 
two-thirds of amounts appropriated for the En-
hancement Program shall be available to the 
States for use for the purposes described in 
(b)(3). 
(B) USE OF PAYMENTS BY STATE.—Each 
State shall use the payments made under this 
paragraph only for carrying out projects and 
programs for the purposes described in (b)(3). 
(C) ENCOURAGE USE OF PRIVATE FUNDS 
BY STATE.—Each State shall use the payments 
made under this paragraph to leverage private 
funds for carrying out projects for the purposes 
described in (b)(3). 
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(f) LIMITATION ON USE.—Amounts made available 
under this section may not be used for the purchase of 
any interest in land. 
(g) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Beginning in fiscal year 
2010 and continuing for each fiscal year thereafter, 
the Secretary of the Interior and each State receiv-
ing funds from the Enhancement Fund shall submit 
a report to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Re-
sources of the House of Representatives. 
(2) REQUIRED
INFORMATION.—Reports sub-
mitted to the Congress by the Secretary of the Inte-
rior and States under this subsection shall include 
the following information regarding expenditures 
during the previous fiscal year: 
(A) A summary of pertinent scientific re-
search and surveys conducted to identify im-
pacts on wildlife, fish, and other natural re-
sources from energy and mineral developments. 
(B) A summary of projects planned and 
completed to maintain, improve or enhance 
wildlife and fish populations and their habitats 
or other natural resources. 
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(C) A list of additional actions that assist, 
or would assist, in managing, including miti-
gating either onsite or offsite, or both, the im-
pacts of energy and mineral development on 
wildlife, fish, and other natural resources. 
(D) A summary of private (non-Federal) 
funds used to plan, conduct, and complete the 
plans and programs identified in paragraphs 
(2)(A) and (2)(B). 
SEC. 16. TERMINATION OF EFFECT OF LAWS PROHIBITING 
THE SPENDING OF APPROPRIATED FUNDS 
FOR CERTAIN PURPOSES. 
All provisions of existing Federal law prohibiting the 
spending of appropriated funds to conduct oil and natural 
gas leasing and preleasing activities, or to issue a lease 
to any person, for any area of the outer Continental Shelf 
shall have no force or effect. 
SEC. 17. OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF INCOMPATIBLE USE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—No Federal agency may permit 
construction or operation (or both) of any facility, or des-
ignate or maintain a restricted transportation corridor or 
operating area on the Federal outer Continental Shelf or 
in State waters, that will be incompatible with, as deter-
mined by the Secretary of the Interior, oil and gas or nat-
ural gas leasing and substantially full exploration and pro-
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duction of tracts that are geologically prospective for oil 
or natural gas (or both). 
(b) EXCEPTIONS.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to 
any facility, transportation corridor, or operating area the 
construction, operation, designation, or maintenance of 
which is or will be— 
(1) located in an area of the outer Continental 
Shelf that is unavailable for oil and gas or natural 
gas leasing by operation of law; 
(2) used for a military readiness activity (as de-
fined in section 315(f) of Public Law 107–314; 16 
U.S.C. 703 note); or 
(3) required in the national interest, as deter-
mined by the President. 
SEC. 18. REPURCHASE OF CERTAIN LEASES. 
(a) AUTHORITY TO REPURCHASE AND CANCEL CER-
TAIN LEASES.—The Secretary of the Interior shall repur-
chase and cancel any Federal oil and gas, geothermal, 
coal, oil shale, tar sands, or other mineral lease, whether 
onshore or offshore, but not including any outer Conti-
nental Shelf oil and gas leases that were subject to litiga-
tion in the Court of Federal Claims on January 1, 2006, 
if the Secretary finds that such lease qualifies for repur-
chase and cancellation under the regulations authorized 
by this section. 
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(b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 365 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 
publish a final regulation stating the conditions under 
which a lease referred to in subsection (a) would qualify 
for repurchase and cancellation, and the process to be fol-
lowed regarding repurchase and cancellation. Such regula-
tion shall include, but not be limited to, the following: 
(1) The Secretary shall repurchase and cancel 
a lease after written request by the lessee upon a 
finding by the Secretary that— 
(A) a request by the lessee for a required 
permit or other approval complied with applica-
ble law, except the Coastal Zone Management 
Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.), and 
terms of the lease and such permit or other ap-
proval was denied; 
(B) a Federal agency failed to act on a re-
quest by the lessee for a required permit, other 
approval, or administrative appeal within a reg-
ulatory or statutory time-frame associated with 
the requested action, whether advisory or man-
datory, or if none, within 180 days; or 
(C) a Federal agency attached a condition 
of approval, without agreement by the lessee, to 
a required permit or other approval if such con-
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dition of approval was not mandated by Federal 
statute or regulation in effect on the date of 
lease issuance, or was not specifically allowed 
under the terms of the lease. 
(2) A lessee shall not be required to exhaust ad-
ministrative remedies regarding a permit request, 
administrative appeal, or other required request for 
approval for the purposes of this section. 
(3) The Secretary shall make a final agency de-
cision on a request by a lessee under this section 
within 180 days of request. 
(4) Compensation to a lessee to repurchase and 
cancel a lease under this section shall be the amount 
that a lessee would receive in a restitution case for 
a material breach of contract. 
(5) Compensation shall be in the form of a 
check or electronic transfer from the Department of 
the Treasury from funds deposited into miscella-
neous receipts under the authority of the same Act 
that authorized the issuance of the lease being re-
purchased. 
(6) Failure of the Secretary to make a final 
agency decision on a request by a lessee under this 
section within 180 days of request shall result in a 
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10 percent increase in the compensation due to the 
lessee if the lease is ultimately repurchased. 
(c) NO PREJUDICE.—This section shall not be inter-
preted to prejudice any other rights that the lessee would 
have in the absence of this section. 
SEC. 19. OFFSITE ENVIRONMENTAL MITIGATION. 
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any per-
son conducting activities under the Mineral Leasing Act 
(30 U.S.C. 181 et seq.), the Geothermal Steam Act (30 
U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), the Mineral Leasing Act for Ac-
quired Lands (30 U.S.C. 351 et seq.), the Weeks Act (16 
U.S.C. 552 et seq.), the General Mining Act of 1872 (30 
U.S.C. 22 et seq.), the Materials Act of 1947 (30 U.S.C. 
601 et seq.), or the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 
(43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.), may in satisfying any mitigation 
requirements associated with such activities propose miti-
gation measures on a site away from the area impacted 
and the Secretary of the Interior shall accept these pro-
posed measures if the Secretary finds that they generally 
achieve the purposes for which mitigation measures apper-
tained. 
SEC. 20. MINERALS MANAGEMENT SERVICE. 
The bureau known as the ‘‘Minerals Management 
Service’’ in the Department of the Interior shall be known 
as the ‘‘National Ocean Resources and Royalty Service’’. 
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SEC. 21. AUTHORITY TO USE DECOMMISSIONED OFFSHORE 
OIL AND GAS PLATFORMS AND OTHER FA-
CILITIES FOR ARTIFICIAL REEF, SCIENTIFIC 
RESEARCH, OR OTHER USES. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the 
‘‘Rigs to Reefs Act of 2008’’. 
(b) IN GENERAL.—The Outer Continental Shelf 
Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) is amended by insert-
ing after section 9 the following: 
‘‘SEC. 10. USE OF DECOMMISSIONED OFFSHORE OIL AND 
GAS PLATFORMS AND OTHER FACILITIES 
FOR 
ARTIFICIAL 
REEF, 
SCIENTIFIC 
RE-
SEARCH, OR OTHER USES. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall issue regula-
tions under which the Secretary may authorize use of an 
offshore oil and gas platform or other facility that is de-
commissioned from service for oil and gas purposes for 
an artificial reef, scientific research, or any other use au-
thorized under section 8(p) or any other applicable Fed-
eral law. 
‘‘(b) TRANSFER
REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary 
shall not allow the transfer of a decommissioned offshore 
oil and gas platform or other facility to another person 
unless the Secretary is satisfied that the transferee is suf-
ficiently bonded, endowed, or otherwise financially able to 
fulfill its obligations, including but not limited to— 
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‘‘(1) ongoing maintenance of the platform or 
other facility; 
‘‘(2) any liability obligations that might arise; 
‘‘(3) removal of the platform or other facility if 
determined necessary by the Secretary; and 
‘‘(4) any other requirements and obligations 
that the Secretary may deem appropriate by regula-
tion. 
‘‘(c) PLUGGING
AND
ABANDONMENT.—The Sec-
retary shall ensure that plugging and abandonment of 
wells is accomplished at an appropriate time. 
‘‘(d) POTENTIAL TO PETITION TO OPT-OUT OF REG-
ULATIONS.—An Adjacent State acting through a resolu-
tion of its legislature, with concurrence of its Governor, 
may preliminarily petition to opt-out of the application of 
regulations promulgated under this section to platforms 
and other facilities located in the area of its Adjacent Zone 
within 12 miles of the coastline. Upon receipt of the pre-
liminary petition, the Secretary shall complete an environ-
mental assessment that documents the anticipated envi-
ronmental effects of approving the petition. The Secretary 
shall provide the environmental assessment to the State, 
which then has the choice of no action or confirming its 
petition by further action of its legislature, with the con-
currence of its Governor. The Secretary is authorized to 
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except such area from the application of such regulations, 
and shall approve any confirmed petition. 
‘‘(e) LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.—A person that had 
used an offshore oil and gas platform or other facility for 
oil and gas purposes and that no longer has any ownership 
or control of the platform or other facility shall not be 
liable under Federal law for any costs or damages arising 
from such platform or other facility after the date the plat-
form or other facility is used for any purpose under sub-
section (a), unless such costs or damages arise from— 
‘‘(1) use of the platform or other facility by the 
person for development or production of oil or gas; 
or 
‘‘(2) another act or omission of the person. 
‘‘(f) OTHER LEASING AND USE NOT AFFECTED.— 
This section, and the use of any offshore oil and gas plat-
form or other facility for any purpose under subsection 
(a), shall not affect— 
‘‘(1) the authority of the Secretary to lease any 
area under this Act; or 
‘‘(2) any activity otherwise authorized under 
this Act.’’. 
(c) DEADLINE FOR REGULATIONS.—The Secretary of 
the Interior shall issue regulations under subsection (b) 
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by not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment 
of this Act. 
(d) STUDY AND REPORT ON EFFECTS OF REMOVAL 
OF PLATFORMS.—Not later than one year after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior, 
in consultation with other Federal agencies as the Sec-
retary deems advisable, shall study and report to the Con-
gress regarding how the removal of offshore oil and gas 
platforms and other facilities from the outer Continental 
Shelf would affect existing fish stocks and coral popu-
lations. 
SEC. 22. REPEAL OF REQUIREMENT TO CONDUCT COM-
PREHENSIVE INVENTORY OF OCS OIL AND 
NATURAL GAS RESOURCES. 
The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Public Law 109– 
58) is amended— 
(1) by repealing section 357 (119 Stat. 720; 42 
U.S.C. 15912); and 
(2) in the table of contents in section 1(b), by 
striking the item relating to such section 357. 
SEC. 23. MINING AND PETROLEUM SCHOOLS. 
(a) MAINTENANCE AND RESTORATION OF EXISTING 
AND HISTORIC PETROLEUM AND MINING ENGINEERING 
PROGRAMS.—Public Law 98–409 (30 U.S.C. 1221 et 
seq.) is amended to read as follows: 
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‘‘SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
‘‘This Act may be cited as the ‘Energy and Mineral 
Schools Reinvestment Act’. 
‘‘SEC. 2. POLICY. 
‘‘(a) The Secretary of the Interior (in this Act re-
ferred to as the ‘Secretary’) shall provide funds to historic 
and existing State-chartered recognized petroleum or min-
ing schools to assist such schools, universities, and institu-
tions in maintaining programs in petroleum, mining, and 
mineral engineering education and research. All funds 
shall be directed only to these programs and shall be sub-
ject to the conditions of this section. Such funds shall not 
be less than 25 percent of the annual outlay of funds au-
thorized by section 23(d) of the Deep Ocean Energy Re-
sources Act of 2008. 
‘‘SEC. 3. MAINTAINING AND RESTORING HISTORIC AND EX-
ISTING PETROLEUM AND MINING ENGINEER-
ING EDUCATION PROGRAMS. 
‘‘(a) The Secretary of the Interior (in this Act re-
ferred to as the ‘Secretary’) shall provide funds to historic 
and existing State-chartered recognized petroleum or min-
ing schools to assist such schools, universities, and institu-
tions in maintaining programs in petroleum, mining, and 
mineral engineering education and research. All funds 
shall be directed only to these programs and shall be sub-
ject to the conditions of this section. Such funds shall not 
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be less than 25 percent of the annual outlay of funds au-
thorized by section 23(d) of the Deep Ocean Energy Re-
sources Act of 2008. 
‘‘(b) In this Act the term ‘historic and existing State- 
chartered recognized petroleum or mining school’ means 
a school, university, or educational institution with the 
presence of an engineering program meeting the specific 
program criteria, established by the member societies of 
ABET, Inc., for petroleum, mining, or mineral engineer-
ing and that is accredited on the date of enactment of 
the Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act of 2006 by ABET, 
Inc. 
‘‘(c) It shall be the duty of each school, university, 
or institution receiving funds under this section to provide 
for and enhance the training of undergraduate and grad-
uate petroleum, mining, and mineral engineers through re-
search, investigations, demonstrations, and experiments. 
All such work shall be carried out in a manner that will 
enhance undergraduate education. 
‘‘(d) Each school, university, or institution receiving 
funds under this Act shall maintain the program for which 
the funds are provided for 10 years after the date of the 
first receipt of such funds and take steps described in its 
application for funding to increase the number of under-
graduate students enrolled in and completing the pro-
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‘‘(4) research on ways to extract petroleum and 
mineral resources that reduce the environmental im-
pact of those activities. 
‘‘(g) Grants for basic science and engineering studies 
and research shall not require additional participation by 
funding partners. Grants for studies to demonstrate the 
proof of concept for science and engineering or the dem-
onstration of feasibility and implementation shall include 
participation by industry and may include funding from 
other Federal agencies. 
‘‘(h)(1) No funds made available under this section 
shall be applied to the acquisition by purchase or lease 
of any land or interests therein, or the rental, purchase, 
construction, preservation, or repair of any building. 
‘‘(2) Funding made available under this section may 
be used with the express approval of the Secretary for pro-
posals that will provide for maintaining or upgrading of 
existing laboratories and laboratory equipment. Funding 
for such maintenance shall not be used for university over-
head expenses. 
‘‘(3) Funding made available under this Act may be 
used for maintaining and upgrading mines and oil and gas 
drilling rigs owned by a school, university, or institution 
described in this section that are used for undergraduate 
and graduate training and worker safety training. All re-
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quests for funding such mines and oil and gas drilling rigs 
must demonstrate that they have been owned by the 
school, university, or institution for 5 years prior to the 
date of enactment of the Deep Ocean Energy Resources 
Act of 2008 and have been actively used for instructional 
or training purposes during that time. 
‘‘(4) Any funding made available under this section 
for research, investigation, demonstration, experiment, or 
training shall not be used for university overhead charges 
in excess of 10 percent of the amount authorized by the 
Secretary. 
‘‘SEC. 4. FORMER AND NEW PETROLEUM AND MINING ENGI-
NEERING PROGRAMS. 
‘‘(a) A school, university, or educational institution 
that formerly met the requirements of section 3(b) imme-
diately before the date of the enactment of the Deep Ocean 
Energy Resources Act of 2008, or that seeks to establish 
a new program described in section 3(b), shall be eligible 
for funding under this Act only if it— 
‘‘(1) establishes a petroleum, mining, or mineral 
engineering program that meets the specific program 
criteria and is accredited as such by ABET, Inc., 
with particular consideration awarded to establishing 
programs and minority serving institutions; 
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‘‘(2) agrees to the conditions of subsections (c) 
through (h) of section 3 and the Secretary deter-
mines that the program will strengthen and increase 
the number of nationally available, well-qualified fac-
ulty members in petroleum, mining, and mineral en-
gineering; and 
‘‘(3) agrees to maintain the accredited program 
for 10 years after the date of the first receipt of 
funds under this Act. 
‘‘(b) The Secretary shall seek the advice of the Com-
mittee established pursuant to section 11 in determining 
the criteria used to carry out this section. 
‘‘SEC. 5. FUNDING OF CONSORTIA OF HISTORIC AND EXIST-
ING SCHOOLS. 
‘‘Where appropriate, the Secretary may make funds 
available to consortia of schools, universities, or institu-
tions described in sections 3, 4, and 6, including those con-
sortia that include schools, universities, or institutions 
that are ineligible for funds under this Act if those schools, 
universities, or institutions, respectively, have skills, pro-
grams, or facilities specifically identified as needed by the 
consortia to meet the necessary expenses for purposes of— 
‘‘(1) specific energy and mineral research 
projects of broad application that could not other-
wise be undertaken, including the expenses of plan-
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ning and coordinating regional petroleum, geo-
thermal, mining, and mineral engineering or 
beneficiation projects by two or more schools; and 
‘‘(2) research into any aspects of petroleum, 
geothermal, mining, or mineral engineering or 
beneficiation problems, including but not limited to 
exploration, that are related to the mission of the 
Department of the Interior. 
‘‘SEC. 6. SUPPORT FOR SCHOOLS WITH ENERGY AND MIN-
ERAL RESOURCE PROGRAMS IN PETROLEUM 
AND MINERAL EXPLORATION GEOLOGY, PE-
TROLEUM GEOPHYSICS, OR MINING GEO-
PHYSICS. 
‘‘(a) Twelve percent of the annual outlay of funds au-
thorized by section 23(d) of the Deep Ocean Energy Re-
sources Act of 2008 may be granted to schools, univer-
sities, and institutions other than those described in sec-
tions 3 and 4, with particular consideration awarded to 
minority serving institutions. 
‘‘(b) The Secretary shall determine the eligibility of 
a college or university to receive funding under this Act 
using criteria that include— 
‘‘(1) the presence of a substantial program of 
undergraduate and graduate geoscience instruction 
and research in one or more of the following special-
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ties: petroleum geology, geothermal geology, mineral 
exploration geology, economic geology, industrial 
minerals geology, mining geology, petroleum geo-
physics, mining geophysics, geological engineering, 
or geophysical engineering that has a demonstrated 
history of achievement; 
‘‘(2) evidence of institutional commitment for 
the purposes of this Act that includes a significant 
opportunity for participation by undergraduate stu-
dents in research; 
‘‘(3) evidence that such school, university, or in-
stitution has or can obtain significant industrial co-
operation in activities within the scope of this Act; 
‘‘(4) agreement by the school, university, or in-
stitution to maintain the programs for which the 
funding is sought for the 10-year period beginning 
on the date the school, university, or institution first 
receives such funds; and 
‘‘(5) requiring that such funding shall be for 
the purposes set forth in subsections (c) through (h) 
of section 3 and subject to the conditions set forth 
in section 3(h). 
‘‘(c) The Secretary shall seek the advice of the Com-
mittee established pursuant to section 11 in determining 
the criteria used to carry out this section. 
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‘‘SEC. 7. DESIGNATION OF FUNDS FOR SCHOLARSHIPS AND 
FELLOWSHIPS. 
‘‘(a) The Secretary shall utilize 10 percent of the an-
nual outlay of funds authorized by section 23(d) of the 
Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act of 2008 for the pur-
pose of providing merit-based scholarships for undergrad-
uate education, graduate fellowships, and postdoctoral fel-
lowships. 
‘‘(b) In order to receive a scholarship or a graduate 
fellowship, an individual student must be a lawful perma-
nent resident of the United States or a United States cit-
izen and must agree in writing to complete a course of 
studies and receive a degree in petroleum, mining, or min-
eral engineering, petroleum geology, geothermal geology, 
mining and economic geology, petroleum and mining geo-
physics, or mineral economics. 
‘‘(c) The regulations required by section 9 shall re-
quire that an individual, in order to retain a scholarship 
or graduate fellowship, must continue in one of the course 
of studies listed in subsection (b) of this section, must re-
main in good academic standing, as determined by the 
school, institution, or university and must allow for rein-
statement of the scholarship or graduate fellowship by the 
Secretary, upon the recommendation of the school or insti-
tution. Such regulations may also provide for recovery of 
funds from an individual who fails to complete any of the 
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courses of study listed in subsection (b) of this section 
after notice that such completion is a requirement of re-
ceipt funding under this Act. 
‘‘(d) To carry out this section, the Secretary shall 
award grants to schools, universities, and institutions that 
are eligible to receive funding under section 3, 4 or 6. A 
school, university, or institution receiving funding under 
this subsection shall be responsible for enforcing the re-
quirements of this section for scholarship or fellowship 
students and shall return to the Secretary any funds re-
covered from an individual under subsection (c). An insti-
tution seeking funds under this subsection shall describe, 
in its application to the Secretary for funding, the number 
of students that would be awarded scholarships or fellow-
ships if the application is approved, how such students 
would be selected, and how the provisions of this section 
will be enforced. 
‘‘SEC. 8. FUNDING CRITERIA FOR INSTITUTIONS. 
‘‘(a) Each application to the Secretary for funds 
under this Act shall state, among other things, the nature 
of the project to be undertaken; the period during which 
it will be pursued; the qualifications of the personnel who 
will direct and conduct it; the estimated costs; the impor-
tance of the project to the Nation, region, or States con-
cerned; its relation to other known research projects there-
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tofore pursued or being pursued; the extent to which the 
proposed project will maximize the opportunity for the 
training of undergraduate petroleum, mining, and mineral 
engineers; geologists and geophysicists; and the extent of 
participation by nongovernmental sources in the project. 
‘‘(b) No funds shall be made available under this Act 
except for an application approved by the Secretary. All 
funds shall be made available upon the basis of merit of 
the application, the need for the knowledge that it is ex-
pected to produce when completed, and the opportunity 
it provides for the undergraduate training of individuals 
as petroleum, mining, and mineral engineers, geologists, 
and geophysicists. The Secretary may use competitive re-
view by nongovernmental experts in relevant fields to de-
termine which applications to approve, to the extent prac-
ticable. 
‘‘(c) Funds available under this Act shall be paid at 
such times and in such amounts during each fiscal year 
as determined by the Secretary, and upon vouchers ap-
proved by the Secretary. Each school, university, or insti-
tution that receives funds under this Act shall— 
‘‘(1) establish its plan to provide for the train-
ing of individuals as petroleum, mining, and mineral 
engineers, geologists, and geophysicists under a cur-
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riculum appropriate to the field of mineral resources 
and mineral engineering and related fields; 
‘‘(2) establish policies and procedures that as-
sure that Federal funds made available under this 
Act for any fiscal year will supplement and, to the 
extent practicable, increase the level of funds that 
would, in the absence of such Federal funds, be 
made available for purposes of this Act, and in no 
case supplant such funds; and 
‘‘(3) have an officer appointed by its governing 
authority who shall receive and account for all funds 
paid under this Act and shall make an annual report 
to the Secretary on or before the first day of Sep-
tember of each year, on work accomplished and the 
status of projects underway, together with a detailed 
statement of the amounts received under this Act 
during the preceding fiscal year, and of its disburse-
ments on schedules prescribed by the Secretary. 
‘‘(d) If any of the funds received by the authorized 
receiving officer of a program under this Act are found 
by the Secretary to have been improperly diminished, lost, 
or misapplied, such funds shall be recovered by the Sec-
retary. 
‘‘(e) Schools, universities, and institutions receiving 
funds under this Act are authorized and encouraged to 
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plan and conduct programs under this Act in cooperation 
with each other and with such other agencies, business en-
terprises and individuals. 
‘‘SEC. 9. DUTIES OF SECRETARY. 
‘‘(a) The Secretary, acting through the Assistant Sec-
retary for Land and Minerals Management, shall admin-
ister this Act and shall prescribe such rules and regula-
tions as may be necessary to carry out its provisions not 
later than 1 year after the enactment of the Deep Ocean 
Energy Resources Act of 2008. 
‘‘(b)(1) There is established in the Department of the 
Interior, under the supervision of the Assistant Secretary 
for Land and Minerals Management, an office to be known 
as the Office of Petroleum and Mining Schools (hereafter 
in this Act referred to as the ‘Office’) to administer the 
provisions of this Act. There shall be a Director of the 
Office who shall be a member of the Senior Executive 
Service. The position of the Director shall be allocated 
from among the existing Senior Executive Service posi-
tions at the Department of the Interior and shall be a 
career reserved position as defined in section 3132(a)(8) 
of title 5, United States Code. 
‘‘(2) The Director is authorized to appoint a Deputy 
Director and to employ such officers and employees as 
may be necessary to enable the Office to carry out its func-
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tions. Such appointments shall be made from existing po-
sitions at the Department of the Interior, and shall be sub-
ject to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, gov-
erning appointments in the competitive service. Such posi-
tions shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of 
chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title 
relating to classification and General Schedule pay rates. 
‘‘(3) In carrying out his or her functions, the Director 
shall assist and advise the Secretary and the Committee 
pursuant to section 11 of this Act by— 
‘‘(A) providing professional and administrative 
staff support for the Committee including record-
keeping and maintaining minutes of all Committee 
and subcommittee meetings; 
‘‘(B) coordinating the activities of the Com-
mittee with Federal agencies and departments, and 
the schools, universities, and institutions to which 
funds are provided under this Act; 
‘‘(C) maintaining accurate records of funds dis-
bursed for all scholarship and fellowship grants, re-
search grants, and grants for career technical edu-
cation purposes; 
‘‘(D) preparing any regulations required to im-
plement this Act; 
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‘‘(E) conducting site visits at schools, univer-
sities, and institutions receiving funding under this 
Act; and 
‘‘(F) serving as a central repository for reports 
and clearing house for public information on re-
search funded by this Act. 
‘‘(4) The Director or an employee of the Office shall 
be present at each meeting of the Committee pursuant to 
section 11 or a subcommittee of such Committee. 
‘‘(5) The Director is authorized to contract with pub-
lic or private agencies, institutions, and organizations and 
with individuals without regard to section 3324(a) and (b) 
of title 31, United States Code, and section 5 of title 41, 
United States Code, in carrying out his or her functions. 
‘‘(6) As needed the Director shall ascertain whether 
the requirements of this Act have been met by schools, 
universities, institutions, and individuals. 
‘‘(c) The Secretary, acting through the Office of Pe-
troleum and Mining Schools, shall furnish such advice and 
assistance as will best promote the purposes of this Act, 
shall participate in coordinating research, investigations, 
demonstrations, and experiments initiated under this Act, 
shall indicate to schools, universities, and institutions re-
ceiving funds under this Act such lines of inquiry that 
seem most important, and shall encourage and assist in 
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the establishment and maintenance of cooperation between 
such schools, universities, and institutions, other research 
organizations, the Department of the Interior, and other 
Federal agencies. 
‘‘(d) The Secretary shall establish procedures— 
‘‘(1) to ensure that each employee and con-
tractor of the Office established by this section and 
each member of the Committee pursuant to section 
11 of this Act shall disclose to the Secretary any fi-
nancial interests in or financial relationships with 
schools, universities, institutions or individuals re-
ceiving funds, scholarships or fellowships under this 
Act; 
‘‘(2) to require any employee, contractor, or 
member of the Committee with a financial relation-
ship disclosed under paragraph (1) to recuse them-
selves from— 
‘‘(A) any recommendation or decision re-
garding the awarding of funds, scholarships or 
fellowships; or 
‘‘(B) any review, report, analysis or inves-
tigation regarding compliance with the provi-
sions of this Act by a school, university, institu-
tion or any individual. 
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‘‘(e) On or before the first day of July of each year 
beginning after the date of enactment of this sentence, 
schools, universities, and institutions receiving funds 
under this Act shall certify compliance with this Act and 
upon request of the Director of the office established by 
this section provide documentation of such compliance. 
‘‘(f) An individual granted a scholarship or fellowship 
with funds provided under this Act shall through their re-
spective school, university, or institution, advise the Direc-
tor of the office established by this Act of progress towards 
completion of the course of studies and upon the awarding 
of the degree within 30 days after the award. 
‘‘(g) The regulations required by this section shall in-
clude a preference for veterans and service members who 
have received or will receive either the Afghanistan Cam-
paign Medal or the Iraq Campaign Medal as authorized 
by Public Law 108–234, and Executive Order No. 13363. 
‘‘SEC. 10. COORDINATION. 
‘‘(a) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to impair 
or modify the legal relationship existing between any of 
the schools, universities, and institutions under whose di-
rection a program is established with funds provided under 
this Act and the government of the State in which it is 
located. Nothing in this Act shall in any way be construed 
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to authorize Federal control or direction of education at 
any school, university, or institution. 
‘‘(b) The programs authorized by this Act are in-
tended to enhance the Nation’s petroleum, mining, and 
mineral engineering education programs and to enhance 
educational programs in petroleum and mining exploration 
and to increase the number of individuals enrolled in and 
completing these programs. To achieve this intent, the 
Secretary and the Committee pursuant to section 11 shall 
receive the continuing advice and cooperation of all agen-
cies of the Federal Government concerned with the identi-
fication, exploration, and development of energy and min-
eral resources. 
‘‘(c) Nothing in this Act is intended to give or shall 
be construed as giving the Secretary any authority over 
mining and mineral resources research conducted by any 
agency of the Federal Government, or as repealing or di-
minishing existing authorities or responsibilities of any 
agency of the Federal Government to plan and conduct, 
contract for, or assist in research in its area of responsi-
bility and concern with regard to mining and mineral re-
sources. 
‘‘(d) The schools, universities, and institutions receiv-
ing funding under this Act shall make detailed reports to 
the Office of Petroleum and Mining Schools on projects 
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completed, in progress, or planned with funds provided 
under this Act. All such reports shall be available to the 
public on not less than an annual basis through the Office 
of Petroleum and Mining Schools. All uses, products, proc-
esses, and other developments resulting from any re-
search, demonstration, or experiment funded in whole or 
in part under this Act shall be made available promptly 
to the general public, subject to exception or limitation, 
if any, as the Secretary may find necessary in the interest 
of national security, and subject to the applicable Federal 
law governing patents. 
‘‘SEC. 11. COMMITTEE ON PETROLEUM, MINING, AND MIN-
ERAL ENGINEERING AND ENERGY AND MIN-
ERAL RESOURCE EDUCATION. 
‘‘(a) The Secretary shall appoint a Committee on Pe-
troleum, Mining, and Mineral Engineering and Energy 
and Mineral Resource Education composed of— 
‘‘(1) the Assistant Secretary of the Interior re-
sponsible for land and minerals management and 
not more than 16 other persons who are knowledge-
able in the fields of mining and mineral resources re-
search, including 2 university administrators one of 
whom shall be from historic and existing petroleum 
and mining schools; a community, technical, or tribal 
college administrator; a career technical education 
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educator; 6 representatives equally distributed from 
the petroleum, mining, and aggregate industries; a 
working miner; a working oilfield worker; a rep-
resentative of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact 
Commission; a representative from the Interstate 
Mining Compact Commission; a representative from 
the Western Governors Association; a representative 
of the State geologists, and a representative of a 
State mining and reclamation agency. In making 
these 16 appointments, the Secretary shall consult 
with interested groups. 
‘‘(2) The Assistant Secretary for Land and 
Minerals Management, in the capacity of the Chair-
man of the Committee, may have present during 
meetings of the Committee representatives of Fed-
eral agencies with responsibility for energy and min-
erals resources management, energy and mineral re-
source investigations, energy and mineral commodity 
information, international trade in energy and min-
eral commodities, mining safety regulation and mine 
safety research, and research into the development, 
production, and utilization of energy and mineral 
commodities. These representatives shall serve as 
technical advisors to the committee and shall have 
no voting responsibilities. 
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