Federal Land Freedom Act of 2021
Bill: S.2394 | Sponsor: Sen. Inhofe, James M. (R-OK)
Policy area: Energy

Summary:
Federal Land Freedom Act of 2021
This bill authorizes a state with an established oil and gas leasing program to take responsibility from the federal government for leasing and regulating the exploration and development of oil, gas, and other forms of energy on certain federal land in the state.
In addition, the bill exempts state actions to lease, permit, or regulate oil and gas exploration and development from certain requirements under the Administrative Procedure Act, the National Historic Preservation Act, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.

To achieve domestic energy independence by empowering States to control 
the development and production of all forms of energy on all available 
                             Federal land.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Land Freedom Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) as of the date of enactment of this Act--
                    (A) 113,000,000 acres of onshore Federal land are 
                open and accessible for oil and natural gas 
                development; and
                    (B) approximately 166,000,000 acres of onshore 
                Federal land are off-limits or inaccessible for oil and 
                natural gas development;
            (2) despite the recent oil and natural gas boom in the 
        United States, the number of acres of Federal land leased for 
        oil and natural gas exploration has decreased by 24 percent 
        since 2008;
            (3) in 2013, the Federal Government leased only 36,000,000 
        acres of Federal land, in contrast to the 131,000,000 acres 
        that were leased in 1984;
            (4) the reduction in leasing of Federal land harms economic 
        growth and Federal revenues;
            (5) in 2013, it took 197 days to process applications for 
        permits to drill on Federal land; and
            (6) the States have extensive and sufficient regulatory 
        frameworks for permitting oil and natural gas development.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Available federal land.--The term ``available Federal 
        land'' means any Federal land that, as of May 31, 2013--
                    (A) is located within the boundaries of a State;
                    (B) is not held by the United States in trust for 
                the benefit of a federally recognized Indian tribe;
                    (C) is not a unit of the National Park System;
                    (D) is not a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge 
                System; and
                    (E) is not a congressionally designated wilderness 
                area.
            (2) State.--The term ``State'' means--
                    (A) a State; and
                    (B) the District of Columbia.
            (3) State leasing, permitting, and regulatory program.--The 
        term ``State leasing, permitting, and regulatory program'' 
        means a program established pursuant to State law that 
        regulates the exploration and development of oil, natural gas, 
        and other forms of energy on land located in the State.

SEC. 4. STATE CONTROL OF ENERGY DEVELOPMENT AND PRODUCTION ON ALL 
              AVAILABLE FEDERAL LAND.

    (a) State Leasing, Permitting, and Regulatory Programs.--Any State 
that has established a State leasing, permitting, and regulatory 
program may--
            (1) submit to the Secretaries of the Interior, Agriculture, 
        and Energy a declaration that a State leasing, permitting, and 
        regulatory program has been established or amended; and
            (2) seek to transfer responsibility for leasing, 
        permitting, and regulating oil, natural gas, and other forms of 
        energy development from the Federal Government to the State.
    (b) State Action Authorized.--Notwithstanding any other provision 
of law, on submission of a declaration under subsection (a)(1), the 
State submitting the declaration may lease, permit, and regulate the 
exploration and development of oil, natural gas, and other forms of 
energy on Federal land located in the State in lieu of the Federal 
Government.
    (c) Effect of State Action.--Any action by a State to lease, 
permit, or regulate the exploration and development of oil, natural 
gas, and other forms of energy pursuant to subsection (b) shall not be 
subject to, or considered a Federal action, Federal permit, or Federal 
license under--
            (1) subchapter II of chapter 5, and chapter 7, of title 5, 
        United States Code (commonly known as the ``Administrative 
        Procedure Act'');
            (2) division A of subtitle III of title 54, United States 
        Code;
            (3) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 
        seq.); or
            (4) the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 
        U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).

SEC. 5. NO EFFECT ON FEDERAL REVENUES.

    (a) In General.--Any lease or permit issued by a State pursuant to 
section 4 shall include provisions for the collection of royalties or 
other revenues in an amount equal to the amount of royalties or 
revenues that would have been collected if the lease or permit had been 
issued by the Federal Government.
    (b) Disposition of Revenues.--Any revenues collected by a State 
from leasing or permitting on Federal land pursuant to section 4 shall 
be deposited in the same Federal account in which the revenues would 
have been deposited if the lease or permit had been issued by the 
Federal Government.
    (c) Effect on State Processing Fees.--Nothing in this Act prohibits 
a State from collecting and retaining a fee from an applicant to cover 
the administrative costs of processing an application for a lease or 
permit.
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