April 28, 2017

President Donald Trump released an executive order targeting the five-year oil and gas leasing plan finalized under the Obama administration. The order, entitled “Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy,” encourages exploration and production on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) of the United States in order to maintain our nation’s position as a global energy leader, while ensuring related activities are safe and environmentally responsible.

The order directs the Secretary of the Interior to consider revising the schedule of proposed oil and gas lease sales, while enduring that any changes do not hinder or affect ongoing sales. It also directs the Secretary to develop and implement a streamlined permitting process for privately funded seismic data research and collection aimed at determining the offshore energy resource potential within the OCS.

The order requires the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the Secretaries of Defense, Interior, and Homeland Security, to conduct a review of all designations and expansions of National Marine Sanctuaries, and of all designations and expansions of Marine National Monuments under the Antiquities Act of 1906.

Additionally, President Trump’s executive order directs the Secretary of the Interior to review several pre-existing rules, including the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement’s (BSEE) final rule entitles "Oil and Gas and Sulfur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf-Blowout Preventer Systems and Well Control," the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) proposed rule entitled “Air Quality Control, Reporting, and Compliance,” and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association’s (NOAA) Technical Memorandum NMFS-OPR-55.

Source: Federal Register, White House Office of the Press Secretary