HRES 879 is a procedural resolution that would allow the House to debate and vote on multiple specific legislative items. It enables consideration of three joint resolutions seeking to block Bureau of Land Management rules about oil and gas activities in Alaska (National Petroleum Reserve, Buffalo Field Office, and Coastal Plain areas), a concurrent resolution denouncing socialism, and three bills: one to remove natural gas export/import restrictions, one requiring an energy report on refineries, and two related to criminal justice reforms in Washington, D.C. The resolution waives debate rules and points of order to streamline votes on these items. It does not change policy itself but facilitates the House's review of the referenced bills and resolutions.
HR 526, the Declaration of Energy Independence Act, reduces costs for oil and gas leaseholders on federal lands. It lowers royalty rates from 16.67% to 12.5%, cuts minimum bids from $10 to $2 per acre, and adjusts annual rental rates (from $3-$15 to $1.50-$2 per acre). The bill also creates new noncompetitive leasing options for existing leases meeting production thresholds (e.g., 15 barrels/day oil or 60,000 ft³/day gas), allowing continued operation without bidding. These changes directly affect companies holding federal oil/gas leases, particularly those with older leases or low-production sites.
This joint resolution nullifies the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) relating to the Record of Decision and Approved Resource Management Plan (RMP) for Alaska’s Central Yukon planning area and issued on November 12, 2024. By way of background, an RMP guides the management of lands administered by the BLM. This Central Yukon RMP modified the prior RMP for the area, including by designating 21 areas of critical environmental concern or research natural areas, encompassing approximately 3,611,000 acres.
HR 2298 exempts certain broadband infrastructure projects on federal lands from requiring environmental reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and historic preservation reviews under the National Historic Preservation Act. It applies specifically to wireline or wireless broadband installations (like fiber lines or cell towers) by broadband providers on federal rights-of-way, such as areas adjacent to roads or highways. The bill removes the need for agencies to conduct full environmental assessments or historic site reviews for these projects, streamlining approvals. This directly affects federal land managers (like the BLM or Forest Service) and broadband providers seeking to expand service on public lands. The key change is eliminating specific regulatory hurdles for qualifying broadband projects on federal rights-of-way.
SJRES 62 is a joint resolution seeking congressional disapproval of a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) rule related to North Dakota's resource management plan. It targets the BLM's "North Dakota Field Office Record of Decision and Approved Resource Management Plan" issued January 14, 2025, which the Government Accountability Office identified as a rule under the Congressional Review Act. If passed, this resolution would block the rule from taking effect, preventing the BLM from implementing the specific land management plan for North Dakota. The measure directly affects how federal lands in North Dakota would be managed under this particular plan.
This bill amends federal law to prevent the expansion or creation of new national monuments in Arizona without explicit Congressional approval. Specifically, it modifies a provision in the U.S. Code (Section 320301 of Title 54) to add Arizona to the list of states where such monument actions require Congress to act first. The change directly affects Arizona's federal land management, limiting the President's authority to unilaterally establish or expand national monuments within the state. It does not alter existing monuments but ensures future actions require legislative consent.
HR 5392, the Northern Arizona Protection Act, nullifies President Biden's August 2023 proclamation creating the Baaj Nwaavjo I'tah Kukveni-Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument in Arizona. It prohibits the future designation or extension of national monuments within the specific area shown on the August 2023 map without explicit congressional approval. This bill directly affects federal land management in that region by blocking monument designations under the Antiquities Act without Congress authorizing them.
This bill requires energy-related federal agencies to set expiration dates for their regulations. It applies to agencies like the Department of Energy, Bureau of Land Management, and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. All current regulations must expire within one year of the bill's passage, while new regulations must expire within five years unless the agency gets a waiver by proving the rule has a "net deregulatory effect." Agencies can extend expirations only after public comment and by demonstrating the rule's benefits, but each extension is limited to five years.
Supporting Made in America Energy Act This bill requires oil and natural gas lease sales that include certain public land and waters, prohibits lease sales in other areas, and establishes related requirements. Beginning in FY2025, the Department of the Interior must conduct a minimum of four onshore lease sales annually in each state that has federal land available for oil and natural gas leasing. If a lease sale is canceled, delayed, or deferred, Interior must conduct a replacement sale during the same year. Beginning in FY2026, Interior must conduct a minimum of two offshore, region-wide lease sales annually in the Gulf of Mexico Region of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) by specified dates. The sales must include the Central Gulf of Mexico Planning Area and the Western Gulf of Mexico Planning Area. Interior must also conduct a minimum of six offshore lease sales of at least 1 million acres each over a 10-year period in the Cook Inlet Planning Area. The bill sets a 12.5% royalty rate for such leases. Interior must plan and approve the subsequent OCS oil and gas leasing programs by specified deadlines. The bill extends through 2035 a moratorium on oil and gas leasing in certain eastern and central portions of the Gulf of Mexico and expands the moratorium to include the South Atlantic Planning Area and the Straits of Florida Planning Area. The bill also requires the President to obtain congressional approval before impeding or circumventing certain federal energy mineral leasing processes.
HR 841 amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) provisions in U.S. law to prohibit states from using LWCF funds to purchase land, water, or related interests directly from private landowners. This restriction applies specifically to states receiving financial assistance under the LWCF program. The bill adds a new section (l) to 54 U.S.C. § 200305 and amends § 200306 to explicitly state that LWCF appropriations cannot fund acquisitions from private owners. The policy change directly affects state governments that administer LWCF funds for conservation projects.
