When President Trump took office in 2017, the Department of the Interior quickly moved to lease nearly all offshore lands for oil and gas development. The map was astounding; for decades, there had been relatively limited drilling in offshore waters, and many state officials and advocates were shocked to see a proposal for such extensive leasing of offshore federal lands. Indeed, notoriously conservative Rick Scott of Florida entered into a handshake deal with former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to avoid drilling near the state. Trump's Interior Department also attempted to lease vast swaths of onshore public lands for fossil fuel development.
President Biden has predictably followed a different approach, announcing his intent to place a moratorium on oil and gas leasing on federal onshore and offshore lands. This is a sensible solution.
The United States is already working to transition to more low-carbon energy production, and oil and gas prices remain low — largely because of large amounts of U.S. oil and gas production from private lands. Indeed, fewer new wells are being drilled, even on private lands, because the prices producers can command on the market don't justify drilling and fracking large numbers of new wells. A non-trivial number of oil and gas companies have declared bankruptcy due to the low prices.
During Trump's efforts to lease millions of new acres of public lands, fossil fuel companies leased far fewer acres than he had hoped for, particularly given low pandemic-era prices. Even pre-pandemic, the largest auction of public oil and gas leases ever — conducted during the Trump administration — drew bids on just 1 percent of the blocks up for lease. Despite low leasing rates, the sheer magnitude of Trump's efforts — particularly in Wyoming and New Mexico — did lock up large acreages of federal lands for potential future drilling. A moratorium will at least pause that lock-in trend.
The moratorium also makes sense as the Department of the Interior will likely work to roll back Trump's reversal of the Obama-era methane rule for federal lands. That rule required drillers to reduce the amount of methane released from oil and gas wells. Obama's methane rule received bipartisan support because it increased the amount of natural gas produced from wells on public lands by reducing the amount of the gas released into the air, thus lowering waste while limiting climate-changing methane emissions. Through an executive order, Biden has already moved to begin the process of reinstating methane emissions limits for wells drilled and fractured on both private and public lands.
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Hannah Wiseman | January 27, 2021
When President Trump took office in 2017, the Department of the Interior quickly moved to lease nearly all offshore lands for oil and gas development. The map was astounding; for decades, there had been relatively limited drilling in offshore waters, and many state officials and advocates were shocked to see a proposal for such extensive leasing of offshore federal lands. Indeed, notoriously conservative Rick Scott of Florida entered into a handshake deal with former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to avoid drilling near the state. Trump's Interior Department also attempted to lease vast swaths of onshore public lands for fossil fuel development. President Biden has predictably followed a different approach, announcing his intent to place a moratorium on oil and gas leasing on federal onshore and offshore lands. This is a sensible solution.
Katie Tracy, Katlyn Schmitt | January 27, 2021
The Maryland General Assembly is kicking into full gear -- and we at the Center for Progressive Reform are tracking bills that would protect the health and safety of Maryland workers in the food and farm sectors. These protections are urgently needed to protect these workers from COVID-19 infections and keep the public healthy and safe.
Daniel Farber | January 25, 2021
The Trump administration dedicated itself to deregulation with unprecedented fervor. It rolled back scores of regulations across government agencies, including more than 80 environmental rules. The Biden administration can reverse some of those actions quickly -- for instance, as president, Joe Biden can undo Donald Trump’s executive orders with a stroke of the pen. Undoing most regulatory rollbacks, however, will require a review process that can take years, often followed by further delays during litigation. There is an alternative, but it comes with risks.
Katlyn Schmitt | January 22, 2021
The Maryland General Assembly is back in session -- and we at the Center for Progressive Reform are tracking a number of bills that, if passed, will have a lasting impact on the people of Maryland and their environment. Several could also spur other states to improve their own environmental and public health protections.
Joseph Tomain | January 22, 2021
President Joe Biden named Commissioner Richard Glick as Chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) January 21. Glick succeeds Chairman James Danly. The Commission is expected to retain its Republican majority until Commissioner Neil Chatterjee's term is up on June 30. What's next for the agency?
Katie Tracy | January 21, 2021
President Joe Biden has tapped three seasoned experts to jumpstart the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the federal government's main worker health and safety agency. Jim Frederick will serve as Deputy Assistant Secretary of OSHA and will head the agency until a permanent Assistant Secretary is confirmed. Frederick’s experience includes over two decades working for the United Steel Workers' health, safety, and environment department. In his latest role, Frederick served as the assistant director and principal investigator for the department. Biden has also named Chip Hughes, former director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Worker Education and Training Program, as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Pandemic and Emergency Response. This will be a crucial role in the weeks and months ahead. Ann Rosenthal will join the team as Senior Advisor. Rosenthal served as the Associate Solicitor for Occupational Safety and Health at the Department of Labor until 2017 and has decades of legal experience protecting worker health and safety.
James Goodwin | January 20, 2021
The pro-Trump insurrection that took place at the United States Capitol on January 6 was the most serious threat to the rule of law in our country in well over a century. Unless we fully grapple with the conditions and causes that gave rise to it, this threat will linger, waiting for the next spark to reignite it.
Daniel Farber | January 19, 2021
Conservatives love to complain about faceless bureaucrats, but blaming bureaucrats for regulations is hopelessly out of date. When Elena Kagan was a professor, she wrote an article called “Presidential Administration.” The article applauded her former boss Bill Clinton for seizing greater control of the regulatory process, away from agencies. That trend has accelerated to the point where the White House controls even the fine details of regulation.
Michele Janin, Robert Verchick | January 14, 2021
Over the last six months, we had the honor of leading the search for a visionary new leader to guide our organization. Our search is over, and we're thrilled to announce that Minor Sinclair will be taking CPR's helm next month.