Providing for Congressional Disapproval of the Rule Submitted By the Bureau of Land Management Relating to ``Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program Record of Decision''

Floor Speech

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 879, I call up the joint resolution (H.J. Res. 131) providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management relating to ``Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program Record of Decision'', and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

The Clerk read the title of the joint resolution.

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Res. 131.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.J. Res. 131 which would repeal a Biden administration-era Record of Decision, ROD, restricting oil and gas production on 1.16 million acres within the 10-02 area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, also known as ANWR.

The 10-02 area of ANWR was specifically set aside by Congress for its oil and gas potential and is estimated to hold anywhere between 4.25 and 11.8 billion barrels of recoverable oil.

Prior to the passage of the Working Families Tax Cut law, which requires four lease sales to be held over a 10-year period, Congress had previously mandated energy leasing in the area, an action that has the support of local North Slope communities and Native Villages.

Last Congress, we held a bipartisan legislative hearing on H.R. 6285, ``Alaska's Right to Produce Act,'' where we heard from Tribal representatives, including Inupiat leadership from the Native Village of Kaktovik, the only indigenous Tribal community within ANWR.

In that hearing, Doreen Leavitt, Director of Natural Resources for the Inupiat community of the Arctic Slope said:

The North Slope Inupiat live in one of the most remote areas of the country, with none of their communities connected by a permanent road system to each other or to municipalities in the State, making private and public investment very costly. It is up to their people to seek out opportunities and partners to strengthen their regional economy.

Instead of working with Arctic Slope communities to create economic opportunities, the Biden-era ROD further limited the economic prospects available to those in the region, reducing investment and cutting off essential new infrastructure that would support resource development.

During President Trump's first administration, consistent with Federal law and local voices, the Department of the Interior finalized plans to make all 1.56 million acres of the Coastal Plain available to oil and gas leasing.

Lamentably, in 2024, the Biden administration disregarded local Tribal voices and reversed course, implementing a new Record of Decision that chose the most restrictive alternative, making available the minimal amount of acreage for energy leasing.

The Biden administration also included energy-prohibitive stipulations in the ROD designed to undermine energy lease sales in the 10-02 area. These provisions were horrifically successful, as the last lease sale held received no bids.

The Biden administration's anti-energy decisions limit economic opportunities for local Alaskans and Alaska Natives living within ANWR.

Congress must move to repeal the Biden administration-era ROD that runs counter to congressional intent and unfairly reduces economic opportunities in the region.

I thank Representative Begich for his work on H.J. Res. 131 so we can restore common sense to the management of ANWR's vast resources and, again, unleash American energy.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time.

I thank my colleagues for supporting this critical legislation and engaging in this meaningful discussion.

Before I close, I want to highlight another statement from Director Leavitt, which she offered during a Natural Resources Committee hearing last Congress. Mr. Stauber, in his testimony, talked about how the locals in the area just wished someone would listen to them. Director Leavitt said this: ``Had the administration acted according to the Indian Reorganization Act or its own orders, its leadership and staff would have made allowance for the fact that the ICAS [the Inupiat Community of the Arctic Slope], alongside many other North Slope Tribes and entities like the Native Village of Kaktovik, Voice of the Arctic Inupiat, Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, and more, have a long history of supporting responsible resource development projects in ANWR. The Voice of the Arctic Inupiat, of which ICAS is a member, has a standing resolution supporting the responsible exploration and development of the 10-02 area of ANWR.''

H.J. Res. 131 responds to the wishes of the local people who call ANWR home and unleashes the region's bountiful natural resources for the benefit of U.S. energy security and the economic well-being of local communities.

I again urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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