Dec 15, 2015 U.S. Oil, Gas Producers: Proposed Onshore Rulemakings Threaten America’s Energy Momentum
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In its formal comments filed Monday evening, the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) urged the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to reconsider its approach and work with the industry on its proposed rules to update, replace, and codify three of its Onshore Oil and Gas Orders. Businesses and industry groups are concerned that BLM’s proposed rules would result in substantial changes to the way U.S. onshore oil and gas operations are conducted and would lead to significant increases in the costs and burdens to responsibly oil and natural gas development on federal and tribal lands. IPAA joined in submitting formal comments with the American Petroleum Institute (API) and Western Energy Alliance.
“As they currently stand, the federal government’s proposed changes to its Onshore Orders are counterproductive and do not account for innovative new technologies,” said Dan Naatz, senior vice president of government relations and political affairs for IPAA. “The job of America’s independent oil and gas producers is to keep this American energy momentum going. Whether through new good-paying American jobs, investments in U.S. businesses, or large contributions to federal and state tax revenues, independent oil and natural gas producers continue to make significant contributions to the American economy. Companies are already incentivized to innovate and find new ways to capture and deliver more of their products to meet consumer demands, regardless of this proposal.
“A collaborative approach will bring a greater return on investment and more quickly than new and burdensome regulations. Instead of proposing overly prescriptive rulemakings, which do not account for new technologies that could improve operations nor have demonstrated a benefit to the public, the BLM should work with industry stakeholders in developing sensible, performance-based rules and should not apply them retroactively,” Naatz concluded.
America’s independent producers account for 90 percent of the nation’s energy production, supporting more than 200,000 jobs, and send more than $10 billion in additional revenue to the United States Treasury each year through royalties and other payments. However, added layers of costly regulations and bureaucratic red tape are making it increasingly difficult for independent producers, small businesses with an average of 15 employees, to continue responsibly developing America’s abundant oil and natural gas resources – threatening the very jobs, American energy security, and royalty revenues that these businesses seek to generate.
IPAA, API, and Western Energy Alliance, on behalf of their member companies and their technical teams, submitted joint comments on Onshore Order 4 and Onshore Order 5.
IPAA, along with Western Energy Alliance, submitted additional comments on Onshore Order 3, for which the extended comment period closed yesterday. IPAA and Western Energy Alliance submitted preliminary comments on Onshore Order 3 in October and can be read in their entirety HERE.
About the Independent Petroleum Association of America
The Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) is the leading, national upstream trade association representing thousands of independent oil and natural gas producers and service companies across the United States. Independent producers develop 90 percent of the nation’s oil and natural gas wells. These companies account for 54 percent of America’s oil production, 85 percent of its natural gas production, and support over 2.1 million American jobs.
