Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Leasing – Passage

Passage of the bill, as amended, that would permanently extend an existing moratorium on oil and gas leasing by the Interior Department in certain areas of the Gulf of Mexico, which is currently set to expire in June 2022. It would also require the Interior Department to collect inspection fees from certain oil and gas facilities operating on the outer Continental Shelf and set annual levels and schedules for fees collected from facilities above the waterline, drilling rigs, and non-rig units. Such fees would be deposited into a Treasury Department ocean energy safety fund established under the bill's provisions, with funds to be made available through annual appropriations acts to carry out inspections of outer Continental Shelf facilities.