Overview
- The Senate approved a 49-45 resolution to nullify the Bureau of Land Management’s December 2024 record of decision that restricted oil and gas leasing on ANWR’s Coastal Plain.
- The House cleared the measure in mid-November, and if signed it would reverse the Biden-era restrictions on development in Alaska’s North Slope region.
- Lawmakers used the Congressional Review Act, which allows a simple-majority vote without a filibuster to disapprove recent federal rules.
- The 2024 BLM rule barred leasing on about 1.2 million acres while requiring at least 400,000 acres be offered; a January sale drew no bids, a result disputed by Alaska officials who sued, arguing the terms made development impractical.
- Separately, the Interior Department proposed broad offshore leasing around Alaska, drawing pushback from Sens. Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski, who urged excluding Arctic waters and focusing on Cook Inlet.