WASHINGTON (March 6, 2025) –WASHINGTON – The House of Representatives today passed Sen. John Kennedy’s (R-La.) Congressional Review Act (CRA) joint resolution of disapproval to reverse the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) rule that targeted oil and gas production in the outer continental shelf. The resolution passed with bipartisan support, and it now moves to the president’s desk for signing.
“In waging war on oil and gas producers, the Biden administration drove up prices for families and jeopardized our energy security. I am proud to see that the House passed my resolution to help bring back America’s energy dominance, and I look forward to President Trump signing it into law,” said Kennedy.
Rep. Mike Ezell (R-Miss.) introduced the companion resolution in the House of Representatives.
“Congress has taken a decisive step to protect American energy independence and support our workers. By overturning Biden’s BOEM’s overreaching rule, we are unleashing our nation’s vast resources, they tried to handcuff with red tape, driving up costs, stifling innovation, and making us more dependent on foreign energy. I look forward to President Trump taking swift action to sign this resolution into law. Together, we are reaffirming our commitment to an energy policy that prioritizes American jobs, economic growth, and national security,” said Ezell.
Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) helped introduce the resolution in the Senate.
“House passage of our resolution of disapproval moves us another step forward in overturning Biden’s regulatory assault on oil and gas production in the Gulf. I look forward to President Trump signing this resolution while we look for other policies we can repeal,” said Hyde-Smith.
Background:
- On Sept. 3, 2024, the Biden administration published a rule requiring all new oil and gas leaseholders on the outer continental shelf to submit an archaeological report to the BOEM before drilling or laying pipelines. The rule burdens lessees with conducting costly surveys for marine archaeological resources, such as shipwrecks or “cultural resources.”
- This rule replaces BOEM’s long-standing policy of requiring oil and gas operators to conduct archaeological surveys only when there was a “reason to believe” that an archaeological resource may be present.
- The Biden administration admitted that this rule would harm small oil and gas producers most, writing, “100 percent of the increased Gulf of [America] compliance cost . . . would be borne by operators that are small entities.” Small and independent operators account for one-third of all oil production in the Gulf of America.
- On Feb. 4, 2025, Kennedy introduced his CRA joint resolution of disapproval to repeal the rule. This is one of more than 225 harmful regulations that the Biden administration levied against the oil and natural gas industry.
The full resolution is available here.
