By Valerie Volcovici
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Interior Department will launch its review of the federal oil and gas leasing program on March 25, a source familiar with the matter said, a key step that will determine whether the Biden administration will permanently halt new leases on federal land and water.
The review will kick off with a public forum on oil and gas leasing on federal land and water, with panelists representing industry, environmental conservation and justice groups, labor and others, and commence an online comment period, the source said.
This input would inform an interim report on the future of the program and what can be done to reform how leases are managed, how much revenue should go to taxpayers and other issues.
Biden in January signed an executive order pausing new oil and gas drilling leases on federal lands in what is widely viewed as the first step to delivering on a permanent ban promised during his presidential campaign and has triggered heavy criticism from the oil industry and Republican lawmakers.
Such a policy could have a big climate payoff by eventually tackling emissions from production that represents about a quarter of U.S. oil and gas production.
(Reporting by Valerie Volcovici; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
