The state maintains that the Interior Department must abide by 2017 Congressional mandate.
The state of Alaska sued President Biden’s administration this week, claiming that the Department of the Interior is not allowed to cancel oil and gas leases located in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
President Trump’s administration approved seven areas located within the refuge for oil and gas leasing in 2020, a move that the Alaskan government had been promoting for decades. But the current Interior Department reassessed the decision and canceled the leases, saying that the 19 million-acre area is one of the largest swaths of untouched wilderness remaining in America.
The leases were held by Alaska’s Industrial Development and Export Authority, which is now suing the Interior Department in an effort to restore them. The agency argues that, because of a tax bill Congress passed in 2017 requiring the Arctic to be opened up to drilling, the Interior Department legally cannot cancel the leases.
“The federal government is determined to strip away Alaska’s ability to support itself, and we have got to stop it,” stated Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For Governor Dunleavy as he advocates for the oil and gas industry in his state.
- For Secretary Haaland to be discerning as she heads the Interior Department.
- For the judge hearing the case to uphold the law impartially.
Sources: Reuters, Oil and Gas Journal
