US House resources chairman calls for GAO study of E&P delays
By OGJ editors
WASHINGTON, DC, July 21 -- US House Committee on Resources Chairman Richard W. Pombo (R-Calif.) Monday said he has asked the US General Accounting Office (GAO) to conduct an inventory and report of all administrative appeals and judicial litigation that delay "critical" US energy exploration and production projects.
"Expert testimony at several congressional oversight hearings confirms that critical energy projects are often delayed by unnecessary appeals and litigation," Pombo said. "The GAO study will identify the litigants, the number of cases, and the federal laws at issue in these cases. This data will help Congress assess the economic impact of these suits, both on the energy market and on the consumer, as we continue to examine the roadblocks in getting our energy supplies to market in America."
Along with House Committee on Energy and Commerce Chairman Billy Tauzin (R-La.), Pombo is cochair of the Speaker's Task Force for Affordable Natural Gas. The group is holding a series of nationwide meetings to identify potential causes, economic impacts and short- and long-term solutions to what Pombo and Tauzin have labeled a natural gas "crisis."
Energy project analysis wanted
In his letter to GAO, Pombo stressed he does not want GAO to limit its study to natural gas. He also wants the independent agency to look at appeals and litigation delays on oil, hydroelectric, coal, wind, and other energy projects on nonpark federal lands. He wants GAO to give him their analysis by Sept. 1. The task force's own report is due to House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) by Sept. 30.
Pombo maintains that in many cases, both Congress and federal agencies have failed to update old regulations to keep up with advances in American technology for energy development. This, he said, has led to unnecessary—perhaps even frivolous#&151;legal challenges and administrative appeals that negatively impact supply.
Pombo's views are embraced by oil companies, particularly small independents, but rejected by most Western-based environmental groups who say recent federal studies show companies already have plenty of nearly unfettered access to resource-rich public lands.
Meanwhile, US Interior officials last month told House lawmakers that federal land managers recognize further improvements are needed to reduce oil and gas permitting delays. A new Rocky Mountain energy council made up of state and federal regulators aims to speed up permits in the region, for example.