Reconciliation Bill Sells Out More Than 80 Million Ocean Acres for New Offshore Drilling Every Year

You’ve heard the news about an alarming attempt to sell off millions of acres of public lands by Congress, but what you likely haven’t heard is that the same bill would sell leases on over 80 million acres of the ocean for new offshore oil and gas drilling — and that’s just in year one. Over a 15-year timeframe, 1.2 billion acres of the ocean could be exploited. Here’s why that’s a problem and what you can do about it.

Congress and the Trump administration have been touting the benefits of a massive budget reconciliation bill said to provide tax cuts and increase energy production. But at what cost to the American people and our nation’s ocean, coasts and public lands? 

Not only would this “Big Beautiful Bill” increase the budget deficit by an estimated $2.8 trillion dollars, the bill would slash public health programs, scale back pollution prevention regulations, cut funding for coastal resilience and weather forecasting, and trade cherished public lands and waters for oil and gas drilling, mineral extraction, logging, and development. When it comes to more cost-effective and environmentally friendly energy sources, the bill not only fails to support renewables, it actively impedes progress made to date by revoking tax credits previously established to expand renewable energy and increase energy efficiency.

To make up for the huge price tag of the bill, lawmakers were proposing to sell off beloved public lands to developers, and are now mandating the sale of offshore oil and gas leases on over 80 million acres of the ocean‘s Outer Continental Shelf (“OCS”) in the Gulf of Mexico every year for 15 years for new offshore oil and gas drilling. 

Lawmakers also include a provision to require the sale of offshore oil and gas leases covering six million acres of the ocean’s OCS in Alaska’s Cook Inlet. If this wasn’t a big enough handout to oil and gas developers, the bill would reduce the royalty rates that industry must pay to drill in public waters while also limiting environmental review. In other words, this bill would require new offshore oil lease sales, all while making the already risky and damaging practice of offshore oil drilling less regulated and more prone to operational accidents, like blowouts and oil spills.

Since 1969, at least 48 large oil spills (over 10,000 barrels or 420,000 gallons) have occurred in our waterways, with the most damaging being the Deep Water Horizon Spill in 2010. Eleven people lost their lives and an estimated 134 million gallons of oil spewed into the ocean, smothering marine life and tarnishing coastlines of Gulf states. Now, fifteen years later, the ecological and economic damages caused by that spill are still being felt by local communities. With thousands of oil spills happening every year, the question is not if an oil spill will occur, but when. 

More than 400 municipalities, 2,500 elected officials, 55,000 businesses, and 500,000 fishing families have expressed opposition to new offshore oil and gas development. One of the main reasons is because offshore drilling directly threatens the nation’s thriving ocean tourism and recreation economies, which provide nearly ten times as many jobs as the offshore oil industry. Even in the Gulf, where most offshore drilling occurs, the ocean-dependent sectors of tourism, recreation, and fishing in every Gulf state, except Texas, continue to provide the largest employment contributions; yet these livelihoods and economic benefits rely on a clean, healthy coastline, which will be put at risk by an inevitable oil spill. 

Whether you’re an angler, surfer, diver, beachgoer, or someone who simply appreciates beautiful beaches and an ocean abundant with life, now is the time to speak up. Contact your federal representatives and tell them that you will not tolerate provisions to sell out our ocean for new drilling. This bill has already passed the Senate, and the House plans to vote on the updated version as soon as this week. Take action today — call your congressional representatives and/or sign this alert to stop new offshore drilling, and this alert to protect NOAA funding.