The Bureau of Land Management Eastern States State Office opened a public scoping period to receive public input on three oil and gas parcels totaling 2,065 acres that may be included in a September 2025 lease sale in Louisiana and Michigan. The comment period ends Jan. 14, 2025.
The lease sale will include two parcels totaling 88 acres in Greene County, Miss., that received no bids during a March 2024 lease sale. Public scoping of these parcels was completed in Nov. 2023. The environmental analysis and related information for these parcels are available on the BLM’s ePlanning website at: https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2026780/510.?
The parcels the BLM is analyzing, as well as maps and instructions on how to comment, are available on the BLM’s ePlanning website at:
Louisiana: https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2035478/510
Michigan: https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2035566/510
The terms of federal fluid mineral leases will be consistent with the Fluid Minerals Leasing and Leasing Process Rule, which reflects Congressional direction from the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, including a 16.67 percent royalty rate for production on any new leases. Revenues are split between the state where the drilling occurs and the U.S. Treasury.
Leasing is the first step in the process to develop federal oil and gas resources. Before development operations can begin, an operator must submit an application for permit to drill detailing development plans. The BLM reviews applications for permits to drill, posts them for public review, conducts an environmental analysis and coordinates with state partners and stakeholders.
All parcels that are included in a federal oil and gas lease sale include appropriate stipulations to protect important natural resources. Information on current and upcoming BLM leases is available through the National Fluid Lease Sale System.