The Montana Wildlife Federation applauds the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for finalizing its new oil and gas leasing rule. These long-awaited reforms represent a significant step forward for responsible energy development on public lands in Montana.
For too long, outdated leasing terms gave Montanans the short end of the stick. Over the past decade alone, Montanans have been deprived of a staggering $120 million in revenue due to loopholes. The BLM’s new rule addresses these issues head-on, ensuring a fairer return for taxpayers and responsible energy development that maintains wildlife habitat, and ensures oil and gas companies pay their fair share to clean up the messes they make on public lands.
How the BLM’s new rule benefits Montanans:
- Hardworking Montana families vs. record profits for out-of-state companies: Stronger clean-up and reclamation requirements ensure companies pay to clean up any mess they make on public lands, preventing abandoned well sites and protecting Montana taxpayers from footing the bill for restoration.
- A fair return for Montana taxpayers: The rule protects Montana taxpayers from unfair clean-up costs and ensures our public lands are better managed for local needs, not just oil and gas leasing and drilling. The new reforms provide a fair return to taxpayers by increasing fees for oil and gas development, bringing them in line with the levels required by Montana and other states like Wyoming and Texas.
- Reduced impacts on Montana’s wildlife: The rule steers oil and gas development away from important wildlife, recreation, and cultural sites. It reduces “speculative leasing,” which allows the oil and gas industry to tie up land in leases where drilling will never occur due to limited resources.
These changes reflect the values of Montanans. A recent poll found that a resounding 93% of Montanans support requiring oil and gas companies, rather than taxpayers, to pay for all of the clean-up and land restoration costs after drilling is finished. Additionally, 65% of Montanans support only allowing oil and gas companies the right to drill in areas where there is a high likelihood to actually produce oil and gas.
By enacting these reforms, the BLM is listening to Montana communities and prioritizing responsible energy development that benefits us all.
The Montana Wildlife Federation and its members remain committed to defending the oil and gas rule from misguided attempts to turn back the clock. We urge all Montanans to join us in protecting these popular and long-overdue reforms so that Montana’s hard-working taxpayers and families can finally get what they deserve from the development of our publicly owned resources. Together, we can ensure a future where responsible energy development coexists with healthy public lands, thriving wildlife populations, and a strong economy across our great state.
