A federal judge has affirmed the Biden administration’s decision to postpone oil and gas leases in 2021 under the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, which grants the secretary of the Interior authority to lease parcels for developing natural resources.
U.S. District Judge Scott Skavdahl rejected arguments by the state of Wyoming, Western Energy Alliance and the Petroleum Association of Wyoming and found that the Bureau of Land Management acted within its legal authority under the mineral act and other laws when postponing the leases.
The state and oil companies filed suit under the Administrative Procedures Act, challenging the final action by the Biden administration. Still, Skavdahl stated a final agency action did not exist in the administrative record for leases in the first quarter of 2021.
The Wyoming ruling follows an Aug. 18 ruling from the Western District of Louisiana that permits the government to postpone sales based on the National Environmental Policy Act and other concerns.
