MAR/APR 2025 ENVIRONMENTAL LAW REPORTER 55 ELR 10153
RESTRICTING OIL AND GAS LEASES
THROUGH WITHDRAWALS UNDER
OCSLA: CAN A PRESIDENT RESCIND?
by Carol J. Miller
Carol J. Miller, Esq., is a Distinguished Professor at Missouri State University,
where she teaches business law and environmental law.
President Donald Trump’s executive orders make
it clear that he will again prioritize oil and natura l
gas exploration and production over climate change
considerations,1 enda ngered species protections,2 and other
types of energy production. Central to t hat goal is the
debate over access to or withdrawal of public lands and
waters where key oil or gas reserves may ex ist.
On January 6, 2025, President Joseph Biden used Outer
Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSL A) §12(a) presidential
authority to “withdraw” future oil and gas lea se sales, pro-
tecting coasta l waters on both coasts, much of the east-
ern Gulf of Mexico, and the Northern Bering Sea Climate
Resilience A rea.3 is was designated as a permanent with-
drawal “without specic expiration.” President Trump then
issued an Executive Order rescinding President Biden’s
broad OCSLA withdrawal, despite the lack of specically
delegated authority to rescind prior withdrawals.4 ese
withdrawals have been cha llenged in two court c ases.5
President Trump declared a “national energy emer-
gency” on day one of his second term, ordering agen-
cies to expedite oil and gas permitting.6 His January 20,
2025, Executive Order No. 14154, Unleashing American
Energy, species that it is the policy of the Trump Admin-
istration “to encourag e energy exploration a nd production
on Federal lands and waters, including the Outer Con-
tinental Shelf,” and it orders the immediate review of all
agency actions that “Potentially Burden the Development
1. Exec. Order No. 14162, Putting America First in International Environ-
mental Agreements, 90 Fed. Reg. 8455 (Jan. 30, 2025).
2. Exec. Order No. 14256, §6(a), (c), Declaring a National Energy Emergen-
cy, 90 Fed. Reg. 8433 (Jan. 29, 2025).
3. Presidential Memorandum of Jan. 6, 2025, Withdrawal of Certain Areas of
the United States Outer Continental Shelf From Oil or Natural Gas Leas-
ing, 90 Fed. Reg. 6739 (Jan. 17, 2025); Presidential Memorandum of Jan.
6, 2025, Withdrawal of Certain Areas of the United States Outer Conti-
nental Shelf From Oil or Natural Gas Leasing, 90 Fed. Reg. 6743 (Jan. 17,
2025). See infra Figures 1 and 2.
4. Exec. Order No. 14148, §2, Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Or-
ders and Actions, 90 Fed. Reg. 8237 (Jan. 28, 2025).
5. Complaint at 5, Texas v. Biden, No. 9:25-cv-00010 (E.D. Tex. led Jan. 20,
2025); Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief at 24, Louisiana v.
Biden, No. 2:25-cv-00071 (W.D. La. led Jan. 17, 2025).
6. Exec. Order No. 14256, §6(a), (c), Declaring a National Energy Emergen-
cy, 90 Fed. Reg. 8433 (Jan. 29, 2025) (directing the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) to minimize Endangered Species Act (ESA) ob-
stacles to energy infrastructure).
of Domestic Energy Resources.”7 He also issued a tempo-
rary withdrawa l of all of the outer continental shelf (OCS)
from oshore wind leasing “for any new or renewed wind
energy leasing for the purposes of generation of electricity.”8
In response to President Trump’s Executive Orders, BP
announced that it is cutting renewable energy investment
by $5 billion and increasing oil and gas investment by $10
billion annually.9
ere is a deep inventory of exploration opportunities,
especially in the Gulf of Mexico. Federal lands account for
24% of U.S. oil and gas production.10 Leasing activities
generate more than $7 billion in revenue per year, accord-
ing to the American Petroleum Institute.11 In supportin g its
prohibition on future lease sales, the Biden Administrat ion
noted that the oil and gas industr y has stockpiled millions
of acres of leases on public lands and waters:
yOshore, of the more than 12 million acres of public
waters under lease, more than 9.3 million (or 77%)
of those acres are unused and nonproducing.
yOnshore, of the more than 26 million acres under
lease to the oil and gas industr y, nearly 13.9 million
(or 53%) of those acres are unused and nonproducing.
yOnshore and oshore, the oil and gas industry is sit-
ting on approximately 7,700 unused, approved per-
mits to drill.12
7. Exec. Order No. 14154, §§2, 3, Unleashing American Energy, 90 Fed. Reg.
8353 (Jan. 29, 2025) (terminating disbursement of funds for electric vehicle
charging stations).
8. Presidential Memorandum of Jan. 20, 2025, Temporary Withdrawal of All
Areas on the Outer Continental Shelf From Oshore Wind Leasing and
Review of the Federal Government’s Leasing and Permitting Practices for
Wind Projects, 90 Fed. Reg. 8363 (Jan. 29, 2025).
9. Arunima Kumar, BP Cuts Renewable Investment and Boosts Oil and Gas in
Strategy Shift, R (Feb. 26, 2025), https://www.reuters.com/markets/
commodities/bp-ramps-up-oil-gas-spending-10-billion-ceo-rebuilds-con-
dence-2025-02-26/.
10. Ben Cahill, Biden Makes Sweeping Changes to Oil and Gas Policy, C.
S I’ S. (Jan. 28, 2021), https://www.csis.org/analysis/
biden-makes-sweeping-changes-oil-and-gas-policy.
11. Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief at 1, Louisiana v. Biden,
No. 2:25-cv-00071 (W.D. La. led Jan. 17, 2025).
12. Fact Sheet, U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), President Biden to Take
Action to Uphold Commitment to Restore Balance on Public Lands and
Waters, Invest in Clean Energy Future (Jan. 27, 2021), https://www.doi.
