[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3882 Introduced in House (IH)]
112th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 3882
To require inclusion of Lease Sale 220 in the proposed Outer
Continental Shelf oil and gas leasing program for the 2012-2017 period,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 2, 2012
Mr. Rigell (for himself, Mr. Wittman, Mr. Hurt, Mr. Goodlatte, and Mr.
Griffith of Virginia) introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require inclusion of Lease Sale 220 in the proposed Outer
Continental Shelf oil and gas leasing program for the 2012-2017 period,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Mid-Atlantic Energy and Jobs Act of
2012''.
SEC. 2. LEASE SALE 220 AND OTHER LEASE SALES IN THE MID-ATLANTIC
PLANNING AREA.
(a) Inclusion in Leasing Programs.--The Secretary of the Interior
shall--
(1) upon enactment of this Act, revise the proposed Outer
Continental Shelf oil and gas leasing program for the 2012-2017
period to include in such program Lease Sale 220 off the coast
of Virginia; and
(2) include the Outer Continental Shelf off the coast of
Virginia in the leasing program for each 5-year period after
the 2012-2017 period.
(b) Conduct of Lease Sales.--As soon as practicable, but not later
than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of
the Interior shall carry out under section 8 of the Outer Continental
Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1337)--
(1) Lease Sale 220; and
(2) lease sales for any other areas of the Outer
Continental Shelf that are included in the Mid-Atlantic
planning area as a result of the map revision required under
section 5.
SEC. 3. PROTECTION OF MILITARY OPERATIONS.
(a) Prohibition.--No person may engage in any exploration,
development, or production of oil or natural gas off the coast of
Virginia that would conflict with any military operation, as determined
in accordance with the Memorandum of Agreement between the Department
of Defense and the Department of the Interior on Mutual Concerns on the
Outer Continental Shelf signed July 20, 1983, and any revision or
replacement for that agreement that is agreed to by the Secretary of
Defense and the Secretary of the Interior after that date but before
the date of issuance of the lease under which such exploration,
development, or production is conducted.
(b) Review and Updating of MOA.--The Secretary of the Interior and
the Secretary of Defense shall periodically review and revise such
memorandum of agreement to account for new offshore energy production
technologies, including those that use wind energy.
SEC. 4. REVENUE SHARING.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding section 9 of the Outer Continental
Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1338) and subject to the other provisions of
this section, for each applicable fiscal year, the Secretary of the
Treasury shall deposit--
(1) 50 percent of any qualified revenues in the general
fund of the Treasury; and
(2) 50 percent of any qualified revenues in a special
account in the Treasury for use in accordance with subsection
(b).
(b) Disposition of Revenues to State.--Of the qualified revenues
deposited under subsection (a)(2)--
(1) 75 percent shall be disbursed to the Mid-Atlantic State
from the administrative planning area of which the qualified
revenues were generated, based on the map referred to in
section 5 (as revised under that section, except as provided in
section 5(b)); and
(2) 25 percent shall be used, at the discretion of the
Governor of such State--
(A) for environmental cleanup and restoration
purposes within that State; and
(B) to enhance the ability of the public to access
public lands within that State.
(c) Definitions.--In this section--
(1) the term ``Mid-Atlantic State'' means each of the
States of Delaware, North Carolina, Maryland, and Virginia; and
(2) the term ``qualified revenues'' means bonus bids,
rental payments, and royalties received by the United States
for leases of areas of the Outer Continental Shelf off the
coast of a Mid-Atlantic State for exploration, development, and
production of oil and gas or wind power.
SEC. 5. OCS ADMINISTRATIVE PLANNING AREAS MID-ATLANTIC STATES.
(a) Revision of Map.--Subject to subsection (b), the Secretary of
the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management,
shall revise the map entitled ``Atlantic NAD 83 Federal Outer
Continental Shelf (OCS) Administrative Boundaries'' and dated January
2010, to make the best effort to ensure that the northern and southern
boundaries of the Outer Continental Shelf administrative planning area
of each Mid-Atlantic State extends from the coastal shoreline at the
northern and southern borders, respectively, of such State to the outer
boundary of the Exclusive Economic Zone.
(b) Limitation.--Nothing in this section affects any administrative
planning area for purposes of Lease Sale 220.
(c) Definition of Mid-Atlantic State.--In this section, the term
``Mid-Atlantic State'' means each of the States of Delaware, North
Carolina, Maryland, and Virginia.
SEC. 6. OFFSHORE METEOROLOGICAL SITE TESTING AND MONITORING PROJECTS.
(a) Offshore Meteorological Project Permitting.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of the Interior shall by
regulation require that any applicant seeking to conduct an
offshore meteorological site testing and monitoring project on
the outer Continental Shelf (as that term is defined in the
Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.))
must obtain a permit and right of way for the project in
accordance with this subsection.
(2) Permit and right-of-way timeline and conditions.--
(A) Deadline for approval.--The Secretary shall
decide whether to issue a permit and right of way for
an offshore meteorological site testing and monitoring
project within 30 days after receiving an application.
(B) Public comment and consultation.--During the
period referred to in subparagraph (A), the Secretary
shall--
(i) provide an opportunity for submission
of comments by the public; and
(ii) consult with the Secretary of Defense,
the Commandant of the Coast Guard, and the
heads of other Federal, State, and local
agencies that would be affected by issuance of
the permit and right of way.
(C) Denial of permit; opportunity to remedy
deficiencies.--If the application is denied, the
Secretary shall provide the applicant--
(i) in writing, clear and comprehensive
reasons why the application was not approved
and detailed information concerning any
deficiencies in the application; and
(ii) an opportunity to remedy such
deficiencies.
(b) NEPA Exclusion.--Section 102(2)(C) of the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)) shall not apply
with respect to an offshore meteorological site testing and monitoring
project.
(c) Protection of Information.--The information provided to the
Secretary of the Interior pursuant to subsection (d)(3) shall be
treated by the Secretary as proprietary information and protected
against disclosure.
(d) Definition of an Offshore Meteorological Site Testing and
Monitoring Project.--In this section, the term ``offshore
meteorological site testing and monitoring project'' means a project
carried out on or in the waters of the Outer Continental Shelf
administered by the Department of the Interior to test or monitor
weather (including wind, tidal, current, and solar energy) using
towers, buoys, or other temporary ocean infrastructure, that--
(1) causes--
(A) less than 1 acre of surface or seafloor
disruption at the location of each meteorological tower
or other device; and
(B) not more than 5 acres of surface or seafloor
disruption within the proposed area affected by for the
project (including hazards to navigation);
(2) is decommissioned not more than 5 years after the date
of commencement of the project, including--
(A) removal of towers, buoys, or other temporary
ocean infrastructure from the project site; and
(B) restoration of the project site to
approximately the original condition of the site; and
(3) provides meteorological information obtained by the
project to the Secretary of the Interior.
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