Reconsideration of Disposition of Receipts From Leases of Oil and Gas Rights Within the National Wildlife Refuge System

Reconsideration was requested of a decision concluding that receipts from oil and gas leases within wildlife refuges created by withdrawals of public land are to be distributed under 16 U.S.C. 715s rather than under the Mineral Leasing Act. Whether the lands were made part of the system by acquisition or by reservation from the public domain, receipts are required to be disposed of pursuant to 16 U.S.C. 715s rather than pursuant to the Mineral Leasing Act. The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act did not adopt the scheme of distribution in effect under the Mineral Leasing Act in 1959 when the Alaska Statehood Act was enacted and, therefore, does not repeal by implication the portion of the 16 U.S.C. 715s which is apparently in conflict with the Mineral Leasing Act.