Federal Leasing Policy--Is the Split Responsibility Working?
EMD-79-60: Published: Jun 4, 1979. Publicly Released: Jun 4, 1979.
Additional Materials:
- Full Report:
Contact:
The Leasing Liaison Committee established to coordinate efforts between the Departments of Energy (DOE) and the Department of the Interior is leasing federal lands. When DOE was established, responsibilities related to the leasing of federal lands for energy resources were transferred from Interior to DOE. All authorities not specifically transferred were retained by Interior, which had sole responsibility for the issuance and supervision of federal land leases. The Leasing Liaison Committee is composed of an equal number of representatives from each department. According to the charter, the Committee is not a policymaking body, but it may address policy issues and make recommendations to the respective secretaries.
The split leasing responsibility is not working smoothly. One of the basic concepts of the split was to provide DOE with the focus for energy planning and policy making. Although not specifically required by legislation, the departments have agreed to establish production goals for each federal energy resource. These goals have become the basic area of conflict between the two with each interpreting differently how these goals are to be used. The Committee's charter gave no specific guidelines on how to resolve jurisdictional problems.
Recommendation for Executive Action
Status: Closed
Comments: Please call 202/512-6100 for additional information.
Recommendation: The Secretary of Energy should issue, by January 1, 1980, final regulations defining the role, responsibilities, and interrelationship of DOE with Interior on the development and use of production goals. These regulations should: (1) define the central role of DOE in federal energy policymaking; (2) define the production goals as a primary component of federal leasing policies; (3) provide for 60-day review by Interior before publication of them; and (4) allow for public access to the documents supporting the production goals. The Secretary of the Interior should by the same date develop regulations which are consistent with DOE final regulations related to the use of production goals. Specifically, these regulations should include Interior's primary role and responsibility in federal land use management; define production goals as a primary component; provide for 60-day review of DOE goals before publication; and require Interior to indicate in writing to DOE whether or not it can meet production goals, and the rationale if these goals are not attainable.
Agency Affected:
Explore the full database of GAO's Open Recommendations
»
Mar 12, 2018
-
Chemical Innovation:
Technologies to Make Processes and Products More SustainableGAO-18-307: Published: Feb 8, 2018. Publicly Released: Mar 12, 2018.
Feb 22, 2018
-
Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration:
Competitive Grant Programs Managed Consistently with Relevant Regulations, but Monitoring Could Be ImprovedGAO-18-303: Published: Feb 22, 2018. Publicly Released: Feb 22, 2018.
Jan 26, 2018
-
Water and Wastewater Workforce:
Recruiting Approaches Helped Industry Hire Operators, but Additional EPA Guidance Could Help Identify Future NeedsGAO-18-102: Published: Jan 26, 2018. Publicly Released: Jan 26, 2018.
Jan 19, 2018
-
Offshore Seismic Surveys:
Additional Guidance Needed to Help Ensure Timely ReviewsGAO-18-342T: Published: Jan 19, 2018. Publicly Released: Jan 19, 2018.
Jan 4, 2018
-
Offshore Seismic Surveys:
Additional Guidance Needed to Help Ensure Timely ReviewsGAO-18-60: Published: Dec 11, 2017. Publicly Released: Jan 4, 2018.
Dec 22, 2017
-
Natural Gas Storage:
Department of Transportation Could Take Additional Steps to Improve Safety Enforcement PlanningGAO-18-89: Published: Nov 22, 2017. Publicly Released: Dec 22, 2017.
Dec 13, 2017
-
Climate Change Adaptation:
DOD Needs to Better Incorporate Adaptation into Planning and Collaboration at Overseas InstallationsGAO-18-206: Published: Nov 13, 2017. Publicly Released: Dec 13, 2017.
Nov 15, 2017
-
Plutonium Disposition:
Observations on DOE and Army Corps Assessments of the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility ContractGAO-18-122R: Published: Nov 15, 2017. Publicly Released: Nov 15, 2017.
Nov 2, 2017
-
Strategic Petroleum Reserve:
Preliminary Observations on the Emergency Oil StockpileGAO-18-209T: Published: Nov 2, 2017. Publicly Released: Nov 2, 2017.
Oct 30, 2017
-
Stormwater Management:
EPA Pilot Project to Increase Use of Green Infrastructure Could Benefit from Documenting Collaborative AgreementsGAO-17-750: Published: Sep 28, 2017. Publicly Released: Oct 30, 2017.
Looking for more? Browse all our products here