Peach Tree Times

Congresswoman Julia Letlow (R-LA) recently tweeted about President Biden's ban on new oil and gas leases, claiming it contributed to high gas prices.

Since Biden took office, he announced a moratorium on new federal oil leases, citing the climate crisis and his plans to transition to green energy.

"Because of this Administration's energy policies, our reserves are drastically depleted and offshore leasing has slowed to a halt. Increasing domestic production is the long-term solution that will keep Americans from paying outrageous prices at the pump," Letlow wrote in her tweet.

According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), federal oil leases have produced the lowest amount of domestic oil since the end of World War II under Biden. Biden leased 126,228 acres of federal land for drilling, compared to previous administrations that have leased no less than 4.4 million acres, the WSJ analysis found.

A WSJ graphic from the Bureau of Land Management and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management displays Biden has leased 0.13 million acres in his first 19 months. For comparison, President Bush leased 12.74 million acres, President Obama leased 7.25 million acres and President Trump leased 4.14 million acres. Although the numbers are progressively going down, the WSJ reports leases have “slowed to a trickle,” down 97% under the Biden Administration when compared to what it was under Trump.

The WSJ analysis also found the 203 federal oil and gas leases under the Biden Administration’s first 19 months is 3.2% of that of other presidents.

Georgia's average gas prices are up in 2022 at $3.242/gallon as of Sep. 12 compared to $2.976/gallon a year ago, according to AAA Gas Prices.

This comes as Biden fulfilled his campaign promise in his first week in office, issuing a moratorium for new federal leases, effectively a ban, according to the White House briefing room. Biden’s executive order, released Jan. 27, 2020, cited the “climate crisis” as the main reason for the moratorium. At that time, Biden said, “Climate considerations shall be an essential element of United States foreign policy and national security,” according to whitehouse.gov.

The order lays out ways the Administration will prioritize the climate crisis including whether it will “pause new oil and natural gas leases on public lands or in offshore waters pending completion of a comprehensive review.”

According to Senate voting records, Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) voted against an amendment “to cancel the Biden Administration's ban on oil and gas leasing on Federal land to help lower gasoline prices and reduce energy dependence on the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.”

Daniel Yergin, Vice Chair of S&P Global, argued that federal oil leases on American land have been a priority for previous administrations.

“Whether Democrats or Republicans, presidents have wanted to embrace the idea of energy independence and production,” the WSJ writes.

The rising prices of gas and energy have led critics to question the Biden Administration’s slowing of these federal leases.

“New leases are needed to maintain supply later, potentially helpful in averting future shortages and price surges, energy industry leaders say,” the WSJ reports. The Inflation Reduction Act requires “at least 2 million acres of federal land and 60 million offshore acres to oil and gas producers every year for the next decade” and the Interior Department plans to accept these terms.

This comes as WSJ reports federal leases on gas and oil are “potentially helpful in averting future shortages and price surges.” While environmentalists cheer Biden’s decision to steer away from fossil fuel production long term, some criticize the Administration for slowing the leases during an unstable time of high gas and energy costs, the report states.

Following Biden’s moratorium on federal oil leases in 2020, United States district Judge Terry Doughty issued a ruling against the moratorium saying the policy violated the Miners Leasing Act (MLA) and the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA). Attorney General Knudsen of Montana responded to the ruling saying, “President Biden’s executive order to choke off energy development didn’t just increase prices and hurt American families—it was flatly illegal.”

The ruling only applies to 13 states, including Montana. As of recent, the Biden Administration’s moratorium is back in place, Bloomberg reports.

With this, some have attributed the moratorium on federal oil leases to the recent rising gas prices, according to The Center Square.

“Canceling oil and gas leases is part of Biden’s ongoing punishing of the industry including threatening banks for lending and investment,” Daniel Turner, executive director of the energy workers advocacy group, Power the Future, told the Center Square. “We are all living the consequence: outrageously high prices and growing shortages.”