An article published by Rachel Jacobson and Kayla Byers, originally published in the June 2018 edition of the American Bar Association's Public Land and Resources Committee Newsletter.

Excerpt: The Trump administration's focus on "energy dominance" and promotion of domestic production not only throughout the continental United States, but also across the nation's vast Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) has been no secret. Within months of taking office, President Trump issued an executive order, Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy (Exec. Order No. 13,795 (Apr. 28, 2017)), announcing a policy of "encourag[ing] energy exploration and production, including on the [OCS], in order to maintain the Nation's position as a global energy leader and foster energy security." A major step toward implementation of this policy occurred in January 2018, when the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)— the agency responsible for OCS management within the Department of the Interior (DOI)—issued a 2019–2024 Draft Proposed Program (DPP), which centers on offshore oil and gas leasing but also addresses renewable energy. The OCS planning and leasing will be funded by the $171 million appropriated to BOEM in the omnibus spending bill for FY 2018 that President Trump signed into law on March 23, 2018.

Read the full article, starting on page 6.

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