An Alaska Republican has introduced legislation that would zero out a Biden administration plan that critics said restricted oil and gas drilling on the state’s North Slope.
Rep. Nick Begich (R-Alaska) introduced the Congressional Review Act resolution, H.J. Res. 131, on Friday. It would strike down last year’s Bureau of Land Management plan outlining energy development in the state.
Republicans say the Biden plan defied the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which required BLM to hold lease sales within 10 years of the law’s enactment in areas known to be rich with hydrocarbons. Begich’s office did not provide comment on Tuesday.
The Congressional Review Act makes it easier for lawmakers to kill recent federal actions. In this case — as with a flurry of recent examples striking down Biden-era actions — the BLM never sent the plan to Congress as a “rule,” so the CRA clock never started.
