House Republicans moved to undo the Biden administration’s land management plan for several states, arguing that it jeopardizes energy reliability by restricting fossil fuel and mining leases.
Republicans voted on three measures on Wednesday to disapprove the Biden administration’s Resource Management Plan Amendments for lands in Montana, North Dakota, and Alaska. The Bureau of Land Management’s RMP is an outline for managing specific public lands while maximizing their resources, but Republicans claim the amendments for these three states limit or block fossil fuel and mining production.
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The move by House Republicans is part of the Trump administration’s effort to revive the coal industry and increase production of critical minerals, thereby reducing reliance on foreign adversaries like China.
President Donald Trump signed four executive orders in April to revitalize the coal industry. One of those executive orders, “Reinvigorating America’s Beautiful Clean Coal Industry,” directed the Department of the Interior to open up public land for coal leasing.
Athan Manuel, director of the Sierra Club’s Lands Protection Program, told the Washington Examiner in a statement, “Today’s votes set a dangerous precedent for the management of our public lands. RMPs are carefully crafted plans developed with robust input from local communities, Tribes, and local stakeholders – they’re examples of how our system should work.”
“It’s concerning that House Republicans without expertise or local connections would inject themselves into this process, overrule the people most affected by the plans, and introduce chaos into the management of millions of acres of our most treasured public landscapes,” he added.
Specifically, lawmakers voted 211-208 to reverse Biden’s approval of a BLM RMP Amendment in Miles City, Montana. The amendment allocated 1,745,040 acres as unavailable for leasing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Rep. Troy Downing (R-MT) introduced the bill, saying the previous administration allocated zero acres for coal production.
Lawmakers voted 215-211 for legislation introduced by Rep. Julie Fedorchak (R-ND) that would repeal the BLM rule relating to land across North Dakota. The Biden plan limits the development of oil and gas and new coal leasing to areas within 4 miles of existing mines.
The RMP includes 58,500 acres of BLM-administered surface land and 4.1 million acres of BLM-administered mineral estate.
“North Dakotans saw the Biden administration’s plan for what it was: A backdoor attempt to shut down responsible energy development on federal lands. It would crush coal production, close off millions of acres to leasing, and devastate jobs and communities across our state,” Fedorchak said in a press release.
“This legislation overturns this harmful rule and restores common sense for North Dakota’s landowners and energy producers. We need energy policy that embraces innovation, not one that caters to out-of-touch activists at the expense of our energy security and economic strength,” she added.
Lastly, lawmakers voted 215-210 on a measure by Rep. Nick Begich (R-AK) that would reverse the Biden administration’s approval of the BLM’s RMP for the Central Yukon region of Alaska. The area comprises nearly 55.7 million acres, with about 13.3 million acres being public lands managed by the BLM Central Yukon Field Office.
Republicans argue that the amendment blocks pipeline, oil, and gas development in the region and limits mineral exploration.
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House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) said in a statement, “House Republicans are bringing legislation to stop these burdensome and damaging restrictions on energy development in the Central Yukon region of Alaska, unleashing American energy, safeguarding jobs, shoring up energy security, and lowering energy costs for hardworking Americans. It’s past time we unlock Alaska’s full potential and unleash its extensive energy and mineral resources.”
The three bills were introduced through the Congressional Review Act, a special legislative process allowing lawmakers to bypass the Senate filibuster and vote with a simple majority in both chambers to repeal recently implemented federal rules.
Republicans have been using the CRA to reverse many of the Biden administration’s regulations that are not aligned with the current Trump administration. Once a CRA resolution is signed into law, a federal agency cannot propose a similar rule in the future.