Appeals court sets date for offshore lease sale

Last week a federal judge ruled the Biden administration must go through with offshore lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico by Sept. 27 as originally planned and under original conditions. One week later, the 5th Circuit amended the ruling, pushing back the lease sale date to Nov. 8.

Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry, who sued over another restriction imposed on the industry, said the ruling was “a major win not only for the rule of law, but also for Louisiana jobs and affordable energy. At a time when working families are being squeezed by unaffordable Bidenomics, I am glad to deliver yet another victory defeating overreaching bureaucrats.

“Congress is clear: lease sales must take place; so we are grateful the Judge cut through the noise and upheld the law,” Landry added. He also said “our fight is far from over,” the initial ruling granted relief “against the President’s latest attack on reliable and affordable American energy.”

The U.S. oil and natural gas industry, led by the Gulf states of Texas and Louisiana, have set records in petroleum exports and led in exports of liquified natural gas in the first half of 2023.

The industry has also provided a “lifeline” to European countries reducing reliance on Russia and suffering from failed “green energy” policies, according to data previously reported on by The Center Square.

Last Thursday, Judge James Cain of the Western District of Louisiana granted the plaintiffs request for a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit filed against the Biden administration by the state of Louisiana, American Petroleum Institute (API) and petroleum companies, Chevron and Shell. They sued after the Biden administration attempted to hamper U.S. oil production again, as its repeatedly done since January 2021, they argued. This time, the attempt was through the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's (BOEM) restrictions on Lease Sale 261, which covers millions of acres in the Gulf of Mexico.