Bill > S1027

This bill, titled the American Energy and Western Jobs Act, aims to streamline oil and gas development on federal lands by rescinding certain previous policy directives from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), including specific instruction memoranda and a Secretarial Order, which are essentially official guidelines or directives. It also amends the Mineral Leasing Act to require the Secretary of the Interior to automatically issue oil and gas leases within 60 days of a successful bidder's payment, unless the lease can be issued sooner, and limits the time for judicial review of environmental impact statements related to oil and gas leasing to 60 days after their publication in the Federal Register. Furthermore, before modifying any onshore oil or natural gas leasing policies or policies protecting wilderness characteristics, the Secretary must conduct an economic impact assessment, consult with states and other stakeholders, and certify that the changes will not negatively affect employment in the oil and gas sector or increase reliance on foreign oil imports, nor will they lead to a loss of revenue for the federal government or affected states over a 10-year period, while also providing public notice and comment opportunities. The bill also mandates annual reports from the BLM and Forest Service detailing revenues generated from various uses of public lands, including specific categories like grazing, recreation, timber, and different types of mineral and energy development, and requires the Secretary of the Interior to establish a domestic production goal for federal onshore oil and natural gas, streamline permitting processes to meet this goal, and analyze the impact of proposed policies on achieving it. Finally, it directs the Secretary of the Interior to hold lease sales for oil shale research and development and apply specific regulations to the commercial leasing of federally owned oil shale.