WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of the Interior announced a series of policy proposals and agreements this week affecting offshore energy regulation, Alaska Native probate services, and wildlife management rules in Alaska’s national preserves.
What This Means for You
- Federal regulators are proposing to roll back offshore oil and gas financial requirements that officials say cost the industry hundreds of millions annually.
- A new federal-state agreement aims to speed up inheritance case processing for Alaska Native families.
- Interior officials also proposed restoring earlier hunting and trapping rules on Alaska’s national preserves.
The announcements include regulatory proposals and a new agreement between federal and state agencies. Some changes would take effect only after public review periods and additional rulemaking.
Offshore Oil and Gas Rule Changes
The Interior Department proposed revising regulations affecting offshore oil and gas operators on the Outer Continental Shelf, the federally managed ocean areas beyond state coastal waters where energy companies lease tracts to drill for oil and natural gas.
Officials say the proposal would reverse parts of a 2024 rule that required companies to set aside approximately $6,900,000,000 in supplemental financial assurance.
Financial assurance refers to money or guarantees companies must provide to cover the future cost of shutting down wells and removing offshore infrastructure when projects end.
Interior officials estimate the proposed change could save industry about $484,000,000 annually in compliance costs. About $6,000,000,000 of the previously required funds would have been paid by smaller operators, according to the department.
“For too long, Washington red tape has strangled American energy producers and held back small businesses,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said. “President Trump is delivering on his promise to put American workers first, cut burdensome regulations and unleash our vast energy potential.”
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the federal agency responsible for offshore energy leasing and oversight, said it would update how it evaluates financial risk using newer data and metrics while maintaining protections for taxpayers.
The proposed rule will be published in the Federal Register and open to public comment for 60 days.
Agreement Aims to Reduce Alaska Native Probate Backlog
Interior officials also announced a new agreement with the Alaska Department of Health designed to reduce a backlog of probate cases affecting Alaska Native families.
Probate is the legal process used to determine how property and assets are distributed after a person dies.
The agreement was signed in Alaska by Interior Deputy Secretary Kate MacGregor and Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy.
Officials say the backlog has delayed the transfer of property rights to Alaska Native beneficiaries.
“Interior is working hard to make a measurable improvement to the longstanding probate backlog so Alaskan native families can receive the property that rightfully belongs to them,” Burgum said.
The agreement takes the form of a memorandum of understanding, a formal partnership between agencies outlining how they will cooperate.
Under the arrangement, the Alaska Department of Health will work more closely with the Bureau of Indian Affairs to provide vital records needed to process probate cases. Vital records include documents such as birth and death certificates required to verify inheritance claims.
“Ensuring timely access to vital records is an important part of supporting Alaska Native families as probate cases move forward,” said Alaska Department of Health Commissioner Heidi Hedberg.
The agreement establishes new procedures for requesting records, sets processing timelines, and allows the agencies to develop future data-sharing agreements.
Proposed Wildlife Rule for Alaska Preserves
In a separate announcement, the Interior Department proposed restoring earlier hunting and trapping regulations on Alaska’s national preserves.
National preserves are federally protected lands within the National Park System where Congress allows activities such as hunting and trapping under certain conditions.
The proposal would reverse regulatory changes adopted in 2015, 2017, and 2024 and restore the framework established by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980.
That law governs how federal lands in Alaska are managed and includes provisions that prioritize subsistence hunting and fishing for rural residents.
“For decades, Alaska’s national preserves were managed under a framework that respected the State’s authority, protected subsistence uses and ensured conservation of wildlife resources,” Burgum said.
Interior officials said earlier federal rules created uncertainty by overriding some hunting methods authorized under Alaska state wildlife laws.
The proposed rule would restore those state-authorized practices, reinstate long-standing public consultation procedures for park closures, and remove provisions that federal officials said unnecessarily preempted state wildlife authority.
Public Comment Period
The wildlife rule proposal will also be published in the Federal Register and open to public comment for 60 days.
The National Park Service said it has begun preliminary outreach to Tribal governments and Alaska Native corporations and will conduct formal Tribal consultation during the rulemaking process.
Officials said all public and Tribal input will be reviewed before a final rule is issued.
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