Washington, D.C. — In response to the Interior Department announcing steps it will take to review the oil and gas drilling system on our public lands and offshore waters, the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) issued the following statement from Conservation Program Director Alex Taurel:

“We welcome the Biden administration’s review of the federal oil and gas drilling system that has rewarded oil industry executives at the expense of our public lands and waters for decades. It’s long past time to pause and take a hard look at the broken leasing system that is enriching Big Oil while fleecing taxpayers, harming our majestic public lands and waters, worsening climate change, and polluting communities, most often communities of color and low-wealth communities. It comes as no surprise that oil industry CEOs are saying ‘the sky is falling’ at any attempt to cut their taxpayer subsidies or give the public more of a voice in how our public lands should be managed.”

The Biden administration is right to review this program and ensure it aligns with the best interests of taxpayers, our health, our public lands, and our climate. We must work with communities to urgently move away from volatile and declining boom-and-bust economies in ways that keep communities and families whole.”

For more information on the broken leasing system and why a pause and top-to-bottom review are necessary, check out the facts we laid out here. 

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