"Biden administration officials in recent weeks hosted private listening sessions with environmental groups and oil companies ahead of the release of proposed oil and gas regulations that could represent some of the White House’s most lasting steps on public lands to help address climate change.

Major oil companies like Exxon Mobil Corp., as well as influential environmental groups like the Sierra Club, met with Interior Department and White House officials, according to the administration’s regulatory agenda, in efforts to shape the long-anticipated draft regulations on bonding, fees and other economic aspects of drilling on public land.

Originally planned for release in 2022, the rules were heavily influenced by the Inflation Reduction Act, last year’s climate law that included new floors for bonding and royalties. A draft of the Interior Department’s rules is expected to come out by next month, according to recent testimony in a federal court case from Nada Culver, deputy director of policy and programs at the Bureau of Land Management."

Heather Richards reports for E&E News May 24, 2023. [2]