U.S. CODE

U.S. Code

§ 6217. Scientific inventory of oil and gas reserves

(a) In general

The Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Secretaries of Agriculture and Energy, shall conduct an inventory of all onshore Federal lands. The inventory shall identify—

(1) the United States Geological Survey estimates of the oil and gas resources underlying these lands;

(2) the extent and nature of any restrictions or impediments to the development of the resources, including—

(A) impediments to the timely granting of leases;

(B) post-lease restrictions, impediments, or delays on development for conditions of approval, applications for permits to drill, or processing of environmental permits; and

(3) the quantity of resources not produced or introduced into commerce because of the restrictions.

(b) Regular update

Once completed, the USGS resource estimates and the surface availability data as provided in subsection (a)(2) of this section shall be regularly updated and made publicly available.

The inventory shall be provided to the Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives and to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate within 2 years after November 9, 2000.

(d) Assessments

Using the inventory, the Secretary of Energy shall make periodic assessments of economically recoverable resources accounting for a range of parameters such as current costs, commodity prices, technology, and regulations.

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