Unlocking America's Energy Resources Act
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries.
Unlocking America's Energy Resources Act - Directs the President to order the removal of administrative restrictions not required by Federal law or court order which impede the leasing of energy resources on Federal lands or on the Outer Continental Shelf. Requires the President to institute policies which will give priority to the expeditious leasing and development and production of oil, natural gas, coal, oil shale, tar sands, and geothermal resources on Federal lands. Requires the President to submit to an advisory panel a list of restrictions required by Federal law or court order which impede the leasing of energy resources on Federal lands or on the Outer Continental Shelf. Directs the panel to review the restrictions submitted by the President and submit to Congress and the President a report on: (1) the reasonableness of such restrictions; and (2) appropriate legislative or administrative actions to reduce or eliminate impediments to the leasing of energy resources on Federal lands or the Outer Continental Shelf. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to order substantial lease sales, for private development only, within the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. Bars civil actions challenging any such lease sale which are brought more than 30 days after the date such lease sale is announced. Exempts any such lease sale from the environmental impact statement requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act. Requires the President to direct that leasing priority be given to areas of the Outer Continental Shelf that have the highest hydrocarbon potential and known hydrocarbon reserves. Sets forth the conditions for the issuance of Outer Continental Shelf leases by the Secretary of the Interior. Sets forth the requirements for the appointment by the President of members of the advisory panel.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on June 16, 1980. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this joint resolution could become law.
The record's latest action, on June 16, 1980: Referred to House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
What is a joint resolution, exactly?
A joint resolution travels the same road as a bill: both chambers pass it and the President signs it, and it then has the same force as any other law. The label is largely a matter of custom, often used for narrow or time-limited measures.
One exception matters. A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution is not sent to the President at all. It goes to the states, and three quarters of them have to ratify it.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
EDWIN FORSYTHE (R-NJ) introduced it on June 16, 1980, and 20 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 3 Democrats, 17 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on June 16, 1980, 16887 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 16887 days ago, on June 16, 1980.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers