Public Oil and Gas Lands Leasing Reform Act of 1979
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs.
Public Oil and Gas Lands Leasing Reform Act of 1979 - Amends the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920 to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to lease Federal lands with oil or gas deposits to the highest bidder by competitive bidding. Sets forth requirements and conditions for such bidding and leasing which will encourage diligent oil and gas exploration, development, and production. Repeals the provision concerning the primary term of such leases under such Act. Deletes the provisions concerning termination of leases because of cessation of production or failure to produce oil or gas in paying quantities. Directs the Secretary to prescribe a rule prohibiting the bidding for such leases by any person in which more than one major oil company, oil company affiliate, or both, have a significant ownership interest, with specified exceptions. Prohibits the Secretary from leasing to a major oil company more than ten percent of the available Federal lands having oil or gas deposits with specified exceptions. Revises the requirement under such Act which limits the assignment of oil and gas leases.
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 7, 1979. 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 bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on June 7, 1979: Referred to House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs.
- 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.
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?
GEORGE MILLER (D-CA) introduced it on June 7, 1979, and 10 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 10 Democrats.
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 7, 1979, 17262 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 17262 days ago, on June 7, 1979.
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