A bill to require the Secretary of the Interior to annually submit to Congress, and make publicly available on a website, a report on decommissioning offshore oil and gas wells, platforms, and pipelines.
About This Bill
Committee
Latest Action · December 12, 2024
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
The Plug Offshore Wells Act requires the Secretary of the Interior to submit annual reports to Congress and publish them online detailing the status of offshore oil and gas well decommissioning activities. The reports, which must begin within two years of enactment and continue every year thereafter, will track the number of decommissioning applications received, wells and platforms that missed required removal deadlines, structures approved to remain in place, pipelines that were removed versus left in place, and enforcement actions taken against companies for noncompliance. This legislation affects oil and gas companies operating in federal offshore waters, as well as the Interior Department's Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, which oversees the decommissioning process. The bill creates transparency requirements with no new federal funding specified, allowing Congress and the public to monitor whether offshore energy infrastructure is being properly cleaned up when operations cease. The reporting requirement has no specific sunset date and will continue indefinitely once established.
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