This bill makes changes to the federal Orphan Well Grant Program, which provides funding to states for plugging and remediating abandoned oil and gas wells. The legislation removes a requirement that states measure methane emissions from these wells or conduct other specified environmental monitoring activities as a condition of receiving grant funding, though states may still choose to do this work if they wish. The bill also directs the Secretary of the Interior to commission a study by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine within 180 days to examine how orphan well plugging projects have affected economic development, housing trends, water quality, and other community benefits in areas with significant remediation activity, with results due within 18 months. The study will include input from at least one state in each U.S. region and consultation with relevant federal agencies and the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission. No new funding is required, as the study will use existing departmental resources.
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