The Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) and Western Energy Alliance (WEA) welcomed the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s (SENRC) approval of legislation to extend “a successful program that funds oil and natural gas permitting activities on federal lands”, a joint statement sent to Rigzone by the groups announced.
This brings Congress “one step closer to preventing its expiration later this year”, according to the statement, which highlighted that the License to Drill Act, which is also known as S. 5039 or H.R. 7831, was passed with unanimous and bipartisan support by the committee.
The act reauthorizes the Permitting Project Improvement Fund (PPIF), which directs the fees paid for drilling permits by oil and natural gas producers to priority Bureau of Land Management (BLM) field offices to support leasing, permitting, inspections, and other energy-related duties, the statement outlined. The legislation was first introduced by Republican Congressman Mike Kennedy and passed the U.S. House of Representatives with “strong” bipartisan support in June, the joint statement highlighted, noting that in the Senate, Republican Chairman Mike Lee recently introduced a companion bill.
In the statement, the IPAA and WEA urged Congress to complete passage before the program expires in September and emphasized the importance of maintaining support for federal employees responsible for managing energy development on public lands.
The statement highlighted that oil and natural gas producers pay more than $12,500 for each Application for Permit to Drill submitted to the federal government. Revenue generated through those fees supports personnel and activities associated with reviewing permits and managing energy development on public lands, it notes, adding that the program has long received bipartisan support because it is funded entirely by industry-paid fees rather than taxpayer dollars.
Reauthorization would provide continued support for BLM offices responsible for overseeing approximately 10 percent of U.S. oil and natural gas production, the statement said.
Dan Naatz, IPAA EVP and Chief Policy Officer, said in the statement, “S.5039 reauthorizes a long-standing policy that is an important framework for federal land producers”.
“IPAA has championed this concept since its origins in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and proudly testified in support of the bill during its committee hearing earlier this year,” he added.
“The PPIF program has garnered bipartisan support in both the Senate and House in previous reauthorizations as the concept is sound – industry pays its own way. Extending the program preserves an industry-funded permitting system with a fee that is indexed to inflation, designed to improve agency resources, and reduce permitting delays,” he continued.
“We applaud Chairman Lee and the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s leadership, and we urge the full Senate to move this legislation forward expeditiously,” he went on to state.
WEA President Melissa Simpson said in the statement, “energy development depends on a permitting system that has the resources to function efficiently”.
“The Permitting Project Improvement Fund ensures that the fees paid by producers on public lands are reinvested into the permitting process and the federal workforce responsible for administering it,” Simpson added.
“This legislation helps ensure those offices have the resources they need to do their jobs. Allowing the program to expire would disrupt funding for field offices that play a critical role in managing energy development on federal lands,” Simpson said.
“We appreciate the leadership of Sen. Mike Lee and the committee’s action, and we encourage Congress to send this legislation to the president’s desk without delay,” Simpson continued.
The joint statement pointed out that the PPIF was created in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 as a pilot program. Following 10 years of success, Congress renewed it for an additional 10 years and expanded the program, the statement noted, adding that authorization for using drilling permit fees to fund portions of the PPIF expires in September.
In another statement sent to Rigzone, the American Exploration & Production Council (AXPC) praised the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee for advancing the License to Drill Act with bipartisan support and also urged “swift Senate passage”.
“At a time when investment in federal lands is reaching historic levels, ensuring BLM has the resources needed to process permits efficiently is critical to securing energy affordability,” AXPC CEO Anne Bradbury said in the statement.
“AXPC commends Chairman Lee the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee for advancing the License to Drill Act and taking a critical step towards increasing permitting certainty on federal lands and ensuring taxpayers fully realize the economic benefits of responsible oil and natural gas development,” Bradbury added.
“We urge the Senate to swiftly pass this critical legislation and send it to the president’s desk,” Bradbury continued.
In its statement, the AXPC highlighted that the committee vote followed “record setting” BLM lease sales that generated more than $4.1 billion in the second quarter, “demonstrating the pivotal role federal lands are positioned to play in strengthening America’s energy independence, securing energy affordability, and supporting state and local services”.
In a statement posted on its website on July 16, the Bureau of Land Management revealed that, from April through June, the organization sold 389 parcels totaling 355,456 acres for $4.1 billion in total receipts for its second quarter of calendar year 2026 oil and gas lease sales. Most of the revenue coming from New Mexico, that statement noted.
According to the congress website, H.R.7831 still needs to pass the Senate and go to the president to become law. A summary of the act on the site states that this bill extends through FY2037 the Bureau of Land Management’s authority to collect oil and gas permit processing fees.
“For each new permit application, BLM collects a fee that is transferred to the BLM Permit Processing Improvement Fund. (Under current law, the fees are authorized through FY2026),” the summary highlights.
For more information about the act passing the U.S. House of Representatives, click
To contact the author, email
