Onshore oil and gas leasing

(a) Mineral Leasing Act reforms (1) Protested lease sales Section 17(b)(1)(A) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(b)(1)(A)) is amended by inserting after the seventh sentence the following: The Secretary of the Interior shall resolve any protest to a lease sale within 60 days following such payment. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if the Secretary of the Interior denies a protest to a lease sale, any lease subject to the protest shall not be subject to further environmental review by the Secretary of the Interior pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).. (2) Effect of litigation Section 17 of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226) is amended by adding at the end the following: (r) Effect of litigation (1) In general A civil action relating to an environmental review under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), division A of subtitle III of title 54, United States Code (formerly known as the National Historic Preservation Act), or the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) with respect to a lease sale conducted under this section shall not— (A) affect the validity of a lease issued under the lease sale that is the subject of the civil action; or (B) except as provided in paragraph (3)(B), cause a delay in the timelines established under subsection (p)(2) for the consideration of an application for permit to drill with respect to a lease issued under the lease sale that is the subject of the civil action. (2) Remand; processing of applications for permit to drill If, in a civil action described in paragraph (1), the environmental review for a lease sale is found by the applicable court to violate the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.)— (A) notwithstanding chapter 5 or 7 of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as the Administrative Procedure Act), the applicable court shall not set aside the lease sale and vacate the leases issued pursuant to the sale but instead remand the matter to the Secretary of the Interior to resolve the violation; and (B) the Secretary of the Interior shall continue to process all applicable applications for permit to drill pursuant to subsection (p)(2). (3) Notice (A) In general Not later than 60 days after the date on which a civil action described in paragraph (1) is filed, the Secretary of the Interior shall notify the holder of any lease issued under the lease sale that is the subject of the civil action of the filing of the civil action. (B) Timeline Not later than 90 days after the date of receipt of a notice under subparagraph (A), the leaseholder may file with the Secretary of the Interior a request to pause the timeline under subsection (e)(1) with respect to the term of the lease during any period in which the civil action is pending.. (3) Lease cancellation Section 17 of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226) (as amended by paragraph (2)) is amended by adding at the end the following: (s) Lease cancellation A lease issued under this section shall be considered to be valid and not subject to cancellation by the Secretary of the Interior for any reason, except for— (1) the express written agreement to the cancellation by the lessee; or (2) a determination by the Secretary of the Interior that cancellation is appropriate in accordance with section 3108.30 of title 43, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of enactment of this subsection), subject to the limitation that a lease may not be determined to be improperly issued under that section based on a finding by a Federal court that the environmental review for the lease sale pursuant to which the lease was issued was in violation of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), division A of subtitle III of title 54, United States Code (formerly known as the National Historic Preservation Act), or the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).. (4) Limitations for filing oil and gas contests Section 42 of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226–2) is amended by striking the section designation and all that follows through the period at the end of the second sentence, and inserting the following: 42. Limitations for filing oil and gas contests (a) In general Notwithstanding chapter 5 or 7 of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as the Administrative Procedure Act), no action contesting a decision of the Secretary involving any oil and gas lease sale, individual lease, or individual permit shall be maintained unless the action is commenced or taken by not later than 60 days after the date on which the final decision of the Secretary relating to the action was made. (b) Jurisdiction An action contesting a decision of the Secretary may only be commenced— (1) for an individual lease or permit, in the district court of the United States for the district in which the property, or some part thereof, is located; and (2) for a lease sale, in a district court of the United States in the State in which the sale occurred. (c) Removal A defendant or defendant intervenor in an action challenging a lease sale, lease, or permit in multiple States may remove the action to the district court of the United States for the district in which the property is located pursuant to section 1441(c) of title 28, United States Code..