Claim: Oil Drilling has only increased since Joe Biden took office.
Fact: There is a backlog of drilling applications due to an increase in applications under the previous administration, and a federal judge overturned President Biden’s pause on new drilling on public land.
During his time as President, Donald Trump drastically reduced the time needed to review drilling applications. In addition to this, after Joe Biden’s win, companies rushed to lock in drilling rights before the President-elect could take office and implement his pledge changes.
His first week in office, Joe Biden placed a freeze on new drilling on public lands. However, this did nothing to affect large reserves already under lease. In addition to this, the executive order was overturned by a Trump-appointed federal judge, Judge Terry Doughty of the US District Court for the Western District of Louisiana concluded, who claimed that the Biden administration’s pause violated the law, including the Mineral Leasing Act, which requires that the interior hold quarterly
So why doesn’t Joe Biden simply ban drilling on public lands?
Simply put, he doesn’t have the legal authority to do so. Under the Mineral Leasing Act, the Department of Interior is required to lease available land for oil and gas production.
