Interior moves to relax rules for drilling on public lands

Energy & Environment Interior moves to relax rules for drilling on public lands Comments: by Rachel Frazin - 06/22/26 7:31 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Rachel Frazin - 06/22/26 7:31 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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The Trump administration is proposing to relax rules to make it easier for companies to drill for oil and gas on public lands.

The Interior Department, which oversees federal lands, said that it would propose to loosen two Biden-era regulations that sought to rein in planet-warming methane and ensure that energy companies are on the hook to clean up their used-up wells.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said the moves were being made to help the nation achieve “energy dominance.”

“These targeted updates cut through the red tape that has historically deterred investment, ensuring our public lands remain a reliable engine for economic growth and innovation,” Burgum said in a written statement.

In 2024, the Biden administration dramatically raised the cost of bonds that oil and gas companies have to pay the government to make sure their wells are cleaned up. The Trump administration is proposing to drop those rates back to their pre-Biden levels.

Also that year, the Biden administration sought to clamp down on methane emissions from oil and gas produced on federal lands.

Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas that is about 30 times as potent as carbon dioxide over a 100-year period. The main component of natural gas, it’s often released during oil and gas drilling, which exacerbates the fossil fuels’ climate impacts.

The Biden-era rule required oil and gas firms to either certify that they will capture all of the oil and gas produced by their wells or come up with a plan to reduce their methane releases.

The Trump administration is proposing to do away with that requirement. In a press release, it also said that it would revise definitions for when venting and flaring — both of which release methane — is authorized, though it did not specify what the new definition would be.

Environmental advocacy organizations criticized the Trump administration’s moves.

“When companies profit from the use of our natural resources, they should be responsible for restoring the damage they create,” said Aaron Kindle, director of sporting advocacy at the National Wildlife Federation, in a written statement. “We need bonding rates that ensure oil and gas companies, not taxpayers, pay for cleaning up after development so wildlife and clean water can persist for future generations.”