The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service has announced revisions to leasing regulations for federal oil and gas resources on National Forest System lands. The revisions establish a clearly defined leasing decision point, reduce duplicative analysis, improve response times to industry requests, reduce backlogs, accelerate lease issuance, and support timely processing of permit applications.
The revisions were issued in response to President Trump’s Declaration of a National Energy Emergency. The declaration identifies “affordable and reliable domestic supply of energy” as “a fundamental requirement for the national and economic security of any nation.” Claiming the urgent need to address America’s “precariously inadequate and intermittent energy supply, and an increasingly unreliable grid,” the declaration authorizes federal agencies to “identify and exercise any lawful emergency authorities available to them, as well as all other lawful authorities they may possess, to facilitate the identification, leasing, siting, production, transportation, refining, and generation of domestic energy resources, including, but not limited to, on Federal lands.”
Furthermore, Trump’s Executive Order “Unleashing American Energy” provides a detailed list of directives aimed at restoring American prosperity by cutting red tape preventing or delaying energy development.
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins stated: “This rule gives energy producers the certainty they need to expand supply to make energy more affordable, create jobs, and ensure America remains the dominant force in global energy markets – all while safeguarding forests and communities. Energy security is national security. These revisions create clarity and alignment across federal agencies, allowing our teams to move swiftly on leasing and permitting so American families and businesses can rely on affordable, dependable energy, while continuing to be good stewards of our public lands.”
The federal government’s cutting of red tape for the oil and gas industry contrasts sharply with Alaska State Representative Ashley Carrick’s “AIDEA Accountability Act,” introduced Jan 22, 2026. The Democrat-sponsored bill seeks to add legislative oversight to the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority that could delay or prevent key resource development projects in Alaska.