Senate Votes to Overturn Biden-Era Restrictions for Resource Development on Alaska’s Coastal Plain

WASHINGTON-Earlier today, the U.S. Senate voted to overturn an unlawful and restrictive Record of Decision (ROD) for the Coastal Plain oil and gas program that the Biden administration imposed in December 2024. The Senate moved yesterday to begin debate on S.J. Res. 91, sponsored by Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan (both R-Alaska), before voting to pass H.J. Res. 131, from Congressman Nick Begich (also R-Alaska). The Senate moved the House resolution because it can go directly to the President's desk for signature.

These disapproval resolutions overturn the Biden administration's unilateral rewrite of the Coastal Plain program. Through its ROD, the Biden administration restricted leasing on more than 74 percent of the Coastal Plain, while layering on additional restrictions and stipulations to prevent any development of the lands theoretically left open for leasing.

"For four years, the Biden administration ignored federal law and the people who live on the North Slope, especially Kaktovik, to undercut any potential for responsible development on our Coastal Plain. They paused everything, illegally canceled every lease, and then rewrote the program to ensure that neither leasing nor development would occur. Their worldview was exactly backwards: easing up on the likes of Iran and Venezuela, while clamping down on Alaska and refusing to accept that we can safely produce from a very, very small fraction of our Coastal Plain," SenatorMurkowski said. "This resolution will help restore a balanced program that ensures both responsible energy development and environmental protection. It upholds the rule of law, bolsters our domestic energy security, and will limit the consequences of sending our dollars abroad for energy we have right here at home. I look forward to the President signing it."

"The Biden administration's 2024 ROD to restrict responsible development in the Coastal Plain of ANWR blatantly defied the clear language that the Alaska congressional delegation wrote in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act," said Senator Sullivan. "This action-one of 70 executive orders and actions targeting Alaska-also cancelled the voices of the Native people of the region who overwhelmingly support responsible development, because it builds vital infrastructure, supports their communities, and has literally led to their residents living longer. Today, we are on the cusp of righting this wrong, rolling back the lawless lock-up of ANWR, and unleashing good-paying jobs and opportunity for Alaska's working families. I want to thank a majority of my Senate colleagues today for passing our legislation to support Alaska's economy, strengthen American energy security, and vindicate the rule of law and the Iñupiat people of the North Slope."

"For years, the Biden administration ignored the law and imposed restrictive policies that effectively shut down the 1002 Area, despite its immense strategic value to Alaska and to the nation. H.J. Res. 131 reverses the Biden administration's unlawful and restrictive Record of Decision that effectively shut down the 1002 Area of the Coastal Plain - an area Congress specifically set aside for responsible development more than forty years ago," said Congressman Begich. "The Alaska Delegation has worked tirelessly to reverse these harmful decisions and restore access to some of the most resource-rich lands in the United States and I am grateful for the efforts. By moving swiftly to pass H.J. Res. 131, we are restoring a lawful program that balances stewardship and allows Alaska to supply the affordable and reliable energy our nation needs. I am proud to see this generational opportunity for Alaska head to the President's Desk. America is strongest when Alaska is empowered to responsibly develop its resources."

Background: In 1980, as part of a grand bargain to balance conservation and resource development in Alaska, Congress established the 19.3-million-acre Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), an area nearly the size of South Carolina, while explicitly setting aside the 1.56-million-acre Coastal Plain for further study, exploration, and potential energy development.

In 2017, Congress passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which established an oil and gas program for the Coastal Plain (also known as the 1002 Area) and required at least two area-wide lease sales over the next 10 years, the first by December 2021 and the second by December 2024. The 1002 Area is estimated to contain a mean of 7.7 billion barrels of oil that would help boost throughput through the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System, which sits at one-quarter of its peak capacity. Congress authorized development of no more than 2,000 surface acres in the 1002 Area-just 0.01 percent of ANWR-to bring those barrels to market.

In December 2024, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) replaced the 2020 ROD with an unlawful plan that immediately removed more than 1.1 million acres of the Coastal Plain from oil and gas leasing. The 2024 ROD adopted the "most restrictive" alternative, arbitrarily closing 74 percent of the Coastal Plain while making development on remaining acres impossible. According to BLM's own analysis, their plan would have dramatically limited (and likely fully eliminated) future production from the Coastal Plain. This was evidenced soon after when the administration held a lease sale that was designed to fail and predictably resulted in no bids.

The Alaska delegation wrote to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) earlier this year, requesting that the 2024 ROD be deemed a "major rule" for the purposes of the Congressional Review Act. GAO affirmatively made that determination in August 2025, leading the delegation to file identical disapproval resolutions.

The House of Representatives passed H.J. Res. 131 with bipartisan support on November 18, 2025. The measure now heads to the President's desk.

# # #