The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's draft proposed national oil and gas leasing program has not yet been published, and the Marine Planning Committee decided to monitor BOEM's timeline and prepare to respond, co-chair Mike Conroy said during the meeting. BOEM published a request for information (RFI) on April 30 covering 27 planning areas; the next formal step is a draft proposed program accompanied by a 60-day comment period.

Why it matters: The 11th offshore leasing program will set a five-year schedule for potential oil and gas lease sales on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf. Media reports cited leaked documents suggesting possible Atlantic and Pacific lease activity and identified Central and Southern California as targeted areas as early as 2027, but the committee emphasized that the draft had not yet appeared in the Federal Register at the time of the meeting.

Details and context: Conroy reviewed BOEM's April RFI and the standard sequence of steps (RFI, draft proposed program with public comment, final program). He reiterated that the committee had expected publication of a draft proposed program in October but noted it did not appear in recent pre-publication records. The committee also discussed internal timing complications: if BOEM's draft is published before the council's March meeting, staff and advisory committees may need to prepare a coordinated council comment.

Next steps: The MPC recommended that the Habitat Committee and the MPC stand ready to prepare a comment letter if BOEM publishes a draft program that would affect Pacific planning areas, and that council staff monitor Federal Register postings closely.

Quote: "We don't have anything to look at on this yet," Conroy said, urging members to treat the situation as "hurry up and wait."

Where to watch: Stakeholders should monitor BOEM and Department of Interior Federal Register postings for the draft proposed program and any associated public comment opportunities.