AUGUST 29, 1977.-Committed tothe Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. MURPHY of New York, from the Ad Hoc Select Committee on Outer Continental Shelf, submitted the following REPORT together with ADDITIONAL, SUPPLEMENTAL, DISSENTING, MINORITY, AND ADDITIONAL MINORITY VIEWS [Including Cost Estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] [To accompany H.R. 1614] The Ad Hoc Select Committee on the Outer Continental Shelf, to whom was referred the bill (H.R. 1614) to establish a policy for the management of oil and natural gas in the Outer Continental Shelf; to protect the marine and coastal environment; to amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act; and for other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do pass. The amendment is as follows: Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu thereof the following: That this Act may be cited as the "Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendments of 1977". TABLE OF CONTENTS TITLE I-FINDINGS AND PURPOSES WITH RESPECT TO MANAGING THE Sec. 101. Findings. Sec. 102. Purposes. TITLE II-AMENDMENTS TO THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF LANDS ACT Sec. 201. Definitions. Sec. 202. National policy for the Outer Continental Shelf. Sec. 203. Laws applicable to the Outer Continental Shelf. Sec. 204. Outer Continental Shelf exploration and development administration. Sec. 205. Revision of bidding and lease administration. Sec. 206. Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas exploration. Sec. 207. Annual report. Sec. 208. New sections of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. (1) "Sec. 18. Outer Continental Shelf leasing program. "Sec. 19. Coordination and consultation with affected States and local governments. "Sec. 20. Baseline and monitoring studies. "Sec. 21. Safety regulations. "Sec. 22. "Sec. 23. Enforcement. "Sec. 24. Citizen suits, court jurisdiction, and judicial review. "Sec. 25. Oil and gas development and production. "Sec. 26. "Sec. 27. Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas information program. "Sec. 28. Limitations on export. "Sec. 29. Restrictions on employment. "Sec. 30. Fishermen's gear compensation funds. "Sec. 31. Documentation, registry, and manning requirements." TITLE III-OFFSHORE OIL SPILL POLLUTION FUND Sec. 301. Definitions. Sec. 302. Establishment of the Fund and the revolving account. TITLE IV-AMENDMENTS TO THE COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT ACT OF 1972 Sec. 401. Amendments to the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972. TITLE V-MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS Sec. 501. Review of shut-in or flaring wells. Sec. 502. Review of revision of royalty payments. Sec. 503. Natural gas distribution. Sec. 504. Antidiscrimination provisions. Sec. 505. Sunshine in Government. Sec. 506. Investigation of availability of oil and natural gas from the Outer Continental Shelf. Sec. 507. State management program. Sec. 508. Relationship to existing law. TITLE I-FINDINGS AND PURPOSES WITH RESPECT TO MANAGING THE RESOURCES OF THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF FINDINGS SEC. 101. The Congress finds and declares that— (1) the demand for energy in the United States is increasing and will continue to increase for the foreseeable future; (2) domestic production of oil and gas has declined in recent years; of oil from foreign nations to meet domestic energy demand; (4) increasing reliance on imported oil is not inevitable, but is rather subject to significant reduction by increasing the development of domestic sources of energy supply; (5) consumption of natural gas in the United States has greatly exceeded additions to domestic reserves in recent years; (6) technology is or can be made available which will allow significantly increased domestic production of oil and gas without undue harm or damage to the environment; (7) the lands and resources of the Outer Continental Shelf are public property which the Government of the United States holds in trust for the people of the United States; (8) the Outer Continental Shelf contains significant quantities of oil and natural gas and is a vital national resource reserve which must be carefully managed so as to realize fair value, to preserve and maintain competition, and to reflect the public interest; (9) there presently exists a variety of technological, economic, environmental, administrative, and legal problems which tend to retard the develop ment of the oil and natural gas reserves of the Outer Continental Shelf; (10) environmental and safety regulations relating to activities on the Outer Continental Shelf should be reviewed in light of current technology and information; (11) the development, processing, and distribution of the oil and gas resources of the Outer Continental Shelf, and the siting of related energy facilities, may cause adverse impacts on various States and local governments; (12) policies, plans, and programs developed by States and local governments in response to activties on the Outer Continental Shelf cannot anticipate and ameliorate such adverse impacts unless such States and local governments are provided with timely access to information regarding activities on the Outer Continental Shelf and an opportunity to review and comment on decisions relating to such activities; (13) funds must be made available to pay for the prompt removal of any oil spilled or discharged as a result of activities on the Outer Continental Shelf and for any damages to public or private interests caused by such spills or discharges; and (14) because of the possible conflicts between exploitation of the oil and gas resources in the Outer Continental Shelf and other uses of the marine environment, including fish and shellfish growth and recovery, and recreational activity, the Federal Government must assume responsibility for the minimization or elimination of any conflict associated with such exploita tion. PURPOSES SEC. 102. The purposes of this Act are to (1) establish policies and procedures for managing the oil and natural gas resources of the Outer Continental Shelf in order to achieve national economic and energy policy goals, assure national security, reduce dependence on foreign sources, and maintain a favorable balance of payments in world trade; (2) preserve, protect, and develop oil and natural gas resources in the Outer Continental Shelf in a manner which is consistent with the need (A) to make such resources available to meet the Nation's energy needs as rapidly as possible, (B) to balance orderly energy resource development with protection of the human, marine, and coastal environments, (C) to insure the public a fair and equitable return on the resources of the Outer Continental Shelf, and (D) to preserve and maintain free enterprise competition; (3) encourage development of new and improved technology for energy resource production which will eliminate or minimize risk of damage to the human, marine, and coastal environments; (4) provide States, and through States, local governments, which are impacted by Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas exploration, development, and production with comprehensive assistance in order to anticipate and plan for such impact, and thereby to assure adequate protection of the human environment; (5) assure that States, and through States, local governments, have timely access to information regarding activities on the Outer Continental Shelf, and opportunity to review and comment on decisions relating to such activities, in order to anticipate, ameliorate, and plan for the impacts of such activities; (6) assure that States, and through States, local governments, which are directly affected by exploration, development, and production of oil and natural gas are provided an opportunity to participate in policy and planning decisions relating to management of the resources of the Outer Continental Shelf; (7) minimize or eliminate conflicts between the exploration, development, and production of oil and natural gas, and the recovery of other resources such as fish and shellfish: (8) establish an oilspill liability fund to pay for the prompt removal of any oil spilled or discharged as a result of activities on the Outer Continental Shelf and for any damages to public or private interests caused by such spills or discharges; and (9) insure that the extent of oil and natural gas resources of the Outer Continental Shelf is assessed at the earliest practicable time. "Sec. 18. Outer Continental Shelf leasing program. "Sec. 19. Coordination and consultation with affected States and local governments. "Sec. 20. Baseline and monitoring studies. Safety regulations. "Sec. 21. "Sec. 22. Enforcement. "Sec. 23. Citizen suits, court jurisdiction, and judicial review. "Sec. 24. Remedies and penalties. "Sec. 25. "Sec. 26. "Sec. 27. Oil and gas development and production. Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas information program. "Sec. 28. Limitations on export. "Sec. 29. Restrictions on employment. "Sec. 30. Fishermen's gear compensation funds. "Sec. 31. Documentation, registry, and manning requirements." TITLE III-OFFSHORE OIL SPILL POLLUTION FUND Sec. 301. Definitions. Sec. 302. Establishment of the Fund and the revolving account. Sec. 304. Notification. Sec. 305. Removal of discharged oil. Sec. 306. Duties and powers. Sec. 307. Recoverable damages. Sec. 308. Cleanup costs and damages. Sec. 309. Disbursements from the revolving account. Sec. 310. Fee collection: deposits in revolving account. Sec. 311. Financial responsibility. Sec. 312. Trustee of natural resources. Sec. 313. Claims procedure. Sec. 314. Judicial review. Sec. 315. Class actions. Sec. 316. Representation. Sec. 317. Jurisdiction and venue. Sec. 318. Access to records. Sec. 319. Public access to information. Sec. 320. Annual report. Sec. 321. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 322. Relationship to other law. TITLE IV-AMENDMENTS TO THE COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT ACT OF 1972 Sec. 401. Amendments to the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972. TITLE V-MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS Sec. 501. Review of shut-in or flaring wells. Sec. 502. Review of revision of royalty payments. Sec. 503. Natural gas distribution. Sec. 504. Antidiscrimination provisions. Sec. 505. Sunshine in Government. Sec. 506. Investigation of availability of oil and natural gas from the Outer Continental Shelf. Sec. 507. State management program. Sec. 508. Relationship to existing law. TITLE I-FINDINGS AND PURPOSES WITH RESPECT TO MANAGING THE RESOURCES OF THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF FINDINGS SEC. 101. The Congress finds and declares that— (1) the demand for energy in the United States is increasing and will continue to increase for the foreseeable future; (2) domestic production of oil and gas has declined in recent years; (3) the United States has become increasingly dependent upon imports of oil from foreign nations to meet domestic energy demand; (4) increasing reliance on imported oil is not inevitable, but is rather subject to significant reduction by increasing the development of domestic sources of energy supply; (5) consumption of natural gas in the United States has greatly exceeded additions to domestic reserves in recent years; (6) technology is or can be made available which will allow significantly increased domestic production of oil and gas without undue harm or damage to the environment; (7) the lands and resources of the Outer Continental Shelf are public property which the Government of the United States holds in trust for the people of the United States; (8) the Outer Continental Shelf contains significant quantities of oil and natural gas and is a vital national resource reserve which must be carefully managed so as to realize fair value, to preserve and maintain competition, and to reflect the public interest; (9) there presently exists a variety of technological, economic, environmental, administrative, and legal problems which tend to retard the develop |