II 112th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 516 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES March 9, 2011 Mrs. Hutchison (for herself, Ms. Landrieu, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Vitter, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Wicker, Mr. Cochran, and Mr. Sessions) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources A BILL To extend outer Continental Shelf leases to accommodate permitting delays and to provide operators time to meet new drilling and safety requirements.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Lease Extension and Secure Energy Act of 2011.

2.

Extension of certain outer continental shelf leases

(a)

Definition of Covered Lease

In this section, the term covered lease means each oil and gas lease for the Gulf of Mexico outer Continental Shelf region issued under section 8 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1337) that was— (1)not producing as of April 30, 2010; or (2)suspended from operations, permit processing, or consideration, in accordance with the moratorium set forth in the Minerals Management Service Notice to Lessees and Operators No. 2010–N04, dated May 30, 2010, or the decision memorandum of the Secretary of the Interior entitled Decision memorandum regarding the suspension of certain offshore permitting and drilling activities on the Outer Continental Shelf and dated July 12, 2010. (b)

Extension of covered leases

The Secretary of the Interior shall extend the term of a covered lease by 1 year. (c)

Effect on suspensions of operations or production

The extension of covered leases under this Act is in addition to any suspension of operations or suspension of production granted by the Minerals Management Service or Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement after May 1, 2010.