Interior Department Nominee Owned Oil Firm Shares

If confirmed for the job, Ms. Jewell will be in a position to decide how much oil and natural gas drilling takes place on federal lands and waters, while also weighing whether the administration's conservation and environmental goals should prevent new production. According to the financial disclosure documents, Ms. Jewell has agreed to sell her shares in the energy companies if confirmed and will recuse herself from making any decisions affecting those companies until shedding the assets. The documents were sent to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee by the Obama administration. Mr. Obama nominated Ms. Jewell for the Interior post in early February. The Senate energy committee will hold her confirmation hearing on Thursday. According to a Feb. 8 letter sent to the Interior Department's ethics office, Ms. Jewell owned stock in more than a dozen energy companies. Among them are major producers, such Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips, Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC) and Apache Corp. (APA). Ms. Jewell also owned shares in service companies like Halliburton Co. (HAL) and Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI) that operate in shale formations largely responsible for the recent boom in natural gas production. The companies conduct hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking," a controversial practice that the Interior Department is proposing to regulate...more