BLM would impose onshore inspection fees under proposed 2015 budget

The US Bureau of Land Management would impose inspection fees for onshore oil and gas producers operating on lands under its jurisdiction under the Obama administration’s proposed fiscal 2015 budget. The fees would be similar to those the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement charges offshore producers, BLM said. An official at the Western Energy Alliance in Denver criticized the idea. “This latest budget again tries for the fourth or fifth year to impose new inspection and nonproducing acreage fees,” said Kathleen Sgamma, the organization’s vice-president of government and public affairs. “The oil and gas industry more than pays for the cost of all leasing, permitting, monitoring, and inspecting activities by returning $88.76 for every dollar BLM spends administering the onshore program,” she said, adding, “New fees are akin to charging taxpayers for filing their income tax returns.”...more