State and Federal Interaction Affecting the Oil & Gas Industry: Partners or Adversaries?

This paper first presents an overview of the OCS leasing process and addresses the context of state and federal interaction as Congress intended in the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA). Next, it addresses the events that led up to Blanco v. Burton, in an effort to put the lawsuit into proper perspective, and reviews the issues that were presented in the lawsuit, the preliminary injunction decision and the settlement terms. Finally, it addresses unresolved issues that remain after the lawsuit and the future of federal OCS leasing activities in the Gulf of Mexic