A federal court issued a ruling declaring that the Biden administration broke federal law by revoking oil and gas leases from the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) territory. Alaska’s congressional representatives praised the court decision as a major legal victory for the delegation and energy advocates in the state.
U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason determined that the Department of the Interior acted illegally when it revoked seven leases within ANWR’s Coastal Plain area during 2023 by failing to complete required congressional procedures. The leases received their initial award during a 2021 sale that resulted from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act but became entangled in legal and political challenges after President Biden took power.
According to Senator Lisa Murkowski, the court decision represented a crucial move toward restoration of normal operations after four years of Biden administration resistance. The senator explained that the Coastal Plain program operated under a legal framework similar to the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A) before she criticized the administration for its intentional efforts to undermine the process by implementing lease pauses and extensive land closures and conducting a failed sale.
“While we lost years of development to their willful intransigence, this decision is an important step to getting things back on track. I appreciate Judge Gleason’s clear-eyed reading of the law we wrote and congratulate AIDEA on their victory,” Murkowski said in a press release. “I hope their leases are immediately reinstated and thank them for persevering in their effort to help develop our state’s abundant resources for the benefit of all Alaskans.”
Judge Gleason’s decision pointed out that the Department of the Interior violated federal law when it revoked AIDEA’s leases without executing congressionally required procedures. The court mandated that the Department of the Interior readdress the cancellations through proper procedures.
Senator Dan Sullivan called the court decision a formal challenge to federal government interference extending beyond this specific case. According to Sullivan, the Biden administration actively canceled ANWR leases while knowing that their actions were wrong and illegal. “President Biden’s lawyers likely knew this cancellation was illegal, but they did it anyway in order to have a chilling impact on future Coastal Plain lease sales and to kill hundreds, if not thousands, of jobs for Alaskans,” Sullivan said.
The court’s decision received praise from Congressman Nick Begich, who described the lease cancellations as “a reckless act of overreach” that endangered energy security. According to Begich, this ruling moves the country closer to achieving ANWR development, which will establish Alaska as the foundation of American energy leadership.
The Department of the Interior maintains complete silence regarding the recent court decision. The seven leases in question exist within the ANWR Coastal Plain’s non-wilderness area, which Congress made available for development through the 2017 law. AIDEA and Alaska state officials continue to push for the immediate reinstatement of the leases since they remain stuck in a legal battle.
The ruling could mark a turning point in a long-running political and legal battle over oil development in ANWR, an issue at the center of Alaska’s energy and economic future.
