On the recordJanuary 22, 2015
I stand to urge my colleagues to support this amendment. The purpose of this amendment is to expedite the process by which the Bureau of Land Management processes applications for a permit for drilling on Federal land. We all know that drilling and the production of oil and natural gas in our country on Federal lands is an essential activity for our energy security and therefore for our national security. The fact is that although these applications are supposed to be handled in an expedited manner, they are not. The average right now for them to be processed is about 7\1/2\ months. That is too long. We need a simple up-or-down ruling by the Bureau of Land Management, especially given the fact that these lands, once they get to this stage, have already been deemed by the Bureau of Land Management as suitable for oil and gas leasing. I therefore urge each of my colleagues to support this amendment and thereby secure our energy security. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
