Even in the middle of a government shutdown, some members of Congress are finding time to attack our shared public lands. They're using a complex and radical legislative tool known as the Congressional Review Act to overturn protections for America's Arctic.
If they succeed, these efforts would throw decades of public lands management into regulatory chaos. Plans that took years of science, public comment and collaboration with Alaska Native communities could be tossed aside overnight by politicians in Washington—all to benefit oil and gas companies.
These CRA resolutions aim to strike down two key management plans:
- The Arctic Refuge leasing program Record of Decision from 2024, which strengthened protections for the coastal plain, the heart of the Refuge; and
- The Western Arctic Integrated Activity Plan from 2022, which strengthened protections for over 11 million acres of sensitive ecosystems from oil and gas leasing and drilling, including in special areas like Teshekpuk Lake and the Colville River.
These plans protect critical polar bear and caribou habitats, respect the Indigenous communities who have stewarded these lands since time immemorial and keep drilling off these fragile landscapes. Rolling them back would mean leasing to the highest bidder irreplaceable public lands and ignoring the voices of the people who live closest to them.
What's more, drilling here has never been economically viable in the Arctic Refuge and is exorbitantly expensive in the Western Arctic. In fact, taxpayers are already $2 billion in the hole from previous failed attempts to auction off the Arctic Refuge. Industry has shown little interest, and for good reason: this region is remote, costly and sacred.
Thank you for your advocacy and support.
Sincerely,
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