43 U.S.C. § 1353 — Federal purchase and disposition of oil

Page 360 TITLE 43—PUBLIC LANDS § 1353 tence of subsection (c) of this section, the Gov- ernor of any affected State may designate an ap- propriate State official to inspect, at a regional location which the Secretary shall designate, any privileged information received by the Sec- retary regarding any activity adjacent to such State, except that no such inspection shall take place prior to the sale of a lease covering the area in which such activity was conducted. Knowledge obtained by such State during such inspection shall be subject to applicable require- ments as to confidentiality which are set forth in regulations prescribed under subsection (c) of this section. (e) Agreement with State to waive defenses and hold United States harmless from failure to maintain confidentiality of information Prior to transmitting any privileged informa- tion to any State, or granting such State access to such information, the Secretary shall enter into a written agreement with the Governor of such State in which such State agrees, as a con- dition precedent to receiving or being granted access to such information, to waive the de- fenses set forth in subsection (f)(2) of this sec- tion, and to hold the United States harmless from any violations of the regulations pre- scribed pursuant to subsection (c) that the State or its employees may commit. (f) Civil action against United States or State for failure to maintain confidentiality of infor- mation; certain defenses unavailable (1) Whenever any employee of the Federal Government or of any State reveals information in violation of the regulations prescribed pursu- ant to subsection (c) of this section, the lessee or permittee who supplied such information to the Secretary or to any other Federal official, and any person to whom such lessee or per- mittee has sold such information under promise of confidentiality, may commence a civil action for damages in the appropriate district court of the United States against the Federal Govern- ment or such State, as the case may be. (2) In any action commenced against the Fed- eral Government or a State pursuant to para- graph (1) of this subsection, the Federal Govern- ment or such State, as the case may be, may not raise as a defense (A) any claim of sovereign im- munity, or (B) any claim that the employee who revealed the privileged information which is the basis of such suit was acting outside the scope of his employment in revealing such information. (g) Preemption of State law by Federal law Any provision of State or local law which pro- vides for public access to any privileged infor- mation received or obtained by any person pur- suant to this subchapter is expressly preempted by the provisions of this section, to the extent that it applies to such information. (h) Failure by State to comply with regulations; withholding of information If the Secretary finds that any State cannot or does not comply with the regulations issued under subsection (c) of this section, he shall thereafter withhold transmittal and deny in- spection of privileged information to such State until he finds that such State can and will com- ply with such regulations. (Aug. 7, 1953, ch. 345, § 26, as added Pub. L. 95–372, title II, § 208, Sept. 18, 1978, 92 Stat. 664.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries PAYMENT OF PROCESSING COSTS FOR DATA AND INFORMATION ACQUIRED; PERMITTEES ELIGIBLE Pub. L. 99–349, title I, July 2, 1986, 100 Stat. 732, pro- vided that: ‘‘Notwithstanding any other provision of law, for data and information acquired in fiscal year 1986 or thereafter, by the Secretary, pursuant to sec- tion 1352(a)(1)(C)(iii) of title 43, United States Code, payment shall be made for processing costs to permit- tees with permits issued on or before September 30, 1985.’’ PAYMENT OF COSTS OF REPRODUCING DATA AND INFORMATION PROVIDED TO SECRETARY Pub. L. 99–190, § 101(d) [title I, § 100], Dec. 19, 1985, 99 Stat. 1224, 1232, provided: ‘‘That notwithstanding any other provision of law, when in fiscal year 1986 and thereafter any permittee provides data and information to the Secretary pursuant to section 1352(a)(1)(C)(iii) of title 43, United States Code, the Secretary shall pay only the reasonable cost of reproducing such data and information.’’ § 1353. Federal purchase and disposition of oil and gas (a) Payment of royalties or net profit shares in oil and gas; purchase of oil and gas by United States; transfer of title to Federal agencies (1) Except as may be necessary to comply with the provisions of sections 1335 and 1336 of this title, all royalties or net profit shares, or both, accruing to the United States under any oil and gas lease issued or maintained in accordance with this subchapter, shall, on demand of the Secretary, be paid in oil or gas. (2) The United States shall have the right to purchase not to exceed 162⁄3 per centum by vol- ume of the oil and gas produced pursuant to a lease issued or maintained in accordance with this subchapter, at the regulated price, or, if no regulated price applies, at the fair market value at the well head of the oil and gas saved, re- moved, or sold, except that any oil or gas ob- tained by the United States as royalty or net profit share shall be credited against the amount that may be purchased under this sub- section. (3) Title to any royalty, net profit share, or purchased oil or gas may be transferred, upon request, by the Secretary to the Secretary of Defense, to the Administrator of the General Services Administration, or to the Secretary of Energy, for disposal within the Federal Govern- ment. (b) Sale of oil by United States to public; disposi- tion of oil to small refiners; application of other laws (1) The Secretary, except as provided in this subsection, may offer to the public and sell by competitive bidding for not more than its regu- lated price, or, if no regulated price applies, not less than its fair market value, any part of the oil (A) obtained by the United States pursuant to any lease as royalty or net profit share, or (B) purchased by the United States pursuant to sub- section (a)(2) of this section. (2) Whenever, after consultation with the Sec- retary of Energy, the Secretary determines that Page 361 TITLE 43—PUBLIC LANDS § 1354 1 So in original. Probably should be ‘‘may’’. 2 See References in Text note below. small refiners do not have access to adequate supplies of oil at equitable prices, the Secretary may dispose of any oil which is taken as a roy- alty or net profit share accruing or reserved to the United States pursuant to any lease issued or maintained under this subchapter, or pur- chased by the United States pursuant to sub- section (a)(2) of this section, by conducting a lottery for the sale of such oil, or may equitably allocate such oil among the competitors for the purchase of such oil, at the regulated price, or if no regulated price applies, at its fair market value. The Secretary shall limit participation in any allocation or lottery sale to assure such ac- cess and shall publish notice of such allocation or sale, and the terms thereof, at least thirty days in advance. Such notice shall include quali- fications for participation, the amount of oil to be sold, and any limitation in the amount of oil which any participant may be entitled to pur- chase. (3) The Secretary may only sell or otherwise dispose of oil described in paragraph (1) of this subsection in accordance with any provision of law, or regulations issued in accordance with such provisions, which provide for the Secretary of Energy to allocate, transfer, exchange, or sell oil in amounts or at prices determined by such provision of law or regulations. (c) Sale of gas by United States to public (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, the Secretary, pursuant to such terms as he determines, many 1 offer to the pub- lic and sell by competitive bidding for not more than its regulated price, or, if no regulated price applies, not less than its fair market value any part of the gas (A) obtained by the United States pursuant to a lease as royalty or net profit share, or (B) purchased by the United States pursuant to subsection (a)(2) of this section. (2) Whenever, after consultation with and ad- vice from the Secretary of Energy, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission determines that an emergency shortage of natural gas is threat- ening to cause severe economic or social disloca- tion in any region of the United States and that such region can be serviced in a practical, fea- sible, and efficient manner by royalty, net profit share, or purchased gas obtained pursuant to the provisions of this section, the Secretary of the Interior may allocate or conduct a lottery for the sale of such gas, and shall limit participa- tion in any allocation or lottery sale of such gas to any person servicing such region, but he shall not sell any such gas for more than its regulated price, or, if no regulated price applies, less than its fair market value. Prior to selling or allo- cating any gas pursuant to this subsection, the Secretary shall consult with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. (d) Purchase by lessee of Federal oil or gas for which no bids received The lessee shall take any Federal oil or gas for which no acceptable bids are received, as deter- mined by the Secretary, and which is not trans- ferred pursuant to subsection (a)(3) of this sec- tion, and shall pay to the United States a cash amount equal to the regulated price, or, if no regulated price applies, the fair market value of the oil or gas so obtained. (e) Definitions As used in this section— (1) the term ‘‘regulated price’’ means the highest price— (A) at which oil many 1 be sold pursuant to the Emergency Petroleum Allocation Act of 1973 2 [15 U.S.C. 751 et seq.] and any rule or order issued under such Act; (B) at which natural gas may be sold to natural-gas companies pursuant to the Nat- ural Gas Act [15 U.S.C. 717 et seq.], any other Act, regulations governing natural gas pric- ing, or any rule or order issued under any such Act or any such regulations; or (C) at which either Federal oil or gas may be sold under any other provision of law or rule or order thereunder which sets a price (or manner for determining a price) for oil or gas; and (2) the term ‘‘small refiner’’ has the meaning given such term by Small Business Adminis- tration Standards 128.3–8(d) and (g), as in ef- fect on September 18, 1978, or as there-after re- vised or amended. (f) Purchase of oil and gas in time of war Nothing in this section shall prohibit the right of the United States to purchase any oil or gas produced on the outer Continental Shelf as pro- vided by section 1341(b) of this title. (Aug. 7, 1953, ch. 345, § 27, as added Pub. L. 95–372, title II, § 208, Sept. 18, 1978, 92 Stat. 666.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The Emergency Petroleum Allocation Act of 1973, re- ferred to in subsec. (e)(1)(A), is Pub. L. 93–159, Nov. 27, 1973, 87 Stat. 628, which was classified generally to chapter 16A (§ 751 et seq.) of Title 15, Commerce and Trade, and was omitted from the Code pursuant to sec- tion 760g of Title 15, which provided for the expiration of the President’s authority under that chapter on Sept. 30, 1981. The Natural Gas Act, referred to in subsec. (e)(1)(B), is act June 21, 1938, ch. 556, 52 Stat. 821, which is classi- fied generally to chapter 15B (§ 717 et seq.) of Title 15. For complete classification of that Act to the Code, see section 717w of Title 15 and Tables. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS Functions vested in Secretary of Energy and Depart- ment of Energy under or with respect to subsec. (b)(2), (3) of this section, transferred to, and vested in, Sec- retary of the Interior, by section 100 of Pub. L. 97–257, 96 Stat. 841, set out as a note under section 7152 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare. § 1354. Limitations on export of oil or gas (a) Application of Export Administration provi- sions Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section, any oil or gas produced from the outer Continental Shelf shall be subject to the re- quirements and provisions of the Export Admin- istration Act of 1969.