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| Expressions of Interest | 3120.31 – 3120.33 | ||||||||||
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16 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.; 30 U.S.C. 181 et seq. and 351-359; 40 U.S.C. 471 et seq.; 43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.; Pub. L. 113-291, 128 Stat. 3762; and the Attorney General's Opinion of April 2, 1941 (40 Op. Atty. Gen. 41).
89 FR 30985, Apr. 23, 2024, unless otherwise noted.
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(a) A party submitting an expression of interest in leasing land available for disposition under section 17 of the Mineral Leasing Act must include the submitter's name and address and must submit the expression of interest through the BLM's online leasing system.
(b) The expression must provide a description of the lands identified by legal land description, as follows:
(1) For lands surveyed under the public land survey system, describe the lands to the nearest aliquot part within the legal subdivision, section, township, range, and meridian;
(2) For unsurveyed lands, describe the lands by metes and bounds, giving courses and distances, and tie this information to an official corner of the public land surveys, or to a prominent topographic feature;
(3) For approved protracted surveys, include an entire section, township, range, and meridian. Do not divide protracted sections into aliquot parts;
(4) For lands that have water boundaries, describe the lands based on the initial survey or deed acquiring ownership;
(5) For fractional interest lands, identify the United States mineral ownership by percentage;
(6) For split estate lands, where the surface rights are in private ownership and the rights to develop the oil and gas are managed by the Federal Government, submit the private surface owner's name and address.
(7) For lands where the acquiring agency has assigned an acquisition or tract number covering the lands applied, submit the number in addition to any description otherwise required by this section. If the authorized officer determines that the acquisition or tract number, together with identification of the State and county, constitutes an adequate description, the authorized officer may allow the description in this manner in lieu of other descriptions required by this section.
(c) A submitter may submit more than one expression of interest, so long as each expression separately satisfies the requirements of paragraph (b) of this section.
(d) The BLM may offer for sale all or some of the lands specified in an expression of interest and may offer those lands as part of a parcel that includes lands not specified in the expression of interest.
[89 FR 30966, Apr. 23, 2024, as amended at 90 FR 36120, Aug. 1, 2025]
When determining whether the BLM should offer lands specified in an expression of interest at lease sales, the BLM will evaluate the Secretary's obligations to manage public lands for multiple use and sustained yield and to take any action required to prevent unnecessary or undue degradation of the lands and their resources, along with other applicable legal requirements. In evaluating the lands to be offered, as part of the scoping process, the BLM will consider, at minimum:
(a) Proximity to oil and gas development existing at the time of the BLM's evaluation, giving preference to lands upon which a prudent operator would seek to expand existing operations;
(b) The presence of important fish and wildlife habitats or connectivity areas, giving preference to lands that would not impair the proper functioning of such habitats or corridors;
(c) The presence of historic properties, sacred sites, and other high value cultural resources, giving preference to lands that would not impair the cultural significance of such resources;
(d) The presence of recreation and other important uses or resources, giving preference to lands that would not impair the value of such uses or resources; and
(e) The potential for oil and gas development, giving preference to lands with high potential for development.
Until August 16, 2032, the BLM will from time to time calculate, for the preceding 1-year period before it issues a wind or solar energy right-of-way, the acreage for which expressions of interest have been submitted to the BLM and the sum total of acres offered for lease.