• videocam Live Webinar with Live Q&A
  • calendar_month April 9, 2026 @ 1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
  • signal_cellular_alt Intermediate
  • card_travel Energy
  • schedule 90 minutes

Offshore Leasing After OBBBA: BOEM Gulf of America Program, Bid Adequacy, and Decommissioning Risk

$297.00

This course is $0 with these passes:

CLE
ALL
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About the Course

Introduction

This CLE webinar will examine how offshore oil and gas leasing in the Gulf of Mexico (renamed 'Gulf of America,' by U.S. executive order, though the name persists internationally) has changed under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). The webinar will also address the regulatory framework governing decommissioning and financial assurance.

 

Description

The presentation will provide an overview of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) from a historical perspective and then address changes to the offshore federal leasing program under the OBBBA. The presenters will address a variety of current topics, including the offshore leasing schedule (touching on both the leasing framework under OCSLA’s five-year program and the mandatory leasing program under the OBBBA), changes to DOI’s approach to environmental reviews, recently-revised procedures used by BOEM to evaluate bid adequacy during lease sales, and BOEM’s regulatory framework governing decommissioning and recently proposed changes to BOEM’s risk management and financial assurance regulations.

Listen as our panel navigates the ongoing legal and policy changes in the Gulf region under the current offshore federal leasing program.

Presented By

Sarah Y. Dicharry
Partner
Jones Walker LLP

Ms. Dicharry is a partner in the Litigation Practice Group. She counsels energy industry clients regarding compliance with federal statutes and regulations, represents clients in administrative and judicial appeal proceedings, and represents clients in response to government-initiated enforcement actions. Ms. Dicharry is a member of the firm’s Energy, Environmental & Natural Resources Industry Team and co-chairs the oil and gas team.

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Madeline M. Freese
Attorney
Jones Walker LLP

Ms. Freese is an associate in the Litigation Practice Group and a member of the energy litigation team. She advises clients on a broad range of commercial and regulatory disputes.

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Credit Information

  • This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.


  • Live Online


    On Demand

Date + Time

  • event

    Thursday, April 9, 2026

  • schedule

    1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT

I. History of Offshore Leasing – Pre-OCSLA and OCSLA

II. Changes under OBBBA

III. Current Status and Issues 

A. OCSLA 5-Year Leasing Program

B. OBBBA Leasing Program

C. Updated Bid Adequacy Procedures

D. Risk Management and Financial Assurance

IV. Practical To-Dos & Practitioner Take-Aways

The panel will review these and other key issues:

  • OBBBA's offshore leasing mandates: Gulf lease sales, fixed timelines, and reuse of Lease Sale 254 terms
  • BOEM's programmatic EIS and tiering approach: interaction with NEPA and ESA requirements
  • BOEM's updated fair-market-value and bid adequacy framework
  • Decommissioning exposure under the Risk Management and Financial Assurance rule
  • Allocating financial assurance and decommissioning risk in transactions and financings
  • Structuring contracts for NEPA/ESA and timing risk
  • Developing governance, disclosure, and board-level talking points