U.S. Department of the Interior Minerals Management Service Gulf of Mexico OCS Region Special Information

MMS Celebrates the 50th Anniversary of the
Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act

In 1945 President Truman issued a proclamation declaring that the U.S. regarded natural resources of the subsoil and seabed of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) as a territory owned by the Nation.

The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) was passed by Congress in 1953 and established Federal jurisdiction over submerged lands on the OCS seaward of State boundaries. The Secretary of the Interior is responsible for the administration of mineral exploration and development of the OCS. The Secretary is empowered to grant leases to the highest qualified responsible bidder(s) on the basis of sealed competitive bids and to formulate such regulations as necessary to carry out the provisions of the Act.

Basic Goals of the OCS Lands Act

1) Establish policies and procedures for managing the oil and natural gas resources of the OCS to achieve national economic and energy policy goals, ensure national security, reduce dependence on foreign sources, and maintain a favorable balance of payments in world trade.

1978: Major amendments to OCS Lands Act requiring a 5-year program, environmental studies program, coastal zone consistency, and revenue sharing with States.
1980: First 5-Year Leasing Program initiated.
1982: MMS created as a bureau of the Department of the Interior.
1983: Proclamation 5030 establishing the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
1995: Deepwater Royalty Relief Act passed – spurred leasing and development of deepwater frontier in Gulf of Mexico.

2) Preserve, protect, and develop oil and natural gas resources in a manner that is consistent with

a) meeting Nation’s energy needs;
b) balancing resource development with protection of the human, marine, and coastal environments; c) ensuring a fair and equitable return on the resources; and d) preserving and maintaining free enterprise competition.

1964: First Pacific OCS exploratory well drilled in Federal waters.
1969: Santa Barbara Oil Spill – largest oil spill ever on the OCS – led to passage of national environmental legislation.
1978: First Atlantic OCS exploratory well drilled.
1983: Top money-making lease sale in the history of the OCS--$3.4 billion in the Central Gulf of Mexico lease sale 72.
1999: Deepwater oil production in the Gulf of Mexico exceeds shallow-water oil production.
2001: First Alaska OCS production, Northstar, is a Federal/State partnership.
2003: OCS lands provide a 50-year total of $150 billion in revenue for the Nation, and over 14 billion barrels of oil and 150 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

3) Encourage development of new and improved technology for energy resource production.

1983: Bullwinkle’s structure is the world’s tallest pile- supported, fixed steel platform and is taller than the Empire State Building.
1987: Auger is the first floating production facility, a tension leg platform, installed in the Gulf of Mexico.
1996: Oryx installs world’s first production SPAR, Neptune.
1999: Thunder Horse is the largest discovery in the Gulf of Mexico.
2004: Na Kika will become the deepest OCS production at 7,600 feet.

MMS is the Federal agency in the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages the nation's oil, natural gas, and other mineral resources on the Outer Continental Shelf in Federal offshore waters. The agency also collects, accounts for, and disburses mineral revenues from Federal and American Indian leases. These revenues totaled over $6 billion in 2002 and nearly $127 billion since the agency was created in 1982. Annually, nearly $1 billion from those revenues go into the Land and Water Conservation Fund for the acquisition and development of state and Federal park and recreation lands.

MMS Main Website:  www.mms.gov
Gulf of Mexico Website:  www.gomr.mms.gov