
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 42USC6504]

 
                 TITLE 42--THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
 
            CHAPTER 78--NATIONAL PETROLEUM RESERVE IN ALASKA
 
Sec. 6504. Administration of reserve


(a) Congressional authorization as precondition for production and 
        development of petroleum

    Except as provided in subsection (e) of this section, production of 
petroleum from the reserve is prohibited and no development leading to 
production of petroleum from the reserve shall be undertaken until 
authorized by an Act of Congress.

(b) Conduct of exploration within designated areas to protect surface 
        values

    Any exploration within the Utukok River, the Teshekpuk Lake areas, 
and other areas designated by the Secretary of the Interior containing 
any significant subsistence, recreational, fish and wildlife, or 
historical or scenic value, shall be conducted in a manner which will 
assure the maximum protection of such surface values to the extent 
consistent with the requirements of this Act for the exploration of the 
reserve.

(c) Continuation of ongoing petroleum exploration program by Secretary 
        of Navy prior to date of transfer of jurisdiction; duties of 
        Secretary of Navy prior to transfer date

    The Secretary of the Navy shall continue the ongoing petroleum 
exploration program within the reserve until the date of the transfer of 
jurisdiction specified in section 6503(a) of this title. Prior to the 
date of such transfer of jurisdiction the Secretary of the Navy shall--
        (1) cooperate fully with the Secretary of the Interior providing 
    him access to such facilities and such information as he may request 
    to facilitate the transfer of jurisdiction;
        (2) provide to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 
    the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
    Representatives copies of any reports, plans, or contracts 
    pertaining to the reserve that are required to be submitted to the 
    Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of 
    Representatives; and
        (3) cooperate and consult with the Secretary of the Interior 
    before executing any new contract or amendment to any existing 
    contract pertaining to the reserve and allow him a reasonable 
    opportunity to comment on such contract or amendment, as the case 
    may be.

(d) Commencement of petroleum exploration by Secretary of the Interior 
        as of date of transfer of jurisdiction; powers and duties of 
        Secretary of the Interior in conduct of exploration

    The Secretary of the Interior shall commence further petroleum 
exploration of the reserve as of the date of transfer of jurisdiction 
specified in section 6503(a) of this title. In conducting this 
exploration effort, the Secretary of the Interior--
        (1) is authorized to enter into contracts for the exploration of 
    the reserve, except that no such contract may be entered into until 
    at least thirty days after the Secretary of the Interior has 
    provided the Attorney General with a copy of the proposed contract 
    and such other information as may be appropriate to determine legal 
    sufficiency and possible violations under, or inconsistencies with, 
    the antitrust laws. If, within such thirty day period, the Attorney 
    General advises the Secretary of the Interior that any such contract 
    would unduly restrict competition or be inconsistent with the 
    antitrust laws, then the Secretary of the Interior may not execute 
    that contract;
        (2) shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
    Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of 
    the House of Representatives any new plans or substantial amendments 
    to ongoing plans for the exploration of the reserve. All such plans 
    or amendments submitted to such committees pursuant to this section 
    shall contain a report by the Attorney General of the United States 
    with respect to the anticipated effects of such plans or amendments 
    on competition. Such plans or amendments shall not be implemented 
    until sixty days after they have been submitted to such committees; 
    and
        (3) shall report annually to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
    Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of 
    the House of Representatives on the progress of, and future plans 
    for, exploration of the reserve.

(Pub. L. 94-258, title I, Sec. 104, Apr. 5, 1976, 90 Stat. 304; Pub. L. 
98-366, Sec. 4(b), July 17, 1984, 98 Stat. 470; Pub. L. 103-437, 
Sec. 15(q), Nov. 2, 1994, 108 Stat. 4594.)

                       References in Text

    This Act, referred to in subsec. (b), is Pub. L. 94-258, Apr. 5, 
1976, 90 Stat. 303, known as the Naval Petroleum Reserves Production Act 
of 1976, which enacted this chapter and section 7420 of Title 10, Armed 
Forces, and amended section 6244 of this title and sections 7421 to 7436 
and 7438 of Title 10. For complete classification of this Act to the 
Code, see Short Note set out under section 6501 of this title and 
Tables.
    The antitrust laws, referred to in subsec. (d), are classified 
generally to chapter 1 (Sec. 1 et seq.) of Title 15, Commerce and Trade.


                               Amendments

    1994--Subsecs. (c)(2), (d)(2), (3). Pub. L. 103-437 substituted 
``Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the 
Committee on Natural Resources of the House'' for ``Committees on 
Interior and Insular Affairs of the Senate and the House''.
    1984--Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 98-366 struck out subsec. (e) which read 
as follows: ``Until the reserve is transferred to the jurisdiction of 
the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of the Navy is authorized 
to develop and continue operation of the South Barrow gas field, or such 
other fields as may be necessary, to supply gas at reasonable and 
equitable rates to the native village of Barrow, and other communities 
and installations at or near Point Barrow, Alaska, and to installations 
of the Department of Defense and other agencies of the United States 
located at or near Point Barrow, Alaska. After such transfer, the 
Secretary of the Interior shall take such actions as may be necessary to 
continue such service to such village, communities, installations, and 
agencies at reasonable and equitable rates.''

                         Change of Name

    Committee on Natural Resources of House of Representatives treated 
as referring to Committee on Resources of House of Representatives by 
section 1(a) of Pub. L. 104-14, set out as a note preceding section 21 
of Title 2, The Congress.


                    Effective Date of 1984 Amendment

    Section 4(b) of Pub. L. 98-366 provided that the amendment made by 
that section is effective Oct. 1, 1984.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in section 6508 of this title.
