United States Code

43 U.S.C. § 1341

Reservation of lands and rights

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Bills that would change it 34

  • S 4715 Offshore Leasing Standards and Accountability Act of 2026 Amends its part · introduced · 119th Congress
  • HR 9034 Offshore Leasing Standards and Accountability Act of 2026 Amends its part · introduced · 119th Congress
  • HR 7977 Energy Bills Relief Act Amends 1341(a) · introduced · 119th Congress
  • HR 3742 Offshore Energy Modernization Act of 2025 Amends 1341(a) · introduced · 119th Congress
  • HR 513 Offshore Lands Authorities Act of 2025 Amends 1341(a) · introduced · 119th Congress
  • HR 2886 Defend our Coast Act Amends · introduced · 119th Congress
  • HR 6747 Clean Electricity and Transmission Acceleration Act of 2023 Amends 1341(a) · introduced · 118th Congress
  • HR 1327 Defend our Coast Act Amends · introduced · 118th Congress
  • S 879 Energy Freedom Act Amends its part · introduced · 118th Congress
  • HR 3764 Ocean-Based Climate Solutions Act of 2022 Amends its part · introduced · 117th Congress
  • HR 2780 Insular Area Climate Change Act Amends its part · introduced · 117th Congress
  • HR 9641 Offshore Energy Modernization Act of 2022 Amends 1341(a) · introduced · 117th Congress
  • HR 5376 An act to provide for reconciliation pursuant to title II of S. Con. Res. 14. Amends its part · enacted · 117th Congress
  • HR 7094 Energy Freedom Act Amends its part · introduced · 117th Congress
  • S 3762 Energy Freedom Act Amends its part · introduced · 117th Congress
  • S 2613 Insular Area Climate Change Act Amends its part · introduced · 117th Congress
  • HR 4334 American Energy First Act Amends 1341(a) · introduced · 117th Congress
  • HR 1689 Offshore Wind for Territories Act Amends its part · introduced · 117th Congress
  • HR 998 Offshore Wind Jobs and Opportunity Act Amends its part · introduced · 117th Congress
  • HR 859 Protecting American Energy Jobs Act Amends · introduced · 117th Congress
  • HR 569 Defend our Coast Act Amends · introduced · 117th Congress
  • HR 3068 Offshore Wind Jobs and Opportunity Act Amends its part · introduced · 116th Congress
  • HR 2 Moving Forward Act Amends its part · introduced · 116th Congress
  • HR 1014 Offshore Wind for Territories Act Amends its part · introduced · 116th Congress
  • HR 4294 American Energy First Act Amends · introduced · 116th Congress
  • S 499 Offshore Wind for Territories Act Amends its part · introduced · 116th Congress
  • HR 337 Defend our Coast Act Amends · introduced · 116th Congress
  • HR 4239 SECURE American Energy Act Amends · introduced · 115th Congress
  • HR 5291 Offshore Wind Jobs and Opportunity Act Amends its part · introduced · 115th Congress
  • HR 6008 Defend our Coast Act Amends · introduced · 115th Congress
  • HR 2157 OCEAN Act Amends · introduced · 115th Congress
  • S 956 OCEAN Act Amends · introduced · 115th Congress
  • HR 1756 Virginia Jobs and Energy Act Amends · introduced · 115th Congress
  • HR 52 Oil Pollution Environmental Review Act Amends its part · introduced · 112th Congress

The law today

From the official United States Code, current through Public Law 119-121.

(a) Withdrawal of unleased lands by President The President of the United States may, from time to time, withdraw from disposition any of the unleased lands of the outer Continental Shelf. (b) First refusal of mineral purchases In time of war, or when the President shall so prescribe, the United States shall have the right of first refusal to purchase at the market price all or any portion of any mineral produced from the outer Continental Shelf. (c) National security clause All leases issued under this subchapter, and leases, the maintenance and operation of which are authorized under this subchapter, shall contain or be construed to contain a provision whereby authority is vested in the Secretary, upon a recommendation of the Secretary of Defense, during a state of war or national emergency declared by the Congress or the President of the United States after August 7, 1953, to suspend operations under any lease; and all such leases shall contain or be construed to contain provisions for the payment of just compensation to the lessee whose operations are thus suspended. (d) National defense areas; suspension of operations; extension of leases The United States reserves and retains the right to designate by and through the Secretary of Defense, with the approval of the President, as areas restricted from exploration and operation that part of the outer Continental Shelf needed for national defense; and so long as such designation remains in effect no exploration or operations may be conducted on any part of the surface of such area except with the concurrence of the Secretary of Defense; and if operations or production under any lease theretofore issued on lands within any such restricted area shall be suspended, any payment of rentals, minimum royalty, and royalty prescribed by such lease likewise shall be suspended during such period of suspension of operation and production, and the term of such lease shall be extended by adding thereto any such suspension period, and the United States shall be liable to the lessee for such compensation as is required to be paid under the Constitution of the United States. (e) Source materials essential to production of fissionable materials All uranium, thorium, and all other materials determined pursuant to paragraph (1) of subsection (b) of section 5 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1946, as amended, to be peculiarly essential to the production of fissionable material, contained, in whatever concentration, in deposits in the subsoil or seabed of the outer Continental Shelf are reserved for the use of the United States. (f) Helium ownership; rules and regulations governing extraction The United States reserves and retains the ownership of and the right to extract all helium, under such rules and regulations as shall be prescribed by the Secretary, contained in gas produced from any portion of the outer Continental Shelf which may be subject to any lease maintained or granted pursuant to this subchapter, but the helium shall be extracted from such gas so as to cause no substantial delay in the delivery of gas produced to the purchaser of such gas.
Official text at uscode.house.gov ↗