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Challenges remain amid Trump’s return
on leasing in the Arctic National Wild- life Refuge, a second on drilling in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska and a third on the proposed Ambler minerals access road. In initiating a new leasing plan in ANWR, it would seem relatively sim - ple to add new required lease sales in the framework of a proposed exten- sion to the 2017 Tax Act, under which the 2021 and most recent sales were carried out. However, there are still challenges. This will likely require another revi- sion to the federal Environmental Im - pact Statement, or EIS, done first un - der Trump for the 2021 sale and then revised by Biden for the recent sale. Former Interior Secretary Deb Haa - land claimed the earlier Trump EIS was deficient. The revision, under her Interior Department, not surprisingly not- ed more adverse impacts on wildlife
how fast the ship of state will turn is uncertain. Biden attempted to “Trump-proof” many of his policies going out the door and the new presi- dent’s team will try to quickly undo as many of these as possible. But there will be lawsuits that will slow things down, and while the new president succeeded in getting a con- servative U.S. Supreme Court in place during his first term, many of the key lower federal court judges, including in Alaska, were appointed earlier and are still presiding. Alaska U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason, for example, is a tough, independent jurist who has years of experience with complex Alaska natural resource cases, many of them related to North Slope oil and gas. The complications in effecting a quick course change can be seen in three high-profile Alaska issues, one
Second term will bring big changes at federal level There’s a new U.S. President in Washington, D.C. with big plans for shaking up the federal government. With Alaska’s future tied to natural resource development, new Presi- dent Donald Trump’s enthusiasm for oil, gas and minerals development is a breath of fresh air after the cold shoulder former President Joe Biden gave Alaska’s key industries. Trump hopes to hit the ground running with a number of executive orders (these can be issued without Congress) that will attempt to undo many of Biden’s orders. Trump will definitely plot a course change in many federal agencies but
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