On September 4, the Trump Administration released its Spring 2025 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, a government-wide rulemaking calendar that outlines agencies’ priorities for the next six months. It tracks more than 2,100 proposed and ongoing federal rules, providing the first official glimpse into how the administration intends to steer energy and environmental policy over the next four years.  

The agenda includes repeals of many existing rules, implementation of policies recently passed in the FY2025 budget reconciliation bill, and other deregulatory efforts. Taken together, these rulemakings have far-reaching implications for taxpayers, energy markets, and federal oversight.    

Below is a sample of the rulemakings included in the Unified Agenda related to energy and natural resources that Taxpayers for Common Sense is tracking: 

Federal Onshore Oil and Gas Leasing System 

The federal government leases federal lands to private companies to extract taxpayer-owned oil and gas, collecting revenue through bids, rents, and royalties. Several pending rules would weaken recent reforms and restore outdated practices: 

• Bureau of Land Management – Oil and Gas Leasing Rule 

• • Would rescind the 2024 “Fluid Mineral Leases and Leasing Process” rule, which raised outdated fees, rents, and royalties; strengthened bonding requirements; and directed leasing to strategic areas. Congress already rolled back most legislative updates in July, lowering royalty rates from 16.67% back to 12.5% and reopening a loophole for noncompetitive leasing.  

• Bureau of Land Management – Rescission of the Management and Protection of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Regulations 

• • Would rescind a 2024 final rule that established new standards for development in the Reserve and restricted drilling in designated “Special Areas.”  

• Forest Service – Oil and Gas Resource Revision 

• • Would modify oil and gas leasing and operations on national forests and grasslands. The rule was originally noticed in 2020 under the first Trump Administration. 

Management of Public Lands and Other Taxpayer-Owned Resources 

America’s public lands and natural resources are owned by taxpayers and must be managed in a way that balances economic use, environmental stewardship, and long-term sustainability. Several new rules could cost taxpayers by picking winners and losers and undervaluing our taxpayer-owned resources:  

• Bureau of Land Management – Rescission of Conservation and Landscape Health Rule 

• • Would undo a final rule that designated conservation as a legitimate use under the “multiple use” framework.  

• Bureau of Land Management – Rescission of the Intermittent Energy Rule 

• • Would repeal a final rule that expediates solar and wind energy project development on public lands, including by decreasing rents and capacity fees, allowing noncompetitive leasing inside Designated Leasing Areas (DLAs), and extending maximum lease terms. 

Methane 

Oil and gas operations remain among the largest methane emitters in the U.S., wasting billions of cubic feet annually through flaring, venting, and leaks. Several new rules could undercut recent progress to reduce waste and protect taxpayers:  

• Bureau of Land Management – Royalty for Oil and Gas Lost from Onshore Federal and Indian Leases 

• • Would rescind the March 2024 “Waste Prevention, Production Subject to Royalties, and Resource Conservation,” rule requiring waste minimization plans, leak detection and repair, and royalties on avoidable losses.  

• Environmental Protection Agency – Extension of Deadlines in Standards of Performance for New, Reconstructed, and Modified Sources and Emissions Guidelines for Existing Sources: Oil and Natural Gas Sector Climate Review  

• • Would delay compliance deadlines for the EPA’s 2024 rule “Standards of Performance for New, Reconstructed, and Modified Sources and Emissions Guidelines for Existing Sources: Oil and Natural Gas Sector Climate Review,” which established emission standards for new facilities and guidelines for state plans to regulate emissions from existing facilities.  

• Environmental Protection Agency – Additional Reconsideration of Standards of Performance for New, Reconstructed, and Modified Sources and Emissions Guidelines for Existing Sources: Oil and Natural Gas Sector Climate Review   

• • Would “reconsider” the same 2024 standards mentioned above.   

• Environmental Protection Agency – Reconsideration of Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule: Revisions and Confidentiality Determinations for Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems (Subpart W)  

• • Would revisit the 2024 rule “Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule: Revisions and Confidentiality Determinations for Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems,” which increased transparency of emissions from the oil and gas sector, mandated under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) as part of the Methane Emissions Reduction Program (MERP).  

• Department of Transportation – Pipeline Safety: Repair Criteria for Hazardous Liquid and Gas Transmission Pipelines 

• • Would change when operators must repair hazardous liquid pipelines.  

Timber and the Roadless Rule 

The U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management manage timber sales on federal lands. Two new rules would repeal the Roadless Rule, leading to money-losing timber sales and costly road construction: 

• U.S. Forest Service – Special Areas: Roadless Area Conservation Repeal 

• • Would repeal the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (Roadless Rule) that prohibits road construction, road reconstruction, and timber harvesting in inventoried roadless areas. 

• U.S. Forest Service – Alaska Roadless Area Management  

• • Would repeal 2023 final rulemaking “Special Areas, Roadless Area Conservation: National Forest System Lands in Alaska” and reinstate the 2020 rule that exempts the Tongass National Forest from the 2001 Roadless Rule. 

Bioenergy 

Bioenergy—produced from recently living organic materials, or biomass—can be used to generate fuel, electricity, heat, and other products. Proposed rules could increase federal subsidies for biofuels, further distorting markets, raising food and fuel prices, increasing emissions, and undercutting other federal priorities: 

• Environmental Protection Agency – Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) Program: Set 2  

• • Would set 2026 blending volumes for cellulosic biofuel, biomass based diesel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).  

• Department of Agriculture – Unleashing American Energy and Economic Prosperity under Title 7 Code of Federal Regulations Part 4280 Subpart B 

• • The proposal will simplify and streamline requirements and processes in the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP), a program established by the 2008 farm bill to provide loans and grants to agricultural producers and small businesses to install renewable energy systems and improve energy efficiency. 

Carbon Capture and Storage 

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) refers to a suite of technologies designed to capture carbon emissions from power plants, industrial processes, or directly from the air. The captured carbon is either stored underground or utilized—often to extract more oil and gas. Proposed rules will create new guidelines for CCS activities and risk increasing federal subsidies: 

• Department of the Interior – Carbon Sequestration  

• • Would establish regulations for transporting and storing captured carbon on the Outer Continental Shelf.  

• Environmental Protection Agency – Reconsideration of the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program  

• • Would end reporting requirements for nearly all major emitters, fuel and industrial gas suppliers, and CO2 injection sites under the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP). 

Energy Tax Credits 

The federal tax code includes billions of dollars in annual subsidies for the energy sector, delivered through tax credits and preferential treatments that allow companies to significantly lower their effective tax rates. Proposed rules would govern implementation of changes made to energy tax credits in the FY2025 reconciliation bill: 

• Internal Revenue Service – Section 45Z Clean Fuel Production Credit  

• • Would implement a per-gallon tax credit for low-GHG transportation fuels. First created by the IRA, the 45Z tax credit was modified and extended in the FY2025 reconciliation bill.  

• Internal Revenue Service – Section 45U Zero-Emission Nuclear Power Production Credit 

• • Would govern implementation of the 45U tax credit, which provides up to $15 per MWh for electricity produced by qualifying nuclear facilities. Created by the IRA and later modified to sunset early in the FY2025 reconciliation bill. 

• Internal Revenue Service – Section 25C Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit  

• • Would implement the 25C credit, offering up to $3,200 annually for energy-efficient home upgrades. Originally extended through 2032 by the IRA, but terminated after 2025 in the FY2025 reconciliation bill. It is unclear whether the final rule will address this termination or if a new rulemaking will be required.