On March 3, the federal government leased 69,134 acres of public land in Wyoming for oil and gas development at the recently reduced federal royalty rate of 12.5%. The result is an estimated $31 million in lost royalty revenue over the life of these leases.

This sale adds to mounting losses—TCS estimates that taxpayers have already lost more than $600 million in projected royalty revenue from leases sold since July 4, 2025, when the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) reduced the onshore royalty rate to 12.5%—below what states and private landowners typically charge.

Today’s sale offered 53 parcels of public land in Wyoming, totaling 69,456 acres. 75% of the offered acres were located in Sweetwater County, which accounted for 5% of federal oil and 10% of federal gas produced in the state over the last decade.

Wyoming has been the second largest producer of federal oil and largest producer of federal gas over the last decade. Lease sales in the state have been consistently competitive and oil and gas development generates important revenue for federal and state taxpayers.

Results from today’s lease sale:

Leasing decisions are driven by development potential and market conditions. Competitiveness in today’s sale varied widely. 6 parcels, totaling 4,397 acres, sold for the legal minimum bid of $10 per acre. The highest bid, 1 parcel leased for $5,027 per acre, was located in Converse County, the largest producer of federal oil and gas in the state. Operators lease where there is development potential—a factor that is highly dependent on the specific parcels of land offered in a sale.

Competitive, market-based royalty terms do not deter industry interest nor production decisions. The sale’s average bid of $204 per acre is on par with historical leasing trends in the state—both for leases offered at a 12.5% royalty rate and more recent leases offered at the 16.67% royalty rate.

The lower royalty rate did not make these leases more competitive. It simply reduced future royalty revenue. In Wyoming alone, taxpayers lost an estimated $3.6 billion in revenue from FY2013 to FY2022 under the 12.5% rate. With record-high production across the U.S., losses will continue or even grow worse. Because revenue is shared between the federal treasury and states, Wyoming taxpayers will also lose funds for schools, infrastructure, and other local priorities.

The Bureau of Land Management estimates that the parcels sold today could yield 4.2 million barrels of oil and 113 billion cubic feet of natural gas over a conservative 10-year lifespan. Based on the White House budget office’s 2026 price projections—used to estimate federal royalty revenue from onshore leases—that production could be worth roughly $735 million. At the 12.5% rate, taxpayers would receive about $92 million in royalty revenue, roughly $30.7 million less than we would under a 16.67% rate.

Oil and gas developed on federal lands belong to the American people, and leasing terms should ensure taxpayers receive a fair return from the development of our valuable resources.