,i #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #aghb ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,april #bf1 #bjac ,mr4 ,rigell 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,wittman1 ,mr4 ,griffith of ,virginia1 and ,mr4 ,hurt7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,natural ,resources ,a ,,bill ,to require the ,secretary of the ,interior to conduct offshore oil and gas ,lease ,sale #bbj as soon as practicable1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,virginia ,jobs and ,energy ,act4 #b4 ,lease ,sale #bbj and other ,,ocs oil and gas lease sales offshore ,virginia 7a7 ,conduct of lease sale ,notwithstanding inclusion in the current #e-year oil and gas leasing program under section #ah of the ,outer ,continental ,shelf ,lands ,act 7#dc ,u4,s4,c4 #acdd71 the ,secretary of the ,interior shall conduct lease sale #bbj 7as defined in the ,draft ,proposed ,outer ,continental ,shelf 7,,ocs7 ,oil and ,gas ,leasing ,program for #bjaj-bjae as published in the ,federal ,register on ,january #ba1 #bjji 7#gd ,fed4 ,reg4 #cfca77 under section #h of such ,act 7#dc ,u4,s4,c4 #accg7 as soon as practicable1 but not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act4 7b7 ,inclusion in future leasing programs ,the ,secretary of the ,interior shall include at least one lease sale in the ,virginia lease sale planning area in each #e-year oil and gas leasing program that applies after the current leasing program4 #c4 ,protection of military operations 7a7 ,prohibition ,no person may engage in any exploration1 development1 or production of oil or natural gas off the coast of ,virginia that would conflict with any military operation1 as determined in accordance with the ,memorandum of ,agreement between the ,department of ,defense and the ,department of the ,interior on ,mutual ,concerns on the ,outer ,continental ,shelf signed ,july #bj1 #aihc1 and any revision or replacement for that agreement that is agreed to by the ,secretary of ,defense and the ,secretary of the ,interior after that date but before the date of issuance of the lease under which such exploration1 development1 or production is conducted4 7b7 ,review and updating of ,,moa ,the ,secretary of the ,interior and the ,secretary of ,defense shall periodically review and revise such memorandum of agreement to account for new offshore energy production technologies1 including those that use wind energy4 #d4 ,disposition of revenue 7a7 ,payment of new leasing revenues to ,mid-,atlantic ,states ,notwithstanding section #i of the ,outer ,continental ,shelf ,lands ,act 7#dc ,u4,s4,c4 #acch71 of the amount of new leasing revenues received by the ,united ,states each fiscal year under any lease issued under this ,act1 #cg4e percent shall be allocated and paid in accordance with subsection 7b7 to ,mid-,atlantic ,states that are affected ,states with respect to the leases under which those revenues are received by the ,united ,states4 7b7 ,allocation of payments 7#a7 ,in general ,the amount of new leasing revenues received by the ,united ,states with respect to a leased tract that are required to be paid to ,mid-,atlantic ,states in accordance with this subsection each fiscal year shall be allocated among and paid to ,mid-,atlantic ,states that are within #bjj miles of the leased tract1 in amounts that are inversely proportional to the respective distances between the point on the coastline of each such ,state that is closest to the geographic center of the lease tract1 as determined by the ,secretary4 7#b7 ,minimum and maximum allocation ,the amount allocated to a ,mid-,atlantic ,state under paragraph 7#a7 each fiscal year with respect to a leased tract shall be-- 7,a7 in the case of a ,mid-,atlantic ,state that is the nearest ,mid-,atlantic ,state to the geographic center of the leased tract1 not less than #be percent of the total amounts allocated with respect to the leased tract2 and 7,b7 in the case of any other ,mid-,atlantic ,state1 not less than #aj percent1 and not more than #ae percent1 of the total amounts allocated with respect to the leased tract4 7#c7 ,administration ,amounts allocated to a ,mid-,atlantic ,state under this subsection-- 7,a7 shall be available to the ,state without further appropriation2 7,b7 shall remain available until expended2 and 7,c7 shall be in addition to any other amounts available to the ,state under the ,outer ,continental ,shelf ,lands ,act 7#dc ,u4,s4,c4 #acca et seq474 7#d7 ,use of funds 7,a7 ,in general ,except as provided in subparagraph 7,b71 a ,mid-,atlantic ,state may use funds allocated and paid to it under this subsection for any purpose as determined by the laws of that ,state4 7,b7 ,restriction on use for matching ,funds allocated and paid to a ,mid-,atlantic ,state under this subsection may not be used as matching funds for any other ,federal program4 7c7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,affected ,state ,the term affected ,state has the meaning that term has under section #b of the ,outer ,continental ,shelf ,lands ,act 7#dc ,u4,s4,c4 #acca74 7#b7 ,mid-,atlantic ,state ,the term ,mid-,atlantic ,state means each of the ,states of ,delaware1 ,north ,carolina1 ,maryland1 and ,virginia4 7#c7 ,new leasing revenues ,the term new leasing revenues means amounts received by the ,united ,states as bonuses1 rents1 and royalties under leases for oil and gas1 wind1 tidal1 or other energy exploration1 development1 and production on areas of the ,outer ,continental ,shelf that are authorized to be made available for leasing as a result of enactment of this ,act4 7#d7 ,virginia lease sale planning area ,the term ,virginia lease sale planning area means the area of the outer ,continental ,shelf 7as that term is defined in the ,outer ,continental ,shelf ,lands ,act 7#cc ,u4,s4,c4 #acca et seq477 that has-- 7,a7 a boundary consisting of a straight line extending from the northernmost point of ,virginia's seaward boundary to the point on the seaward boundary of the ,united ,states exclusive economic zone located at #cg degrees #ag minutes #a second ,north latitude1 #ga degrees #e minutes #af seconds ,west longitude2 and 7,b7 a southern boundary consisting of a straight line extending from the southernmost point of ,virginia's seaward boundary to the point on the seaward boundary of the ,united ,states exclusive economic zone located at #cf degrees #ca minutes #eh seconds ,north latitude1 #ga degrees #cj minutes #a second ,west longitude4 #e4 ,offshore meteorological site testing and monitoring projects 7a7 ,offshore meteorological project permitting 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of the ,interior shall by regulation require that any applicant seeking to conduct an offshore meteorological site testing and monitoring project on the outer ,continental ,shelf 7as that term is defined in the ,outer ,continental ,shelf ,lands ,act 7#dc ,u4,s4,c4 #acca et seq477 must obtain a permit and right of way for the project in accordance with this subsection4 7#b7 ,permit and right-of-way timeline and conditions 7,a7 ,deadline for ,approval ,the ,secretary shall decide whether to issue a permit and right of way for an offshore meteorological site testing and monitoring project within #cj days after receiving an application4 7,b7 ,public comment and consultation ,during the period referred to in subparagraph 7,a71 the ,secretary shall-- 7i7 provide an opportunity for submission of comments by the public2 and 7ii7 consult with the ,secretary of ,defense1 the ,commandant of the ,coast ,guard1 and the heads of other ,federal1 ,state1 and local agencies that would be affected by issuance of the permit and right of way4 7,c7 ,denial of permit2 opportunity to remedy deficiencies ,if the application is denied1 the ,secretary shall provide the applicant-- 7i7 in writing1 clear and comprehensive reasons why the application was not approved and detailed information concerning any deficiencies in the application2 and 7ii7 an opportunity to remedy such deficiencies4 7b7 ,,nepa exclusion ,section #ajb7b77;,c7 of the ,national ,environmental ,policy ,act of #aifi 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #dccb7b77;,c77 shall not apply with respect to an offshore meteorological site testing and monitoring project4 7c7 ,protection of ,information ,the information provided to the ,secretary of the ,interior pursuant to subsection 7d77#c7 shall be treated by the ,secretary as proprietary information and protected against disclosure4 7d7 ,definition of an offshore meteorological site testing and monitoring project ,in this section1 the term offshore meteorological site testing and monitoring project means a project carried out on or in the waters of the ,outer ,continental ,shelf administered by the ,department of the ,interior to test or monitor weather 7including wind1 tidal1 current1 and solar energy7 using towers1 buoys1 or other temporary ocean infrastructure1 that-- 7#a7 causes-- 7,a7 less than #a acre of surface or seafloor disruption at the location of each meteorological tower or other device2 and 7,b7 not more than #e acres of surface or seafloor disruption within the proposed area affected by the project 7including hazards to navigation72 7#b7 is decommissioned not more than #e years after the date of commencement of the project1 including-- 7,a7 removal of towers1 buoys1 or other temporary ocean infrastructure from the project site2 and 7,b7 restoration of the project site to approximately the original condition of the site2 and 7#c7 provides meteorological information obtained by the project to the ,secretary of the ,interior4