Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 109 Part 1.djvu/579

 PUBLIC LAW 104-58—NOV. 28, 1995 109 STAT. 563 and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. —There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation to carry out subsection (a), $15,000,000 for fiscal year 1997, to remain available until October 1, 2003. TITLE III—OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF DEEP WATER ROYALTY RELIEF SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE. This title may be referred to as the "Outer Continental Shelf Deep Water Royalty Relief Act". SEC. 302. AMENDMENTS TO THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF LANDS ACT. Section 8(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1337(a)(3)), is amended— (1) by designating the provisions of paragraph (3) as subparagraph (A) of such paragraph (3); and (2) by inserting after subparagraph (A), as so designated, the following: "(B) In the Western and Central Planning Areas of the Gulf of Mexico and the portion of the Eastern Planning Area of the Gulf of Mexico encompassing whole lease blocks lying west of 87 degrees, 30 minutes West longitude, the Secretary may, in order to— "(i) promote development or increased production on producing or non-producing leases; or "(ii) encourage production of marginal resources on producing or non-producing leases; through primary, secondary, or tertiary recovery means, reduce or eliminate any royalty or net profit share set forth in the lease(s). With the lessee's consent, the Secretary may make other modifications to the royalty or net profit share terms of the lease in order to achieve these purposes. "(C)(i) Notwithstanding the provisions of this Act other than this subparagraph, with respect to any lease or unit in existence on the date of enactment of the Outer Continental Shelf Deep Water Royalty Relief Act meeting the requirements of this subparagraph, no royalty payments shall be due on new production, as defined in clause (iv) of this subparagraph, from any lease or unit located in water depths of 200 meters or greater in the Western and Central Planning Areas of the Gulf of Mexico, including that portion of the Eastern Planning Area of the Gulf of Mexico encompassing whole lease blocks lying west of 87 degrees, 30 minutes West longitude, until such volume of production as determined pursuant to clause (ii) has been produced by the lessee. "(ii) Upon submission of a complete application by the lessee, the Secretary shall deteimine within 180 days of such application whether new production from such lease or unit would be economic in the absence of the relief from the requirement to pay royalties provided for by clause (i) of this subparagraph. In making such determination, the Secretary shall consider the increased technological and financial risk of deep water development and all costs associated with exploring, developing, and producing from the lease. Outer Continental Shelf Deep Water Royalty Relief Act. 43 USC 1301 note.

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