ELR Citation: 53 ELR 20070
No(s). 22-5036 (D.C. Cir. Apr 28, 2023)

The D.C. Circuit dismissed for mootness a challenge to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's (BOEM's) 2021 oil and gas lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico. Environmental groups argued the sale violated NEPA. The district court had concluded BOEM failed to properly follow NEPA procedures, and vacated the record of decision to conduct the sale. The president subsequently signed into law the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which required issuance of the leases won in the sale. The appellate court found that the IRA's instructions for BOEM to move forward with the sale mooted the suit. It vacated the district court's order and remanded with instructions to dismiss the suit as moot.