BRINGING REAL INFORMATION ON
ENERGY FORWARD
Economic Considerations Associated with
Regulating the American Oil and Natural Gas
Industry
Prepared for:
Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA)
and
The Liaison Committee of Cooperating Oil and Gas Associations
Prepared by:
Advanced Resources International, Incorporated
April 24, 2009
1
INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY
For the last several years, a number of environmental organizations have been pursuing an
aggressive campaign to push for greater federal environmental oversight over U.S. oil and
natural gas exploration and production (E&P) operations. These organizations allege that a
number of federal statutes and regulations allow American oil and natural gas producers to
circumvent environmental requirements imposed on other industries.1
The American oil and natural gas industry is quite concerned that a considerably more stringent
set of regulatory proposals, if implemented, could have adverse impacts on the economics of
U.S. oil and natural gas E&P operations, and thus on U.S. oil and natural gas supplies, prices,
and other economic considerations.2
This report has been developed to provide the American public with factual information on the
genuine economic value American oil and natural gas development and production brings to
states and local communities, and discusses the potential energy supply and economic
implications associated with the imposition of considerably more stringent regulatory
requirements on American oil and natural gas producers.
A companion document to this study demonstrates how regulations currently in place
adequately and appropriately protect the public and the environment, and that American
producers currently pursue their operations with aggressive and measured approaches to
protecting the environment.
This report shows that American oil and natural gas producers provide a significant contribution
to the national economy, and that U.S. oil and natural gas supplies play an