Senate votes to overturn Biden move to restrict Arctic drilling

The Senate on Thursday voted to overturn a Biden administration plan that would have restricted drilling in the Arctic.

The vote was 52-45. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) joined Republicans in voting in favor.

The 2022 Biden administration plan in question made about 52 percent of land available for drilling in an area known as the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. A previous Trump administration plan would have allowed drilling in 82 percent of the petroleum reserve.

“This will benefit North Slope communities with jobs & economic growth, and support their tax base to improve access to essential services like water and sewer systems and clinics,” sponsor Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska)  said in a post on the social platform X in September.

If the House takes up the resolution, it’s likely to pass with the GOP majority and would also be expected to have President Trump’s support. 

The National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska was set aside in 1923 by former President Harding as an emergency oil reserve for the Navy. It is now managed by the Bureau of Land Management.

The Biden administration argued that by shrinking the lands available for drilling, it was protecting areas of ecological significance. 

The vote was held under the Congressional Review Act, which allows the Senate to vote to overturn regulations with a simple majority, bypassing the filibuster.