Which U.S. agency manages offshore oil and gas leasing on federal waters?

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management manages offshore oil and gas leasing on U.S. federal waters.

BOEM is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior. It is responsible for identifying areas suitable for renewable-energy and conventional-energy development, conducting lease sales, and overseeing the economic and environmental aspects of offshore energy resources on the Outer Continental Shelf.

BOEM was created in 2011 when the former Minerals Management Service was reorganized. The restructuring separated resource-management responsibilities from safety-enforcement and revenue-collection functions, which were assigned to other Interior agencies. This separation was intended to reduce conflicts between promoting development and regulating it.

BOEM is often confused with the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, or BSEE. BOEM handles leasing and resource management, while BSEE focuses on operational safety and environmental enforcement. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission primarily regulates interstate electricity, natural-gas pipelines, and related energy markets rather than federal offshore lease sales.