U.S. Officials: Report on Oil and Gas Sale Ban Due by Summer

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — The Biden administration says that it will deliver an interim report on its suspension of oil and gas sales from federal lands and waters by summer.

But officials on Tuesday declined to say how long the moratorium could last.

A long-term ban on sales from the nation’s vast, publicly-owned oil and gas reserves to address climate change would fulfill a campaign pledge from Democratic President Joe Biden.

The prospect has rankled Republicans and petroleum industry representatives.

They say Biden is putting tens of thousands of jobs at risk as the economy reels from the pandemic.

Biden announced a temporary suspension of new lease sales a week after taking office.