Cynthia Lummis (R-WY)
Protect Domestic Oil and Gas Small Business Act of 2026
A Republican bill with 10 Republican cosponsors · See all 10 cosponsors
Last activity — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
In committee
Introduced and handed to a committee in the chamber it started in.
The committee holds it, and most bills are never heard from again. A hearing or a committee vote would be news; silence is the usual outcome, and it kills the bill without anyone voting against it.
Its path through Congress
- Introduced
- In Committee
What this bill would do
This bill, titled the "Protect Domestic Oil and Gas Small Business Act of 2026," seeks to amend the Clean Air Act. It aims to exclude marginal wells from certain standards of performance and other requirements. A marginal well is defined by specific daily production limits for oil or natural gas. The legislation removes requirements for monitoring, reporting, and leak detection for these wells. Additionally, it prevents the Administrator from requiring such standards in State plans.
Yes· 3 of 7
- Scored +7
Would business owners be better off under this?
Small business owners in the oil and gas industry benefit from the elimination of compliance and enforcement costs.
- Scored +6
Does this make it easier to run a small business?
The bill exempts small-scale marginal well operators from expensive monitoring, reporting, and leak detection requirements.
- Scored +4
Does this leave more decisions to the states?
The bill allows states to more easily remove environmental standards for marginal wells from their state plans.
The opposite
- Scored -6
Does this better protect air, water and wildlife?
The legislation weakens environmental protections by exempting marginal wells from air quality standards and monitoring.
- Scored -5
Does this cut the pollution that drives climate change?
The bill removes requirements for leak detection and fugitive emission surveys, which could lead to increased methane and carbon emissions from marginal wells.
- Scored -3
Does this reduce how much oil, gas and coal is produced?
By reducing the regulatory cost of operating marginal wells, the bill may encourage continued fossil fuel extraction.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
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Exemption from Clean Air Act requirements: Owners or operators of marginal wells would no longer be subject to standards of performance, monitoring, reporting, recordkeeping, fugitive emission surveys, or leak detection and repair requirements (Section 2(a)(2)).
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Termination of enforcement actions: Any pending actions to enforce these specific standards or requirements against marginal wells would be terminated upon the Act's enactment (Section 2(b)(2)).
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Expedited State plan revisions: States can submit revisions to remove standards for marginal wells, and the Administrator must act on these revisions within 180 days, or they are considered approved (Section 2(a)(4)).
Potential Negative Impacts for People
- No specific negative impacts are mentioned in the provided text.
Groups and Interests Ranking
Every group the model scored this bill for, from -10 to +10. Tap or hover a score for the reason it gave.
- Environment Energy And Infrastructure
- Does this better protect air, water and wildlife? — The legislation weakens environmental protections by exempting marginal wells from air quality standards and monitoring. Does this cut the pollution that drives climate change? — The bill removes requirements for leak detection and fugitive emission surveys, which could lead to increased methane and carbon emissions from marginal wells. Does this reduce how much oil, gas and coal is produced? — By reducing the regulatory cost of operating marginal wells, the bill may encourage continued fossil fuel extraction.
- Economy And Finance
- Does this make it easier to run a small business? — The bill exempts small-scale marginal well operators from expensive monitoring, reporting, and leak detection requirements. Is this likely to create jobs? — The reduction in regulatory burdens for marginal wells may facilitate continued or increased production activity. Is this likely to grow the economy? — Reducing compliance costs for small oil and gas operations can provide economic relief to the energy sector.
- Demographic And Interest Groups
- Would business owners be better off under this? — Small business owners in the oil and gas industry benefit from the elimination of compliance and enforcement costs. Would people in rural areas be better off under this? — The relief of regulatory costs may support the local economies of areas reliant on small-scale energy production. Would farmers be better off under this? — Reduced regulation on nearby energy extraction might have indirect economic benefits for rural land users.
- Governance And Ideology
- Does this leave more decisions to the states? — The bill allows states to more easily remove environmental standards for marginal wells from their state plans.
- 9/28/2026
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 8/4/2026
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 7/14/2026
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 6/3/2026
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 5/21/2026
- Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
- 6 Cosponsors added.
- Introduced in Senate
One bill Congress.gov lists as related to this one — companions in the other chamber, earlier versions, and bills this one absorbed or was folded into.
John BarrassoRepublican · Wyoming
Kevin CramerRepublican · North Dakota
Steve DainesRepublican · Montana
James LankfordRepublican · Oklahoma
Mike LeeRepublican · Utah
Jerry MoranRepublican · Kansas
Roger MarshallRepublican · Kansas
David McCormickRepublican · Pennsylvania
Pete RickettsRepublican · Nebraska
Tim SheehyRepublican · Montana