Minerals Management Service

Minerals Management Service
Agency overview
FormedJanuary 19, 1982 (1982-01-19)
DissolvedOctober 1, 2011 (2011-10-01)
Superseding agency
HeadquartersWashington, D.C.
Employees1,614 (2009)
Annual budgetUS$310 million (2009)
Agency executive
Parent agencyDepartment of the Interior
Footnotes
[1][2][3]

The Minerals Management Service (MMS) was an agency of the United States Department of the Interior that managed the nation's natural gas, oil and other mineral resources on the outer continental shelf (OCS).[4][5][6][7][8]

Due to perceived conflict of interest and poor regulatory oversight following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and Inspector General investigations, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar issued a secretarial order on May 19, 2010, splitting MMS into three new federal agencies: the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and the Office of Natural Resources Revenue.[9] MMS was temporarily renamed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) during this reorganization before being formally dissolved on October 1, 2011.

Headquartered in Washington, DC,[2] the Agency received most of its revenue from leasing federal lands and waters to oil and natural gas companies with a profit margin of 98%.[10] It was among the top five revenue sources to the federal government, the IRS being number one.[10] As the MMS (before transition to BOEMRE), the Agency's signature feature according to an informational trifold was that it had "become our Nation's leader in offshore energy development and the collection of royalties on behalf of the American Public."[3] With respect to enforcement of regulations and safety, this same publication indicated that the "MMS also funds advanced scientific studies and enforces the highest safety and environmental standards."[3] The Agency's mission statement was put more formally in its 2010 Budget Proposal:[1]

MMS's mission is to manage the energy and mineral resources on the Outer Continental Shelf and Federal and American Indian mineral revenues to enhance public and trust benefits, promote responsible use, and realize fair value.

  1. ^ a b Materials Management Service (2010). Budget Justifications and Performance Information, Fiscal Year 2010: Minerals Management Service (PDF) (Report). United States Department of the Interior. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 6, 2010. Retrieved April 17, 2011. See Table 1, page 13. Figure for 2008 was ~$297 million; proposal for 2010 was ~$347 million.
  2. ^ a b "Contact Us". Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement. The News Room. Archived from the original on April 18, 2011. Retrieved April 17, 2011.
  3. ^ a b c "The Minerals Management Service" (PDF). U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original (PDF; trifold) on July 22, 2010. Retrieved April 17, 2011.
  4. ^ Salazar, Ken (June 18, 2010), Secretarial Order Nº 3302, archived from the original (PDF) on June 27, 2010, retrieved June 28, 2010
  5. ^ "Salazar Swears in Michael R. Bromwich to Lead Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement" (Press release). Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement. June 21, 2010. Archived from the original on June 26, 2010. Retrieved April 17, 2010.
  6. ^ Ed O'Keefe (June 21, 2010). "Salazar swears in new boss at MMS BOEMRE". Washington Post. Federal Eye. Archived from the original (blog posting) on March 2, 2011. Retrieved June 21, 2010.
  7. ^ "About the Minerals Management Service". Minerals Management Service. U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original on July 1, 2010. Retrieved June 10, 2010.
  8. ^ "About BOEMRE". Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement. U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original on April 18, 2011. Retrieved April 17, 2011.
  9. ^ Salazar, Ken (May 19, 2010), Secretarial Order Nº 3299, archived from the original (PDF) on May 20, 2010, retrieved May 21, 2010
  10. ^ a b "Issa says oil royalties trail only taxes in generating revenue for the federal government". St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. PolitiFact.com. Retrieved April 17, 2011.