Big oil in the united states industry influence on institutions, policy, and politics

Big Oil in the United States This page intentionally left blank Big Oil in the United States Industry Influence on Institutions, Policy, and Politics Jerry A McBeath Copyright © 2016 by Jerry A McBeath All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other­wise, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review, without prior permission in writing from the publisher Library of Congress Cataloging-­in-­Publication Data Names: McBeath, Gerald A., author Title: Big oil in the United States : industry influence on institutions, policy, and politics / Jerry A McBeath Description: Santa Barbara, California : Praeger, [2016] | Includes bibliographical references and index Identifiers: LCCN 2016005285| ISBN 9781440837425 (hard copy : alk paper) | ISBN 9781440837432 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Petroleum industry and trade—Political aspects— United States | Gas industry—Political aspects—United States | Business and politics—United States | Big business—Political aspects—United States Classification: LCC HD9566 M397 2016 | DDC 338.2/7280973—dc23 LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2016005285 ISBN: 978-1-4408-3742-5 EISBN: 978-1-4408-3743-2 20 19 18 17 16   1 2 3 4 5 This book is also available as an eBook Praeger An Imprint of ABC-­CLIO, LLC ABC-­CLIO, LLC 130 Cremona Drive, P.O Box 1911 Santa Barbara, California 93116-1911 www.abc-clio.com This book is printed on acid-­free paper Manufactured in the United States of Amer­i­ca For Jenifer, Bowen, and Rowena This page intentionally left blank Contents Acknowl­edgments ix 1 Introduction Onshore Oil and Gas Resource Development 15 Oil and Gas Development in the Outer Continental Shelf 47 Representing the Interests of Industry 73 Representing the Interests of the Land 109 How Institutions M ­ atter: Oil and Gas Regulatory Regimes 145 National Energy Policies and Big Oil 183 8 Conclusion 213 Appendix: List of Respondents 227 Notes 237 Bibliography 277 Index 289 This page intentionally left blank Acknowl­edgments In April 2014, Jessica Gribble, Praeger’s acquisitions editor, asked if I might be interested in writing a book on the topic of big oil in the United States Set to retire in a few months a­ fter 44 years of college teaching, I thought a large research/writing proj­ect would be a nice transition Although I’d done research on Alaska oil and gas issues since 1980, ­there was much to learn about the other oil-­and gas-­producing states and national energy policy, so I viewed Jessica’s proposition as a welcome challenge Many helped me find good sources of information and the right ­people to talk to in the next year and a half B ­ ecause for 30 some years I’d participated in the annual states’ bud­get roundtable at the Western Po­liti­cal Science Association, that’s where I turned first Helping me develop contacts in California w ­ ere John Korey (emeritus professor, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona), Ted Lascher (professor of public policy and administration, Cal State University, Sacramento), and James Goldstene (previously the executive officer of the California Air Resources Board) In Colorado, Tom Cronin (president emeritus, Whitman College, and professor of American institutions and leadership at Colorado College) and Bruce Finley (writer for the Denver Post) shared their contacts and insights In Wyoming, Bob Schuhman (professor of public administration, state/local government and associate dean) introduced me to colleagues in economics and energy Robert Godby, associate professor, and Ben Cook, visiting assistant professor, both in economics and finance at the business school put me in touch with several oil and gas regulators Two professors at the University of New Mexico School of Law, Denise Fort and Alex Ritchie, facilitated my finding good respondents in their state .. .Big Oil in the United States This page intentionally left blank Big Oil in the United States Industry Influence on Institutions, Policy, and Politics Jerry A McBeath... Africa, and Latin Amer­i­ca CONVENTIONAL AND UNCONVENTIONAL OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT The terms “conventional” and “unconventional,” in the context of oil and gas resource exploration and development,... technological developments in the industry and changes in industry structure ­These newspapers and newsmagazines ­were the best source of information on changes in the industry when oil and gas prices dropped