2.3 The Leasing Schedule 



In general, many individuals feel that the OCS leasing program is 

 being carried out at a pace faster than is appropriate for good plan- 

 ning. Leasing might have occurred faster had it not been for the 

 Supreme Court case over ownership of the OCS: U.S. vs Maine . The 

 State of Maine had attempted to lease offshore waters beyond the 

 federally recognized three-mile state boundary, and was challenged by 

 the Justice Department. A lengthy proceeding in the Supreme Court 

 resulted. Maine, which was joined by more than a dozen coastal states, 

 finally lost the case. 



Although leasing did not begin until the U.S. vs Maine case was 

 settled, the Nixon administration initiated activities designed to 

 clear the way for the eventual sale of first-round leases in the North 

 Atlantic. These activities began in June of 1971, when the President 

 called for the rapid leasing of all the continental shelves of the 

 United States. At the same time, the Department of Interior released 

 a five-year development plan which included the North Atlantic. 



Table 2 summarizes the events which led to the tentative schedul- 

 ing for 1977 of Lease Sale #42 in the North Atlantic. In several in- 

 stances, New England states have sought to postpone hearings and other 

 federal actions to gain more time to develop clear statements of state 

 and regional interests. In general, state involvement in offshore OCS 

 activities has been limited to responding to federal initiatives. A 

 detailed discussion of each state's OCS planning efforts is provided 

 in Appendix I. 



