The Bureau of Land Management has launched a 30-day public comment period on a proposed oil and gas lease sale covering parcels in Montana and North Dakota, with the sale itself scheduled for October 2026. Members of the public have until July 20 to submit feedback on the proposal.
What’s on the Table
The proposed sale encompasses 20 parcels totaling roughly 3,388 acres across the two states. BLM completed its initial scoping work on the parcels in May and is now seeking public input on both the proposed leases and associated environmental analysis. That input will factor into the agency’s formal review before the October sale moves forward.
As with all federal lease sales, the parcels would carry stipulations intended to protect natural resources in the affected areas. The sale is expected to be conducted online through the federal leasing system, with additional details available through BLM’s ePlanning website.
Why It Matters for Montana
Federal oil and gas leasing on public lands remains a significant economic and policy issue in Montana, where large swaths of land fall under federal management. Lease sales generate royalty revenue for both state and federal governments and support jobs in the energy sector, while also drawing scrutiny from conservation advocates concerned about surface impacts and emissions.
The October sale fits into a broader pattern of resumed federal leasing activity under the Trump administration, which moved early in 2025 to expand domestic energy production on public lands after the previous administration had placed restrictions on new lease sales. Montana’s congressional delegation has generally supported increasing domestic oil and gas production as a matter of energy security and economic development.
The state’s eastern plains — part of the Williston Basin shared with North Dakota — have long been a center of oil and gas activity, and federal parcels in that region are regularly included in BLM lease offerings. Conditions on the ground this summer, including severe drought affecting much of Montana, could draw additional attention to environmental review components of the leasing process.
How to Comment
BLM is accepting public comments through July 20. The agency’s stated purpose in soliciting input is to inform its environmental analysis and ensure that concerns related to wildlife, water, and other natural resources are considered before parcels are formally offered for lease. Submission details are available through BLM’s ePlanning portal, where the proposed sale documents are also posted.
Federal lease sales do not guarantee drilling activity — winning bidders must separately obtain permits before any development can begin, a process that involves additional environmental review and public notice requirements.
What Comes Next
After the comment period closes July 20, BLM will incorporate public input into its environmental review process ahead of the October 2026 auction. If the sale proceeds on schedule, successful bidders will hold lease rights but will need to clear further federal permitting hurdles before putting any acres into production.
The lease sale is one of several energy and land-management decisions shaping Montana’s public lands landscape this year. State and federal regulators are simultaneously navigating questions about resource development, infrastructure investment, and environmental compliance across multiple fronts — from utility rate cases tied to new industrial demand to ongoing federal environmental remediation efforts in communities like Butte.
Montanans interested in weighing in on the proposed leases can find parcel-level details and comment submission instructions on the BLM ePlanning website before the July 20 deadline.
