H.R. 2415: Orphaned Well Cleanup and Jobs Act of 2021

117th Congress · introduced 2021-04-08 · Energy · Latest: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 464.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2021-04-08 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Leger Fernandez, Teresa [D-NM-3] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 464. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Orphaned Well Cleanup and Jobs Act of 2021

Plain summary

Orphaned Well Cleanup and Jobs Act of 2021 This bill establishes incentives and requirements to permanently plug orphaned (i.e., abandoned) oil and gas wells and clean up pollution leaking from such wells. Specifically, the bill directs the Department of the Interior to establish grant programs to plug and clean up orphaned wells located on federal, state, tribal, and private land. Interior must also issue regulations that require each operator of an idled well on federal land to pay an annual, nonrefundable fee for each well. If the operator fails to pay the fee, then Interior may assess a civil penalty. Revenues generated from such fees must be used for activities related to cleaning up orphaned wells. Additionally, the bill requires the review of the adequacy of bonds or other financial arrangements for oil and gas development on public land leased from the federal government. Such bonds or financial arrangements are currently required to ensure developers have adequate financial resources to remediate and reclaim public land, water, or other resources after wells are abandoned or oil and gas development ceases.

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Orphaned Well Cleanup and Jobs Act of 2021

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to House)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Leger Fernandez, Teresa [D-NM-3] · 34 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: H.R. 2415, Orphaned Well Cleanup and Jobs Act of 2021 (2021-10-06)

Cosponsors on this site

Kathy Castor (D-FL), Diana DeGette (D-CO), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Nanette Diaz Barragán (D-CA), Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Darren Soto (D-FL), Jared Huffman (D-CA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Mike Levin (D-CA), Deborah K. Ross (D-NC), Jesús G. "Chuy" García (D-IL), Mark Pocan (D-WI), Madeleine Dean (D-PA), Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), Salud O. Carbajal (D-CA), André Carson (D-IN), Melanie A. Stansbury (D-NM), Troy A. Carter (D-LA)

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Leger Fernandez, Teresa [D-NM-3] reported raising $1.6 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (3)

Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Bond: A way to borrow money. A government sells bonds to raise money now and promises to pay it back with interest over time. Bonds repaid from taxes often need voter approval.
Rulemaking: The process agencies use to write regulations that carry out laws passed by Congress or a legislature. Usually an agency publishes a proposed rule, takes public comments, then publishes a final rule.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-117hr2415.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/117/hr>

Record fed-us-cong117-hr2415 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong117 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong117