Sacramento Bee–

A group of California lawmakers wants to block a funding increase for the regulatory agency that oversees the state’s oil and gas industry, unless it tackles a backlog of applications for dozens of drilling projects.

In a letter sent last month to four members of the Senate and Assembly budget committees, 15 legislators requested that the budget chairs ask the Department of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources why it has not made “permit review as high a priority as inspections and enforcement” and whether it could redirect existing revenues to “better meet its requirement to maximize the recovery of resources.”

“Over the past decade, DOGGR’s staff has more than doubled while production in California has declined dramatically. Despite these added resources to fund additional staff and the decline in overall production, permits continue to be delayed and reviewed in a timely manner,” the letter states. “We are requesting that you hold DOGGR accountable and that the agency does not grow its staff any further prior to addressing the permits backlog issue.”

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