Senate parliamentarian rejects offshore oil, gas drilling provisions in GOP megabill

Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough dealt a blow to Republicans by ruling that several provisions in their megabill to fast-track offshore oil and gas projects and expand resource extraction violate Senate rules. These provisions, which aimed to bypass environmental reviews and mandate rapid lease approvals, failed to meet the Byrd Rule and cannot pass with a simple majority. Democrats, led by Sen. Jeff Merkley, celebrated the rulings as a procedural victory against what they call a GOP effort to gut environmental protections and sell off public lands. MacDonough is still reviewing additional Alaska-related provisions in the bill.