The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Request for Information opens up a major opportunity to make our voices heard and tell the government that offshore drilling does not serve our national interest. Speak up by clicking the links below to submit a comment. 

Here's how to submit your comment:

1. Draft or copy sample comment. Copy our sample comment, which can be found at the bottom of the page
2. Go to the website. Click here to find the comment submission page.
3. Paste in your comment. Scroll down slightly until you see a large white text box. Paste the comment inside the text box. If you'd like, you can edit the comment at this stage. (Optional: In the text box with "Email" written beside it, type your email address. Click the box right below the text box to receive an email confirmation of your comment submission, as well as its tracking number.)  
4. Identify yourself. Scroll down slightly to the section of the comment submission form where it asks you to identify yourself, and click the small circle to the left of the text that describes you best.  
5. Acknowledge. Scroll down, and click the box to acknowledge that you are submitting a comment. 
6. Submit. Finally, click submit comment. That's it!
    

Sample Comment to COPY and AND THEN PASTE on the comment page on Regulations.gov (DON'T FORGET THE SECOND STEP!)

I am writing to respond to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's Request for Information (Docket ID BOEM-2025-0015) for the 11th National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program and, because of oil's harmful impacts on marine environments, coastal livelihoods, and health, I strongly urge BOEM not to lease the national outer continental shelf to offshore drilling. 

Offshore drilling has no place in our energy future, as it has a proven record of causing significant devastation to natural marine ecosystems. The Office of Offshore Regulatory Programs reports that between 2010 and 2022, more than 7,300 oil spills occurred in federal waters, an average of one spill per day. These spills have devastating effects on communities who depend on thriving marine ecosystems, as demonstrated through the aftermath of the Exxon Valdez oil spill into the Prince William Sound. On April 4th, 2025, Chevron was required to pay $744.6 million to restore southeast Louisiana's wetlands, concluding a 10 year-long landmark trial, yet only the first in dozens of lawsuits against Chevron for devastating the region. The communities that live near and depend on marine ecosystems are not spared from the ecological devastation oil spills cause. 

The major health impacts not only affect the communities whose livelihoods depend on healthy coasts by contaminating waters and devastating local aquatic wildlife populations, but also the workers tasked with cleaning the spills up. The National Institute of Environmental Health Science's Gulf Long-term Follow-up Study (GuLF STUDY) published a study in 2022 reporting that workers who helped clean up the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill were 60% more likely than workers who did aid in the cleanup effort to be diagnosed with asthma or suffer from asthma-like symptoms one to three years after the spill. Similarly, the GuLF STUDY also published a paper in the journal JAMA Network Open that workers were at increased risk of developing hypertension, or high blood pressure. Stopping oil spills is not only a matter of environmental imperative but also of significant impact in ensuring the health and wellbeing of workers. 

We can't afford to further jeopardize the ecological and economic standing of our coasts and the communities that rely on them. Because of its risks to human health, local livelihoods, and the environment, I strongly urge BOEM not to lease the national outer continental shelf to offshore drilling. 
 

After you've submitted your comment, let us know how it goes!