Fees for drilling applications on public land are going up to offset the costs of moving the permits through the federal system.

Language in the 2010 Interior Department appropriations bill raised the fee from $4,000 to $6,500 for each application to drill for oil or gas. The fee went into effect Monday and is expected to generate $45.5 million, $9.1 million more than last year, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced.

The fees aren't meant to generate new revenues but rather to help reimburse the U.S. Treasury for the estimated cost of processing new permits.

Patty Henetz



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