30 U.S.C. § 189
Section 189 · Rules and regulations; boundary lines; State rights unaffected; taxation
Amended 1 time on record
Applied in 45 court decisions — leading case Commonwealth Edison Co. v. Montana (1981)
Most recently applied in Darby Development Company, Inc. v. United States (August 2024)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to prescribe necessary and proper rules and regulations and to do any and all things necessary to carry out and accomplish the purposes of this chapter, also to fix and determine the boundary lines of any structure, or oil or gas field, for the purposes of this chapter. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed or held to affect the rights of the States or other local authority to exercise any rights which they may have, including the right to levy and collect taxes upon improvements, output of mines, or other rights, property, or assets of any lessee of the United States.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Transfer of Functions
Functions of Secretary of the Interior to promulgate regulations under this chapter relating to fostering of competition for Federal leases, implementation of alternative bidding systems authorized for award of Federal leases, establishment of diligence requirements for operations conducted on Federal leases, setting of rates for production of Federal leases, and specifying of procedures, terms, and conditions for acquisition and disposition of Federal royalty interests taken in kind, transferred to Secretary of Energy by section 7152(b) of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare. Section 7152(b) of Title 42 was repealed by Pub. L. 97–100, title II, §201, Dec. 23, 1981, 95 Stat. 1407, and functions of Secretary of Energy returned to Secretary of the Interior. See House Report No. 97–315, pp. 25, 26, Nov. 5, 1981.
Outer Continental Shelf; Rules and Regulations With Respect to Leases
Rules and regulations with respect to mineral leases on submerged lands of outer Continental Shelf to be prescribed by Secretary of the Interior, see section 1334 of Title 43, Public Lands.
Cross References
Laws applicable, see sections 275 and 285 of this title.
Surrender of leases, see section 188a of this title.