Minerals Management Service

Infobox Government agency
agency_name = Minerals Management Service
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seal_width = 200px
seal_caption = Seal of the MMS
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headquarters = Washington, D.C.
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budget = $160 Million (2007) [Cite web | title = Budget FY 2009 - Deptartment of the Interior | publisher = Office of Management and Budget | url = http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/fy2009/interior.html]
minister1_name =
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chief1_name = Randall B. Luthi
chief1_position = Director
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parent_agency = Department of the Interior
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website = http://www.mms.gov/
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The purpose of the Minerals Management Service (MMS), as part of the U.S. Department of the Interior, is to manage the mineral resources on Federal and Indian lands as well as the subsea-surface lands of the Outer Continental Shelf in an environmentally sound and safe manner, and to collect, verify, and distribute, in a timely fashion, mineral revenues generated from Federal (onshore and offshore) land and Indian lands. MMS manages two very important programs, the Offshore Minerals Management Program and the Royalty Management Program.

As of August 2005, the MMS also regulates offshore renewable and alternative energy resources on Outer Continental Shelf lands such as wind, wave, and solar. [cite web|url=http://www.saveoursound.org/site/PageServer?pagename=CapeWind_Threats_PermitProcess|title=Cape Wind Threats: Permit Process|publisher=Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound|date=2007|accessdate=2007-12-05]

Since July 2007, Randall Luthi has been the MMS Director. [cite web|url=http://www.mms.gov/ooc/newweb/directorspage/director.htm|title=Randall B. Luthi, Director Minerals Management Service|publisher=Minerals Management Service|date=2007-10-30|accessdate=2007-12-05]

In September 2008, reports by the Inspector General of the Interior Department, Earl E. Devaney, were released that implicated over a dozen officials of the MMS of unethical and criminal conduct in the performance of their duties. [cite news|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/10/AR2008091001829.html |title=Report Says Oil Agency Ran Amok: Interior Dept. Inquiry Finds Sex, Corruption |publisher="The Washington Post" |accessdate=2008-09-11] [cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/11/washington/11royalty.html |title=Sex, Drug Use and Graft Cited in Interior Department |publisher="The New York Times" |accessdate=2008-09-11] [cite news|url=http://www.mcclatchydc.com/226/story/52243.html |title=Oil companies gave sex, drinks, gifts to federal overseers |publisher=McClatchy Newspapers |accessdate=2008-09-11] [cite web|url=http://media.mcclatchydc.com/smedia/2008/09/10/18/Gordon-OIG-Cover-Letter.source.prod_affiliate.91.pdf |title=Memorandum [cover letter by inspector general] |publisher= |accessdate=2008-09-11] [cite web|url=http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/investigative/documents/smith-080708.pdf |title=Investigative Report of Gregory W. Smith (Redacted) |accessdate=2008-09-11] [cite web|url=http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/investigative/documents/mmsoil-081908.pdf |title=Investigative Report of MMS Oil Marketing Group - Lakewood (Redacted) |accessdate=2008-09-11] [cite web|url=http://thinkprogress.org/2008/09/10/rik-ethics-rules |title=Government Officials Tried To Rewrite Ethics Rules To Accommodate Their Partying |accessdate=2008-09-11] [cite web|url=http://thinkprogress.org/2008/09/10/smith-cocaine |title=Official increased employee’s ‘performance award’ for providing him with cocaine |accessdate=2008-09-11]

References

External links

*
* [http://www.pogo.org Project On Government Oversight]
* New York Times, " [http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/11/washington/11royalty.html?hp Sex, Drug Use and Graft cited in Interior Department] ," September 10, 2008.
* New York Times, " [http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/03/business/yourmoney/03whistle.html?ex=1322802000&en=e782d957e752a4b1&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss Blowing the Whistle on Big Oil] ," December 3, 2006.
* CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360, " [http://www.pogo.org/m/ep/ep-CNN-01182007.pdf Keeping Them Honest: Oil Royalties] ," January 18, 2007
* "U.S. News and World Report", " [http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/articles/061210/18oil.html A billion here, a billion there] ," December 10, 2006.
* "Washington Post", " [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/06/AR2006050600905.htmlFirms Harvesting Energy From Public Land May Owe U.S.] ," May 7, 2006.
* PBS NOW, " [http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/224/index.html Crude Awakening] ," June 16, 2006
* Minerals Management Service, " [http://www.mms.gov/revaldiv/PDFs/2006NationalAssessmentBrochure.pdf Assessment of Undiscovered Technically Recoverable Oil and Gas Resources of the Nation’s Outer Continental Shelf, 2006] ," February 2006