House of Representatives

HB 2492

 oil and gas regulation

Sponsors: Representative Flake, Senator Brown

 

dpa

Committee on Natural Resources

DPA

Caucus and COW

 

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As Passed the House

 

HB 2492 makes a variety of changes to the Oil and Gas Commission and State Geologist statutes.

 

Provisions

PUBLICATIONS

§         The mandatory publication requirement is changed to a discretionary requirement.  No publication may include confidential information. The State Geologist shall consult with the operator of a project to obtain approval of the scope of work.

 

DEFINITIONS

§         The definition of a “completed well” is modified by removing the words “temporarily abandoned” as a  condition of the well.

 

RECORDS

§         The Commission shall provide 60 days notice to the operator before well records become subject to inspection, and, at the operator's request, shall extend the confidential period for not more than two years.

§         The operator is no longer required to provide credible evidence of "substantial" harm to competitive position to request the delay, only evidence of harm.

 

OTHER

§         The State Geologist no longer has the authority to enter a property for inspection of wells drilled for oil, gas, geothermal resources or helium;  the administrative staff of the Commission is given this authorization .

§         The Oil and Gas Commission shall adopt revised administrative rules consistent with state law and to the extent practical, the laws and regulations of the surrounding states that are active in oil and gas development, by January 1, 2001.

 

HB 2492 passed the Natural Resources Committee amended as follows:

§         Revises the restrictions on State Geologist publications: no publication may include confidential information; the State Geologist shall consult with the operator of a project to obtain approval of the scope of work.

§         Gases are reinserted into the definition as a product of a completed well.

§         Oil and Gas Commission staff is allowed access to well sites for inspections.

§         The ability of the Commission to publish and receive revenue for maps and reports is restored.

§         The extension for the confidentiality period is no longer based on substantial harm to the operator's competitive position.

 

HB 2492 was amended in Committee of the Whole as follows:

§         The extension request for disclosure of confidential information is limited to not more than two years from the date of the request.

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§         44th Legislature                  Analyst Initials _______

§         Second Regular Session                  March 27, 2000

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