Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
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State of Arkansas 1
94th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2023 SENATE BILL 210 3
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By: Senator Irvin 5
By: Representative Gazaway 6
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For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW REGARDING THE UN DERGROUND 9
STORAGE OF GAS; TO A MEND THE UNDERGROUND STORAGE OF 10
GAS LAW TO INCLUDE C ERTAIN OTHER GASES; AND FOR OTHER 11
PURPOSES. 12
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Subtitle 15
TO AMEND THE UNDERGROUND STORAGE OF GAS 16
LAW TO INCLUDE CERTAIN OTHER GASES. 17
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 20
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SECTION 1. Arkansas Code §§ 15 -72-602 through 15-72-607 are amended to 22
read as follows: 23
15-72-602. Definitions. 24
As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise requires: 25
(1) “Commission” means the Oil and Gas Commission .; 26
(2) “Native gas” means gas which has not been previously 27
withdrawn from the earth; 28
(3) “Natural gas Gas” means natural gas either while in its 29
original state or after the natural gas has been processed by removal 30
therefrom from the natural gas of component parts not essential to its use 31
for light and fuel, or carbon oxides, ammonia, hydrogen, nitrogen, or noble 32
gas; 33
(3) "Gas storage facility" means any person, firm, or 34
corporation authorized to do business in this state and engaged in the 35
business of capturing, producing, or storing gas; 36 SB210
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(4) “Native gas” means gas which has not been previously 1
withdrawn from the earth; 2
(4)(5) “Natural gas public utility” means any perso n, firm, or 3
corporation authorized to do business in this state and engaged in the 4
business of producing, transporting, or distributing natural gas by means of 5
pipelines into, within, or through this state for ultimate public 6
consumption; and 7
(5)(6) “Underground storage” means storage in a subsurface 8
stratum or formation of the earth ;. 9
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15-72-603. Public interest and welfare — Authority of commission. 11
(a) The underground storage of natural gas, which promotes 12
conservation thereof, which permits the building of reserves for orderly 13
withdrawal in periods of peak demand, which makes more readily available and 14
economical our natural gas resources to the domestic, commercial, and 15
industrial consumers of this state, and which provides a better year -round 16
market to the various gas fields, and contributes to a healthier environment, 17
and promotes the public interest and welfare of this state. 18
(b) Therefore, in the manner hereinafter provided, the Oil an d Gas 19
Commission may find and determine that the underground storage of natural gas 20
as hereinbefore defined is in the public interest. 21
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15-72-604. Condemnation of subsurface strata or formations — 23
Limitations. 24
(a) Any natural gas public utility or gas storage facility may condemn 25
for its use for the underground storage of natural gas any subsurface stratum 26
or formation in any land which the Oil and Gas Commission shall have found 27
finds to be suitable and in the public interest for the underground storag e 28
of natural gas and, in connection therewith, may condemn other interests in 29
property as required to adequately examine, prepare, maintain, and operate 30
the underground natural gas storage facilities. However, the right of 31
condemnation of underground sands , formations, and strata granted hereby 32
shall be limited as follows: 33
(1) If the commission affirmatively finds, based upon 34
substantial evidence, that any sand, formation, or stratum is producing or is 35
capable of producing oil, in paying quantities, thro ugh any known recovery 36 SB210
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method, then the sand, formation, or stratum shall not be subject to 1
appropriation hereunder; 2
(2) No gas-bearing sand, formation, or stratum shall be subject 3
to appropriation hereunder, unless the sand, formation, or stratum has a 4
greater value or utility as a gas storage reservoir for the purpose of 5
insuring an adequate supply of natural gas for any particular class or group 6
of consumers of natural gas, or for the conservation of natural gas, than for 7
the production of relatively small volumes of natural gas which remain 8
therein. However, for as long as oil is produced in paying quantities in the 9
secondary operations, no gas -bearing sand, formation, or stratum shall be 10
condemned under the terms of this subchapter when the gas there in is being 11
used for the secondary recovery of oil unless gas in a necessary and required 12
amount is furnished to the operator or operators of the secondary recovery 13
operations for the recovery of oil at the same cost as that at which the gas 14
was being produced at the time of condemnation by the operator of the 15
secondary recovery project or projects; 16
(3) Only the area of the underground sand, formation, or stratum 17
as may reasonably be expected to be penetrated by gas displaced or injected 18
into the underground gas storage reservoir may be appropriated hereunder; and 19
(4) No rights or interests in existing underground gas 20
reservoirs being used for the injection, storage, and withdrawal of natural 21
gas and owned or operated by others than the condemner shall be subject to 22
appropriation hereunder. 23
(b) The right of condemnation granted in this section shall be without 24
prejudice to the rights of the owner of the lands, or of other rights or 25
interests therein, to drill or bore through the underground stratum or 26
formation so appropriated in a manner as shall comply with orders and rules 27
of the commission issued for the purpose of protecting underground storage 28
strata or formations against pollution and against the escape of natural gas 29
therefrom and shall be with out prejudice to the rights of the owner of the 30
lands or other rights or interests therein as to all other uses. 31
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15-72-605. Prerequisite to eminent domain — Certificate. 33
Any natural gas public utility or gas storage facility desiring to 34
exercise the right of eminent domain as to any property for use for 35
underground storage of natural gas, as a condition precedent to the filing of 36 SB210
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its petition in the circuit court, shall obtain from the Oil and Gas 1
Commission a certificate setting out findings of the com mission as to the 2
following: 3
(1) That the underground stratum or formation sought to be 4
acquired is suitable for the underground storage of natural gas and that its 5
use for such purposes is in the public interest; and 6
(2) The amount of recoverable oil and native gas, if any, 7
remaining therein. However, the commission shall issue no certificate until 8
after public hearing is had on the application, pursuant to notice served in 9
compliance with notice in civil actions in the circuit court, together with 10
notice published at least once each week for two (2) successive weeks in some 11
newspaper of general circulation in the county or counties where the gas is 12
proposed to be stored. The first publication of the notice must be at least 13
ten (10) days prior to th e date of the hearing. 14
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15-72-606. Petition for eminent domain — Subsequent proceedings. 16
(a) Any natural gas public utility or gas storage facility having 17
first obtained a certificate from the Oil and Gas Commission as provided in § 18
15-72-605 desiring to exercise the right of eminent domain for the purpose of 19
acquiring property for the underground storage of natural gas shall do so in 20
the manner provided in this section. 21
(b) The natural gas public utility or gas storage facility shall 22
present to the circuit court of the county wherein the land is situated, or 23
to the judge thereof, a petition setting forth the purpose for which the 24
property is sought to be acquired, a description of the property sought to be 25
appropriated, and the names of the owners the reof as shown by the records of 26
the county. 27
(c) The petitioner shall file the certificate of the commission as a 28
part of its petition and no order by the court granting the petition shall be 29
entered without the certificate being filed therewith. 30
(d) The court or the judge thereof shall examine the petition and 31
determine whether the property is necessary to its lawful purposes, and if 32
found in the affirmative, the finding shall be entered of record and 33
subsequent proceedings shall follow the procedure by law for the exercise of 34
the right of eminent domain for rights -of-way for railroads as provided by § 35
18-15-1201 et seq. 36 SB210
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15-72-607. Ownership of gas. 2
All natural gas which has been reduced to possession and which is 3
subsequently injected into undergr ound storage fields, sands, reservoirs, and 4
facilities shall at all times be deemed the property of the injector, his or 5
her heirs, successors, or assigns. In no event shall the gas be subject to 6
the right of the owner of the surface of the lands or the ow ner of any 7
mineral interest therein under which the gas storage fields, sands, 8
reservoirs, and facilities lie or subject to the right of any person, other 9
than the injector, his or her heirs, successors, and assigns, to produce, 10
take, reduce to possession, waste, or otherwise interfere with or exercise 11
any control thereover. However, the injector, his or her heirs, successors, 12
and assigns shall have no right to gas in any stratum, or portion thereof, 13
which has not been condemned under the provisions of this subchapter or 14
otherwise purchased. 15
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