Arkansas 2023 Regular Session

Arkansas Senate Bill SB210 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
2		-	Act 140 of the Regular Session
3	2		CRH101 2/6/2023 7:40:10 AM CRH101
4	3
5	4		State of Arkansas 1
6	5		94th General Assembly A Bill 2
7	6		Regular Session, 2023 SENATE BILL 210 3
8	7		4
9	8		By: Senator Irvin 5
10	9		By: Representative Gazaway 6
11	10		7
12	11		For An Act To Be Entitled 8
13	12		AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW REGARDING THE UN DERGROUND 9
14	13		STORAGE OF GAS; TO A MEND THE UNDERGROUND STORAGE OF 10
15	14		GAS LAW TO INCLUDE C ERTAIN OTHER GASES; AND FOR OTHER 11
16	15		PURPOSES. 12
17	16		13
18	17		14
19	18		Subtitle 15
20	19		TO AMEND THE UNDERGROUND STORAGE OF GAS 16
21	20		LAW TO INCLUDE CERTAIN OTHER GASES. 17
22	21		18
23	22		19
24	23		BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 20
25	24		21
26	25		SECTION 1. Arkansas Code §§ 15 -72-602 through 15-72-607 are amended to 22
27	26		read as follows: 23
28	27		15-72-602. Definitions. 24
29	28		As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise requires: 25
30	29		(1) “Commission” means the Oil and Gas Commission .; 26
31	30		(2) “Native gas” means gas which has not been previously 27
32	31		withdrawn from the earth; 28
33	32		(3) “Natural gas Gas” means natural gas either while in its 29
34	33		original state or after the natural gas has been processed by removal 30
35	34		therefrom from the natural gas of component parts not essential to its use 31
36	35		for light and fuel, or carbon oxides, ammonia, hydrogen, nitrogen, or noble 32
37	36		gas; 33
38	37		(3) "Gas storage facility" means any person, firm, or 34
39	38		corporation authorized to do business in this state and engaged in the 35
40	39		business of capturing, producing, or storing gas; 36 SB210
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45	44		(4) “Native gas” means gas which has not been previously 1
46	45		withdrawn from the earth; 2
47	46		(4)(5) “Natural gas public utility” means any perso n, firm, or 3
48	47		corporation authorized to do business in this state and engaged in the 4
49	48		business of producing, transporting, or distributing natural gas by means of 5
50	49		pipelines into, within, or through this state for ultimate public 6
51	50		consumption; and 7
52	51		(5)(6) “Underground storage” means storage in a subsurface 8
53	52		stratum or formation of the earth ;. 9
54	53		10
55	54		15-72-603. Public interest and welfare — Authority of commission. 11
56	55		(a) The underground storage of natural gas, which promotes 12
57	56		conservation thereof, which permits the building of reserves for orderly 13
58	57		withdrawal in periods of peak demand, which makes more readily available and 14
59	58		economical our natural gas resources to the domestic, commercial, and 15
60	59		industrial consumers of this state, and which provides a better year -round 16
61	60		market to the various gas fields, and contributes to a healthier environment, 17
62	61		and promotes the public interest and welfare of this state. 18
63	62		(b) Therefore, in the manner hereinafter provided, the Oil an d Gas 19
64	63		Commission may find and determine that the underground storage of natural gas 20
65	64		as hereinbefore defined is in the public interest. 21
66	65		22
67	66		15-72-604. Condemnation of subsurface strata or formations — 23
68	67		Limitations. 24
69	68		(a) Any natural gas public utility or gas storage facility may condemn 25
70	69		for its use for the underground storage of natural gas any subsurface stratum 26
71	70		or formation in any land which the Oil and Gas Commission shall have found 27
72	71		finds to be suitable and in the public interest for the underground storag e 28
73	72		of natural gas and, in connection therewith, may condemn other interests in 29
74	73		property as required to adequately examine, prepare, maintain, and operate 30
75	74		the underground natural gas storage facilities. However, the right of 31
76	75		condemnation of underground sands , formations, and strata granted hereby 32
77	76		shall be limited as follows: 33
78	77		(1) If the commission affirmatively finds, based upon 34
79	78		substantial evidence, that any sand, formation, or stratum is producing or is 35
80	79		capable of producing oil, in paying quantities, thro ugh any known recovery 36 SB210
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85	84		method, then the sand, formation, or stratum shall not be subject to 1
86	85		appropriation hereunder; 2
87	86		(2) No gas-bearing sand, formation, or stratum shall be subject 3
88	87		to appropriation hereunder, unless the sand, formation, or stratum has a 4
89	88		greater value or utility as a gas storage reservoir for the purpose of 5
90	89		insuring an adequate supply of natural gas for any particular class or group 6
91	90		of consumers of natural gas, or for the conservation of natural gas, than for 7
92	91		the production of relatively small volumes of natural gas which remain 8
93	92		therein. However, for as long as oil is produced in paying quantities in the 9
94	93		secondary operations, no gas -bearing sand, formation, or stratum shall be 10
95	94		condemned under the terms of this subchapter when the gas there in is being 11
96	95		used for the secondary recovery of oil unless gas in a necessary and required 12
97	96		amount is furnished to the operator or operators of the secondary recovery 13
98	97		operations for the recovery of oil at the same cost as that at which the gas 14
99	98		was being produced at the time of condemnation by the operator of the 15
100	99		secondary recovery project or projects; 16
101	100		(3) Only the area of the underground sand, formation, or stratum 17
102	101		as may reasonably be expected to be penetrated by gas displaced or injected 18
103	102		into the underground gas storage reservoir may be appropriated hereunder; and 19
104	103		(4) No rights or interests in existing underground gas 20
105	104		reservoirs being used for the injection, storage, and withdrawal of natural 21
106	105		gas and owned or operated by others than the condemner shall be subject to 22
107	106		appropriation hereunder. 23
108	107		(b) The right of condemnation granted in this section shall be without 24
109	108		prejudice to the rights of the owner of the lands, or of other rights or 25
110	109		interests therein, to drill or bore through the underground stratum or 26
111	110		formation so appropriated in a manner as shall comply with orders and rules 27
112	111		of the commission issued for the purpose of protecting underground storage 28
113	112		strata or formations against pollution and against the escape of natural gas 29
114	113		therefrom and shall be with out prejudice to the rights of the owner of the 30
115	114		lands or other rights or interests therein as to all other uses. 31
116	115		32
117	116		15-72-605. Prerequisite to eminent domain — Certificate. 33
118	117		Any natural gas public utility or gas storage facility desiring to 34
119	118		exercise the right of eminent domain as to any property for use for 35
120	119		underground storage of natural gas, as a condition precedent to the filing of 36 SB210
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124	123
125	124		its petition in the circuit court, shall obtain from the Oil and Gas 1
126	125		Commission a certificate setting out findings of the com mission as to the 2
127	126		following: 3
128	127		(1) That the underground stratum or formation sought to be 4
129	128		acquired is suitable for the underground storage of natural gas and that its 5
130	129		use for such purposes is in the public interest; and 6
131	130		(2) The amount of recoverable oil and native gas, if any, 7
132	131		remaining therein. However, the commission shall issue no certificate until 8
133	132		after public hearing is had on the application, pursuant to notice served in 9
134	133		compliance with notice in civil actions in the circuit court, together with 10
135	134		notice published at least once each week for two (2) successive weeks in some 11
136	135		newspaper of general circulation in the county or counties where the gas is 12
137	136		proposed to be stored. The first publication of the notice must be at least 13
138	137		ten (10) days prior to th e date of the hearing. 14
139	138		15
140	139		15-72-606. Petition for eminent domain — Subsequent proceedings. 16
141	140		(a) Any natural gas public utility or gas storage facility having 17
142	141		first obtained a certificate from the Oil and Gas Commission as provided in § 18
143	142		15-72-605 desiring to exercise the right of eminent domain for the purpose of 19
144	143		acquiring property for the underground storage of natural gas shall do so in 20
145	144		the manner provided in this section. 21
146	145		(b) The natural gas public utility or gas storage facility shall 22
147	146		present to the circuit court of the county wherein the land is situated, or 23
148	147		to the judge thereof, a petition setting forth the purpose for which the 24
149	148		property is sought to be acquired, a description of the property sought to be 25
150	149		appropriated, and the names of the owners the reof as shown by the records of 26
151	150		the county. 27
152	151		(c) The petitioner shall file the certificate of the commission as a 28
153	152		part of its petition and no order by the court granting the petition shall be 29
154	153		entered without the certificate being filed therewith. 30
155	154		(d) The court or the judge thereof shall examine the petition and 31
156	155		determine whether the property is necessary to its lawful purposes, and if 32
157	156		found in the affirmative, the finding shall be entered of record and 33
158	157		subsequent proceedings shall follow the procedure by law for the exercise of 34
159	158		the right of eminent domain for rights -of-way for railroads as provided by § 35
160	159		18-15-1201 et seq. 36 SB210
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165	164		1
166	165		15-72-607. Ownership of gas. 2
167	166		All natural gas which has been reduced to possession and which is 3
168	167		subsequently injected into undergr ound storage fields, sands, reservoirs, and 4
169	168		facilities shall at all times be deemed the property of the injector, his or 5
170	169		her heirs, successors, or assigns. In no event shall the gas be subject to 6
171	170		the right of the owner of the surface of the lands or the ow ner of any 7
172	171		mineral interest therein under which the gas storage fields, sands, 8
173	172		reservoirs, and facilities lie or subject to the right of any person, other 9
174	173		than the injector, his or her heirs, successors, and assigns, to produce, 10
175	174		take, reduce to possession, waste, or otherwise interfere with or exercise 11
176	175		any control thereover. However, the injector, his or her heirs, successors, 12
177	176		and assigns shall have no right to gas in any stratum, or portion thereof, 13
178	177		which has not been condemned under the provisions of this subchapter or 14
179	178		otherwise purchased. 15
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182		-	~~APPROVED: 2/24/23~~ 18
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