2006 Louisiana Laws - RS 30:28 — Drilling permits; issuance; fees; location plat; notice and hearing; funds from drilling permit fees

§28.  Drilling permits; issuance; fees; location plat; notice and hearing; funds from drilling permit fees

A.  No well or test well may be drilled in search of minerals without first obtaining a permit from the commissioner of conservation, and the commissioner shall collect for each such well or test well a drilling permit fee.  The commissioner shall periodically review the fees collected by his office for drilling permits and may revise such fees pursuant to the rulemaking provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act.

B.  A permit shall be valid for one hundred eighty days from the date of issuance and if the well or test well is not drilled within one hundred eighty days after the permit is issued, it shall be void and a new permit must be obtained upon the payment of an additional drilling permit fee.

C.  For each drilling permit that must be altered, amended, or changed after its initial issuance, the commissioner shall collect an amendment fee which shall be set pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, except for unit well nomenclature.  An assignment or contract of sale that reflects an assumption of liability for oil and gas wells requires an amended permit.  Any person who assumes such liability shall apply for an amended permit within thirty days of the assumption of liability.

D.  The commissioner of conservation shall not issue a permit to drill a well or a test well pursuant to Subsection A, B, or C of this Section until the provisions of this Subsection have been satisfied:

(1)  An applicant for a permit to drill an oil or gas well or test well shall submit with his application therefor a location plat, certified by a professional land surveyor, indicating the site of the proposed well in relation to the surrounding property within a radius of five hundred feet from the proposed drilling site.

(2)  The commissioner of conservation shall review the location plat and make a determination as to whether any residential or commercial structure not owned by the applicant, his lessor, or other predecessor in interest is situated within a five hundred foot radius of the proposed drilling site.

(3)  Upon a determination by the commissioner that a residential or commercial structure is located within five hundred feet of the proposed drilling site, he shall convey that information, together with written notice of a public hearing thereon, by means of an official notice delivered by first class mail, to any person owning a residential or commercial structure within a five hundred foot radius of the proposed site and to the local governing authority in whose jurisdiction the property is located.

(4)  Any property owner or local governing authority so notified shall have the right within ten days of the mailing of such notice to request a public hearing concerning the issuance of such permit.

(5)  The commissioner shall hold a public hearing, if one is requested, on the issues concerning the proposed drilling, affording residential and commercial property owners and local government representatives the opportunity to be heard in regard thereto.

(6)  No permit for drilling a well or test well shall be issued by the commissioner until after the conclusion of the public hearing and after consideration by the commissioner of the comments and information presented at that hearing.

(7)  If the commissioner, in his review of the location plat required by Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, determines that no residential or commercial structure not owned by the applicant, his lessor, or other predecessor in interest falls within five hundred feet of the proposed well site, he shall issue the permit required for such drilling in accordance with the provisions of  Subsections A, B, C, and F of this Section and any rules and regulations issued thereunder.

(8)  The provisions of this Subsection shall not apply to workover rigs.

E.  Any permit issued to drill an oil or gas well or test well to a depth of less than ten thousand feet shall not be subject to the provisions of Subsection D of this Section.

F.  The issuance of the permit by the commissioner of conservation shall be sufficient authorization to the holder of the permit to enter upon the property covered by the permit and to drill in search of minerals thereon.  No other agency or political subdivision of the state shall have the authority, and they are hereby expressly forbidden, to prohibit or in any way interfere with the drilling of a well or test well in search of minerals by the holder of such a permit.

G.  The commissioner shall promulgate rules, regulations, and orders necessary to require certification of water quality by the operator for surface water used in conjunction with oil and gas drilling operations before drilling begins which ensure ground water aquifer safety.

H.  Subject to the provisions contained in Article VII, Section 9 of the Constitution of Louisiana, all funds collected under the provisions of this Section shall be paid by the office of conservation into the state treasury and shall be credited to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund.

Acts 1997, No. 294, §1.