Bill Text: PA HB934 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Providing for secured meters; and further providing for well reporting requirements.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2009-03-13 - Referred to ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY [HB934 Detail]

Download: Pennsylvania-2009-HB934-Introduced.html

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PRINTER'S NO. 1058
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 934 Session of2009
INTRODUCED BY WANSACZ, STABACK, SIPTROTH, CARROLL, CREIGHTON, GEORGE, GOODMAN, HALUSKA, HESS, KORTZ, MOUL, SAYLOR, PICKETT AND GINGRICH, MARCH 13, 2009
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY, MARCH 13, 2009
AN ACT
Amending the act of December 19, 1984 (P.L.1140, No.223),
entitled "An act relating to the development of oil and gas
and coal; imposing duties and powers on the Department of
Environmental Resources; imposing notification requirements
to protect landowners; and providing for definitions, for
various requirements to regulate the drilling and operation
of oil and gas wells, for gas storage reservoirs, for various
reporting requirements, including certain requirements
concerning the operation of coal mines, for well permits, for
well registration, for distance requirements, for well casing
requirements, for safety device requirements, for storage
reservoir obligations, for well bonding requirements, for a
Well Plugging Restricted Revenue Account to enforce oil and
gas well plugging requirements, for the creation of an Oil
and Gas Technical Advisory Board, for oil and gas well
inspections, for enforcement and for penalties," providing
for secured meters; and further providing for well reporting
requirements.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. The act of December 19, 1984 (P.L.1140, No.223),
known as the Oil and Gas Act, is amended by adding a section to
read:
Section 205.1. Secured meters.
(a) Every well operator shall install a secured meter at
each installation site where a well has been drilled to remove a
natural resource pursuant to an agreement with the owner.
(b) The meter shall display the volume of gas or other
appropriate measure to denote the amount of natural resource
being removed. The meter shall include an overlaying locked box
or other mechanism to prevent the meter's being read without an
access device, such as a key or other similar device, and shall
otherwise be secured in a manner so that no competing well
operator or individual may be able to review the information
from the meter at any time without the operator, its employees
or authorized agents present.
(c) No person, other than the well operator, its employees
and authorized agents, may possess or exercise control over the
access device.
(d) The operator shall, within ten days of receipt of a
request from the owner, provide the owner with access to the
meter for the purpose of conducting a meter reading. The owner
may not make a request for access more frequently than once
during any six-month period.
(e) The operator shall establish and maintain a written log
of requests made by the owner to access the meter and shall
bring the log to the well when the owner gains access to the
meter. After the owner has been given the opportunity to read
the meter, the owner and operator shall date and sign the log.
The operator shall provide a copy of the signed log to the owner
at the time of the meter reading.
Section 2. Section 212(a) of the act, amended July 2, 1992
(P.L.365, No.78), is amended and the section is amended by
adding a subsection to read:
Section 212. Well reporting requirements.
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(a) Every well operator shall file with the department, on a
form provided by the department, an annual report specifying the
amount of production on the most well-specific basis available.
Annual reports shall also specify the status of each well;
however, in subsequent years, only changes in the status need be
reported. The department shall keep all such reports
confidential for five years: Provided, however, That the
Commonwealth shall have the right to utilize such information in
enforcement proceedings, in making designations or
determinations under section 1927-A of the act of April 9, 1929
(P.L.177, No.175), known as The Administrative Code of 1929, or
in aggregate form for statistical purposes[.]; and Provided,
further, That owners shall have the right to view those portions
of the reports relating to their properties in accordance with
subsection (a.1).
(a.1) (1) An owner may, at any time after an annual report
is filed under subsection (a) and not more frequently than
once within a six-month period, review the relevant portion
of the annual report that states the total amount of natural
resources removed from property of the owner and on which the
owner has granted permission of a well operator to remove.
(2) The owner must submit a written request for review
of the annual report to the department, on a form prescribed
by the department.
(3) The department shall review the request within ten
days of receipt of the request and, if the request is
approved, make the relevant portion of the annual report
available to the owner within that ten-day period. The
department shall retain the written request and the request
shall be open to public inspection.
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Section 3. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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