SB1378 EnrolledLRB099 10502 AMC 30729 b

1    AN ACT concerning regulation.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Oil and Gas Act is amended by
5adding Sections 6.2 and 9.1 as follows:
 
6    (225 ILCS 725/6.2 new)
7    Sec. 6.2. Oil and gas leases; termination due to
8non-development or non-production. The Department shall have
9the authority to adopt rules and hold hearings to determine if
10oil and gas leases submitted with an application for a permit
11or transfer of a permit for a well are operative on the basis
12that prior oil and gas leases covering the same lands have
13terminated due to non-development or non-production.
14Department determinations under this Section shall be based
15upon affidavits of non-development or non-production from
16knowledgeable individuals familiar with the history of
17development and production of oil or gas as to such lands,
18together with other evidence, which create a rebuttable
19presumption that the prior oil and gas leases have terminated
20and are of no further force and effect and that the submitted
21oil and gas leases are operative and effective. To create a
22rebuttable presumption, such affidavits, together with other
23evidence provided to or available from the Department, shall

 

 

SB1378 Enrolled- 2 -LRB099 10502 AMC 30729 b

1reasonably indicate that there has been no development or
2production of oil and gas on the lands described in the prior
3leases for at least 24 consecutive months subsequent to the
4expiration of the primary term or any extension of the primary
5term as set forth in the leases. A court order or judgment
6declaring the prior leases terminated is not required for
7determinations under this Section, except in extraordinary
8circumstances where such determinations cannot reasonably be
9concluded from the affidavits or evidence submitted to or
10available from the Department. Upon the Department's
11determination of a rebuttable presumption under this Section,
12the Department shall provide the current permittee with notice
13and a 30-day opportunity to request a hearing to rebut the
14presumption before a final determination on a lease is made.
15Any determination made by the Department under this Section
16shall not diminish the rights or obligations of any current
17permittee of a well that are otherwise provided by statute or
18regulation of the Department. Any request for a determination
19under this Section shall require the payment of a nonrefundable
20fee of $1,000 by the applicant. All determinations on leases by
21the Department under this Section shall be made no later than
2290 days after the Department's receipt of a valid request for
23such determination. Determinations that prior oil and gas
24leases have terminated due to non-development or
25non-production shall require the current permittee to properly
26plug all non-plugged and non-transferred wells within the lease

 

 

SB1378 Enrolled- 3 -LRB099 10502 AMC 30729 b

1boundaries of the prior leases. If the current permittee fails
2to properly plug all non-plugged and non-transferred wells
3within 30 days after the issuance of the determination, the
4wells shall be deemed abandoned and included in the
5Department's Oil and Gas Well Site Plugging and Restoration
6Program. Department determinations under this Section shall
7not have res judicata or collateral estoppel effect in any
8judicial proceedings.
 
9    (225 ILCS 725/9.1 new)
10    Sec. 9.1. Notice for hearings or other proceedings.
11    (a) All permittees under this Act shall provide the
12Department with a current address within 90 days after the
13effective date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General
14Assembly for the Department's use in providing notice of any
15hearings or other proceedings under this Act. Permittees must
16inform the Department of any address changes within 30 days
17after the effective date of the address change. Permittees
18shall provide current address information and inform the
19Department of any address changes on a form prescribed by the
20Department.
21    (b) Written notice of a hearing or proceeding required to
22be provided to a permittee under this Act shall be given either
23personally or by certified mail with return receipt requested
24sent to the address provided to the Department as required by
25subsection (a) of this Section. Permittees shall sign certified

 

 

SB1378 Enrolled- 4 -LRB099 10502 AMC 30729 b

1mail return receipts for all mail received from the Department.
2    (c) If notice sent by certified mail is returned unsigned
3or undelivered and, upon due inquiry, the permittee cannot be
4found for personal delivery, the Department shall provide
5written notice of a hearing or other proceeding by publication
6of the notice in a newspaper published in the county where the
7well or wells at issue are located. If there is no newspaper
8published in that county, then the publication shall be in a
9newspaper published in an adjoining county in this State having
10a circulation in the county where the well or wells at issue
11are located. The notice shall be published once. The Department
12shall, within 10 days after the publication of the newspaper
13notice, send a copy of the notice to the address provided to
14the Department as required by subsection (a) of this Section.
15The certificate of an authorized representative of the
16Department that newspaper notice was published and that a copy
17of the newspaper notice has been sent to the permittee pursuant
18to this subsection is evidence that the Department has properly
19provided notice to the permittee for the hearing or other
20proceeding.
21    (d) Any notice required to be provided to a permittee under
22this Act shall include the identification of the well or wells
23at issue, the date, time, place, and nature of the hearing or
24other proceeding, and the name and contact information of the
25Department where additional information can be obtained.