1-1  By:  Earley (Senate Sponsor - Sims)                   H.B. No. 1739
    1-2        (In the Senate - Received from the House May 5, 1993;
    1-3  May 6, 1993, read first time and referred to Committee on Natural
    1-4  Resources; May 25, 1993, reported favorably by the following vote:
    1-5  Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 25, 1993, sent to printer.)
    1-6                            COMMITTEE VOTE
    1-7                          Yea     Nay      PNV      Absent 
    1-8        Sims               x                               
    1-9        Truan              x                               
   1-10        Armbrister                                     x   
   1-11        Barrientos                                     x   
   1-12        Bivins             x                               
   1-13        Brown              x                               
   1-14        Carriker           x                               
   1-15        Lucio                                          x   
   1-16        Montford                                       x   
   1-17        Ratliff                                        x   
   1-18        Shelley            x                               
   1-19                         A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
   1-20                                AN ACT
   1-21  relating to the measurement of gas produced from certain wells.
   1-22        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
   1-23        SECTION 1.  Section 88.052, Natural Resources Code, is
   1-24  amended to read as follows:
   1-25        Sec. 88.052.  PROHIBITED PASSAGE FROM CONTROL OF PRODUCER
   1-26  WITHOUT MEASUREMENT AND RECORD OF AMOUNT; EXCEPTION FOR MARGINAL
   1-27  GAS PRODUCTION.  (a)  Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
   1-28  section, no <No> person owning, leasing, operating, or controlling
   1-29  an oil property in this state may permit the oil or gas produced to
   1-30  pass beyond the possession or control of that person to the
   1-31  possession or control of any other person without first accurately
   1-32  measuring the amount of the oil or gas and making and preserving an
   1-33  accurate record of the amount.
   1-34        (b)  A person is not required to measure the amount of a
   1-35  well's gas production, unless otherwise required by commission rule
   1-36  or order, if:
   1-37              (1)  the well produces less than 20,000 cubic feet of
   1-38  gas in a day;
   1-39              (2)  the gas is not commingled with production from
   1-40  different fields unless the commission has granted commingling
   1-41  authority;
   1-42              (3)  for an oil well, the commission does not permit
   1-43  the well's gas production to be measured on a lease basis;
   1-44              (4)  all affected parties, including any well operator,
   1-45  royalty owner, or pipeline operator, agree in writing to the
   1-46  management of production and transfer of possession or control
   1-47  under estimates of production as provided by Subsection (c) of this
   1-48  section.
   1-49        (c)  The commission by rule shall require the operator of a
   1-50  well for which the accurate measurement of gas production is not
   1-51  required to submit to the commission an estimate of the well's gas
   1-52  production for each month's operation.  The commission annually
   1-53  shall verify or review the estimates.
   1-54        SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
   1-55        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
   1-56  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   1-57  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   1-58  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   1-59  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
   1-60                               * * * * *
   1-61                                                         Austin,
   1-62  Texas
   1-63                                                         May 25, 1993
   1-64  Hon. Bob Bullock
   1-65  President of the Senate
   1-66  Sir:
   1-67  We, your Committee on Natural Resources to which was referred H.B.
   1-68  No. 1739, have had the same under consideration, and I am
    2-1  instructed to report it back to the Senate with the recommendation
    2-2  that it do pass and be printed.
    2-3                                                         Sims,
    2-4  Chairman
    2-5                               * * * * *
    2-6                               WITNESSES
    2-7  No witnesses appeared on H.B. No. 1739.