1-1 By: Hawley (Senate Sponsor - Lucio) H.B. No. 3696
1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House May 13, 1999;
1-3 May 14, 1999, read first time and referred to Committee on Natural
1-4 Resources; May 14, 1999, reported favorably by the following vote:
1-5 Yeas 4, Nays 0; May 14, 1999, sent to printer.)
1-6 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-7 AN ACT
1-8 relating to the approval of assignments of oil and gas leases
1-9 covering certain state land.
1-10 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-11 SECTION 1. Section 52.026, Natural Resources Code, is
1-12 amended by amending Subsection (a) and by adding Subsection (e) to
1-13 read as follows:
1-14 (a) A lessee of an area under this subchapter may transfer
1-15 the [his] lease at any time. The liability of the transferor to
1-16 properly discharge its obligations under the lease, including
1-17 properly plugging abandoned wells, removing platforms or pipelines,
1-18 or remediation of contamination at drill sites shall pass to the
1-19 transferee upon prior written consent of the commissioner. The
1-20 commissioner may not withhold the consent unreasonably. The
1-21 commissioner may require the transferee to demonstrate that it has
1-22 the financial responsibility to properly discharge its obligations
1-23 under the lease and may require the transferee to post a bond or
1-24 provide other security to secure those obligations if the
1-25 transferee is unable to demonstrate such financial responsibility
1-26 to the satisfaction of the commissioner.
1-27 (e) This section does not relieve a person from the duty to
1-28 comply with a rule adopted or order issued by the Railroad
1-29 Commission of Texas under another provision of this code.
1-30 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
1-31 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the
1-32 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
1-33 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
1-34 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
1-35 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
1-36 * * * * *