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Committee advances bill to sharply increase well‑plugging revenue and tighten sureties
Summary
House Bill 13‑70 would change the formula that funds the state well‑plugging program, increase surety bond requirements and aim to boost annual plugging funds from about $2.5 million to roughly $20 million; the committee passed the bill unanimously.
The House Energy and Natural Resources Committee voted to advance House Bill 13‑70, a multipronged proposal to raise funds and financial assurances for plugging orphaned or abandoned oil and gas wells in Oklahoma.
Chairman Bowles, who explained the bill, said the state currently collects about $2.5 million a year through an excise tax that flows to the Corporation Commission’s well‑plugging fund. Bowles told the committee Oklahoma’s known backlog of wells that need plugging is about 18,000 and that, at an average cost of about $25,000 per well, the present funding level results in…
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