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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2021 - 2022
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | May 6, 2022 12:15 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Martin T. Causer |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Cosponsor - A Sustainable Plan for Plugging Orphaned Oil and Gas Wells |
| In the near future, I will be introducing legislation to create a sustainable plan for plugging Pennsylvania’s orphaned oil and gas wells. My legislation will allocate designated federal funding to support the Commonwealth’s well plugging efforts and update bond amounts so we can both protect our environment and support Pennsylvania energy production. This legislation instructs the Department of Environmental Protection to use federal funds to create a grant program to target orphaned wells that are unlikely to be chosen for plugging through the department’s existing procurement-oriented well plugging program. A portion of the federal funding would be made available for the existing well plugging program as well. Further, the legislation would provide consistency and predictability for conventional oil and gas well operators by fixing the bond amounts as determined by the General Assembly, rather than allowing the Environmental Quality Board to implement bonding increases via regulation. Regulatory certainty is critical to ensuring that currently producing wells do not become orphan wells due to small, local operators going bankrupt. Further, many of the conventional oil and gas operators are well-positioned to use their expertise to assist the Commonwealth by participating in the new plugging grant program. This legislation protects our environment and ensures the continued viability of the conventional oil and gas industry. Please join me in co-sponsoring this important legislation. |
Introduced as HB2644