WV Farm Bureau Magazine January 2016 | Page 21

72 . NATURAL GAS , OIL & CONSTITUENT ROYALTY
West Virginia Farm Bureau recommends that a royalty for oil , natural gas and the constituents thereof and other marketable substances produced and saved from any formations on the owners ’ royalty , an amount equal to at least 20 % gross / without deductions of the price be received from the sale of such gas and constituents thereof . Payment of royalty for all products produced and marketed during any calendar month is to be made within ninety ( 90 ) days from the end of the month of production .
All products produced shall be measured by a meter set at the wellhead and the royalty shall be paid based on the arm ’ s length sales points on the volume of gas products measured accurately at that point . If royalty payments are less than $ 25 , they may be paid annually .
WVFB supports transparency of financial and production records .
73 . FORCED POOLING OF HORIZONTAL GAS WELLS
West Virginia Farm Bureau supports responsible development of oil and gas and believes that forced pooling should rarely be used . If forced pooling is used , all contracts involved in that pool area shall be released to public record filed in the county of record prior to WV Oil & Gas Commission or court action . The pooling threshold percentage will be calculated based on net acreage in the pool area .
Forced pooling will only be utilized in a specific geologic formation for the extraction of oil , natural gas and the constituents thereof and other marketable substances from that formation . The forced pooling will not permit the use of a well for the storage of gas or as a waste disposal well .
74 . THEFT OF OIL , NATURAL GAS AND THE CONSTITUENTS THEREOF AND OTHER MARKETABLE SUBSTANCES
Because there have been and continue to be thefts of significant amounts of oil , natural gas and the constituents thereof and other marketable substances , and since these thefts have not been considered criminal actions , those whose resources were stolen are forced to seek redress in civil court against individuals and firms with significant resources , thus making recovery difficult if not impossible .
West Virginia Farm Bureau supports legislation specifying that the theft of oil , natural gas and the constituents thereof and other marketable substances be crimes . The same financial guidelines shall be used to determine the amounts classifying the crimes as misdemeanors or felonies .
The owner of the natural gas , oil , coal or constituents oil , natural gas and the constituents thereof and other marketable substances should receive treble damages as a result of the theft .
75 . ABANDONED PIPELINE RIGHTS-OF-WAY
Land rights-of-way for pipelines or for any other public or private utilities that have been abandoned for two or more years shall be removed from the title of the surface owner .
Removal of abandoned equipment and material must be the responsibility of the utility or company of ownership and must take place within 12 months from the time of abandonment .
The landowner shall not be held liable for any damages or pollution caused from this abandoned equipment or material .
76 . COAL BED METHANE
Coal bed methane is a gaseous fossil fuel , and should be considered as such . Therefore , West Virginia Farm Bureau believes it should not be construed as part of the solid coal , but should be considered the property of the owner of the oil and gas resources .
77 . DEP OFFICE OF OIL & GAS MINUTES
West Virginia Farm Bureau recommends the hearings and meeting minutes of the West Virginia DEP Office of Oil and Gas be a matter of public record and those records be made available to the public through internet access .
78 . LEASE INTEGRATION FOR HORIZONTAL GAS WELLS
West Virginia Farm Bureau supports the right of property owners to negotiate new leases and
West Virginia Farm Bureau News 21