N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-04.12 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-04.12
38-08-04.12. Reclamation of land disturbed by oil and gas activity
Status: in_force

38-08-04.12. Reclamation of land disturbed by oil and gas activity

1. Any land disturbed by construction of well sites, treating plants, saltwater handling

facilities, access roads, underground gathering pipelines and associated facilities, and

from remediation of leaks or spills within the jurisdiction of the commission shall be

reclaimed as close as practicable to its original condition as it existed before the

construction of the well site or other disturbance. The commission, with the consent of

the appropriate government land manager or surface owner, may waive the

requirement of reclamation of the site and access road after a well is plugged or

treating plant or saltwater handling facility is decommissioned. The commission shall

record documentation of the waiver with the recorder of the county in which the site or

road is located.

2. This section may not be construed to require removal of a properly reclaimed reserve

pit or a properly abandoned underground gathering pipeline.

3. A person may not bring a legal proceeding under this section, unless the person has

exhausted all administrative remedies.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.2-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.2 / Section 38-11.2-01
38-11.2-01. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-11.2-01. Definitions

In this chapter, unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires:

1. "Agricultural production" means the production of any grass or crop attached to the

surface of the land, whether or not the grass or crop is to be sold commercially, and

the production of any farm animals, whether or not the animals are to be sold

commercially.

2. "Drilling operations" means the drilling of a subsurface mineral extraction well and the

injection, production, and completion operations ensuing from the drilling which require

entry upon the surface estate, and includes subsurface mineral exploration activities.

3. "Mineral developer" means the person who acquires the mineral estate or lease for the

purpose of extracting or using the subsurface minerals for nonagricultural purposes.

4. "Mineral estate" means an estate in or ownership of all or part of the subsurface

minerals underlying a specified tract of land.

5. "Subsurface mineral" means any naturally occurring element or compound recovered

under the provisions of chapter 38-12, but for the purpose of this chapter excludes

coal, commercial leonardite, oil and gas, sand and gravel, and rocks crushed for sand

and gravel.

6. "Subsurface mineral exploration activities" means any method of obtaining information

relative to locating and defining subsurface minerals that results in surface

disturbance.

7. "Surface estate" means an estate in or ownership of the surface of a particular tract of

land.

8. "Surface owner" means any person who holds record title to the surface of the land as

an owner.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-12.1-02 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-12.1 / Section 38-12.1-02
38-12.1-02. Declaration of policy
Status: in_force

38-12.1-02. Declaration of policy

It is hereby declared to be in the public interest to have persons engaged in coal or

commercial leonardite exploration or evaluation report their findings to the office of the state

geologist so that data on the location, quantity, and quality of coal or commercial leonardite, and

the characteristics of associated material, will be available to assist the state in determining

what the attitude of the state should be regarding future development of coal or commercial

leonardite resources.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-22 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-22
38-08-22. Regulation of welders by oil and gas division of industrial commission - Continuing appropriation
Status: repealed

38-08-22. Regulation of welders by oil and gas division of industrial commission -

Continuing appropriation.

Repealed by S.L. 1995, ch. 358, § 1.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-13 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-13
38-08-13. Party adversely affected may apply for reconsideration
Status: in_force

38-08-13. Party adversely affected may apply for reconsideration

Any party adversely affected by any order of the commission may file a written petition for

reconsideration in accordance with section 28-32-40. The commission shall grant or deny any

such petition in whole or in part in accordance with the provisions of section 28-32-40 and rules

adopted pursuant to it.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-37 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-37
38-14.1-37. Small operators
Status: in_force

38-14.1-37. Small operators

1. The provisions of this chapter do not apply to any of the following activities:

a. Extraction of coal or commercial leonardite by a landowner for the landowner's

own noncommercial use from land owned or leased by the landowner.

b. Extraction of coal or commercial leonardite as an incidental part of federal, state,

or local government-financed highway or other construction under regulations

established by the commission.

2. If the commission finds that the probable total annual production at all locations to be

mined by any permit applicant will not exceed three hundred thousand tons

[272155.41 metric tons], the cost of the following activities, which must be performed

by a qualified public or private entity designated by the commission, may be assumed

by the commission upon the written request of the operator in connection with a permit

application:

a. The determination of probable hydrologic consequences required by

subdivision o of subsection 1 of section 38-14.1-14, including the engineering

analyses and designs necessary for the determination.

b. The development of cross sections, maps, and plans required by subdivision r of

subsection 1 of section 38-14.1-14.

c. The geologic drilling and the statement of the result of test borings and core

samplings required by subdivision s of subsection 1 of section 38-14.1-14.

d. The collection of cultural resource information required by subdivision u of

subsection 1 of section 38-14.1-14, any other archaeological and historical

information required by the director of the state historical society, and the

preparation of mitigation plans necessitated thereby.

e. Preblast surveys required by subdivision e of subsection 13 of section

38-14.1-24.

f. The collection of site-specific resource information and the development of

protection and enhancement plans for fish and wildlife habitats and other

environmental values required by the commission in accordance with this

chapter.

3. The commission may provide or assume the cost of training coal or commercial

leonardite operators who meet the qualifications in subsection 2 concerning the

preparation of permit applications and compliance with the regulatory program.

4. An operator who has received assistance under subsection 2 or 3 shall reimburse the

commission for the cost of the services rendered if the commission finds that the

operator's actual and attributed annual production of coal or commercial leonardite for

all locations exceeds three hundred thousand tons [272155.41 metric tons] during the

twelve months immediately following the date the operator is issued a surface coal

mining and reclamation permit.

5. Proposed surface coal mining operations that will not be subject to payment of

reclamation fees required by the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977

[Pub. L. 95-87; 91 Stat. 445; 30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.] are not eligible for the assistance

to small operators provided by subsections 2 and 3.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-12.1-07 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-12.1 / Section 38-12.1-07
38-12.1-07. Action to restrain violation or threatened violation
Status: in_force

38-12.1-07. Action to restrain violation or threatened violation

Whenever it appears that any person is violating or threatening to violate any provision of

this chapter or any rule, regulation, or any order of the commission, the commission shall bring

suit against such person in the district court of any county where the violation occurs or is

threatened, to restrain such person from continuing such violation or from carrying out the threat

of violation. In any such suit, the court shall have jurisdiction to grant to the commission, without

bond or other undertaking, such prohibitory and mandatory injunctions as the facts may warrant.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-06 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-06
38-08-06. Commission shall determine market demand and regulate the amount of production
Status: in_force

38-08-06. Commission shall determine market demand and regulate the amount of

production.

The commission shall determine market demand for each marketing district and regulate

the amount of production as follows:

1. The commission shall limit the production of oil and gas within each marketing district

to that amount which can be produced without waste, and which does not exceed the

reasonable market demand.

2. Whenever the commission limits the total amount of oil or gas which may be produced

in the state or a marketing district, the commission shall allocate or distribute the

allowable production among the pools therein on a reasonable basis, giving, where

reasonable under the circumstances to each pool with small wells of settled

production, an allowable production which prevents the general premature

abandonment of such wells in the pool.

3. Whenever the commission limits the total amount of oil or gas which may be produced

in any pool in this state to an amount less than that amount which the pool could

produce if no restriction was imposed, which limitation is imposed either incidental to,

or without, a limitation of the total amount of oil or gas produced in the marketing

district wherein the pool is located, the commission shall allocate or distribute the

allowable production among the several wells or producing properties in the pool on a

reasonable basis, preventing or minimizing reasonable avoidable drainage, so that

each property will have the opportunity to produce or to receive its just and equitable

share, subject to the reasonable necessities for the prevention of waste.

4. In allocating the market demand for gas as between pools within marketing districts,

the commission shall give due regard to the fact that gas produced from oil pools is to

be regulated in a manner as will protect the reasonable use of its energy for oil

production.

5. The commission is not required to determine the reasonable market demand

applicable to any single pool, except in relation to all other pools within the same

marketing district, and in relation to the demand applicable to the marketing district. In

allocating allowables to pools, the commission may consider, but is not bound by,

nominations of purchasers to purchase from particular fields, pools, or portions

thereof. The commission shall allocate the total allowable for the state in such manner

as prevents undue discrimination between marketing districts, fields, pools, or portions

thereof resulting from selective buying or nomination by purchasers.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-14 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-14
38-08-14. Party adversely affected may appeal to district court
Status: in_force

38-08-14. Party adversely affected may appeal to district court

1. Any party adversely affected by an order entered by the commission may appeal,

pursuant to chapter 28-32, from the order to the district court for the county in which

the oil or gas well or the affected property is located. However, if the oil or gas well or

the property affected by the order is located in or underlies more than one county, any

appeal may be taken to the district court for any county in or under which any part of

the affected property is located.

2. At the time of filing of the notice of appeal, if an application for the suspension of the

order is filed, the commission may enter an order suspending the order complained of

and fixing the amount of a supersedeas bond. Within ten days after the entry of an

order by the commission which suspends the order complained of and fixes the

amount of the bond, the appellant shall file with the commission a supersedeas bond

in the required amount and with proper surety. Upon approval of the bond, the order of

the commission suspending the order complained of is effective until its final

disposition upon appeal. The bond must run in favor of the commission for the use and

benefit of any person who may suffer damage by reason of the suspension of the

order in the event the same is affirmed by the district court. If the order of the

commission is not superseded, it must continue in force and effect as if no appeal was

pending, unless a stay is ordered by the court to which the appeal is taken under

section 28-32-48.

3. Orders of the commission must be sustained by the district court if the commission has

regularly pursued its authority and its findings and conclusions are sustained by the

law and by substantial and credible evidence.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-02-11 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-02 / Section 38-02-11
38-02-11. Additional certificate to correct or extend boundaries may be filed by locator or assigns - Limitations
Status: in_force

38-02-11. Additional certificate to correct or extend boundaries may be filed by

locator or assigns - Limitations.

If the locator of any mining claim, or the locator's assigns, shall apprehend that the original

certificate was defective, erroneous, or that the requirements of the law had not been complied

with before filing, or is desirous of changing the locator's surface boundaries, or of taking in any

part of an overlapping claim which has been abandoned, such locator or the locator's assigns

may file an additional certificate subject to the provisions of this chapter. Such relocation may

not interfere with the existing rights of others at the time of such relocation. No such relocation,

nor the record thereof, may preclude the claimant from proving any such title as the claimant

may have held under previous locations.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.1-10 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.1 / Section 38-11.1-10
38-11.1-10. Application of chapter
Status: in_force

38-11.1-10. Application of chapter

The remedies provided by this chapter do not preclude any person from seeking other

remedies allowed by law. This chapter does not apply to the operation, maintenance, or use of a

motor vehicle upon the highways of this state as these terms are defined in section 39-01-01.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-12-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-12 / Section 38-12-05
38-12-05. Penalty - Injunction - Provisions applicable
Status: in_force

38-12-05. Penalty - Injunction - Provisions applicable

The provisions of sections 38-08-16 and 38-08-17 are applicable to the provisions of this

chapter and to the rules, regulations, and orders of the commission promulgated hereunder.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-16-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-16 / Section 38-16-05
38-16-05. Committee to transmit annual report to local soil conservation districts
Status: in_force

38-16-05. Committee to transmit annual report to local soil conservation districts

The committee shall prepare and transmit to local soil conservation districts, on or before

June thirtieth of each year, a report giving information about surface mining operations and

reclamation activities conducted in the soil conservation districts during the preceding calendar

year.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-42 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-42
38-14.1-42. Cooperation with federal and state agencies
Status: in_force

38-14.1-42. Cooperation with federal and state agencies

The commission shall have the authority to cooperate with and receive technical and

financial assistance from the United States, any state, or any department, agency, or officer

thereof, and to file such reports and promulgate regulations as required by federal law for any

purposes relating to reclamation. In the administration, inspection, and enforcement of North

Dakota's reclamation program, the commission is also authorized and encouraged to cooperate

with other federal and state agencies in order to eliminate duplication of effort and unnecessary

review, establish a common database for similar reviews and timely decisions, and to

promulgate rules and regulations relevant to such authorization.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.2-06 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.2 / Section 38-14.2-06
38-14.2-06. Eligible lands and water
Status: in_force

38-14.2-06. Eligible lands and water

Lands and water eligible for reclamation or drainage abatement expenditures under this

chapter are those which were mined for coal or which were affected by such mining,

wastebanks, coal processing or other coal mining processes and abandoned or left in an

inadequate reclamation status prior to August 3, 1977, and for which there is no continuing

reclamation responsibility under other state laws. Lands and water which were mined or

affected by mining for minerals and materials other than coal are also eligible for reclamation

under this chapter if the reclamation is necessary to protect public health, safety, general

welfare, and property, the noncoal abandoned mine lands were left in an inadequate

reclamation status prior to August 3, 1977, there is no continuing reclamation responsibility

under other state or federal laws, and the state has received certification from the United States

secretary of the interior under 30 U.S.C. 1239 or 30 U.S.C. 1240(a). Lands and water

designated for remedial action under the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of 1978

[42 U.S.C. 7901 et seq.] or listed for remedial action under the Comprehensive Environmental

Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 [42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.] are not eligible for

reclamation or drainage abatement expenditures under this chapter.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-18.1-08 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-18.1 / Section 38-18.1-08
38-18.1-08. Applicability
Status: in_force

38-18.1-08. Applicability

This chapter does not apply to any mineral interest owned by any governmental body or

agency thereof and this chapter is both prospective and retrospective in its application.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-27 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-27
38-08-27. Controls, inspections, and engineering design on crude oil and produced water underground gathering pipelines
Status: in_force

38-08-27. Controls, inspections, and engineering design on crude oil and produced

water underground gathering pipelines.

The application of this section is limited to an underground gathering pipeline that is

designed or intended to transfer crude oil or produced water from a production facility for

disposal, storage, or sale purposes and which was placed into service after August 1, 2015.

Upon request, the operator shall provide the commission the underground gathering pipeline

engineering construction design drawings and specifications, list of independent inspectors, and

a plan for leak protection and monitoring for the underground gathering pipeline. Within sixty

days of an underground gathering pipeline being placed into service, the operator of that

pipeline shall file with the commission an independent inspector's certificate of hydrostatic or

pneumatic testing of the underground gathering pipeline.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-04
38-14.1-04. Powers and duties of the commission relative to designation of lands unsuitable for surface coal mining operations
Status: in_force

38-14.1-04. Powers and duties of the commission relative to designation of lands

unsuitable for surface coal mining operations.

The commission has the following powers and duties:

1. To be responsible for surface coal mining lands review.

2. To develop a database and an inventory system which will permit proper evaluation of

the capacity of different land areas of the state to support and permit reclamation of

surface coal mining operations.

3. To develop a method or methods for implementing land use planning decisions

concerning surface coal mining operations.

4. To develop procedures ensuring proper notice, opportunities for public participation,

including a public hearing prior to making a designation or redesignation, pursuant to

this chapter.

5. To develop procedures whereby determinations of the unsuitability of land for surface

coal mining, as provided for in this chapter, are integrated as closely as possible with

land use planning and regulation processes at the state and local levels.

6. To develop a planning process in order to designate which, if any, land areas are

unsuitable for all or certain types of surface coal mining operations, providing said

decisions are based upon competent and scientifically sound data and information and

accomplished pursuant to the procedures of sections 38-14.1-05 and 38-14.1-06.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-24 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-24
38-08-24. Carbon sequestration and storage projects - Priority
Status: repealed

38-08-24. Carbon sequestration and storage projects - Priority

Repealed by S.L. 2009, ch. 318, § 2.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-03
38-08-03. Waste prohibited
Status: in_force

38-08-03. Waste prohibited

Waste of oil and gas is prohibited.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.3-09 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.3 / Section 38-14.3-09
38-14.3-09. Industrial commission may adopt rules
Status: in_force

38-14.3-09. Industrial commission may adopt rules

The industrial commission may adopt rules necessary to carry out this chapter.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-25 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-25
38-08-25. Hydraulic fracturing - Use of carbon dioxide - Designated as acceptable recovery processes
Status: in_force

38-08-25. Hydraulic fracturing - Use of carbon dioxide - Designated as acceptable

recovery processes.

1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the legislative assembly designates

hydraulic fracturing, a mechanical method of increasing the permeability of rock to

increase the amount of oil and gas produced from the rock; and the use of carbon

dioxide for enhanced recovery of oil, gas, and other minerals acceptable recovery

processes in this state.

2. It is in the public interest to promote the use of carbon dioxide to benefit the state, to

help ensure the viability of the state's coal and power industries, and to benefit the

state economy. Carbon dioxide is a potentially valuable commodity, and increasing its

availability is important for commercial, industrial, or other uses, including enhanced

recovery of oil, gas, and other minerals.

3. It is in the public interest to encourage and authorize cycling, recycling, pressure

maintenance, secondary recovery operations, and enhanced recovery operations

utilizing carbon dioxide for the greatest possible economic recovery of oil and gas.

4. It is in the public interest for a person conducting operations authorized by the

commission under this chapter to use as much of a subsurface geologic formation as

reasonably necessary to allow for unit operations for enhanced oil recovery, utilization

of carbon dioxide for enhanced recovery of oil, gas, and other minerals, disposal

operations, or any other operation authorized by this chapter.

5. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person conducting unit operations for

enhanced oil recovery, utilization of carbon dioxide for enhanced recovery of oil, gas,

and other minerals, disposal operations, or any other operation authorized by the

commission under this chapter may utilize subsurface geologic formations in the state

for such operations or any other permissible purpose under this chapter. Any other

provision of law may not be construed to entitle the owner of a subsurface geologic

formation to prohibit or demand payment for the use of the subsurface geologic

formation for unit operations for enhanced oil recovery, utilization of carbon dioxide for

enhanced recovery of oil, gas, and other minerals, disposal operations, or any other

operation conducted under this chapter. As used in this section, "subsurface geologic

formation" means any cavity or void, whether natural or artificially created, in a

subsurface sedimentary stratum.

6. The commission may adopt and enforce rules and orders to effectuate the purposes of

this section.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-02-07 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-02 / Section 38-02-07
38-02-07. Surface boundaries of lode - How marked
Status: in_force

38-02-07. Surface boundaries of lode - How marked

The surface boundaries of the lode must be marked by eight substantial posts hewed or

blazed on the side facing the claim and plainly marked with the name of the lode and the corner,

end, or side of the claim that they respectively represent and sunk in the ground as follows:

1. One at each corner.

2. One at the center of each side line.

3. One at each end of the lode.

If it is impracticable on account of rock or precipitous ground to sink such posts, they may be

placed in a monument of stone.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-01-08 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-01 / Section 38-01-08
38-01-08. Penalties for violation of provisions of title relating to coal mines
Status: repealed

38-01-08. Penalties for violation of provisions of title relating to coal mines

Repealed by S.L. 1979, ch. 398, § 9.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-25-09 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-25 / Section 38-25-09
38-25-09. Ownership of oil and gas
Status: in_force

38-25-09. Ownership of oil and gas

All oil or gas previously reduced to possession and subsequently injected into underground

storage facilities must be deemed the property of the storage operator subject to the obligation

to pay royalties as set forth in section 38-25-10.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.3-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.3 / Section 38-14.3-03
38-14.3-03. Bond coverage available to permittees
Status: in_force

38-14.3-03. Bond coverage available to permittees

The fund may provide bonds for the faithful performance of all surface coal mining laws,

rules, and permit terms and conditions. An application for a bond may be made to the industrial

commission, which shall approve or disapprove the application. The decision of the industrial

commission may not be appealed. The industrial commission may establish conditions and

require information and such guarantee and indemnity by the permittee as the industrial

commission deems necessary for the preservation of the fund.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-10-08 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-10 / Section 38-10-08
38-10-08. Order of license to sell oil, gas, or mineral rights and procedure thereafter
Status: in_force

38-10-08. Order of license to sell oil, gas, or mineral rights and procedure thereafter

If it appears to the district court, after the hearing provided for in this chapter, that it is

necessary, or for the advantage, benefit, and best interests of the estate and of the persons

interested therein, to sell the whole or some fractional part of the oil, gas, or minerals in and

under, and that may be produced from, land belonging to the estate, the court may enter its

order of license authorizing the sale of the whole or any fractional part thereof separately from

the surface rights. Thereafter, further proceedings must be had and conducted in compliance

with the provisions of sections 30.1-13-04, 30.1-18-03, 30.1-18-04, 30.1-18-11, 30.1-18-15, and

30.1-19-08.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.3-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.3 / Section 38-14.3-01
38-14.3-01. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-14.3-01. Definitions

In this chapter:

1. "Bond" means a bond required of a permittee under chapter 38-14.1.

2. "Fund" means the surface coal mining and reclamation bond fund.

3. "Permit" means a surface coal mining and reclamation operation permit approved by

the public service commission under chapter 38-14.1.

4. "Permittee" means a person holding a permit.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-01-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-01 / Section 38-01-03
38-01-03. Use of fraudulent means in weighing output of coal prohibited
Status: repealed

38-01-03. Use of fraudulent means in weighing output of coal prohibited

Repealed by S.L. 1971, ch. 347, § 20.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-24-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-24 / Section 38-24-01
38-24-01. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-24-01. Definitions

As used in this chapter:

1. "Commission" means the industrial commission.

2. "Nonhydrocarbons" include compressed air, nitrogen, and other gases and liquids not

otherwise regulated by title 38.

3. "Underground storage and retrieval facility" means a drilled, bored, or excavated

device or installation providing for the subsurface emplacement and recovery of

nonhydrocarbons.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11-09 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11 / Section 38-11-09
38-11-09. Rejection of bids
Status: repealed

38-11-09. Rejection of bids

Repealed by S.L. 1977, ch. 322, § 9.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-20 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-20
38-08-20. Commingling of production - Central production facility - Metering of production - Testing of meters
Status: in_force

38-08-20. Commingling of production - Central production facility - Metering of

production - Testing of meters.

A producer may not commingle production from two or more oil or gas wells with diverse

ownership in a storage facility without prior approval of the commission after notice and

opportunity for hearing. If the commingling of production is for the express purpose of

separating, metering, holding, and marketing of production, the owner of the wells shall apply to

the commission for approval of the proposed commingling of production at a storage facility. If

wells producing into a centralized storage facility have diverse ownership, the production from

each well must be measured by meters approved and tested by or under the direction of the

commission or production must be measured by some other method the commission has

approved after notice and opportunity for hearing. If wells producing into a centralized storage

facility have common ownership, including the common ownership of the working interest, the

common ownership of the royalty ownership, and the common ownership of any overriding

royalty owners, the production from each well need not be measured on meters approved by the

commission if the owner of the wells demonstrates to the commission that the production from

each well can be accurately determined at reasonable intervals by other means.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-09.3 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-09.3
38-08-09.3. Matters to be found by commission - Requisites of petition
Status: in_force

38-08-09.3. Matters to be found by commission - Requisites of petition

If upon the filing of a petition therefor and after notice and hearing, all in the form and

manner and in accordance with the procedure and requirements hereinafter provided, the

commission shall find:

1. That the unitized management, operation, and further development of a common

source of supply of oil and gas or portion thereof is reasonably necessary in order to

effectively carry on pressure-maintenance or repressuring operations, cycling

operations, water flooding operations, or any combination thereof, or any other form of

joint effort calculated to substantially increase the ultimate recovery of oil and gas from

the common source of supply;

2. That one or more of said unitized methods of operation as applied to such common

source of supply or portion thereof are feasible, will prevent waste, and will with

reasonable probability result in the increased recovery of substantially more oil and

gas from the common source of supply than would otherwise be recovered;

3. That the estimated additional cost, if any, of conducting such operations will not

exceed the value of the additional oil and gas so recovered; and

4. That such unitization and adoption of one or more of such unitized methods of

operation is for the common good and will result in the general advantage of the

owners of the oil and gas rights within the common source of supply or portion thereof

directly affected,

it shall make a finding to that effect and make an order creating the unit and providing for the

unitization and unitized operation of the common source of supply or portion thereof described

in the order, all upon such terms and conditions, as may be shown by the evidence to be fair,

reasonable, equitable, and which are necessary or proper to protect, safeguard, and adjust the

respective rights and obligations of the several persons affected, including royalty owners,

owners of overriding royalties, oil and gas payments, carried interests, mortgagees, lien

claimants, and others, as well as the lessees. The petition must set forth a description of the

proposed unit area with a map or plat thereof attached, must allege the existence of the facts

required to be found by the commission as hereinabove provided and must have attached

thereto a proposed plan of unitization applicable to such proposed unit area and which the

petitioner or petitioners consider to be fair, reasonable, and equitable.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.1-07.1 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.1 / Section 38-11.1-07.1
38-11.1-07.1. Pretrial appraisal required before commencement of action to recover compensation
Status: in_force

38-11.1-07.1. Pretrial appraisal required before commencement of action to recover

compensation.

1. As used in this section, "certified appraiser" has the same meaning as in section

43-23.3-01.

2. Before commencing a legal action to recover compensation, a person entitled to

compensation shall obtain a written appraisal valuing all parcels affected or

foreseeably affected by drilling operations under this chapter. A certified appraiser, an

individual possessing a temporary permit under section 43-23.3-11, or an individual

possessing a permit under section 43-23.3-04.1 shall conduct the required appraisal.

3. Before a court may take jurisdiction over an action commenced under this chapter, a

person seeking compensation under this chapter must have provided to a mineral

developer a copy of an appraisal issued under subsection 2. The mineral developer

may make a new offer for settlement to the surface owner within thirty days of

receiving the appraisal. If a new offer is made under this subsection, the amount of the

new offer serves as the offer contemplated under section 38-11.1-09.

4. The mineral developer shall reimburse the reasonable actual costs of the required

appraisal incurred by the surface owner for obtaining a required appraisal under this

section or, at the election of the surface owner, the mineral developer shall pay the

reasonable actual costs directly to the appraiser.

5. The required appraisal or opinion of value expressed in the required appraisal is

inadmissible at a proceeding commenced under this chapter, unless the information is

offered by the surface owner. Whether an appraisal is issued under this section does

not require or prohibit the introduction of specific evidence offered at a proceeding

commenced under this chapter.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11-07 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11 / Section 38-11-07
38-11-07. Royalty scale
Status: repealed

38-11-07. Royalty scale

Repealed by S.L. 1977, ch. 322, § 9.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.1-02 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.1 / Section 38-11.1-02
38-11.1-02. Purpose and interpretation
Status: in_force

38-11.1-02. Purpose and interpretation

It is the purpose of this chapter to provide the maximum amount of constitutionally

permissible protection to surface owners and other persons from the undesirable effects of

development of minerals. This chapter is to be interpreted in light of the legislative intent

expressed herein. Sections 38-11.1-04 and 38-11.1-04.1 must be interpreted to benefit surface

owners, regardless of whether the mineral estate was separated from the surface estate and

regardless of who executed the document which gave the mineral developer the right to conduct

drilling operations on the land. Sections 38-11.1-06 through 38-11.1-10 must be interpreted to

benefit all persons.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-15 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-15
38-09-15. Public offering of leases - State
Status: reserved

38-09-15. Public offering of leases - State

Before leasing any land or interest therein or any mineral rights reserved therein, the state

of North Dakota or any of its departments or agencies shall first give notice in accordance with

the rules of the board of university and school lands. The leasing must be held at the time and

place specified in the notice, and the notice must contain the information required by the rules of

the board of university and school lands and such other information as may be deemed by the

state or department or agency thereof to be applicable. Should publication of any notice of the

leasing of mineral rights be inadvertently omitted by any newspaper or should the notice contain

typographical errors, the state or department or agency may, in its discretion, proceed with the

scheduled leasing if it appears that the omission or error is not prejudicial to the state's interest.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-15-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-15 / Section 38-15-05
38-15-05. Penalty - Injunction - Provisions applicable
Status: in_force

38-15-05. Penalty - Injunction - Provisions applicable

The provisions of sections 38-08-16 and 38-08-17 are applicable to the provisions of this

chapter and to the rules, regulations, and orders of the commission promulgated hereunder.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-09 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-09
38-22-09. Permit provisions
Status: in_force

38-22-09. Permit provisions

The commission may include in a permit or order all things necessary to carry out this

chapter's objectives and to protect and adjust the respective rights and obligations of persons

affected by geologic storage.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-01.2 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-01.2
38-09-01.2. Reservations may be released to United States
Status: reserved

38-09-01.2. Reservations may be released to United States

Whenever the state of North Dakota, or any of its agencies, has conveyed lands to any

person and has reserved oil, gas, or minerals or rights therein or archaeological materials and

the United States of America or any of its agencies or agents shall desire or be required to

acquire or approve title to such lands, the officers, boards, or commissions which have originally

conveyed such lands, or the successors in power to such officers, boards, or commissions are

authorized to release to the United States of America or its agency or agent everything so

reserved. The officer, board, or commission having power so to release has full power to fix and

determine the consideration, if any, and terms upon which such release shall be given and any

moneys or other consideration received for such releases must be covered into the fund for the

benefit of which such reservations were made.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-04.9 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-04.9
38-08-04.9. Confiscation of equipment and salable oil to cover plugging and reclamation costs
Status: in_force

38-08-04.9. Confiscation of equipment and salable oil to cover plugging and

reclamation costs.

When the commission intends to exercise or has exercised its right to plug a well or reclaim

a well site, pipeline facility, production facility, saltwater handling facility, or treating plant, the

commission, as compensation for its costs, may confiscate any equipment and salable oil at the

well site, pipeline facility, production facility, saltwater handling facility, or treating plant. The

equipment subject to confiscation is limited to that owned by the operator, former operator, or

working interest owner. If the commission exercises its authority under this section and there is

salable oil at the well site, that oil must be confiscated. The commission shall pay the mineral

owners the royalty interest in the oil confiscated at the well site. In determining the mineral

owners and their royalty interests, the commission may rely upon the most recent division order

it is able to obtain. If one is unavailable or the commission finds the order unreliable, the

commission may rely upon any other source of information the commission deems reasonable

to determine and pay mineral owners. A confiscation must be by an order of the commission

after notice and hearing. A confiscation order transfers title to the commission.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-19-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-19 / Section 38-19-04
38-19-04. Permit and report required
Status: in_force

38-19-04. Permit and report required

It is unlawful to commence any operations for the drilling, boring, excavating, or construction

of a geothermal energy extraction facility without first securing a permit from the director of

mineral resources, under such rules as may be adopted by the commission and after paying to

the commission a fee for each such facility in an amount to be prescribed by the commission by

rule. The fee set must be related to the cost of regulation and inspection under this chapter.

A report is required upon completion of any geothermal energy extraction facility. The report

must be prepared by the geothermal energy extraction facility installer on a form provided by the

state geologist and must be furnished to the state geologist within thirty days after the

completion of the facility. The report must contain relevant information the state geologist

requires relating to the environmental safety of the facility, including the facility owner and

location, a log of formations penetrated or total depth, system specifications and design, and

fluids used in the facility.

All construction of geothermal energy extraction facilities must comply with rules adopted

under this chapter.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-19 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-19
38-22-19. Enhanced recovery projects
Status: in_force

38-22-19. Enhanced recovery projects

1. This chapter does not apply to applications filed with the commission proposing to use

carbon dioxide for an enhanced oil or gas recovery project, rather such applications

will be processed under chapter 38-08.

2. The commission may allow an enhanced oil or gas recovery project to be converted to

a storage facility. In considering whether to approve a conversion, and upon

conversion, the provisions of this chapter and its implementing rules apply, but if during

the conversion process unique circumstances arise, the commission, to better ensure

that the chapter's objectives are fulfilled, may waive such provisions and may impose

additional ones.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-12 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-12
38-14.1-12. Permits - Term - Termination
Status: in_force

38-14.1-12. Permits - Term - Termination

1. All permits for surface coal mining and reclamation operations must comply with the

standards of this chapter, any regulations promulgated thereunder, and such other

requirements as the commission shall establish.

2. All permits issued pursuant to the requirements of this chapter must be issued for a

term not to exceed five years; provided, that if the applicant demonstrates that a

specified longer term is reasonably needed to allow the applicant to obtain necessary

financing for equipment and the opening of the operation and if the application is full

and complete for such specified longer term, the commission may grant a permit for

such longer term.

3. A permit terminates if the permittee has not commenced the surface coal mining

operations covered by such permit within three years of the issuance of the permit,

provided that:

a. The commission may grant reasonable extensions of time upon a showing that

such extensions are necessary by reason of litigation precluding such

commencement or threatening substantial economic loss to the permittee, or by

reason of conditions beyond the control and without the fault or negligence of the

permittee.

b. With respect to coal to be mined for use in a synthetic fuel facility or specific

major electric generating facility, the permittee must be deemed to have

commenced surface coal mining operations at such time as the construction of

the synthetic fuel or generating facility is initiated.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-12.1-08 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-12.1 / Section 38-12.1-08
38-12.1-08. Civil and criminal penalties - Unclassified
Status: in_force

38-12.1-08. Civil and criminal penalties - Unclassified

1. Any person, including a director, officer, or agent of a corporate permittee, who violates

this chapter or any permit condition or regulation implementing this chapter is subject

to a civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars per day of such violation.

2. Any person, including a director, officer, or agent of a corporate permittee, who

knowingly or willfully violates this chapter or any permit condition or regulation

implementing this chapter or who knowingly reports information required by this

chapter falsely is subject, upon conviction, to a criminal penalty of not more than ten

thousand dollars or by imprisonment for not more than one year.

3. Any corporation or any person who controls the activity of a corporation who violates

this chapter or any permit condition or rule implementing this chapter is subject to a

civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars per day of such violation.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-23 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-23
38-22-23. Determining storage amounts - Carbon credits - Fee
Status: in_force

38-22-23. Determining storage amounts - Carbon credits - Fee

1. The commission, under procedures and criteria it may adopt, shall determine the

amount of injected carbon dioxide stored in a reservoir that has been or is being used

for an enhanced oil or gas recovery project. The commission may also make such a

determination for carbon dioxide stored under this chapter.

2. The purpose for determining storage amounts is to facilitate using the stored carbon

dioxide for such matters as carbon credits, allowances, trading, emissions allocations,

and offsets, and for other similar purposes.

3. The commission may charge a reasonable fee to the person requesting a storage

determination. The fee must be set by rule.

4. Fees the commission receives for storage determinations must be deposited into the

carbon dioxide storage facility administrative fund.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.1-09 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.1 / Section 38-11.1-09
38-11.1-09. Rejection - Legal action - Fees and costs
Status: in_force

38-11.1-09. Rejection - Legal action - Fees and costs

If the person seeking compensation rejects the offer of the mineral developer, that person

may bring an action for compensation in the court of proper jurisdiction. If the amount of

compensation awarded by the court is greater than the amount offered by the mineral

developer, the court shall award the person seeking compensation reasonable attorney's fees,

any costs and disbursements under chapter 28-26, and interest on the amount of the final

compensation awarded by the court from the day drilling is commenced. The rate of interest

awarded must be the prime rate charged by the Bank of North Dakota on the date of the

judgment.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-16-01.1 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-16 / Section 38-16-01.1
38-16-01.1. Gravel and sand surface mining operations - Reclamation - Civil action - Penalty
Status: in_force

38-16-01.1. Gravel and sand surface mining operations - Reclamation - Civil action -

Penalty.

Any surface mining operator conducting a gravel or sand surface mining operation on land

in this state owned by another person, upon completion or abandonment of the surface mining

operation, shall reclaim the affected land. Each surface mining operator shall negotiate with the

landowner a written agreement providing for the reclamation of the affected land. Unless the

affected land is to be used for other purposes as agreed upon between the surface mining

operator and the landowner, the reclamation agreement must, at a minimum, provide for

restoration by the surface mining operator of the affected land as nearly as possible to the

agreed contour and usability; indicate the amount of topsoil and subsoil to be saved,

segregated, and respread; and indicate the party responsible for compaction of backfill, soil

testing, fertilization, revegetation, weed control, rock disposal, and replacement or

establishment of conservation practices. The reclamation must be within a time period agreed

upon between the parties, but within one year after the final cessation of surface mining

operations. A landowner may bring a claim for relief in any appropriate district court against the

surface mining operator who has failed to reclaim properly affected land pursuant to a

reclamation agreement under this section. In an action under this section, a surface mining

operator is liable for damage in an amount necessary to reclaim the land. Any person who

violates any provision of this section is guilty of a class B misdemeanor.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-23-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-23 / Section 38-23-05
38-23-05. Procedure
Status: in_force

38-23-05. Procedure

The administrative procedure involved in adopting rules or the issuance of orders by the

commission under this chapter must be in accordance with chapter 38-08. If the commission

determines an emergency exists which requires the making, revoking, changing, amending,

modifying, altering, enlarging, renewal, or extension of a rule or order without first having a

hearing, the emergency rule or order has the same validity as a hearing held after due notice.

The emergency rule or order may remain in force up to fifteen days from its effective date, and

expires when a rule or order made after due notice and hearing becomes effective.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.3-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.3 / Section 38-14.3-04
38-14.3-04. Investment of fund
Status: in_force

38-14.3-04. Investment of fund

Investment of the fund is under the supervision of the Bank of North Dakota.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-04.5 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-04.5
38-08-04.5. Abandoned oil and gas well plugging and site reclamation fund - Continuing appropriation - Budget section report
Status: in_force

38-08-04.5. Abandoned oil and gas well plugging and site reclamation fund -

Continuing appropriation - Budget section report.

There is created an abandoned oil and gas well plugging and site reclamation fund.

1. Revenue to the fund must include:

a. Fees collected by the oil and gas division of the industrial commission for permits

or other services.

b. Moneys received from the forfeiture of drilling and reclamation bonds.

c. Moneys received from any federal agency for the purpose of this section.

d. Moneys donated to the commission for the purposes of this section.

e. Moneys received from the state's oil and gas impact fund.

f. Moneys recovered under the provisions of section 38-08-04.8.

g. Moneys recovered from the sale of equipment and oil confiscated under section

38-08-04.9.

h. Moneys transferred from the cash bond fund under section 38-08-04.11.

i. Such other moneys as may be deposited in the fund for use in carrying out the

purposes of plugging or replugging of wells or the restoration of well sites.

j. Civil penalties assessed under section 38-08-16.

2. Moneys in the fund may be used for the following purposes:

a. Contracting for the plugging of abandoned wells.

b. Contracting for the reclamation of abandoned drilling and production sites,

saltwater disposal pits, drilling fluid pits, and access roads.

c. To pay mineral owners their royalty share in confiscated oil and to defray the

expenses of the postproduction royalty oversight program provided under section

4.1-01-26.

d. Defraying costs incurred under section 38-08-04.4 in reclamation of saltwater

handling facilities, treating plants, and oil and gas-related pipelines and

associated facilities and to defray the expenses of the pipeline restoration and

reclamation oversight program provided under chapter 4.1-01.

e. Reclamation and restoration of land and water resources impacted by oil and gas

development, including related pipelines and facilities that were abandoned or

were left in an inadequate reclamation status before August 1, 1983, and for

which there is not any continuing reclamation responsibility under state law. Land

and water degraded by any willful act of the current or any former surface owner

are not eligible for reclamation or restoration. The commission may expend up to

five million dollars per biennium from the fund in the following priority:

(1) For the restoration of eligible land and water that are degraded by the

adverse effects of oil and gas development including related pipelines and

facilities.

(2) For the development of publicly owned land adversely affected by oil and

gas development including related pipelines and facilities.

(3) For administrative expenses and cost in developing an abandoned site

reclamation plan and the program.

(4) Demonstration projects for the development of reclamation and water quality

control program methods and techniques for oil and gas development,

including related pipelines and facilities.

f. For transfer by the office of management and budget, upon request of the

industrial commission, to the environmental quality restoration fund for use by the

department of environmental quality for the purposes provided under chapter

23.1-10, if to address environmental emergencies relating to oil and natural gas

development, including the disposal of oilfield waste and oil or natural gas

production and transportation by rail, road, or pipeline. If a transfer requested by

the industrial commission has been made under this subdivision, the department

of environmental quality shall request the office of management and budget to

transfer from subsequent deposits in the environmental quality restoration fund

an amount sufficient to restore the amount transferred from the abandoned oil

and gas well plugging and site reclamation fund.

g. Administrative expenses, including salaries and wages and operating expenses,

subject to legislative appropriation.

3. This fund must be maintained as a special fund and all moneys transferred into the

fund are appropriated and must be used and disbursed solely for the purposes in this

section.

4. The commission shall report to the budget section of the legislative management on

the balance of the fund and expenditures from the fund each biennium.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-09.15 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-09.15
38-08-09.15. Agreement not violative of laws governing monopolies or restraint of trade
Status: in_force

38-08-09.15. Agreement not violative of laws governing monopolies or restraint of

trade.

No agreement between or among lessees or other owners of oil and gas rights in oil and

gas properties, entered into pursuant hereto or with a view or for the purpose of bringing about

the unitized development or operation of such properties, may be held to violate any of the

statutes of this state prohibiting monopolies or acts, arrangements, agreements, contracts,

combinations, or conspiracies in restraint of trade or commerce.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-10-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-10 / Section 38-10-01
38-10-01. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-10-01. Definitions

In this chapter, unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires:

1. "District court" means the district court having jurisdiction of the estate of which the

personal representative involved is administrator, executor, or guardian, as the case

may be.

2. "Estate" means the estate of a person who died testate or intestate and the estate of a

minor or of an individual who is incompetent or a spendthrift under guardianship.

3. "Lease for production" means any lease of property of an estate for the purpose of

mining or of drilling and operating for oil, including the laying of pipelines and the

building of tanks, power stations, and other structures upon the lands described in

such lease for the purpose of producing, saving, and taking care of products of the

mine or well.

4. "Personal representative" means an executor of the last will or the administrator of the

estate of a deceased person, or a guardian of the estate of a minor or of an

incompetent or spendthrift.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-06.4 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-06.4
38-08-06.4. Flaring of gas restricted - Imposition of tax - Payment of royalties - Industrial commission authority
Status: in_force

38-08-06.4. Flaring of gas restricted - Imposition of tax - Payment of royalties -

Industrial commission authority.

1. As permitted under rules of the industrial commission, gas produced with crude oil

from an oil well may be flared during a one-year period from the date of first production

from the well.

2. After the time period in subsection 1, flaring of gas from the well must cease and the

well must be:

a. Capped;

b. Connected to a gas gathering line;

c. Equipped with an electrical generator that consumes at least seventy-five percent

of the gas from the well;

d. Equipped with a system that intakes at least seventy-five percent of the gas and

natural gas liquids volume from the well for beneficial consumption by means of

compression to liquid for use as fuel, transport to a processing facility, production

of petrochemicals or fertilizer, conversion to liquid fuels, separating and collecting

over fifty percent of the propane and heavier hydrocarbons; or

e. Equipped with other value-added processes as approved by the industrial

commission which reduce the volume or intensity of the flare by more than sixty

percent.

3. An electrical generator and its attachment units to produce electricity from gas and a

collection system described in subdivision d of subsection 2 must be considered to be

personal property for all purposes.

4. For a well operated in violation of this section, the producer shall pay royalties to

royalty owners upon the value of the flared gas and shall also pay gross production tax

on the flared gas at the rate imposed under section 57-51-02.2.

5. The industrial commission may enforce this section and, for each well operator found

to be in violation of this section, may determine the value of flared gas for purposes of

payment of royalties under this section and its determination is final.

6. A producer may obtain an exemption from this section from the industrial commission

upon application that shows to the satisfaction of the industrial commission that

connection of the well to a natural gas gathering line is economically infeasible at the

time of the application or in the foreseeable future or that a market for the gas is not

available and that equipping the well with an electrical generator to produce electricity

from gas or employing a collection system described in subdivision d of subsection 2 is

economically infeasible.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.3-07 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.3 / Section 38-14.3-07
38-14.3-07. Reinsurance contracts - Revenue bonds - Guarantees
Status: in_force

38-14.3-07. Reinsurance contracts - Revenue bonds - Guarantees

The industrial commission shall do all things necessary to preserve the fund and ensure the

ability of the fund to pay claims. The industrial commission is granted all powers necessary to

effectuate the purposes of this chapter, including but not limited to the power to:

1. Contract for reinsurance of any risk against which a bond is issued under this chapter.

A contract for reinsurance may be entered into without public bids and must be

approved by the insurance commissioner.

2. Issue evidences of indebtedness. The principal of, and interest on, evidences of

indebtedness may be paid only from the fund. The evidences of indebtedness are not

a debt of the state of North Dakota or of any officer or agent of the state within the

meaning of any statutory or constitutional provision and shall contain a statement to

that effect on their face. The evidences of indebtedness may be sold at public or

private sale and must contain the terms and provisions set by the industrial

commission. Any state department or public fund may invest its funds in the purchase

of the evidences of indebtedness. The evidences of indebtedness are not subject to

taxation by the state or by any political subdivision of the state.

3. Require, before issuing a bond, that a permittee guarantee and indemnify the fund

against any loss and secure the guarantee and indemnity by the pledge or posting of

real or personal property under terms and conditions set by the industrial commission.

The industrial commission may not require the pledge or posting of property if the

fund's reserves are sufficient to ensure the payment of all claims against it. The liability

of a permittee under a guarantee or indemnity agreement under this chapter is limited

to the payment of any claims against the bond issued for the permittee.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-05
38-08-05. Drilling permit required
Status: in_force

38-08-05. Drilling permit required

1. A person may not commence operations for the drilling of a well for oil or gas without

obtaining a permit from the industrial commission under rules as may be adopted by

the commission and paying to the commission a fee for each well in an amount to be

determined by the commission. The applicant shall provide notice to the owner of any

permanently occupied dwelling located within one thousand three hundred twenty feet

[402.34 meters] of the proposed oil or gas well.

2. Unless waived by the owner or if the commission determines that the well location is

reasonably necessary to prevent waste or to protect correlative rights, the commission

may not issue a drilling permit for an oil or gas well that will be located within five

hundred feet [152.4 meters] of an occupied dwelling. If the commission issues a

drilling permit for a location within one thousand feet [300.48 meters] of an occupied

dwelling, the commission may impose conditions on the permit:

a. For wells permitted on new pads built after July 31, 2013, the conditions imposed

under this subdivision may include, upon request of the owner of the permanently

occupied dwelling, requiring that the location of all flares, tanks, and treaters

utilized in connection with the permitted well be located at a greater distance from

the occupied dwelling than the oil and gas well bore if the location can be

accommodated reasonably within the proposed pad location; or

b. As the commission determines reasonably necessary to minimize impact to the

owner of the occupied dwelling.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-22 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-22
38-22-22. Participation of public interests
Status: in_force

38-22-22. Participation of public interests

The entity or official controlling state interests or the interests of political subdivisions is

authorized to consent to and participate in a geologic storage project.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-17-06 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-17 / Section 38-17-06
38-17-06. Acknowledgment of advance royalty provision required
Status: in_force

38-17-06. Acknowledgment of advance royalty provision required

All advance royalty provisions contained in coal leases executed after April 9, 1975, must be

specially explained to the lessor before the lessor executes the lease. The lessor shall execute

an acknowledgment indicating the lessor's knowledge of the presence of the advance royalty

provision or the advance royalty provision is void. The acknowledgment must be printed on the

lease document in print which is larger than any other print on the document, and it must refer

the lessor to the exact provision of the lease which permits advance royalty.

An example of the type of acknowledgment required by this section is as follows: THE

LESSOR HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THE LESSOR IS AWARE OF SECTION ______

OF THIS LEASE RELATING TO ADVANCE ROYALTIES.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-16-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-16 / Section 38-16-04
38-16-04. Powers of the committee
Status: in_force

38-16-04. Powers of the committee

The committee has the power to:

1. Exercise general supervision and administration and enforcement of this chapter.

2. Encourage and conduct training, research, experiments, and demonstrations, and to

collect and disseminate information relating to surface mining operations and

reclamation of lands and waters affected by surface mining operations.

3. Make, amend, and rescind, from time to time, such rules and regulations, in the

manner prescribed by chapter 28-32, as may be appropriate to effectuate the

purposes and provisions of this chapter.

4. Make investigations or inspections which may be deemed necessary to ensure

compliance with any provisions of this chapter.

5. Cooperate with and receive technical and financial assistance from the United States,

any state, or any department, agency, or officer thereof for any purposes relating to the

reclamation of any affected lands.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-18.1-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-18.1 / Section 38-18.1-05
38-18.1-05. Failure to record the statement of claim
Status: in_force

38-18.1-05. Failure to record the statement of claim

Failure to record the statement of claim within the time period provided in section

38-18.1-04 will not cause a mineral interest to be extinguished if:

1. The owner of record of the mineral interest satisfies either one of the following

requirements within sixty days after first publication of the notice provided for in section

38-18.1-06:

a. Files with the county recorder a statement of claim as required in section

38-18.1-04; or

b. Files with the county recorder documentation that at least one of the activities

under subsection 1 of section 38-18.1-03 took place during the twenty-year

period immediately preceding the first publication of notice.

2. A person other than the owner of record of the mineral interest files with the county

recorder within sixty days after first publication of the notice provided for in section

38-18.1-06 an affidavit under oath or a declaration under oath which includes an

explanation of the factual and legal basis for the person's assertion of title to the

mineral interest. This explanation must be accompanied by documentation supporting

the assertion or an explanation why documentation is unavailable.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-25-08 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-25 / Section 38-25-08
38-25-08. Amalgamating property interests
Status: in_force

38-25-08. Amalgamating property interests

If a storage operator does not obtain the consent of all persons owning a pore space and of

mineral interest owners when required by this chapter, the commission may require the interest

owned by the nonconsenting owners be included in an approved storage facility and subject to

geologic storage if the minimum percentage of consent is obtained as specified in this chapter.

Any pore space owner who does not have responsibility over the construction, management,

supervision, or control of the storage facility operations is not liable for money damages for

personal or other property damages proximately caused by the operations.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-01-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-01 / Section 38-01-05
38-01-05. Penalty for employing minors under eighteen years of age in mining industry
Status: repealed

38-01-05. Penalty for employing minors under eighteen years of age in mining

industry.

Repealed by S.L. 1971, ch. 347, § 20.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-01.4 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-01.4
38-09-01.4. Release of reservations in case of prior sale
Status: repealed

38-09-01.4. Release of reservations in case of prior sale

Repealed by omission from this code.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-22 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-22
38-14.1-22. Permit renewal
Status: in_force

38-14.1-22. Permit renewal

1. Any valid permit issued pursuant to this chapter shall carry with it the right of

successive renewal upon expiration with respect to areas within the boundaries of the

existing permit. The holders of the permit may apply for renewal and such renewal

must be issued within a reasonable time as set forth in regulations promulgated by the

commission subsequent to fulfillment of the public notice requirements of subsection 1

of section 38-14.1-18 unless it is established that and written findings are made by the

commission that:

a. The terms and conditions of the existing permit are not being satisfactorily met;

and

b. The present surface coal mining and reclamation operation is not in compliance

with the provisions of this chapter; or

c. The renewal requested substantially jeopardizes the operator's continuing

responsibility on existing permit areas; and

d. The permittee has not provided evidence that the performance bond in effect for

said operation will continue in full force and effect for any renewal requested in

such application as well as any additional bond the commission might require

pursuant to section 38-14.1-16; or

e. Any additional revised or updated information required by the commission has not

been provided.

2. On application for renewal, the burden is on the opponents of renewal.

3. Any permit renewal must be for a term not to exceed the period of the original permit

established by this chapter. Application for permit renewal must be made at least one

hundred eighty days prior to the expiration of the valid permit.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-18.1-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-18.1 / Section 38-18.1-01
38-18.1-01. Mineral interest defined
Status: in_force

38-18.1-01. Mineral interest defined

In this chapter, unless context or subject matter otherwise requires, "mineral interest"

includes any interest in oil, gas, coal, clay, gravel, uranium, and all other minerals of any kind

and nature, whether created by grant, assignment, reservation, or otherwise owned by a person

other than the owner of the surface estate.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.2-10 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.2 / Section 38-14.2-10
38-14.2-10. Land acquisition
Status: in_force

38-14.2-10. Land acquisition

The commission may acquire any land, by purchase, donation, or condemnation, pursuant

to the procedures of chapter 32-15, and other laws governing eminent domain, which is

adversely affected by past coal mining or noncoal mining practices if the commission

determines in accordance with the rules of practice and procedure established by the

commission that acquisition of such land is necessary for successful reclamation and that:

1. The acquired land, after restoration, reclamation, abatement, control, or prevention of

the adverse effects of past coal mining or noncoal mining practices, will serve

recreation, historic, conservation, and reclamation purposes or provide open space

benefits; and

2. Permanent facilities such as a mine drainage treatment plant or a relocated stream

channel will be constructed on the land for the restoration, reclamation, abatement,

control, or prevention of the adverse effects of past coal mining or noncoal mining

practices; or

3. Acquisition of coal refuse disposal sites and all coal refuse thereon will serve the

purposes of this chapter or that public ownership is desirable to meet emergency

situations and prevent recurrences of the adverse effects of past coal mining or

noncoal mining practices.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-10 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-10
38-14.1-10. Necessity of permit - Exception
Status: in_force

38-14.1-10. Necessity of permit - Exception

It is unlawful for any operator to engage in surface coal mining operations without first

obtaining from the commission a permit to do so. All existing surface coal mining operations

must on July 1, 1979, comply with this chapter and all rules adopted under the chapter, except

that lands from which the coal has been removed before July 1, 1979, are governed by the

reclamation standards that were in effect at the time of coal removal from the lands. A person or

operator shall engage in the inventorying and evaluation of cultural resources upon compliance

with section 55-03-01 and may implement a cultural resource mitigation plan approved by the

director of the state historical society before applying for or receiving an approved surface coal

mining and reclamation permit.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-01
38-14.1-01. Declaration of findings and intent
Status: in_force

38-14.1-01. Declaration of findings and intent

The legislative assembly finds and declares that:

1. Many surface coal mining operations may result in disturbances of surface areas that

adversely affect the public welfare by diminishing the utility of land for commercial,

industrial, residential, cultural, educational, scientific, recreational, agricultural, and

forestry purposes, by causing erosion, by polluting the water, by destroying fish and

wildlife habitats, by impairing natural beauty, by damaging the property of citizens, by

creating hazards dangerous to life and property, by degrading the quality of life in local

communities, and by counteracting governmental programs and efforts to conserve

soil, water, other natural resources, and cultural resources.

2. The expansion of coal mining to meet the nation's energy needs makes even more

urgent the establishment of appropriate standards to minimize damage to the

environment and to productivity of the soil and to protect the health and safety of the

public.

3. Surface mining and reclamation technology as now developed requires effective and

reasonable regulation of surface coal mining operations in accordance with the

requirements of this chapter to minimize so far as practicable the adverse social,

economic, and environmental effects of such mining operations.

4. Surface coal mining operations contribute to the economic well-being, security, and

general welfare of the state and should be conducted in an environmentally sound

manner.

5. Surface coal mining and reclamation operations should be so conducted as to aid in

maintaining and improving the tax base, to provide for the conservation, development,

management, and appropriate use of all the natural resources of affected areas for

compatible multiple purposes, and to ensure the restoration of affected lands

designated for agricultural purposes to the level of productivity equal to or greater than

that which existed in the permit area prior to mining.

6. Warrantless inspections are necessary in this state to ensure effective enforcement of

surface coal mining and reclamation operation requirements.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-01
38-22-01. Policy
Status: in_force

38-22-01. Policy

It is in the public interest to promote the geologic storage of carbon dioxide. Doing so will

benefit the state and the global environment by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Doing so

will help ensure the viability of the state's coal and power industries, to the economic benefit of

North Dakota and its citizens. Further, geologic storage of carbon dioxide, a potentially valuable

commodity, may allow for its ready availability if needed for commercial, industrial, or other

uses, including enhanced recovery of oil, gas, and other minerals. Geologic storage, however,

to be practical and effective requires cooperative use of surface and subsurface property

interests and the collaboration of property owners. Obtaining consent from all owners may not

be feasible, requiring procedures that promote, in a manner fair to all interests, cooperative

management, thereby ensuring the maximum use of natural resources.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-20 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-20
38-22-20. Cooperative agreements and contracts
Status: in_force

38-22-20. Cooperative agreements and contracts

1. The commission may enter into agreements with other governments, government

entities, and state agencies for the purpose of carrying out this chapter's objectives.

2. The commission may enter into contracts with private persons to assist it in carrying

out this chapter's objectives. Unless the circumstances require otherwise, the

commission shall, in entering such contracts, follow the process set out in section
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.2-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.2 / Section 38-14.2-04
38-14.2-04. State abandoned mine reclamation fund
Status: in_force

38-14.2-04. State abandoned mine reclamation fund

There is hereby created the state abandoned mine reclamation fund.

1. Revenue to the fund must include:

a. Moneys applied for and received by the commission pursuant to title IV of Public

Law 95-87 [91 Stat. 456; 30 U.S.C. 1231 et seq.], for the purposes of this chapter.

b. Moneys donated to the commission by persons, corporations, limited liability

companies, associations, and foundations for the purposes of this chapter.

c. Moneys collected by the commission from charges for uses of lands acquired or

reclaimed with moneys from the fund, after expenditures for maintenance have

been deducted.

d. Moneys recovered by the commission through satisfaction of liens filed against

privately owned lands reclaimed with moneys from the fund.

e. Moneys recovered by the commission from the sale of lands acquired with

moneys from the fund.

f. Such other moneys as may be deposited in the fund for use in carrying out the

purposes of the abandoned mine reclamation program.

2. Moneys in the fund may be used for the following purposes:

a. Reclamation and restoration of land and water resources as defined by section

38-14.2-06 and adversely affected by past mining, including but not limited to:

(1) Reclamation and restoration of abandoned surface mined areas, abandoned

coal processing areas, and abandoned coal refuse disposal areas.

(2) Reclamation of lands affected by underground mine subsidence.

(3) Planting of land adversely affected by past coal mining or noncoal mining to

prevent erosion and sedimentation.

(4) Prevention, abatement, treatment, and control of water pollution created by

coal mine or noncoal mine drainage including restoration of streambeds,

and construction and operation of water treatment plants.

(5) Prevention, abatement, and control of burning coal refuse disposal areas

and burning coal in situ.

(6) Prevention, abatement, and control of coal mine subsidence.

b. Acquisition or lease of land as provided for in this chapter.

c. All other necessary expenses to accomplish the purposes of this chapter,

including administrative expenses and costs incurred in the development of the

abandoned mine reclamation plan and the abandoned mine reclamation program.

3. There is created a special fund in the state treasury called the state abandoned mine

reclamation fund set-aside trust account. Revenue to the set-aside trust account must

be ten percent of the amount granted by the secretary of the interior under title IV of

Public Law 95-87 for amounts awarded before December 20, 2006. This account must

be interest bearing and all interest must be credited to the set-aside trust account. No

funds from this account may be expended prior to September 30, 2004. After

September 30, 2004, the funds may be expended as provided in this subsection but

no funds may be used to reclaim noncoal projects. The legislative assembly shall

authorize expenditure by appropriation from the account as necessary to defray the

administrative expenses of the program. The remaining funds in the account may only

be used in accordance with subdivisions a, b, and c, of subsection 1 of section

38-14.2-07 but no funds may be used on noncoal projects. The liability of the state to

fulfill the requirements of this subsection is limited to the amount of funds available in

the account established in this subsection. The state has no obligations under this

subsection except to the extent of federal funds deposited in the state abandoned

mine reclamation fund set-aside trust account and the interest thereon to operate the

program.

4. There is created a special fund in the state treasury called the state abandoned mine

reclamation safeguarding treatment for the restoration of ecosystems from abandoned

mines fund set-aside trust account. Revenue to the set-aside trust account must be no

more than thirty percent of the annual amount granted by the secretary of interior

under title IV of Public Law No. 95-87 as provided by Public Law No. 117-58 and

Public Law No. 117-328. This account must be interest bearing and all interest must be

credited to the safeguarding treatment for the restoration of ecosystems from

abandoned mines fund set-aside trust account. The funds from this account may be

expended for:

a. The abatement of the causes and treatment of the effects of acid mine drainage

resulting from coal mining practices, including costs of building, operating,

maintaining, and rehabilitating acid mine drainage treatment systems;

b. The prevention, abatement, and control of subsidence; or

c. The prevention abatement, and control of coal mine fires.

5. The legislative assembly shall authorize expenditure by appropriation from the account

under subsection 4 as necessary to defray the administrative expenses of the

program.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-12 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-12
38-09-12. County may not engage in mining or oil business
Status: in_force

38-09-12. County may not engage in mining or oil business

The provisions of section 38-09-11 authorize the board of county commissioners to include

in the lease and to carry out any provision which any individual owner could include or carry out

except that the board of county commissioners may not:

1. Enter into any of the lines of business mentioned in such section.

2. Expend or bind the county to the expenditure, by contract or otherwise, of any moneys

or property.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08.1-08 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08.1 / Section 38-08.1-08
38-08.1-08. Commission to adopt rules
Status: in_force

38-08.1-08. Commission to adopt rules

The commission may adopt and enforce rules to implement this chapter.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-23-06 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-23 / Section 38-23-06
38-23-06. Penalty - Injunction - Applicable provisions
Status: in_force

38-23-06. Penalty - Injunction - Applicable provisions

Sections 38-08-16 and 38-08-17 are applicable to the provisions of this chapter and to the

rules and orders of the commission adopted or issued under this chapter.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-18 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-18
38-09-18. Terms of lease - Unit operation
Status: in_force

38-09-18. Terms of lease - Unit operation

All leases for the purposes as hereinbefore provided shall be made by the state of North

Dakota and all agencies and departments and political subdivisions thereof for not less than

twenty-five cents per acre [.40 hectare] per year for deferred drilling and shall be made with a

royalty reservation of not less than one-eighth of all oil and gas produced from said land as long

as oil and gas may be produced from said land. The term one-eighth as used herein must be

construed to mean one-eighth of such interest as may be owned by the lessor. All leases

hereunder must be made for a period of not less than five years and must continue in effect

under the terms thereof as long as oil or gas may be produced thereon in commercial quantities.

The state of North Dakota and all agencies, departments, and political subdivisions thereof, are

specifically authorized to enter into agreements for the consolidation of land covered by leases

on lands under the jurisdiction of such bodies with other adjoining or neighboring lands for the

purpose of joint development and operation of the entire consolidated premises as a unit. In

such a case, such agreement must provide that the lessor shall share in the royalty on oil and

gas produced from a consolidated tract in the proportion that the area of the land covered by

such lease bears to the total area of such consolidated tract, or upon such other royalty sharing

basis as may appear equitable to the governing body controlling or administering such lands;

and operations or production on such consolidated tract shall have the same effect as

operations or production under the terms of each such lease included therein.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-09.2 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-09.2
38-08-09.2. Power and authority of commission
Status: in_force

38-08-09.2. Power and authority of commission

The commission is hereby vested with continuing jurisdiction, power, and authority, including

the right to describe and set forth in its orders all those things pertaining to the plan of unitization

which are fair, reasonable, and equitable and which are necessary or proper to protect,

safeguard, and adjust the respective rights and obligations of the several persons affected, and

it is its duty to make and enforce such orders and do such things as may be necessary or

proper to carry out and effectuate the purposes of sections 38-08-09.1 through 38-08-09.16.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-34 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-34
38-14.1-34. Administrative review of regulations
Status: in_force

38-14.1-34. Administrative review of regulations

Any person aggrieved or adversely affected by any regulation promulgated by the

commission under this chapter may petition the commission for a hearing to reconsider or

amend such regulation. The commission shall grant a public hearing pursuant to procedures

established in chapter 28-32.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08.1-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08.1 / Section 38-08.1-04
38-08.1-04. Application for permit to engage in geophysical exploration
Status: in_force

38-08.1-04. Application for permit to engage in geophysical exploration

Any person desiring to engage in geophysical exploration before actually engaging in the

exploration shall file an application for a permit to engage in geophysical exploration with the

commission. The application for a permit for geophysical exploration must include the following:

1. The name, address, and telephone number of the person intending to engage in

geophysical exploration or plugging operations and the name and telephone number

of any local representative who may be contacted by the commission concerning

geophysical exploration activities.

2. The name, address, and telephone number of any subcontractors, including drilling

and plugging subcontractors, to be employed by the person intending to conduct

geophysical exploration or plugging operations.

3. The name and address of the resident agent for service of process of the person

intending to engage in geophysical exploration.

4. The date upon which geophysical exploration is to begin.

5. The approximate number and depth of any drill holes and the specific location of any

drill holes or a description of the property on which the geophysical exploration is to be

conducted described by township, range, section, and quarter section.

6. A fee of up to one hundred dollars.

The person making application for a geophysical exploration permit shall file an amended

application whenever there is any new information or a change in the information contained in

the application on file with the commission.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-04.7 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-04.7
38-08-04.7. Right of entry
Status: in_force

38-08-04.7. Right of entry

The commission, its agents, employees, or contractors shall have the right to enter any land

for the purpose of plugging or replugging a well or the restoration of a well site as provided in

section 38-08-04.4.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-02-12 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-02 / Section 38-02-12
38-02-12. Amount of work to be done annually to hold possession of claim
Status: in_force

38-02-12. Amount of work to be done annually to hold possession of claim

The amount of work to be done or the improvements to be made during each year to hold

possession of a mining claim must be the same as that prescribed by the applicable laws of the

United States. The period within which the work required to be done annually on any

unpatented claim so located commences on the first day of January succeeding the date of the

location of such claim.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-05
38-14.1-05. Areas unsuitable for all or certain surface coal mining operations
Status: in_force

38-14.1-05. Areas unsuitable for all or certain surface coal mining operations

1. Upon petition pursuant to section 38-14.1-06, the commission shall designate an area

as unsuitable for all or certain types of surface coal mining operations if the

commission determines, after hearings conducted in accordance with this chapter, that

reclamation pursuant to the requirements of this chapter is not technologically and

economically feasible.

2. Upon petition pursuant to section 38-14.1-06, and after hearings conducted in

accordance with this chapter, the commission may designate an area as unsuitable for

certain types of surface coal mining operations if such operations will:

a. Be incompatible with existing state or local land use plans or programs;

b. Affect fragile or historic lands in which such operations could result in significant

damage to important historic, cultural, scientific, and aesthetic values and natural

systems;

c. Affect renewable resource lands in which such operations could result in a

substantial loss or reduction of productivity of long-range water supply or food or

fiber products, and such lands include aquifers and aquifer recharge areas; or

d. Affect natural hazard lands in which such operations could substantially endanger

life and property, and such lands include areas subject to frequent flooding and

areas of unstable geology.

3. Prior to designating any land area as unsuitable for surface coal mining operations, the

commission shall prepare a detailed statement on:

a. The potential coal or commercial leonardite resources of the area;

b. The demand for coal or commercial leonardite resources; and

c. The impact of such designation on the environment, the economy, and the supply

of coal or commercial leonardite.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-07 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-07
38-22-07. Permit consultation
Status: in_force

38-22-07. Permit consultation

Before issuing a permit, the commission shall consult the department of environmental

quality.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.1-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.1 / Section 38-11.1-03
38-11.1-03. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-11.1-03. Definitions

In this chapter, unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires:

1. "Agricultural production" means the production of any growing grass or crop attached

to the surface of the land, whether or not the grass or crop is to be sold commercially,

and the production of any farm animals, including farmed elk, whether or not the

animals are to be sold commercially.

2. "Drilling operations" means the drilling of an oil and gas well and the production and

completion operations ensuing from the drilling which require entry upon the surface

estate and which were commenced after June 30, 1979, and oil and gas geophysical

and seismograph exploration activities commenced after June 30, 1983.

3. "Land" means the solid material of earth, regardless of ingredients, but excludes pore

space.

4. "Mineral developer" means the person who acquires the mineral estate or lease for the

purpose of extracting or using the minerals for nonagricultural purposes.

5. "Mineral estate" means an estate in or ownership of all or part of the minerals

underlying a specified tract of land.

6. "Minerals" means oil and gas.

7. "Pore space" means a cavity or void, naturally or artificially created, in a subsurface

sedimentary stratum.

8. "Surface estate" means an estate in or ownership of the surface of a particular tract of

land.

9. "Surface owner" means any person who holds record title to the surface estate on

which a drilling operation occurs or is conducted.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-24-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-24 / Section 38-24-05
38-24-05. Action to restrain violation or threatened violation
Status: in_force

38-24-05. Action to restrain violation or threatened violation

The commission may bring action against a person violating or threatening to violate a

provision of this chapter, or a rule, regulation, or order of the commission. The action must

commence in the district court of the county where the violation occurred or is threatened.

Without the filing of a bond or other undertaking by the commission, the court may issue an

injunction, including a temporary restraining order, a preliminary injunction, or a temporary,

preliminary, or final order restraining the person from continuing the violation or from carrying

out the threat of violation.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.2-07 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.2 / Section 38-11.2-07
38-11.2-07. Protection of surface and ground water - Other responsibilities of mineral developer
Status: in_force

38-11.2-07. Protection of surface and ground water - Other responsibilities of mineral

developer.

1. The mineral developer shall conduct or have conducted an inventory of water wells

located within one-half mile [804.67 meters] of where subsurface mineral exploration

activities are conducted, if such exploration activities appear reasonably likely to

encounter ground water, or within one mile [1.61 kilometers] of a subsurface mineral

production site.

2. The mineral developer shall conduct or have conducted a certified water quality and

quantity test within one year preceding the commencement of subsurface mineral

production operations on each water well or water supply located on the involved real

property and as identified by the surface owner of that real property. Results of water

quality tests conducted under this subsection must be reported in a prescribed format

to the department of environmental quality, which shall maintain a database of the

results. The water quality test must be collected as prescribed by the department of

environmental quality and analyzed by a state-certified laboratory.

3. If the domestic, livestock, or irrigation water supply of any person who owns an interest

in real property within one-half mile [804.67 meters] of where subsurface mineral

exploration activities are or have been conducted or within one mile [1.61 kilometers]

of a subsurface mineral production site has been disrupted, or diminished in quality or

quantity by the drilling operations, the person who owns an interest in real property is

entitled to recover the cost of making such repairs, alterations, or construction that will

ensure the delivery to the surface owner of that quality and quantity of water available

to the surface owner prior to the commencement of drilling operations.

4. Any person who owns an interest in real property who obtains all or a part of that

person's water supply for domestic, agricultural, industrial, or other beneficial use has

a claim for relief against a mineral developer to recover damages for disruption or

diminution in quality or quantity of that person's water supply proximately caused from

drilling operations conducted by the mineral developer.

5. Prima facie evidence of injury under this section may be established by a showing that

the mineral developer's drilling operations penetrated or disrupted an aquifer in such a

manner as to cause a diminution in water quality or quantity within the distance limits

imposed by this section, or by showing the mineral developer did not conduct or have

conducted the testing required under subsection 2.

6. If a person refuses to consent to the testing of a water well or water supply on land

owned by the person, as required under subsection 2, the person forfeits any claim for

relief under subsection 3 or 4.

7. An action brought under this section when not otherwise specifically provided by law

must be brought within six years of the time the action has accrued. For purposes of

this section, the claim for relief is deemed to have accrued at the time it is discovered

or might have been discovered in the exercise of reasonable diligence.

8. A tract of land is not bound to receive water contaminated by drilling operations on

another tract of land and the owner of a tract has a claim for relief against a mineral

developer to recover the damages proximately resulting from natural drainage of

waters contaminated by drilling operations.

9. The mineral developer is also responsible for all damages to person or property

resulting from the lack of ordinary care by the mineral developer or resulting from a

nuisance caused by drilling operations.

10. This section does not create a cause of action if an appropriator of water can

reasonably acquire the water under the changed conditions and if the changed

conditions are a result of the legal appropriation of water by the mineral developer.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-17-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-17 / Section 38-17-01
38-17-01. Short title
Status: in_force

38-17-01. Short title

This chapter must be known as the North Dakota Coal Leasing Practices Act.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-21-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-21 / Section 38-21-01
38-21-01. Geophysical, geothermal, subsurface minerals, and coal exploration fund
Status: in_force

38-21-01. Geophysical, geothermal, subsurface minerals, and coal exploration fund

There is created a geophysical, geothermal, subsurface minerals, and coal exploration fund.

The following must be deposited into the fund:

1. Fees collected under sections 38-08.1-04, 38-12-03, 38-12.1-05, and 38-19-04.

2. Money received from the forfeiture of bonds or other security required by section

38-08.1-03.1, 38-12-02, 38-12.1-04, or 38-19-03.

3. Money received by the industrial commission from any federal or state agency, or any

other source, to satisfy the purposes for which the fund is established.

4. Money received for penalties imposed under section 38-08.1-07, 38-12-05,

38-12.1-08, or 38-19-07.

5. Money recovered from any person to recoup costs and expenses incurred by the

industrial commission to satisfy any duty imposed by chapter 38-08.1, 38-12, 38-12.1,

or 38-19.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-11 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-11
38-14.1-11. Reapplication for permit under approved state program
Status: in_force

38-14.1-11. Reapplication for permit under approved state program

No later than two months following approval of the state program in accordance with the

requirements of section 503 of the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977

[Pub. L. 95-87; 91 Stat. 470; 30 U.S.C. 1253], regardless of litigation contesting that approval,

all permittees who expect to continue to conduct surface coal mining operations after the

expiration of eight months from the approval of such state program shall file an application with

the commission for a new permit in accordance with the requirements of section 38-14.1-13.

Such application must cover those lands to be surface mined after the expiration of eight

months from the approval of the state program. The commission shall process such applications

and grant or deny a permit within eight months after the date of approval of the state program.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-12-06 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-12 / Section 38-12-06
38-12-06. Declaration of policy for critical minerals and rare earth minerals (Retroactive application - See note)
Status: in_force

38-12-06. Declaration of policy for critical minerals and rare earth minerals

(Retroactive application - See note)

1. It is in the public interest of the state of North Dakota, its citizens, and the United

States to encourage, accelerate, and promote the development, production, and

utilization of critical minerals and rare earth minerals in a manner that prevents waste,

allows a greater ultimate recovery of these natural resources, and protects the rights of

owners so the greatest possible economic recovery of these resources may be

obtained in this state and landowners, producers, and the general public may enjoy

the greatest possible good from these resources.

2. The legislative assembly acknowledges the public interest to foster, encourage, and

promote the development, production, and utilization of all natural resources of coal,

and the public interest is served by the preservation of existing coal conversion

facilities, which significantly contribute to the state economy and general public.

3. Development of critical minerals and rare earth minerals also may lead to significant

economic benefits for owners, new jobs in mining, processing, and related industries,

and contributions to the state economy. Many critical minerals and rare earth minerals

are broadly and irregularly disseminated and chemically bound, embedded,

commingled, included, or contained within coal. Certain owners are unable to develop

critical minerals and rare earth minerals because the minerals are contained within the

coal seam or coal deposit, are covered by an existing mining permit, and are subject to

the prior legal rights of the coal producer.

4. As reflected in federal policy, the legislative assembly recognizes critical minerals and

rare earth minerals are fundamental to the economy, competitiveness, and security of

the United States. The United States relies on foreign nations to supply these critical

minerals and rare earth minerals to develop and manufacture medical devices,

information technology, and equipment and technology for national defense, energy

infrastructure, and other critical items. Domestic development and production of critical

minerals and rare earth minerals is inadequate to meet the nation's needs. The United

States must have a reliable, diversified, and affordable supply to drive medical

manufacturing, transportation, agriculture, and defense industries and to sustain

military preparedness, national security, and economic security.

5. This chapter provides potential for coal owners and critical mineral and rare earth

mineral owners to obtain added value from the development of critical minerals and

rare earth minerals extracted from coal. These critical minerals and rare earth minerals

are chemically bound, embedded, commingled, included, or contained within a coal

seam or coal deposit and cannot otherwise be produced on their own without infringing

on the working interests of the coal estate, without first mining the host mineral coal, or

in an economic manner.

6. To the maximum extent practicable, the critical mineral and rare earth mineral needs of

the United States should be satisfied by the vital natural resources responsibly

produced in the United States. The legislative assembly finds it necessary to declare

that the mining of coal in this state and a lease of coal in this state, whenever granted,

must include the right to all critical minerals and rare earth minerals chemically bound,

embedded, commingled, included, or contained within the coal unless specifically

excluded by the lease. A party is not obligated to mine, remove, or sell critical minerals

or rare earth minerals from coal. The legislative assembly finds that because critical

minerals and rare earth minerals are chemically bound, embedded, commingled,

included, or contained within a coal seam or coal deposit, and are not uniformly

disseminated, production must be commingled and a royalty rate must be applied only

if the minerals are extracted and sold. It is necessary to fulfill the public policy of this

state by clarifying law related to this policy and the development of critical minerals

and rare earth minerals.

7. Critical minerals and rare earth minerals occurring within or associated with coal-

bearing formations, coal seams, or coal combustion residuals are part of the coal

estate for purposes of ownership, leasing, taxation, and development unless expressly

severed by recorded conveyance. To help facilitate the extraction and processing of

critical minerals and rare earth minerals, the parties may amend an existing lease or

agree to new terms for any lease if agreed to by both parties.

8. Coal ash and any coal gasification product, including all minerals, substances,

compounds, byproducts, or elements contained therein which result from the

combustion or gasification of coal in a coal conversion facility are the property of the

owner or operator of the coal conversion facility. The owner or operator of a coal

conversion facility may not be held liable for waste, conversion, destruction, or

damages to any extent arising from the purchase, combustion, gasification, or sale of

any minerals, substances, compounds, byproducts, or elements contained within the

coal, coal ash, or products of coal.

9. For purposes of this section, "coal ash" includes fly ash, bottom ash, and boiler slag.

10. An operator shall pay any applicable mineral owner, according to each mineral owner's

respective undivided ownership of coal mined within the applicable permit area during

a calendar year, a royalty of no less than two and one-half percent of the gross

proceeds from all critical minerals and rare earth minerals mined, removed, and sold

during the extraction process. The royalty must be paid at least annually by March

thirty-first of the following year. For purposes of this section, "gross proceeds" means

the gross receipts received by an operator from any sale of critical minerals or rare

earth minerals which constitutes an arms-length transaction.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-23-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-23 / Section 38-23-04
38-23-04. Permit required
Status: in_force

38-23-04. Permit required

1. A person may not commence any actions for testing, exploring, excavating, drilling,

boring, or operating a high-level radioactive waste facility without obtaining a permit

from the commission.

2. A notice of opportunity for a position paper from the commissioners of the county must

be attached to the permit application. A county position paper must be made public at

the time the permit application is submitted.

3. A permit may be issued only after notice and hearing and payment of a fee. Notice

must be provided in accordance with Rule 3 of the North Dakota Rules of Civil

Procedure.

4. An applicant for a permit shall provide notice to a surface owner and any resident of a

permanently occupied dwelling located within two miles [3.22 kilometers] of the

proposed location, the county commissioners and mayor of any municipality within

thirty miles [48.28 kilometers], and publish a notice in the official county newspaper

and any county newspaper within thirty miles [48.28 kilometers] of the proposed

location.

5. The commission shall give written notice of an application for exploration or facility

permit to the county in which exploration is sought or a facility is proposed at least

sixty days before the hearing. The commission shall adopt rules establishing deadlines

for the issuance of permits.

6. A permit application for a high-level radioactive waste facility must include:

a. A description of the facility to be permitted.

b. A detailed description of the material to be stored or disposed.

c. A detailed description of the mechanical construction and operating procedures of

the facility.

d. A justification for the need for the facility to be permitted, including economic

impact.

e. A detailed discussion and description of the subsurface geology and hydrology of

the area to be affected by the construction and operation of the facility to be

permitted.

f. A detailed discussion and description of a monitoring system to be used to

ascertain the integrity of the facility and to ensure compliance with this chapter.

g. A detailed description and discussion of a reclamation program for the restoration

of the surface as nearly as possible to its original condition and productivity upon

expiration of the permit or termination of any activities regulated by this chapter.

h. Any other information required by the commission.

7. Following a hearing, the commission may deny an application if the commission

determines the testing, exploration, excavating, drilling, or operation poses a threat to

human health or the environment or because of concerns related to economic impacts.

A person denied a permit may appeal the denial in accordance with chapter 28-32.

8. The commission may include conditions in a permit which the commission deems

necessary to ensure protection of human health and the environment or to address

economic impacts.

9. A permitholder shall furnish and maintain a reasonable bond with good and sufficient

surety, conditioned upon the full compliance with the permit, this chapter, and rules

adopted by the commission.

10. The commission shall establish the term of a permit, but the term of a permit may not

exceed five years. An application for a permit renewal must be made at least one

hundred twenty days before the expiration of the valid permit and is subject to all the

procedures and requirements of this section.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.3-06 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.3 / Section 38-14.3-06
38-14.3-06. Premiums - Amount and to whom paid
Status: in_force

38-14.3-06. Premiums - Amount and to whom paid

The premium for a bond under this chapter must be set by the industrial commission.

Premiums must be paid in advance to the industrial commission and deposited in the fund.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-21 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-21
38-22-21. Trusts, monopolies, restraint of trade
Status: in_force

38-22-21. Trusts, monopolies, restraint of trade

Cooperative operation of a storage facility permitted by the commission does not violate

North Dakota statutes relating to trusts, monopolies, or restraint of trade.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.1-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.1 / Section 38-11.1-05
38-11.1-05. Notice of drilling operations
Status: repealed

38-11.1-05. Notice of drilling operations

Repealed by S.L. 2011, ch. 265, § 7.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-23-02 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-23 / Section 38-23-02
38-23-02. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-23-02. Definitions

As used in this chapter:

1. "Commission" means the industrial commission.

2. "High-level radioactive waste" means:

a. Highly radioactive material resulting from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel,

and other highly radioactive material, containing fission products in sufficient

concentrations to require permanent isolation, including liquid waste produced

directly in reprocessing and any solid material derived from the liquid waste; or

b. Highly radioactive material that the commission, consistent with existing law and

rules, determines requires permanent isolation.

3. "High-level radioactive waste disposal" means the emplacement in a repository of

high-level radioactive waste with no foreseeable intent of recovery.

4. "High-level radioactive waste facility" means a premises, building, structure, fixture, or

improvements used or operated for the storage or disposal of high-level radioactive

waste.

5. "High-level radioactive waste storage" means the retention of high-level radioactive

waste with the intent to recover the waste for subsequent use, processing, or disposal.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.3-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.3 / Section 38-14.3-05
38-14.3-05. Commission may employ staff
Status: in_force

38-14.3-05. Commission may employ staff

The industrial commission may employ staff and enter into public and private contracts as

may be necessary to operate the fund. The salaries of employees and other expenditures for

the operation of the fund must be paid out of the fund.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-38 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-38
38-14.1-38. Conflict of interest
Status: in_force

38-14.1-38. Conflict of interest

No employee of the commission performing any function or duty under this chapter may

have a direct or indirect financial interest in any underground or surface coal mining operation.

Whoever willfully violates this section is, upon conviction, subject to the penalty provided in

subsection 5 of section 38-14.1-32. The commission shall promulgate regulations to establish

methods by which the provisions of this section will be monitored and enforced by the

commission, including appropriate provisions for the filing by such employees and the review of

statements and supplements thereto concerning any financial interests which may be affected

by this section.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-24-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-24 / Section 38-24-04
38-24-04. Denial of permit - Review
Status: in_force

38-24-04. Denial of permit - Review

1. Following a hearing, the commission may deny an application if the commission

determines the facility or activity poses a threat to ground or surface waters or the

environment. A person denied a permit may appeal the denial in accordance with

2. All fees collected pursuant to this chapter, must be deposited in the general fund in the

state treasury.

3. A permit required by this chapter is in addition to all other permits required by law.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-24-06 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-24 / Section 38-24-06
38-24-06. Penalties
Status: in_force

38-24-06. Penalties

1. A person that violates this chapter, or a rule, regulation, or order of the commission

adopted under this chapter is subject to a civil penalty of not more than twelve

thousand five hundred dollars for each violation and for each day the violation

occurred.

2. It is a class C felony for a person, for the purpose of evading this chapter, or a rule,

regulation, or order of the commission to:

a. Make or cause a false entry or statement in a report required by this chapter or by

a rule, regulation, or order issued or adopted by the commission;

b. Make or cause a false entry in a record, account, or memorandum required by

this chapter, or by any rule, regulation, or order of the commission;

c. Omit, or cause to be omitted, from a record, account, or memorandum, full, true,

and correct entries as required by this chapter or by any rule, regulation, or order

of the commission; or

d. Remove from this state or destroy, mutilate, alter, or falsify a record, account, or

memorandum.

3. The civil penalties provided in subsection 1 are recoverable by civil action filed by the

attorney general on behalf of the commission. The civil action must commence in the

district court of the county in which:

a. The defendant resides;

b. Any defendant resides, if there is more than one defendant; or

c. The violation occurred.

4. The payment of penalties does not relieve a person on whom the penalty is imposed

from liability to any other person for damages arising out of the violation.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-07 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-07
38-08-07. Commission shall set spacing units
Status: in_force

38-08-07. Commission shall set spacing units

The commission shall set spacing units as follows:

1. When necessary to prevent waste, to avoid the drilling of unnecessary wells, or to

protect correlative rights, the commission shall establish spacing units for a pool.

Spacing units when established must be of uniform size and shape for the entire pool,

except that when found to be necessary for any of the purposes above mentioned, the

commission is authorized to divide any pool into zones and establish spacing units for

each zone, which units may differ in size and shape from those established in any

other zone.

2. The size and shape of spacing units are to be such as will result in the efficient and

economical development of the pool as a whole.

3. An order establishing spacing units for a pool must specify the size and shape of each

unit and the location of the permitted well thereon in accordance with a reasonably

uniform spacing plan. Upon application, if the commission finds that a well drilled at

the prescribed location would not produce in paying quantities, that surface conditions

would substantially add to the burden or hazard of drilling such well, or that the drilling

of such well at a location other than the prescribed location is otherwise necessary

either to protect correlative rights, to prevent waste, or to effect greater ultimate

recovery of oil and gas, the commission is authorized to enter an order permitting the

well to be drilled at a location other than that prescribed by such spacing order;

however, the commission shall include in the order suitable provisions to prevent the

production from the spacing unit of more than its just and equitable share of the oil and

gas in the pool.

4. An order establishing units for a pool must cover all lands determined or believed to be

underlaid by such pool, and may be modified by the commission from time to time to

include additional areas determined to be underlaid by such pool. When found

necessary for the prevention of waste, or to avoid the drilling of unnecessary wells, or

to protect correlative rights, an order establishing spacing units in a pool may be

modified by the commission to increase or decrease the size of spacing units in the

pool or any zone thereof, or to permit the drilling of additional wells on a reasonably

uniform plan in the pool, or any zone thereof, or an additional well on any spacing unit

thereof.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11 / Section 38-11-01
38-11-01. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-11-01. Definitions

In this chapter, unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires:

1. "Agency" means and includes any department, agency, instrumentality, or political

subdivision of the state of North Dakota.

2. "Mineral" means and includes any valuable inert or lifeless substance formed or

deposited in its present position through natural agencies, and which is found within

the earth or beneath the soil, except that it does not mean oil or gas, topsoil, or surface

rocks.

3. "State" means and includes the state of North Dakota, its departments, agencies,

instrumentalities, and political subdivisions.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-10 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-10
38-22-10. Amalgamating property interests
Status: in_force

38-22-10. Amalgamating property interests

If a storage operator does not obtain the consent of all persons who own the storage

reservoir's pore space, the commission may require that the pore space owned by

nonconsenting owners be included in a storage facility and subject to geologic storage.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-19 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-19
38-08-19. Common purchasers - Discrimination in purchasing prohibited
Status: in_force

38-08-19. Common purchasers - Discrimination in purchasing prohibited

1. Every person, association of persons, corporation, or limited liability company now

engaged or hereafter engaging in the business of purchasing crude petroleum in this

state shall be a common purchaser thereof.

2. Every common purchaser of crude petroleum shall, without discrimination in favor of

one producer or royalty owner as against another in the same marketing district as

determined by the commission, purchase all oil tendered to it at the wellhead or at its

receiving terminal, which has been lawfully produced, provided that no common

purchaser may be required to purchase crude petroleum of inferior quality or grade, or

which is unsuitable for its operations.

3. Whenever a common purchaser is unable to purchase all of the oil tendered to it

hereunder, it shall purchase ratably from each marketing district, field, pool, or well,

with respect to which such tenders are made. As between wells, purchases shall be

considered ratable only if such purchases are made in proportion to the allowables

which are or would be assigned to such wells under existing commission rules and

regulations, and, as between marketing districts or fields or pools, purchases may be

considered ratable if such purchases are made in proportion to the sum of the

allowables which are or would be assigned to all wells from which tenders are made in

each such marketing district or field or pool.

4. Every common purchaser of crude petroleum is hereby expressly prohibited from

discriminating in favor of its own production or that of an affiliate as against that of

others, and the oil produced by such common purchaser or by an affiliate of such

common purchaser must be treated as that of any other producer for the purposes of

ratable taking.

5. It is unlawful for any common purchaser to discriminate between oil transported from

the wellhead to its receiving terminal in favor of one carrier of crude oil as against

another, and nothing herein may be construed to prevent any person, association of

persons, corporation, or limited liability company from transporting crude oil from

wellhead to receiving terminal of said common purchaser from properties in which

such person, association of persons, corporation, or limited liability company may own

an interest, and such person, association of persons, corporation, or limited liability

company may not be deemed to be in the business of purchasing, or of purchasing

and selling crude petroleum within the meaning of this section. Nothing herein may be

construed to prohibit any common purchaser from requiring that proper and

reasonable facilities be erected and maintained at its receiving terminal by any person,

association of persons, corporation, or limited liability company transporting crude oil

to such terminal, requiring that a surety bond be posted indemnifying said common

purchaser from liability for the transporter's failure to properly account to the owners of

crude oil so transported, or posting a just and reasonable handling charge for

accepting delivery at its receiving terminal.

6. The provisions of this section cover the purchase, or purchase and sale of crude

petroleum, and that gathering, handling, marketing, and all other charges assessed by

a common purchaser against crude oil produced within this state must be just and

reasonable. The commission, after notice and hearing as provided in section 38-08-11,

may determine the justness and reasonableness of charges on its own motion or upon

motion of any interested person.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-01-06 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-01 / Section 38-01-06
38-01-06. Road over mine may be acquired by condemnation proceedings
Status: repealed

38-01-06. Road over mine may be acquired by condemnation proceedings

Repealed by S.L. 1991, ch. 386, § 2.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-04.3 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-04.3
38-14.1-04.3. Reclamation research objectives
Status: repealed

38-14.1-04.3. Reclamation research objectives

Repealed by S.L. 1997, ch. 321, § 1.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08.1-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08.1 / Section 38-08.1-03
38-08.1-03. Deemed doing business within state - Resident agent
Status: in_force

38-08.1-03. Deemed doing business within state - Resident agent

A person must be deemed doing business within this state when engaged in geophysical

exploration within the boundaries of this state, and shall, if not already qualified to do business

within the state under chapter 10-19.1, 10-32.1, 45-10.2, 45-22, or 45-23 prior to such

exploration, file with the secretary of state an authorization provided under the governing statute

of the organization.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-16 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-16
38-08-16. Civil and criminal penalties
Status: in_force

38-08-16. Civil and criminal penalties

1. Any person who violates any provision of this chapter, or any rule, regulation, or order

of the commission is subject to a civil penalty to be imposed by the commission not to

exceed twelve thousand five hundred dollars for each offense, and each day's violation

is a separate offense, unless the penalty for the violation is otherwise specifically

provided for and made exclusive in this chapter. Any such civil penalty may be

compromised by the commission. All amounts paid as civil penalties must be

deposited in the abandoned oil and gas well plugging and site reclamation fund. The

penalties provided in this section, if not paid, are recoverable by suit filed by the

attorney general in the name and on behalf of the commission, in the district court of

the county in which the defendant resides, or in which any defendant resides, if there

be more than one defendant, or in the district court of any county in which the violation

occurred. The payment of the penalty may not operate to legalize any illegal oil, illegal

gas, or illegal product involved in the violation for which the penalty is imposed, or to

relieve a person on whom the penalty is imposed from liability to any other person for

damages arising out of the violation.

2. Notwithstanding any of the other provisions of this section, a person who willfully

violates any provision of this chapter, or any rule or order of the commission that

pertains to the prevention or control of pollution or waste is guilty of a class C felony

unless the penalty for the violation is otherwise specifically provided for and made

exclusive in this chapter. The criminal penalty provided for in this subsection may only

be imposed by a court of competent jurisdiction.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-31 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-31
38-14.1-31. Civil action for injunctive relief
Status: in_force

38-14.1-31. Civil action for injunctive relief

1. In addition to other relief available, the commission may without bond or other

undertaking institute a civil action for relief, including a permanent or temporary

injunction, restraining order, or any other appropriate order in the North Dakota district

court for the district in which the surface mining and reclamation operation is located or

in which the permittee thereof has the permittee's principal office in the state,

whenever such permittee or the permittee's agent:

a. Fails to comply with any order or decision issued by the commission under this

chapter;

b. Interferes with or delays the commission or its authorized representative in

carrying out the provisions of this chapter;

c. Refuses to admit such authorized representative to the mine;

d. Refuses to permit inspection of the mine by such authorized representative;

e. Refuses to furnish any information or report requested by the commission in

furtherance of this chapter;

f. Refuses to permit access to, and copying of, such records as the commission

determines necessary in carrying out the provisions of this chapter; or

g. Refuses to permit inspection of monitoring equipment.

2. The court has jurisdiction to provide such relief as may be appropriate, including a

permanent or temporary injunction or restraining order.

3. Any relief granted by the court to enforce an order or decision under subdivision a of

subsection 1 continues in effect until the completion or termination of all proceedings

for administrative and judicial review of such order or decision unless the district court

granting relief under this section sets it aside or modifies it prior to such final

determination.

4. No liability may accrue to the commission or its authorized representatives in

proceeding against any operator or permittee pursuant to this section.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.3-02 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.3 / Section 38-14.3-02
38-14.3-02. Surface coal mining and reclamation bond fund - Appropriation
Status: in_force

38-14.3-02. Surface coal mining and reclamation bond fund - Appropriation

The industrial commission may establish a surface coal mining and reclamation bond fund

to be maintained at the Bank of North Dakota. All moneys collected and received under this

chapter are appropriated to the commission for the purposes provided for in this chapter.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-21 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-21
38-08-21. Regulation of carbon dioxide and nitrogen gas
Status: in_force

38-08-21. Regulation of carbon dioxide and nitrogen gas

The commission is vested with the authority and duty to regulate the exploration,

development, and production of carbon dioxide, coal bed methane gas, helium gas, and

nitrogen gas within the state, in the same manner, insofar as is practicable, as it regulates oil or

gas as defined in this chapter.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-08 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-08
38-22-08. Permit requirements
Status: in_force

38-22-08. Permit requirements

Before issuing a permit, the commission shall find:

1. That the storage operator has complied with all requirements set by the commission.

2. That the storage facility is suitable and feasible for carbon dioxide injection and

storage.

3. That the carbon dioxide to be stored is of a quality that allows it to be safely and

efficiently stored in the storage reservoir.

4. That the storage operator has made a good-faith effort to get the consent of all

persons who own the storage reservoir's pore space.

5. That the storage operator has obtained the consent of persons who own at least sixty

percent of the storage reservoir's pore space.

6. Whether the storage facility contains commercially valuable minerals and, if it does, a

permit may be issued only if the commission is satisfied that the interests of the

mineral owners or mineral lessees will not be adversely affected or have been

addressed in an arrangement entered into by the mineral owners or mineral lessees

and the storage operator.

7. That the proposed storage facility will not adversely affect surface waters or formations

containing fresh water.

8. That carbon dioxide will not escape from the storage reservoir.

9. That substances that compromise the objectives of this chapter or the integrity of a

storage reservoir will not enter a storage reservoir.

10. That the storage facility will not endanger human health nor unduly endanger the

environment.

11. That the storage facility is in the public interest.

12. That the horizontal and vertical boundaries of the storage reservoir are defined. These

boundaries must include buffer areas to ensure that the storage facility is operated

safely and as contemplated.

13. That the storage operator will establish monitoring facilities and protocols to assess

the location and migration of carbon dioxide injected for storage and to ensure

compliance with all permit, statutory, and administrative requirements.

14. That all nonconsenting pore space owners are or will be equitably compensated.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-07 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-07
38-09-07. Certified copies of resolutions adopting oil or gas leases may be recorded - Constructive notice
Status: in_force

38-09-07. Certified copies of resolutions adopting oil or gas leases may be recorded -

Constructive notice.

A copy of a resolution of the board of county commissioners confirming, approving, or

adopting oil and gas leases, when certified by the county auditor of the county, may be recorded

in the office of the recorder of such county. Upon the recording of a certified copy of any such

resolution, the same is constructive notice to all subsequent purchasers, encumbrancers,

lessees, and other persons dealing with oil and gas leases or with rights in and to the properties

referred to in such resolution, of all of the terms, conditions, and provisions that are set out in

the resolution.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.1-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.1 / Section 38-11.1-01
38-11.1-01. Legislative findings
Status: in_force

38-11.1-01. Legislative findings

The legislative assembly finds the following:

1. It is incumbent on the state to protect the public welfare of North Dakota which is

largely dependent on agriculture and to protect the economic well-being of individuals

engaged in agricultural production, while at the same time preserving and facilitating

exploration through the utilization of subsurface pore space in accordance with an

approved unitization or similar agreement, an oil and gas lease, or as otherwise

permitted by law.

2. Exploration for and development of oil and gas reserves in this state interferes with the

use, agricultural or otherwise, of the surface of certain land.

3. Owners of the surface estate and other persons should be justly compensated for

injury to their persons or property and interference with the use of their property

occasioned by oil and gas development.

4. This chapter may not be construed to alter, amend, repeal, or modify the law

concerning title to pore space under section 47-31-03.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-11 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-11
38-08-11. Rules covering practice before commission
Status: in_force

38-08-11. Rules covering practice before commission

1. The commission may adopt rules governing the practice and procedure before the

commission, which rules must be adopted pursuant to the provisions of chapter 28-32.

2. When an emergency requiring immediate action is found to exist, the commission may

issue an emergency order without notice or hearing, reciting the existence of the

emergency and requiring that necessary action be taken to meet the emergency,

which order is effective upon issuance. No emergency order may remain in effect for

more than forty days.

3. Any notice required by this chapter must be given at the election of the commission

either in accordance with chapter 28-32 or by one publication in a newspaper of

general circulation in the state capital and in a newspaper of general circulation in the

county where the land affected, or some part thereof, is situated. The notice must

issue in the name of the state, must be signed by the chairman or secretary of the

commission, and must specify the style and number of the proceeding, the time and

place of the hearing, and must briefly state the purpose of the proceeding. Should the

commission elect to give notice by personal service, such service may be made by

any officer authorized to serve process, or by any agent of the commission, in the

same manner as is provided by law for the service of summons in civil actions in the

courts of the state. Proof of the service by such agent must be by the affidavit of the

person making personal service. In proceedings that do not involve a complaint and a

specifically named respondent, including agency hearings on applications seeking

some right or authorization from the commission, the notice of hearing must be given

at least fifteen days before the hearing, except in cases of emergency.

4. The commission may act upon its own motion or upon the petition of any interested

person. On the filing of a petition concerning any matter within the jurisdiction of the

commission, the commission shall fix a date for a hearing and give notice. Upon the

filing of a petition of any interested party, the commission shall enter and serve its

order upon all parties to the proceeding as required in section 28-32-39.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-20.1 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-20.1
38-08-20.1. Testing upon request of a royalty owner
Status: in_force

38-08-20.1. Testing upon request of a royalty owner

Upon request by a royalty owner to test an oil and gas meter or measuring device, the

commission shall test the meter or measuring device or contract for the testing by a qualified

meter tester who is independent of any operator or purchaser of production from the metered

well.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.2-09 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.2 / Section 38-14.2-09
38-14.2-09. Affected lands - Right of entry
Status: in_force

38-14.2-09. Affected lands - Right of entry

If the commission makes a finding of fact that:

1. Land or water resources have been adversely affected by past coal mining or noncoal

mining practices; and

2. The adverse effects are at a stage where, in the public interest, action to restore,

reclaim, abate, control, or prevent should be taken; and

3. The owners of the land or water resources where entry must be made to restore,

reclaim, abate, control, or prevent the adverse effects of past coal mining or noncoal

mining practices are not known or readily available; or

4. The owner will not give permission for the commission, its agents, employees, or

contractors to enter upon such property to restore, reclaim, abate, control, or prevent

the adverse effects of past coal mining or noncoal mining practices,

then, upon giving notice by mail to the owners if known or if not known by posting notice upon

the premises and advertising once in the official newspaper of each county and in other daily

newspapers of general circulation in each county wherein the land lies, the commission, its

agents, employees, or contractors has the right to enter upon the property adversely affected by

past coal mining or noncoal mining practices and any other property to have access to such

property to do all things necessary or expedient to restore, reclaim, abate, control, or prevent

the adverse effects. Such entry must be construed as an exercise of the police power for the

protection of public health, safety, and general welfare and may not be construed as an act of

condemnation of property nor of trespass thereon. The moneys expended for such work and the

benefits accruing to any such premises so entered upon are chargeable against such land to

the extent allowed in section 38-14.2-14 and mitigate or offset any claim in or any action brought

by any owner of any interest in such premises for any alleged damages by virtue of such entry;

provided, however, that this provision is not intended to create new claims for relief or eliminate

existing immunities.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-13.1-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-13.1 / Section 38-13.1-04
38-13.1-04. Filing of addresses - Fee
Status: in_force

38-13.1-04. Filing of addresses - Fee

A person claiming an interest in the mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest underlying a tract

of land that is the subject of a trust proceeding under section 38-13.1-01 may record with the

recorder of each county in which the land is located a notice containing the person's address

and a description of the person's mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest. Recording the notice

creates a rebuttable presumption that the person owns the interest claimed.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-25-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-25 / Section 38-25-04
38-25-04. Permit hearing - Hearing notice
Status: in_force

38-25-04. Permit hearing - Hearing notice

1. The commission shall hold a public hearing before issuing any storage permit.

2. Notice of the hearing must be published for two consecutive weeks in the official

newspaper of the county or counties where the storage reservoir or salt cavern is

proposed to be located and in any other newspaper the commission requires.

Publication deadlines must comply with commission requirements.

3. Written notice of hearing must be mailed to each surface owner of record of land

overlying the storage reservoir or salt cavern and within one-half mile [0.80 kilometer]

of the reservoir's or salt cavern's boundaries. The notice of hearing must be mailed to

an owner's last-known address.

4. If the proposed storage facility contemplates storage of oil or gas in an oil and gas

reservoir, notice of the hearing also must be mailed to each mineral lessee, mineral

owner of record, and pore space owner of record within the storage reservoir and

within one-half mile [0.80 kilometer] of the storage reservoir's boundaries.

5. If the proposed storage facility contemplates storage of oil or gas in a salt cavern,

notice of the hearing must be mailed to each salt mineral lessee, salt mineral owner of

record, and pore space owner of record within the salt cavern outer boundaries and

within one-half mile [0.80 kilometer] of the outer boundaries of the salt cavern, or as

otherwise may be required by the commission.

6. If the storage facility contemplates storage of oil or gas in a saline formation or aquifer,

notice of hearing must be mailed to each pore space owner of record within the

storage reservoir and within one-half mile [0.80 kilometer] of the storage reservoir's

boundaries.

7. Hearing notices required by this section must comply with the deadlines set by the

commission and must contain the information the commission requires.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-20 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-20
38-14.1-20. Ruling on permit application - Timing and content
Status: in_force

38-14.1-20. Ruling on permit application - Timing and content

1. If an informal conference in reference to a permit application has been held pursuant

to section 38-14.1-19, the commission shall issue its written findings approving or

disapproving the application in whole or in part and stating the reasons for such

findings within thirty days of the informal conference. At the time of issuance, copies of

the findings, reasons, and the commission's ruling must be furnished to the permit

applicant and all persons who were parties to the informal conference along with the

notice of the right to request a formal hearing provided for in section 38-14.1-30.

2. If no informal conference has been held, the commission shall notify the permit

applicant within a reasonable time as set forth in regulations, whether the application

has been approved or disapproved in whole or in part along with notice of the right to

request a formal hearing pursuant to section 38-14.1-30. In setting such reasonable

time, the commission shall take into account the time needed for proper investigation

of the site, the complexity of the permit application, and whether objections to the

application have been filed.

3. Under either subsection 1 or 2, if the application is approved, a permit must be issued

subject to the right of any person with an interest which is or may be adversely

affected to request formal hearing pursuant to section 38-14.1-30; if the application is

disapproved, specific reasons therefor must be set forth in the notification of

disapproval together with the requirements for approval.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-04.2 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-04.2
38-14.1-04.2. Advisory committee responsibilities
Status: repealed

38-14.1-04.2. Advisory committee responsibilities

Repealed by S.L. 1997, ch. 321, § 1.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.2-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.2 / Section 38-11.2-03
38-11.2-03. Notice of drilling operations
Status: in_force

38-11.2-03. Notice of drilling operations

1. The mineral developer shall give the surface owner written notice of the drilling

operations contemplated at least twenty days prior to the commencement of the

operations, unless waived by agreement of both parties.

2. This notice must be given to the record surface owner at that person's address as

shown by the records of the county recorder at the time the notice is given.

3. This notice must sufficiently disclose the plan of work and operations to enable the

surface owner to evaluate the effect of drilling operations on the surface owner's use of

the property. Included with this notice must be a copy of this chapter.

4. If a mineral developer fails to give notice as provided under this section, the surface

owner may seek any appropriate relief in the court of proper jurisdiction and may

receive punitive as well as actual damages.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-15-02 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-15 / Section 38-15-02
38-15-02. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-15-02. Definitions

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "Coal" means all kinds of coal, and includes what is known as lignite coal, unless a

contrary intention plainly appears.

2. "Commercial leonardite" means a dark-colored, soft, earthy rock formed from the

oxidation of lignite coal, and is produced from a mine that has as its only function for

supply for purposes other than gasification or combustion to generate electricity.

3. "Commission" means the industrial commission.

4. "Conflicting interests" means those interests of producers which are in conflict, so that

full production and utilization by one producer is prohibited or impeded by the interests

of another producer of a separate natural resource.

5. "Gas" means all natural gas and other fluid hydrocarbons not hereinbelow defined as

oil.

6. "Natural resources" means coal, oil, gas, and subsurface minerals as defined herein.

7. "Oil" means crude petroleum oil and other hydrocarbons, regardless of gravity, which

are produced at the wellhead in liquid form, and the liquid hydrocarbons known as

distillate or condensate recovered or extracted from gas other than gas produced in

association with oil and commonly known as casinghead gas.

8. "Owner" means the person who has the right to produce natural resources either for

that person or others.

9. "Person" means any natural person, corporation, limited liability company, association,

partnership, receiver, trustee, executor, administrator, guardian, fiduciary, or other

representative of any kind, and includes any department, agency, instrumentality, or

political subdivision of the state. The masculine gender, in referring to a person,

includes the feminine and the neuter genders.

10. "Producer" means the owner of a well or wells, or mine or mines, capable of producing

coal, commercial leonardite, oil, gas, or subsurface minerals.

11. "Subsurface minerals" means all naturally occurring elements and their compounds,

volcanic ash, precious metals, carbonates, and natural mineral salts of boron,

bromine, calcium, fluorine, iodine, lithium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium,

sodium, thorium, uranium, and sulfur, and their compounds but does not include sand

and gravel and rocks crushed for sand and gravel.

12. "Waste" means the inefficient utilization of reserves of oil, gas, subsurface minerals,

coal, or commercial leonardite, as the case may be.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-18.1-06.1 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-18.1 / Section 38-18.1-06.1
38-18.1-06.1. Perfecting title in surface owner
Status: in_force

38-18.1-06.1. Perfecting title in surface owner

1. Upon completion of the procedure provided in section 38-18.1-06, the owner or

owners of the surface estate may maintain an action in district court in the county in

which the minerals are located and obtain a judgment in quiet title in the owner or

owners of the surface estate. This action must be brought in the same manner and is

subject to the same procedure as an action to quiet title pursuant to chapter 32-17.

2. In an action brought under this section, the owner or owners of the surface estate shall

submit evidence to the district court establishing that all procedures required by this

chapter were properly completed and that a reasonable inquiry as defined by

subsection 6 of section 38-18.1-06 was conducted. If the district court finds that the

surface owner has complied with all procedures of the chapter and has conducted a

reasonable inquiry, the district court shall issue its findings of fact, conclusions of law,

and enter judgment perfecting title to the mineral interest in the owner or owners of the

surface estate.

3. A judgment obtained by the owner or owners of the surface estate in compliance with

this section is deemed conclusive except for fraud, misrepresentation, or other

misconduct.

4. A mineral lessee that obtains a lease from the owner of the surface estate, which

owner has obtained a judgment to minerals pursuant to this section, is deemed a bona

fide purchaser and its lease remains effective in the event the judgment is

subsequently vacated for any reason. Further, the lessee is not liable to any third party

for lease bonus, royalties, or any other proceeds paid to the surface owner under the

lease before the judgment being vacated.

5. Absent fraud or misrepresentation, the owner or owners of the surface estate which

obtain a judgment under this section and lease minerals to a lessee are entitled to

retain all lease bonus, royalties, or any other proceeds paid to the surface owner under

the lease before the judgment being vacated.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-12.1-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-12.1 / Section 38-12.1-05
38-12.1-05. Notice and drilling permit required - Exceptions - Limits on coal or commercial leonardite removal
Status: in_force

38-12.1-05. Notice and drilling permit required - Exceptions - Limits on coal or

commercial leonardite removal.

1. It is unlawful to commence operations for drilling for the exploration for coal or

commercial leonardite without first obtaining a permit from the director of mineral

resources, under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the commission,

and paying to the commission a fee of one hundred dollars for each such permit area.

The permit application must include a description of the exploration area and the

period of proposed exploration. The permit must be granted within thirty days after a

proper application has been submitted.

2. This permit may not be required:

a. In an area where a permit to conduct surface coal mining operations is in effect

pursuant to chapter 38-14.1;

b. For holes drilled to guide excavating equipment in an operating mine;

c. In areas where a drill hole is required by any other state agency; or

d. For environmental data gathering activities that do not substantially disturb the

land, unless the environmental data gathering activities are located on land

designated unsuitable for mining under section 38-14.1-05.

3. No person may remove more than two hundred fifty tons [226.80 metric tons] of coal

or commercial leonardite pursuant to an exploration permit without first obtaining a

permit from the public service commission.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-15 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-15
38-22-15. Fees - Carbon dioxide storage facility trust fund - Continuing appropriation
Status: in_force

38-22-15. Fees - Carbon dioxide storage facility trust fund - Continuing appropriation

1. Storage operators shall pay the commission a fee on each ton of carbon dioxide

injected for storage. The fee must be in the amount set by commission rule. The

amount must be based on the contribution of the storage facility and the source of the

carbon dioxide to the energy and agriculture production economy of North Dakota and

the commission's anticipated expenses associated with the long-term monitoring and

management of a closed storage facility.

2. The fee must be deposited in the carbon dioxide storage facility trust fund. The fund

must be maintained as a special fund and all money in the fund is appropriated and

may be used only for defraying expenses the commission incurs in long-term

monitoring and management of a closed storage facility. The commission, however,

through a cooperative agreement with another state agency, may use the fund to

compensate the cooperating agency for expenses the cooperating agency incurs in

carrying out regulatory responsibilities that agency may have over a storage facility.

Interest earned by the fund must be deposited in the fund.

3. The industrial commission shall file with the director of the legislative council a report

discussing whether the amount in the carbon dioxide storage facility trust fund and

fees being paid into it are sufficient to satisfy the fund's objectives. The first report is

due in December of 2014 and subsequent reports are due every four years thereafter.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11 / Section 38-11-03
38-11-03. Terms of lease - Ratification - Restoration of land
Status: repealed

38-11-03. Terms of lease - Ratification - Restoration of land

Repealed by S.L. 1977, ch. 322, § 9.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-02-15 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-02 / Section 38-02-15
38-02-15. Actions relating to disputed mining property - Surveys ordered - Regulations governing
Status: in_force

38-02-15. Actions relating to disputed mining property - Surveys ordered -

Regulations governing.

In an action in any district court of this state wherein the title or right of possession to any

mining claim is in dispute, the court, upon the application of any of the parties to such suit, may

enter an order for such survey of the underground as well as the surface of such part of the

property in dispute as may be necessary to a just determination of the question involved. Such

order must designate some competent surveyor who is not related to any of the parties to such

suit and who is not interested in the result of the same. Upon the application of the party

adverse to such application, the court may appoint some competent surveyor selected by such

adverse applicant, who shall attend upon such survey and observe the method of making the

same. Such second survey must be made at the cost of the party requesting it. Such order may

specify the names of witnesses named by either party, not exceeding three on each side, to

examine such property, and such witnesses may enter into such property and examine the

same. The court may cause the removal of any rock, debris, or other obstacle in any of the drifts

or shafts of such property when such removal is shown to be necessary to a just determination

of the question involved. No order may be made for a survey and inspection except upon notice

of the application for such order of at least six days, and not then except by an agreement of the

parties or upon the affidavit of two or more persons that such survey and inspection are

necessary to the just determination of the suit. Such affidavit must state the facts in the case

and wherein the necessity for the survey exists. Such order may not be made unless it appears

that the party asking for the same had been refused the privilege of survey and inspection by

the adverse party.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-11 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-11
38-09-11. Board of county commissioners may demise or let lands for drilling or mining purposes
Status: in_force

38-09-11. Board of county commissioners may demise or let lands for drilling or

mining purposes.

Real and personal property which a county may have acquired through purchase or

forfeiture or by operation of law may be demised, leased, or let by the board of county

commissioners for the purpose of:

1. Mining thereon;

2. Operating thereon for gas and oil;

3. Laying pipelines thereon; or

4. Establishing and maintaining thereon tanks, power stations, and structures for the

production, saving, sale, or caring for the mine product, gas, or oil.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-19-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-19 / Section 38-19-03
38-19-03. Jurisdiction of the commission
Status: in_force

38-19-03. Jurisdiction of the commission

The commission has jurisdiction and authority and is charged with the responsibility to

enforce the provisions of this chapter. This chapter does not apply to any activity regulated

under chapters 38-08, 38-12, 38-12.1, 38-14.1, and 61-28. The jurisdiction granted to the

commission by this chapter is not exclusive and does not affect the jurisdiction of other

governmental entities. The commission acting through the director of mineral resources has the

authority:

1. To require:

a. Identification of ownership of all facilities, installations, and equipment used in the

extraction of geothermal energy.

b. The making and filing of all logs and reports on facility location, drilling, boring,

excavating, and construction and the filing, free of charge, of samples, core chips,

and complete cores, when requested, in the office of the state geologist.

c. The drilling, boring, casing, excavating, plugging, and construction of facilities in a

manner to prevent contamination and pollution of surface and ground water

sources and unnecessary environmental degradation.

d. The furnishing of a reasonable bond with good and sufficient surety, conditioned

upon the full compliance with this chapter and the rules and orders of the

commission relating to the extraction of geothermal energy. The person required

to furnish the bond may elect to deposit a collateral bond, self-bond, cash, or any

alternative form of security approved by the commission, or combination thereof,

by which a permittee assures faithful performance of all requirements of this

chapter and the rules and orders of the industrial commission.

e. Metering or measuring all products extracted from or by means of a facility

regulated by this chapter.

f. That every person who operates a geothermal energy extraction facility in this

state shall keep and maintain complete and accurate records of the quantities

and nature of products extracted from or by means of any facility, and the ultimate

disposition of such products, which records must be available to the commission

or its agents at all times, and that every such person file with the commission

such reports as it may prescribe.

g. That upon termination of the operation of any facility or activity regulated by this

chapter, the operator of the facility shall restore the surface as nearly as possible

to its original condition and productivity.

2. To regulate:

a. The drilling, boring, excavating, and construction of all geothermal energy

extraction facilities.

b. Operations to assure the optimum performance of all facilities regulated under

this chapter.

3. To limit and prescribe the nature, quantity, and source of geothermal energy to be

extracted from any facility regulated by this chapter.

4. To adopt rules and issue orders to effectuate the purposes of this chapter.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.1-09 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.1 / Section 38-14.1-09
38-14.1-09. Unsuitable lands - Savings provision
Status: in_force

38-14.1-09. Unsuitable lands - Savings provision

The requirements and provisions of this chapter dealing with designation of lands unsuitable

for all or certain types of surface coal mining operations (sections 38-14.1-04 through

38-14.1-08) do not apply:

1. To lands on which surface coal mining operations are being conducted on July 1,

1979, or under a permit issued pursuant to this chapter.

2. To lands where substantial legal and financial commitments in surface coal mining

operations were in existence prior to January 4, 1977.

3. To lands where a permit application has been filed pursuant to the provisions of this

chapter and the petition to have an area designated as unsuitable for surface coal

mining operations has not been filed within thirty days of the last publication of the

notice required by subsection 1 of section 38-14.1-18.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.2-14 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.2 / Section 38-14.2-14
38-14.2-14. Liens for reclamation on private lands
Status: in_force

38-14.2-14. Liens for reclamation on private lands

1. Within six months after the completion of projects to restore, abate, control, or prevent

adverse effects of past coal mining or noncoal mining practices on privately owned

land, the commission shall itemize the moneys so expended and may file a statement

thereof in the office of the county recorder in the county in which the land is located,

together with notarized appraisals by an independent appraiser of the value of the land

before and after the restoration, reclamation, abatement, control, or prevention of

adverse effects of past coal mining or noncoal mining practices if the moneys so

expended result in a significant increase in property value. Such statement constitutes

a lien upon the land. The lien may not exceed the amount determined by the

appraisals to be the increase in the market value of the land as the result of the

restoration, reclamation, abatement, control, or prevention of the adverse effects of

past coal mining or noncoal mining practices. The lien may be waived by the

commission if:

a. The cost of filing the lien, including indirect costs, exceeds the increase in the fair

market value of the land as the result of reclamation activities;

b. The reclamation work performed on private land primarily benefits health, safety,

or environmental values of the greater community or area in which the land is

located; or

c. The reclamation work performed is necessitated by an unforeseen occurrence

and the work performed to restore that land will not result in a significant increase

in the market value of the land as it existed immediately before the occurrence.

2. No lien may be filed against the property of any person, in accordance with this

section, who neither consented to nor participated in nor exercised control over the

mining operation which necessitated the reclamation performed hereunder.

3. The landowner may petition the commission for a hearing within sixty days of the filing

of the lien to determine the increase in the market value of the land as the result of the

restoration, reclamation, abatement, control, or prevention of the adverse effects of

past coal mining or noncoal mining practices. The amount determined to be the

increase in value of the premises constitutes the amount of the lien and must be

recorded with the statement herein provided. The hearing must be conducted pursuant

to chapter 28-32.

4. Any statement filed pursuant to this section constitutes a lien upon the land as of the

date of the expenditure of the moneys and has priority as a lien second only to the lien

of real estate taxes imposed upon the land.

5. The commission may bring an action to enforce the lien in the district court of the

county in which the land is located. Any number of persons claiming liens against the

same property may join in the action and when separate actions are commenced, the

court may consolidate them. Before the lien may be enforced, written notice of

intention to enforce the lien must be given by personal service upon the record owner

of the land affected at least ten days before an action to enforce the lien is

commenced, or by certified mail directed to the owner's last-known address at least

twenty days before the action is commenced. The land affected may not be sold for

less than the fair market value of the land after the restoration, reclamation,

abatement, control, or prevention of adverse effects of past coal mining or noncoal

mining practices. No deficiency judgment may issue against the record owner of the

land affected if the proceeds from the sale are insufficient to satisfy the total amount of

the lien on the land.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-09.17 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-09.17
38-08-09.17. Unit of more than one pool - Unit source of supply
Status: in_force

38-08-09.17. Unit of more than one pool - Unit source of supply

The commission upon its own motion may, and upon petition of any interested person shall,

after notice therefor, hold a hearing to consider the need for the operation as a unit of two or

more pools or parts thereof separated vertically in one field, and has the power to create such a

unit and provide for the unitization and unitized operation of the unit source of supply. "Unit

source of supply" means those pools or parts thereof to be produced by such unit operation as

designated by order of the industrial commission. The petition, the hearing, the commission's

findings and order, and all other matters must be in the form and manner and in accordance

with the procedure and requirements hereinabove set forth in sections 38-08-09.1 through

38-08-09.16; provided, however, whenever and wherever the words "common source of supply"

appear in said sections, the words "unit source of supply" must be substituted in lieu thereof and

all other provisions of the sections shall otherwise apply.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-17-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-17 / Section 38-17-03
38-17-03. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-17-03. Definitions

In this chapter, unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires:

1. "Advance royalty" means the offset contemplated which would allow payments for rent,

bonuses, and damages under the terms of the lease to be deducted from the amount

of the royalty due to the lessor when the mining operation actually begins.

2. "Mineral agreement" means the agreement between either the surface estate owner

and the mineral developer or between the mineral estate owner and the mineral

developer which gives the mineral developer the right to conduct mining operations.

The mineral agreement may consist of the mineral lease and any other document or

documents used to express the entire agreement between the parties.

3. "Mining operation" means any type of activity, the aim of which is to discover the

presence of coal, or to remove the coal so discovered from its original position on or in

the land by any means whatsoever.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-03
38-09-03. Provisions may be inserted in lease for consolidation of adjoining lands - Royalty - How shared
Status: in_force

38-09-03. Provisions may be inserted in lease for consolidation of adjoining lands -

Royalty - How shared.

Any oil or gas lease made by any of the political subdivisions mentioned in section 38-09-02

may provide that the lessee may consolidate the land covered by such lease with other

adjoining lands for the purpose of joint development and operation of the entire consolidated

premises as a unit. In such a case, the lessor shall share in the royalty on oil and gas produced

from the consolidated tract in the proportion that the area of the land covered by such lease

bears to the total area of such consolidated tract.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-12.1-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-12.1 / Section 38-12.1-01
38-12.1-01. Legislative findings
Status: in_force

38-12.1-01. Legislative findings

The legislative assembly of the state of North Dakota finds that:

1. The discovery and evaluation of coal or commercial leonardite deposits is

advantageous in an industrial society.

2. Coal or commercial leonardite occurs hidden under the ground and must be searched

for by diverse techniques, and that the search, exploration, or prospecting for coal or

commercial leonardite is a necessary and expensive prerequisite to coal or

commercial leonardite extraction and for land use planning in coal-bearing or

commercial leonardite-bearing areas.

3. It is to the benefit of society to allow coal or commercial leonardite exploration and to

require the information generated from exploration to be available to the office of the

state geologist.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.2-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.2 / Section 38-14.2-05
38-14.2-05. Construction of public facilities
Status: in_force

38-14.2-05. Construction of public facilities

Upon reclamation of all abandoned coal mine areas and all abandoned noncoal areas

pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, if there is a need for the construction of specific public

facilities in communities impacted by coal development and if impact funds which may be

available are inadequate, the governor of the state of North Dakota shall certify to the existence

of such conditions to the secretary of the interior and funds may be allocated and expended for

such construction upon the approval of the specific public facilities by the commission.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-11.1-08 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-11.1 / Section 38-11.1-08
38-11.1-08. Agreement - Offer of settlement
Status: in_force

38-11.1-08. Agreement - Offer of settlement

Unless both parties provide otherwise by written agreement, at the time the notice required

by subsection 2 of section 38-11.1-04.1 is given, the mineral developer shall make a written

offer of settlement to the person seeking compensation for damages when the notice required

by subsection 2 of section 38-11.1-04.1 is given. The person seeking compensation may accept

or reject any offer so made.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-09.1 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-09.1
38-08-09.1. Legislative finding
Status: in_force

38-08-09.1. Legislative finding

The legislative assembly finds and determines that it is desirable and necessary, under the

circumstances and for the purposes hereinafter set out, to authorize and provide for unitized

management, operation, and further development of the oil and gas properties to which sections

38-08-09.1 through 38-08-09.16 are applicable, to the end that a greater ultimate recovery of oil

and gas may be had therefrom, waste prevented, the drilling of unnecessary wells eliminated,

and the correlative rights of the owners in a fuller and more beneficial enjoyment of the oil and

gas rights be protected.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-01-07.2 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-01 / Section 38-01-07.2
38-01-07.2. Notice required
Status: in_force

38-01-07.2. Notice required

Within thirty days after the board of county commissioners receives a petition to temporarily

close or relocate a section line road or other road, the board shall fix a time and place for

hearing, and the petitioner, at least ten days prior to the time fixed for the hearing, shall cause

notice to be served personally or by mail on all surface owners of the land through which the

road passes. The petitioner shall also cause notice to be published once each week for two

successive weeks in a newspaper having a general circulation in the county in which the road is

located, with the last publication being at least ten days prior to the time fixed for hearing.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-17-05 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-17 / Section 38-17-05
38-17-05. Maximum term of years
Status: in_force

38-17-05. Maximum term of years

No coal lease executed after April 9, 1975, is valid for a primary term of more than twenty

years, unless operations for mining are taking place on the leased land within the primary term,

or the land is subject to a valid mining permit, and for so long thereafter as coal is regularly

mined therefrom, or the land is subject to permit. This limitation does not prohibit agreements for

extensions or renewals of the primary term.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-10-09 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-10 / Section 38-10-09
38-10-09. Sales of oil, gas, or mineral rights made subject to existing lease
Status: in_force

38-10-09. Sales of oil, gas, or mineral rights made subject to existing lease

Sales of oil, gas, or mineral rights made under the provisions of this chapter must be made

subject to the terms of any then existing oil, gas, or mineral lease and must cover and include all

or a fractional part of the oil royalty, gas rental or royalty, and mineral rental or royalty to be paid

under such lease.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-04.8 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-04.8
38-08-04.8. Recovery for costs of plugging and reclamation
Status: in_force

38-08-04.8. Recovery for costs of plugging and reclamation

If the commission, its agents, employees, or contractors, plugs or replugs a well or reclaims

a well site, pipeline facility, production facility, saltwater handling facility, or treating plant under

the provisions of sections 38-08-04.4, 38-08-04.5, 38-08-04.7, 38-08-04.8, 38-08-04.9, and

38-08-04.10, the state has a cause of action for all reasonable expenses incurred in the

plugging, replugging, or reclamation against the operator at the time the well is required to be

plugged and the well or facility is required to be abandoned or any or all persons who own a

working interest in the well, pipeline facility, production facility, saltwater handling facility, or

treating plant at the time the well is required to be plugged and the well, pipeline facility,

production facility, saltwater handling facility, or treating plant abandoned as a result of the

ownership of a lease or mineral interest in the property on which the well, pipeline facility,

production facility, saltwater handling facility, or treating plant is located. The term "working

interest owner" does not mean a royalty owner or an overriding royalty interest owner. The

commission shall seek reimbursement for all reasonable expenses incurred in plugging any well

or reclaiming any well site, pipeline facility, production facility, saltwater handling facility, or

treating plant through an action instituted by the attorney general. The liability of any working

interest owner under this section shall be limited to that proportion of the reasonable expenses

incurred by the commission that the interest of any such working interest owner bears to the

entire working interest in the well. Any money collected in a suit under this section must be

deposited in the state abandoned oil and gas well plugging and site reclamation fund. Any suit

brought by the commission for reimbursement under this section may be brought in the district

court for Burleigh County, the county in which the plugged well or reclaimed well site, pipeline

facility, production facility, saltwater handling facility, or treating plant is located, or the county in

which any defendant resides.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-02-06 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-02 / Section 38-02-06
38-02-06. Discovery shaft to be sunk on lode within sixty days
Status: in_force

38-02-06. Discovery shaft to be sunk on lode within sixty days

From the time of uncovering or disclosing a lode, the discoverer has sixty days within which

to sink a discovery shaft thereon.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-14.2-07 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-14.2 / Section 38-14.2-07
38-14.2-07. Commission authorized to administer abandoned mine reclamation program - Objectives - Priorities
Status: in_force

38-14.2-07. Commission authorized to administer abandoned mine reclamation

program - Objectives - Priorities.

1. The commission is hereby authorized to develop, administer, and enforce an

abandoned mine reclamation program. Expenditure of funds for the projects under this

program must reflect priorities in the order stated:

a. The protection of public health, safety, and property from extreme danger

resulting from the adverse effects of past coal mining practices, including the

restoration of eligible land and water resources and the environment:

(1) Previously degraded by the adverse effects of coal mining practices; and

(2) Located adjacent to a site that has been or will be remediated to protect the

public health, safety, and property from extreme danger of adverse effects of

coal mining practices.

b. The protection of public health and safety from adverse effects of past coal

mining practices which do not constitute an extreme danger, including the

restoration of eligible land and water resources and the environment:

(1) Previously degraded by the adverse effects of coal mining practices; and

(2) Located adjacent to a site that has been or will be remediated to protect the

public health and safety from adverse effects of coal mining practices.

c. The restoration of eligible land and water resources and the environment

previously degraded by adverse effects of past coal mining practices, including

measures for the conservation and development of soil, water (excluding

channelization), woodland, fish and wildlife, recreation resources, and agricultural

productivity.

d. The protection, repair, replacement, construction, or enhancement of public water

supply facilities, including water distribution facilities and treatment plants

adversely affected by coal mining practices.

2. The protection of the public from hazards endangering life and property resulting from

the adverse effects of past noncoal mining practices upon certification from the United

States secretary of interior as provided in 30 U.S.C. 1240(a). However, upon request

by the governor of the state of North Dakota and approval by the secretary of the

interior, such work may be undertaken before the priorities related to past coal mining

have been fulfilled. Expenditure of funds from the project under this subsection must

reflect the priorities in the order stated:

a. The protection of public health, safety, general welfare, and property from the

adverse effects of noncoal mining practices.

b. The protection of public health, safety, and general welfare from adverse effects

of noncoal mining practices.

c. The restoration of land and water resources and the environment previously

degraded by the adverse effects of noncoal mining practices.

3. Funds granted by the secretary of interior under title IV of Public Law No. 95-87 as

provided by Public Law No. 117-58 may be used only for the activities described in

subsection 1.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-12.1-04 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-12.1 / Section 38-12.1-04
38-12.1-04. Jurisdiction of commission
Status: in_force

38-12.1-04. Jurisdiction of commission

The commission has jurisdiction and authority over all persons and property, both public and

private, necessary to effectively enforce the provisions of this chapter. The director of mineral

resources shall act as a supervisor charged with the duty of enforcing the regulations and

orders of the commission applicable to the provisions of this chapter. The commission has

authority to make such investigations as it deems proper to determine whether facts exist which

justify action by the commission. The commission acting through the director of mineral

resources has the authority:

1. To require:

a. The furnishing of a reasonable bond with good and sufficient surety, conditioned

upon the full compliance with the provisions of this chapter, and the rules and

orders of the commission prescribed to govern the exploration for coal or

commercial leonardite on state and private lands and roads used in coal or

commercial leonardite exploration within the state of North Dakota. The person

required to furnish the bond may elect to deposit a collateral bond, self-bond,

cash, or any alternative form of security approved by the commission, or

combination thereof, by which a permittee assures faithful performance of all

requirements of this chapter and the rules and orders of the industrial

commission.

b. The delivery, free of charge, to the state geologist of the basic data collected

during the course of the exploration within a reasonable time as may be

prescribed by the state geologist. The data so submitted is confidential and

available only to the office of the state geologist for official purposes for a period

of two years, and such period of confidentiality must, upon application, be

extended for one-year periods by the state geologist, for a total period not to

exceed ten years unless it is demonstrated that such period should be further

extended in order to prevent possible resulting harm to the person, or the

person's successors and assigns, who delivered such basic data to the state

geologist. The basic data must include, if specifically requested by the state

geologist and if the information has been developed by or for a person conducting

the exploration:

(1) Sample cuts.

(2) Drillers' logs, sample logs, radioactivity logs, resistivity logs, or other types of

electrical or mechanical logs.

(3) Elevation and location information on the data collection points.

(4) Other pertinent information as may be required by the state geologist.

2. To require the plugging, covering, or reburial in an appropriate manner so as to protect

environmental quality, general health and safety, and economic values of all holes,

pits, or trenches excavated during the course of coal or commercial leonardite

exploration.

3. To promulgate and enforce rules, regulations, and orders to effectuate the provisions,

purpose, and intent of this chapter.

4. To inspect all drilling or exploration sites. For the purposes of this subsection, the

director of mineral resources or the director's representative shall have access to all

drilling or exploration installations regulated by this chapter for the purpose of

inspection and sampling and shall have the authority to require the operators' aid if the

director finds it necessary and requests it.

5. Notwithstanding any of the other provisions of this section, the commission acting

through the director of mineral resources shall require that any lands substantially

disturbed in coal or commercial leonardite exploration, including excavations, roads,

and drill holes, and the removal of necessary facilities and equipment be reclaimed in

accordance with the applicable performance standards of section 38-14.1-24.

Reclamation must be accomplished to protect environmental quality, general health

and safety, and economic values.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-17 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-17
38-09-17. Bidding or offers
Status: in_force

38-09-17. Bidding or offers

Offers for leasing may be made in writing and such bids must be opened at the time of the

leasing and bids may be offered orally at the time of the leasing. Such bids must be made upon

the basis of acceptance of a lease upon the rental basis herein provided, plus such bonus as

the bidder may offer. The leasing agency may reject all bids and no bid may be accepted unless

the bidder shall, at the time of the leasing, tender or pay to the leasing official an amount equal

to the first year's rental for such oil and gas rights, plus any bonus offered for such lease.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-21 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-21
38-09-21. Approval of oil and gas leases
Status: in_force

38-09-21. Approval of oil and gas leases

All oil and gas mining leases made and executed prior to March 13, 1951, by the Bank of

North Dakota, through its president, as agent for the state treasurer, as trustee for the state of

North Dakota on lands or mineral interests acquired by the state treasurer, as trustee for the

state of North Dakota, except such leases as have been released or have expired or have been

forfeited, are hereby validated, and said leases are hereby confirmed and declared to be fully

effective and operative to vest in the lessees of said leases, their successors or assigns, all of

the estates, rights, titles, privileges, and interest therein set forth.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-22-02 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-22 / Section 38-22-02
38-22-02. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-22-02. Definitions

As used in this chapter, unless the context requires otherwise:

1. "Carbon dioxide" means carbon dioxide produced by anthropogenic sources which is

of such purity and quality that it will not compromise the safety of geologic storage and

will not compromise those properties of a storage reservoir which allow the reservoir to

effectively enclose and contain a stored gas.

2. "Commission" means the industrial commission.

3. "Geologic storage" means the permanent or short-term underground storage of carbon

dioxide in a storage reservoir.

4. "Permit" means a permit issued by the commission allowing a person to operate a

storage facility.

5. "Pore space" means a cavity or void, whether natural or artificially created, in a

subsurface sedimentary stratum.

6. "Reservoir" means a subsurface sedimentary stratum, formation, aquifer, cavity, or

void, whether natural or artificially created, including oil and gas reservoirs, saline

formations, and coal seams suitable for or capable of being made suitable for injecting

and storing carbon dioxide.

7. "Storage facility" means the reservoir, underground equipment, and surface facilities

and equipment used or proposed to be used in a geologic storage operation. It does

not include pipelines used to transport carbon dioxide to the storage facility.

8. "Storage operator" means a person holding or applying for a permit.

9. "Storage reservoir" means a reservoir proposed, authorized, or used for storing carbon

dioxide.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-01-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-01 / Section 38-01-01
38-01-01. Definitions
Status: repealed

38-01-01. Definitions

Repealed by S.L. 1979, ch. 398, § 9.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-25-01 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-25 / Section 38-25-01
38-25-01. Definitions
Status: in_force

38-25-01. Definitions

As used in this chapter:

1. "Commission" mean the industrial commission.

2. "Gas" includes all natural gas, including hydrogen, and all other fluid hydrocarbons not

defined as oil.

3. "Geological storage" means the underground storage of oil or gas in a storage

reservoir or salt cavern.

4. "Oil" includes crude petroleum oil and other hydrocarbons regardless of gravity which

are produced at the wellhead in liquid form and the liquid hydrocarbons known as

distillate or condensate recovered or extracted from gas, other than gas produced in

association with oil and commonly known as casinghead gas.

5. "Permit" means a permit issued by the commission allowing a person to operate an

underground storage facility.

6. "Pore space" has the same meaning as in section 47-31-02.

7. "Prevent waste" means the locating, spacing, drilling, equipping, operating, or

producing of any oil or gas storage well or facility in a manner that increases the

quantity of oil or gas stored, or which decreases unnecessary loss or destruction of oil

or gas.

8. "Reservoir" means a subsurface sedimentary stratum, formation, aquifer, or void,

whether natural or artificially created, including oil and gas reservoirs and saline

formations suitable for or capable of being made suitable for injecting, storing, and

withdrawing oil or gas. The term does not include salt caverns.

9. "Salt cavern" means a natural occurring cavity contained within a salt formation or a

cavity created in a salt formation by solution mining, suitable for injecting, storing, and

withdrawing oil or gas.

10. "Solution mining" means the process of injecting fluid into a well to dissolve rock salt or

other readily soluble rock to create a salt cavern for underground storage of oil or gas.

11. "Storage facility" means the reservoir, salt cavern, underground equipment, and

surface facilities and equipment used or proposed to be used in an underground

storage operation. The term does not include a pipeline used to transport oil or gas to

the storage facility.

12. "Storage operator" means a person holding or applying for a permit.

13. "Waste" means the inefficient storing of oil or gas.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-26 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-26
38-08-26. Submission of geographic information system data on oil and gas underground gathering pipelines required
Status: in_force

38-08-26. Submission of geographic information system data on oil and gas

underground gathering pipelines required.

1. The commission shall create a geographic information system database for collecting

pipeline shape files as submitted by each underground gathering pipeline owner or

operator. The shape files and the resulting geographic information system database

are exempt from any disclosure to parties outside the commission and are confidential

except as provided in this section. The information may be used by the commission in

furtherance of the commission's duties.

2. An owner or operator of an underground gathering pipeline shall submit to the

commission, in a time period no longer than one hundred eighty days of putting any

underground gathering pipeline into service, a shape file showing the centerline of the

pipeline. Upon abandonment of any underground gathering pipeline, the owner or

operator shall submit, in a time period no longer than one hundred eighty days of

abandonment, to the commission an updated shape file reflecting the pipeline or

portion of a pipeline that has been abandoned. For an oil and gas underground

gathering pipeline that is in service after August 1, 2011, and before August 1, 2013,

the owner or operator or most recent owner or operator shall submit, within eighteen

months from August 1, 2013, shape files for all existing underground gathering

pipelines, including any known abandoned pipeline.

3. Upon a written request by the owner or tenant of the real property regarding

underground gathering pipelines located within the bounds of the real property owned

or leased by that property owner or tenant, the commission shall provide to the owner

or tenant the requested information. The commission may not include information, if

available, on any underground gathering pipeline that exists outside the bounds of the

real property owned or leased by the requesting party.

4. Upon request by the tax commissioner, the commission may allow access to

information contained in the geographic information system database to the tax

commissioner to be used for the sole purpose of administering the valuation and

assessment of centrally assessed underground gathering pipeline property under

chapter 57-06. The information obtained under this subsection is confidential and may

be used only for the purposes identified in this subsection.

5. The surface owner may share information contained in the geographic information

system database.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-19-08 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-19 / Section 38-19-08
38-19-08. Administrative procedure and judicial review
Status: in_force

38-19-08. Administrative procedure and judicial review

Any proceedings under this chapter for the adoption or modification of rules or orders,

including emergency orders relating to extraction of geothermal energy and determining

compliance with rules of the commission, must be conducted in accordance with sections

38-08-11, 38-08-12, 38-08-13, and 38-08-14; and chapter 28-32 governs administrative practice

when consistent with the provisions of this chapter and the above-referenced sections.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-09 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-09
38-08-09. Voluntary agreements for unit operation valid
Status: in_force

38-08-09. Voluntary agreements for unit operation valid

An agreement for the unit or cooperative development and operation of a field or pool, in

connection with the conduct of repressuring or pressure maintenance operations, cycling or

recycling operations, including the extraction and separation of liquid hydrocarbons from natural

gas in connection therewith, or any other method of operation, including water floods, is

authorized and may be performed and may not be held or construed to violate any of the

statutes of this state relating to trusts, monopolies, or contracts and combinations in restraint of

trade, if the agreement is approved by the commission as being in the public interest, protective

of correlative rights, and reasonably necessary to increase ultimate recovery or to prevent waste

of oil or gas. Such agreements bind only the persons who execute them, and their heirs,

successors, assigns, and legal representatives.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-09-14 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-09 / Section 38-09-14
38-09-14. Public lands - Leasing for exploration and for production of oil and gas - Method
Status: in_force

38-09-14. Public lands - Leasing for exploration and for production of oil and gas -

Method.

No lands, owned in whole or in part, or on which a reservation of oil and gas rights has been

made in a conveyance thereof, by the state of North Dakota or by any department or agency

thereof or by any county or other political subdivision of this state, may be leased for oil and gas

exploration or production except as provided for in sections 38-09-14 through 38-09-20.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-08-04.3 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-08 / Section 38-08-04.3
38-08-04.3. State geologist to assist commission
Status: repealed

38-08-04.3. State geologist to assist commission

Repealed by S.L. 1991, ch. 387, § 2.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-10-02 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-10 / Section 38-10-02
38-10-02. Personal representative may lease for production or sell mineral or oil rights in lands of estate
Status: in_force

38-10-02. Personal representative may lease for production or sell mineral or oil

rights in lands of estate.

A personal representative, upon compliance with the provisions of this chapter, may give a

lease for production covering real property in the estate or may sell the oil, gas, or minerals in or

under such real property separately from the surface rights.
N.D. Cent. Code § 38-15-03 — ND Code / Title 38 / Chapter 38-15 / Section 38-15-03
38-15-03. Jurisdiction of commission
Status: in_force

38-15-03. Jurisdiction of commission

The commission has continuing jurisdiction and authority over all persons and property,

public and private, necessary to enforce effectively the provisions of this chapter. The director of

mineral resources shall act as a supervisor charged with enforcing the regulations and orders of

the commission applicable to the provisions of this chapter. The commission has authority to

make investigations it deems proper to determine whether facts exist which justify action by the

commission. The commission has the authority:

1. To require the furnishing of a reasonable bond with good and sufficient surety,

conditioned upon the full compliance with the provisions of this chapter, and the rules

and regulations of the commission prescribed to govern, satisfy, and resolve conflicting

interests among producers within North Dakota.

2. To resolve conflicting interests of producers of natural resources which cannot be

voluntarily concluded by them in the public interest to eliminate waste, to the end that

the producer, landowner, and mineral owner realize the greatest possible economic

advantage.

3. To promulgate and to enforce rules, regulations, and orders to effectuate the purposes

and intent of this chapter.