Case Title: State ex rel. Morrison v. Beck Energy Corp.

Citation: 2015-Ohio-485

Docket Number: 2013-0465

State: ohio

Court: Ohio Supreme Court

Date: 2015-02-17T00:00:00Z

Document:
[Until this opinion appears in the Ohio Official Reports advance sheets, it may be cited as 
State ex rel. Morrison v. Beck Energy Corp., Slip Opinion No. 2015-Ohio-485.] 
 
 
NOTICE 
This slip opinion is subject to formal revision before it is published in 
an advance sheet of the Ohio Official Reports.  Readers are requested 
to promptly notify the Reporter of Decisions, Supreme Court of Ohio, 
65 South Front Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215, of any typographical or 
other formal errors in the opinion, in order that corrections may be 
made before the opinion is published. 
 
SLIP OPINION NO. 2015-OHIO-485 
THE STATE EX REL. MORRISON, LAW DIR.; THE CITY OF MUNROE FALLS, 
APPELLANT, v. BECK ENERGY CORPORATION ET AL., APPELLEES. 
[Until this opinion appears in the Ohio Official Reports advance sheets, it 
may be cited as State ex rel. Morrison v. Beck Energy Corp., 
 Slip Opinion No. 2015-Ohio-485.] 
Home rule—Ohio Constitution, Article XVIII, Section 3—Zoning—Oil and gas—
R.C. 1509.02—Regulation of oil and gas activities and operations—
Municipality may not “discriminate against, unfairly impede, or obstruct” 
such activities—R.C. 1509.02 is general law. 
(No. 2013-0465—Submitted February 26, 2014—Decided February 17, 2015.) 
APPEAL from the Court of Appeals for Summit County, 
No. 25953, 2013-Ohio-356. 
______________________ 
FRENCH, J. 
{¶ 1} R.C. Chapter 1509 regulates oil and gas wells and production 
operations in Ohio.  While it preserves certain powers for local governments, it 
gives state government “sole and exclusive authority” to regulate the permitting, 
location, and spacing of oil and gas wells and production operations within the 
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state.  R.C. 1509.02.  In this case, we decide whether the Home Rule Amendment 
to the Ohio Constitution grants to the city of Munroe Falls to power to enforce its 
own permitting scheme atop the state system.  We hold that it does not. 
Background 
{¶ 2} In 2011, appellee, Beck Energy Corporation (“Beck Energy”), 
obtained a permit from a division of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources 
(“ODNR”) for the purpose of drilling an oil and gas well on property within the 
corporate limits of appellant, the city of Munroe Falls.  This appeal arises from 
the city’s attempt to stop Beck Energy from drilling based on its own municipal 
ordinances. 
R.C. Chapter 1509 
{¶ 3} Beck Energy obtained its state permit through R.C. Chapter 1509.  
In 2004, the General Assembly amended that chapter to provide “uniform 
statewide regulation” of oil and gas production within Ohio and to repeal “all 
provisions of law that granted or alluded to the authority of local governments to 
adopt concurrent requirements with the state.”  Legislative Service Commission 
Bill Analysis, Sub.H.B. No. 278 (2004); R.C. 1509.02, Sub.H.B. No. 278, 150 
Ohio Laws, Part III, 4157. 
{¶ 4} In its current form, R.C. 1509.02 centralizes regulatory authority in 
state government, entrusting a division of ODNR with “sole and exclusive 
authority to regulate the permitting, location, and spacing of oil and gas wells and 
production operations” within Ohio (excepting certain activities regulated by 
federal laws).  R.C. 1509.02 preserves the regulatory powers granted to local 
governments by R.C. 723.01 and 4513.34.  R.C. 723.01 grants municipal 
corporations “special power” to control public highways, streets, avenues, alleys, 
sidewalks, public grounds, bridges, aqueducts, and viaducts.  R.C. 4513.34 grants 
local authorities the power to grant permits to operate certain heavy vehicles on 
highways within their jurisdiction.  But R.C. 1509.02 expressly prohibits a local 
January Term, 2015 
3 
 
government from exercising those powers “in a manner that discriminates against, 
unfairly impedes, or obstructs oil and gas activities and operations regulated under 
[R.C. Chapter 1509].” 
{¶ 5} A state permit is essential for any person seeking to drill a new 
well, drill an existing well deeper, reopen a well, convert a well to any use other 
than its original purpose, or plug back a well to a source of supply different from 
the existing pool.  R.C. 1509.05.  An applicant may obtain a permit through the 
procedures outlined in R.C. 1509.06, and the division chief must promulgate 
standards for obtaining a permit, including standards that address the safety of 
well drilling and operation, protection of the public and private water supply, 
fencing and screening of surface facilities, waste containment and disposal, 
construction of access roads, and noise mitigation.  R.C. 1509.03(A); see also 
Ohio Adm.Code Chapter 1501:9-1.  The regulations also establish well spacing 
and setback requirements based on the depth of the well and the well’s proximity 
to other wells and private dwellings.  See Ohio Adm.Code 1501:9-1-04(C), and 
1501:9-1-05. 
{¶ 6} In this case, Beck Energy’s state permit contained a total of 67 
conditions.  The first 38 related to the site’s designation as a “Municipal Wellhead 
Protection Area” and addressed issues including site preparation, pit construction, 
and waste disposal.  The remaining 29 conditions governed “Urbanized Areas” 
and included site-specific restrictions relating to issues such as tree trimming, 
erosion control, noise mitigation, and parking.  See R.C. 1509.01(Y) (defining 
“urbanized area”).  To obtain a permit to drill a new well in an urbanized area, an 
applicant must provide a sworn statement that it has provided notice to the owner 
of each parcel of real property located within 500 feet of the surface location of 
the well, as well as to the “executive authority of the municipal corporation” in 
which the well is to be located.  R.C. 1509.06(A)(9). 
 
 
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The Ordinances 
{¶ 7} Soon after Beck Energy began drilling, the city issued a stop-work 
order and filed a complaint seeking injunctive relief in the Summit County Court 
of Common Pleas.  The complaint alleged that Beck Energy was violating 
multiple provisions of the Munroe Falls Codified Ordinances.  This appeal 
concerns five of those ordinances, which the city passed between 1980 and 1995. 
{¶ 8} The first is a general zoning ordinance in Chapter 1163 that 
prohibits any construction or excavation without a “zoning certificate” issued by 
the zoning inspector.  Munroe Falls Codified Ordinances 1163.02(a).  To obtain 
the zoning certificate, the applicant must obtain various approvals from the 
planning commission, the city council, the zoning inspector, and when a variance 
is being requested, the board of zoning appeals.  Munroe Falls Codified 
Ordinances 1163.02(a)(1) through (4).  For example, an applicant seeking 
approval of a conditional use must obtain a “conditional zoning certificate” by 
following the procedures in section 1163.04, which include notice and a public 
hearing.  Munroe Falls Codified Ordinances 1163.02(a)(3); see also section 
1163.04.  The conditional zoning certificate includes any “conditions, 
stipulations, and safeguards that have been approved by the Planning Commission 
and Council.”  Munroe Falls Ordinances 1163.02(a)(3). 
{¶ 9} The remaining four ordinances are in Chapter 1329, which 
specifically relates to oil and gas drilling.  Munroe Falls Codified Ordinances 
1329.03 prohibits any person from drilling a well for oil, gas, or other 
hydrocarbons “until such time as such persons have wholly complied with all 
provisions of this chapter and a conditional zoning certificate has been granted by 
Council to such person for a period of one year.”  Munroe Falls Codified 
Ordinances 1329.04 and 1329.06 require an applicant to pay a fee of $800 and 
deposit $2,000 for a performance bond at the time of filing.  Finally, Munroe Falls 
Codified Ordinances 1329.05 requires a public hearing at least three weeks prior 
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5 
 
to drilling and requires the permit applicant to schedule the hearing and notify all 
property owners and residents within 1,000 feet of the well head. 
{¶ 10} A person who violates any of the ordinances in Chapter 1329 of 
the Munroe Falls Codified Ordinances is guilty of a first-degree misdemeanor and 
“shall be imprisoned for a period not to exceed six months, or fined not more than 
one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both.”  Munroe Falls Codified Ordinances 
1329.99.  Each day of a violation constitutes a separate offense.  Id. 
The Injunction 
{¶ 11} In opposing the city’s request for injunctive relief, Beck Energy 
argued that the city’s ordinances conflicted with the statewide regulatory scheme 
in R.C. Chapter 1509.  The trial court disagreed and granted the city’s request for 
a permanent injunction prohibiting Beck Energy from drilling until it complies 
with all local ordinances. 
{¶ 12} The court of appeals reversed, holding that R.C. 1509.02 
prohibited the city from enforcing the five ordinances.  9th Dist. Summit No. 
25953, 2013-Ohio-356, 989 N.E.2d 85.  The court of appeals rejected the city’s 
argument that the Home Rule Amendment allowed it to impose its own permit 
requirements on oil and gas drilling operations.  Id. at ¶ 74. 
{¶ 13} We accepted jurisdiction over the city’s appeal. 
Analysis 
{¶ 14} The question here is whether the city’s ordinances represent a valid 
exercise of its home-rule power.  Under the Home Rule Amendment to the Ohio 
Constitution, “Municipalities shall have authority to exercise all powers of local 
self-government and to adopt and enforce within their limits such local police, 
sanitary and other similar regulations, as are not in conflict with general laws.”  
Article XVIII, Section 3.  This amendment gives municipalities the “broadest 
possible powers of self-government in connection with all matters which are 
strictly local and do not impinge upon matters which are of a state-wide nature or 
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interest.” State ex rel. Hackley v. Edmonds, 150 Ohio St. 203, 212, 80 N.E.2d 769 
(1948). 
{¶ 15} The Home Rule Amendment does not, however, allow 
municipalities to exercise their police powers in a manner that “conflict[s] with 
general laws.”  Article XVIII, Section 3; see also State ex rel. Mill Creek Metro. 
Park Dist. Bd. of Commrs. v. Tablack, 86 Ohio St.3d 293, 296, 714 N.E.2d 917 
(1999).  Therefore, a municipal ordinance must yield to a state statute if (1) the 
ordinance is an exercise of the police power, rather than of local self-government, 
(2) the statute is a general law, and (3) the ordinance is in conflict with the statute.  
Mendenhall v. Akron, 117 Ohio St.3d 33, 2008-Ohio-270, 881 N.E.2d 255, ¶ 17. 
{¶ 16} Under this three-step analysis, we conclude that the city’s 
ordinances must yield to R.C. 1509.02. 
The Ordinances Constitute an Exercise of the Police Power 
{¶ 17} The city does not dispute that its ordinances constitute an exercise 
of police power rather than local self-government.  Our precedent is clear on this 
point.  “[A]ny municipal ordinance, which prohibits the doing of something 
without a municipal license to do it, is a police regulation” within the meaning of 
the Home Rule Amendment.  Auxter v. Toledo, 173 Ohio St. 444, 446, 183 
N.E.2d 920 (1962); see also Rispo Realty & Dev. Co. v. Parma, 55 Ohio St.3d 
101, 103, 564 N.E.2d 425 (1990) (“Ohio law has long recognized that the 
enactment of zoning laws by a municipality is an exercise of its police power 
* * *”). 
{¶ 18} Here, the city’s ordinances do not regulate the form and structure 
of local government.  Instead, they prohibit—even criminalize—the act of drilling 
for oil and gas without a municipal permit.  Therefore, we agree that the 
ordinances represent an exercise of police power rather than local self-
government.  Now, we must turn to the question of whether R.C. 1509.02 is a 
general law. 
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7 
 
R.C. 1509.02 is a General Law 
{¶ 19} A statute qualifies as a general law if it satisfies four conditions.  It 
must (1) be part of a statewide and comprehensive legislative enactment, 
(2) apply to all parts of the state alike and operate uniformly throughout the state, 
(3) set forth police, sanitary, or similar regulations, rather than purport only to 
grant or limit legislative power of a municipal corporation to prescribe those 
regulations, and (4) prescribe a rule of conduct upon citizens generally.  
Mendenhall, 117 Ohio St.3d 33, 2008-Ohio-270, 881 N.E.2d 255, at ¶ 20; Canton 
v. State, 95 Ohio St.3d 149, 2002-Ohio-2005, 766 N.E.2d 963, syllabus. 
{¶ 20} The city disputes only the second of these conditions, arguing that 
R.C. 1509.02 does not apply to all parts of the state alike and does not operate 
uniformly throughout the state.  According to the city, the statute fails the 
uniformity requirement because only the eastern part of Ohio has economically 
viable quantities of gas and oil.  This argument is unpersuasive. 
{¶ 21} Even if we were to accept the city’s factual premise that drilling 
for oil and gas cannot occur in Ohio’s western counties, this does not prevent R.C. 
1509.02 from operating uniformly throughout the state.  The uniformity 
requirement comes from Article II, Section 26 of the Ohio Constitution, which 
states that “[a]ll laws, of a general nature, shall have a uniform operation 
throughout the State * * *.”  The purpose of this provision is not “to render 
invalid every law which does not operate upon all persons, property or political 
subdivisions within the state,” State ex rel. Stanton v. Powell, 109 Ohio St. 383, 
385, 142 N.E. 401 (1924), but simply to ensure that a general law operates 
uniformly with respect to every person and locality to which it relates. Id.; 
Beachwood v. Cuyahoga Cty. Bd. of Elections, 167 Ohio St. 369, 372, 148 N.E.2d 
921 (1958). We have recognized that a general law can operate uniformly 
throughout the state “even if the result * * * is that the statute does not operate in 
all geographic areas within the state.” Clermont Environmental Reclamation Co. 
SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 
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v. Wiederhold, 2 Ohio St.3d 44, 49, 442 N.E.2d 1278 (1982); see also E. 
Liverpool v. Columbiana Cty. Budget Comm., 114 Ohio St.3d 133, 2007-Ohio-
3759, 870 N.E.2d 705, ¶ 15 (stating that a law does not lack uniformity simply 
because it has a “disparate geographic effect”). 
{¶ 22} The city’s argument is similar to the one we rejected in Clermont.  
There, we considered a statute that regulated hazardous-waste facilities and 
prohibited any political subdivisions from imposing additional regulations.  Id. at 
44, 49-50.  While recognizing that such facilities might not be environmentally 
feasible in “some areas of the state,” we concluded that the law operated 
uniformly throughout the state because its terms applied to all political 
subdivisions equally and did not create any classifications or exemptions favoring 
some over others.  Id. at 50. 
{¶ 23} We reach the same conclusion here.  Whether or not every acre of 
Ohio constitutes viable drilling land, R.C. 1509.02 imposes the same obligations 
and grants the same privileges to anyone seeking to engage in oil and gas drilling 
and production operations within the state.  Moreover, the statute applies to all 
municipalities in the same fashion, see Ohioans for Concealed Carry, Inc. v. 
Clyde, 120 Ohio St.3d 96, 2008-Ohio-4605, 896 N.E.2d 967, ¶ 45, by prohibiting 
all local governments from interfering in the regulation of any oil and gas 
activities covered by R.C. Chapter 1509.  R.C. 1509.02.  Accordingly, we agree 
that R.C. 1509.02 constitutes a general law for purposes of our analysis. 
The Ordinances Conflict with R.C. 1509.02 
{¶ 24} Having found that the ordinances constitute an exercise of police 
power and that the statute is a general law, we must determine whether the 
ordinances and the statute conflict.  A conflict exists if “the ordinance permits or 
licenses that which the statute forbids and prohibits, and vice versa.”  Struthers v. 
Sokol, 108 Ohio St. 263, 140 N.E. 519 (1923), paragraph two of the syllabus; see 
also Ohioans for Concealed Carry at ¶ 26.  
January Term, 2015 
9 
 
{¶ 25} The city’s ordinances conflict with R.C. 1509.02 in two ways.  
First, they prohibit what R.C. 1509.02 allows: state-licensed oil and gas 
production within Munroe Falls.  Beck Energy’s state permit expressly “granted 
permission” to “Drill [a] New Well” for “Oil & Gas” within Munroe Falls.  But 
the city ordinances would render the permit meaningless unless Beck Energy also 
satisfied the permitting requirements in Chapters 1163 and 1329 of the Munroe 
Falls Ordinances.  Section 1163.02(a) prohibited Beck Energy from building any 
structure or beginning “any excavation” until it followed all of the procedures 
necessary to obtain a zoning certificate.  Munroe Falls Codified Ordinances 
1163.02(a) and (b).  Even if Beck Energy were to satisfy the conditions of 
Chapter 1163, without violating the 67 conditions of its state permit, Beck Energy 
still could not “drill a well for oil, gas, or other hydrocarbons” until it “wholly 
complied with all provisions” in Chapter 1329.  Munroe Falls Codified 
Ordinances 1329.03(a).  To comply with these provisions, Beck Energy would 
need to (1) wait one year after the city council approved the conditional zoning 
certificate, 1329.03(a), (2) pay a nonrefundable $800 application fee, 1329.04, (3) 
deposit a $2,000 “performance bond,” 1329.06, and (4) schedule a public meeting 
at least three weeks prior to drilling, 1329.05(a). 
{¶ 26} This is a classic licensing conflict under our home-rule precedent.  
We have consistently held that a municipal-licensing ordinance conflicts with a 
state-licensing scheme if the “local ordinance restricts an activity which a state 
license permits.”  Ohio Assn. of Private Detective Agencies, Inc. v. N. Olmsted, 65 
Ohio St.3d 242, 245, 602 N.E.2d 1147 (1992); Auxter, 173 Ohio St. at 447, 183 
N.E.2d 920; Anderson v. Brown, 13 Ohio St.2d 53, 58, 233 N.E.2d 584 (1968); 
see also Am. Fin. Servs. Assn. v. Cleveland, 112 Ohio St.3d 170, 2006-Ohio-6043, 
858 N.E.2d 776, ¶ 46 (stating that “any local ordinances that seek to prohibit 
conduct that the state has authorized are in conflict with the state statutes”). 
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{¶ 27} In Auxter, for instance, the plaintiff obtained a state license to sell 
beer and wine, but the city ordinance prohibited such sales without a municipal 
license.  Recognizing a conflict, we determined that “the ordinance forbids and 
prohibits what the statute permits and licenses,” because “[e]ven though plaintiff 
has a state license authorizing him to carry on the business of selling beer in 
Toledo, the ordinance prohibits him from doing so if he does not pay for and 
secure a municipal license to do so.”  (Emphasis sic.)  Id. at 447.  Likewise, in 
Anderson, we concluded that any municipal ordinance that prohibits the operation 
of a mobile-home park without a municipal license is in conflict with a statute that 
gave state-license holders the right to operate those parks.  Id. at 58.  We have 
found a conflict to exist between a statewide regulatory scheme governing 
construction and demolition debris facilities and a general zoning ordinance that 
prohibits such facilities, Sheffield v. Rowland, 87 Ohio St.3d 9, 12, 716 N.E.2d 
1121 (1999), between an ordinance that requires a licensing fee for private 
investigators and a “statewide regulatory program” that specifically prohibits the 
imposition of municipal fees, Ohio Assn. of Private Detective Agencies at 245, 
and between a statute regulating the permitting of concealed handguns and a 
municipal ordinance prohibiting handguns in a public park, Ohioans for 
Concealed Carry, Inc. v. Clyde, 120 Ohio St.3d 96, 2008-Ohio-4605, 896 N.E.2d 
967, ¶ 53. 
{¶ 28} Beneath this weight of authority, the city argues that there is no 
conflict, because the statute and the ordinances “regulate two different things.”  It 
explains: the ordinances address “traditional concerns of zoning,” whereas R.C. 
1509.02 relates to “technical safety and correlative rights topics.”  This distinction 
is fanciful, and it ignores the plain text of the ordinances, as well as the statute.  
The ordinances and R.C. 1509.02 unambiguously regulate the same subject 
matter—oil and gas drilling—and they conflict in doing so.  Under the city’s 
ordinances, a state permit holder cannot begin “any excavation” or “drill a well 
January Term, 2015 
11 
 
for oil, gas, or other hydrocarbons” without fully complying with local provisions.  
Munroe Falls Codified Ordinances 1163.02(a) and 1329.03(a).  And state law 
prohibits any person—including a municipal permit holder—from drilling for oil 
or gas “without having a permit to do so issued by the chief of the division oil and 
gas resources management.”  R.C. 1509.05.  This case is indistinguishable from 
our long line of conflict precedent.  See Auxter, 173 Ohio St. at 447, 183 N.E.2d 
920; Anderson, 13 Ohio St.2d at 58, 233 N.E.2d 584; Am. Fin. Servs. Assn. at 
¶ 46; Neil House Hotel Co. v. Columbus, 144 Ohio St. 248, 58 N.E.2d 665 (1944), 
paragraph three of the syllabus.  Because Beck Energy obtained a valid state 
permit in accordance with R.C. Chapter 1509, the city cannot “extinguish 
privileges arising thereunder through the enforcement of zoning regulations.”  
Westlake v. Mascot Petroleum Co., Inc., 61 Ohio St.3d 161, 573 N.E.2d 1068 
(1991), paragraph two of the syllabus. 
{¶ 29} The city’s ordinances create a second type of conflict with R.C. 
1509.02.  “In determining whether a conflict does exist, a court refers to the 
language of the statute to determine whether the General Assembly intended to 
preempt local regulation on the subject.”  Westlake v. Mascot Petroleum Co., 61 
Ohio St.3d 161, 164, 573 N.E.2d 1068 (1991).  See, e.g., Clermont, 2 Ohio St.3d 
44, 442 N.E.2d 1278; Ohio Assn. of Private Detective Agencies, 65 Ohio St.3d at 
245, 602 N.E.2d 1147. 
{¶ 30} R.C. 1509.02 not only gives ODNR “sole and exclusive authority 
to regulate the permitting, location, and spacing of oil and gas wells and 
production operations” within Ohio; it explicitly reserves for the state, to the 
exclusion of local governments, the right to regulate “all aspects” of the location, 
drilling, and operation of oil and gas wells, including “permitting relating to those 
activities.”  While R.C. 1509.02 preserves the extensive regulatory control given 
to municipalities over a wide range of infrastructure—from alleys to aqueducts, 
see R.C. 723.01 and 4513.34—it explicitly prohibits them from exercising those 
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powers in a way that “discriminates against, unfairly impedes, or obstructs” the 
activities and operations covered by R.C. 1509.02. 
{¶ 31} In Clermont, 2 Ohio St.3d 44, 442 N.E.2d 1278, we rejected a 
home rule challenge involving a similar provision, which prohibited any political 
subdivision from requiring additional zoning or other approval for the 
construction and operation of a state-licensed hazardous-waste facility.  Id.  at 49, 
quoting R.C. 3734.05(D)(3), now (E).  In our view, this language was sufficient to 
supersede “any conflicting municipal ordinance.”  Id. at 49.  We reach the same 
conclusion here. 
{¶ 32} Our recent decision in Cleveland v. State, 138 Ohio St.3d 232, 
2014-Ohio-86, 5 N.E.3d 644, does not stand for a contrary proposition.  In fact, 
that decision does not even involve the conflict prong of the home-rule analysis.  
We applied the general-law prong to R.C. 4921.25, the statute granting state 
regulatory authority over towing companies.  Id. at ¶ 1, 15.  Applying the four-
part general-law analysis in Canton, 95 Ohio St.3d 149, 2002-Ohio-2005, 766 
N.E.2d 963, we struck down a part of the statute that exempted towing entities 
from municipal licensing and registration ordinances.  Id. at ¶ 16.  We reasoned 
that the exemption did not prescribe police, sanitary, or similar regulations, but 
instead purported only to limit legislative power of a municipal corporation to 
prescribe police, sanitary, or similar regulations.  Id. at ¶ 8, 16.  We did not decide 
whether the city ordinances in that case conflicted with general law: “that issue 
[was] not before us.”  Id. at ¶ 23. 
{¶ 33} The city presents a variety of policy reasons why local 
governments and the state should work together, with the state controlling the 
details of well construction and operations and the municipalities designating 
which land within their borders is available for those activities.  This is no doubt 
an interesting policy question, but it is one for our elected representatives in the 
General Assembly, not the judiciary.  The issue before us is not whether the law 
January Term, 2015 
13 
 
should generally allow municipalities to have concurrent regulatory authority, but 
whether R.C. 1509.02 and the Home Rule Amendment do allow for the kind of 
double licensing at issue here.  They do not.  We make no judgment as to whether 
other ordinances could coexist with the General Assembly’s comprehensive 
regulatory scheme.  Rather, our holding is limited to the five municipal 
ordinances at issue in this case. 
Conclusion 
{¶ 34} Article II, Section 36 vests the General Assembly with the power 
to pass laws providing for the “regulation of methods of mining, weighing, 
measuring and marketing coal, oil, gas and all other minerals.”  (Emphasis 
added.)  With the comprehensive regulatory scheme in R.C. Chapter 1509, the 
General Assembly has done exactly that. We hold that the Home Rule 
Amendment to the Ohio Constitution, Article XVIII, Section 3, does not allow a 
municipality to discriminate against, unfairly impede, or obstruct oil and gas 
activities and production operations that the state has permitted under R.C. 
Chapter 1509. 
{¶ 35} Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the court of appeals. 
Judgment affirmed. 
O’CONNOR, C.J., and KENNEDY, J., concur. 
O’DONNELL, J., concurs in judgment only. 
PFEIFER, LANZINGER, and O’NEILL, JJ., dissent. 
______________________________ 
O’DONNELL, J., separately concurring in judgment only. 
{¶ 36} R.C. 1509.02 vests the Division of Oil and Gas Resources 
Management of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (“ODNR”) with “sole 
and exclusive authority to regulate the permitting, location, and spacing of oil and 
gas wells within the state,” and I concur with the determination that this statute 
preempts local permitting ordinances applicable to the construction and operation 
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of oil and gas wells within the municipality.  Here, the city of Munroe Falls 
precludes drilling for oil and gas without obtaining a permit from the city and 
complying with its regulations on the technical aspects of drilling.  Munroe Falls 
Codified Ordinances 1329.03.  This parallel municipal permitting process for oil 
and gas wells conflicts with R.C. 1509.02, a general law, and is therefore 
preempted by R.C. Chapter 1509. 
{¶ 37} Munroe Falls also regulates the placement of oil and gas wells 
through its zoning code as a conditional use in an I-1 (industrial) district, 
requiring a conditional use certificate before construction or excavation can 
commence.  Munroe Falls Codified Ordinances 1133.03(c).  However, in the case 
of oil and gas wells, the conditional use certificate specified by the zoning code is, 
in fact, the same permit required for oil and gas wells pursuant to Munroe Falls 
Codified Ordinances Chapter 1329. See Munroe Falls Codified Ordinances 
1141.05(bb)(5) (“ [Oil and gas wells] shall conform with all applicable rules and 
regulations set forth in the Codified Ordinances of the City of Munroe Falls”); 
1329.03(a) (prohibiting drilling before a conditional use certificate has been 
granted).  Because the zoning code incorporates the parallel municipal permitting 
scheme that is applicable only to oil and gas wells before allowing drilling as a 
conditional use, it too conflicts with general law and is also preempted by R.C. 
Chapter 1509. 
{¶ 38} I write separately to emphasize the limited scope of our decision; 
“our holding is limited to the five municipal ordinances at issue in this case.”  
Lead opinion at ¶ 33.  This appeal does not present the question whether R.C. 
1509.02 conflicts with local land use ordinances that address only the traditional 
concerns of zoning laws, such as ensuring compatibility with local 
neighborhoods, preserving property values, or effectuating a municipality’s long-
term plan for development, by limiting oil and gas wells to certain zoning districts 
January Term, 2015 
15 
 
without imposing a separate permitting regime applicable only to oil and gas 
drilling. 
{¶ 39} Thus, in my view, it remains to be decided whether the General 
Assembly intended to wholly supplant all local zoning ordinances limiting land 
uses to certain zoning districts without regulating the details of oil and gas drilling 
expressly addressed by R.C. Chapter 1509. 
{¶ 40} Because municipal zoning is an exercise of police power, Hudson 
v. Albrecht, Inc., 9 Ohio St.3d 69, 72, 458 N.E.2d 852 (1984), municipalities have 
the authority pursuant to Article XVIII, Section 3 of the Ohio Constitution to 
enact zoning ordinances that are not in conflict with general laws.  As we recently 
recognized in Cleveland v. State, 138 Ohio St.3d 232, 2014-Ohio-86, 5 N.E.3d 
644, “The General Assembly may not by statute prohibit the municipal home-rule 
authority granted by Article XVIII, Section 3 of the Ohio Constitution,” id. at 
¶ 24, and “municipalities may supplement state law in * * * unregulated areas, 
provided that the city ordinances do not conflict with general laws,” id. at ¶ 16. 
{¶ 41} Importantly, a municipality’s authority to enact zoning ordinances 
does not flow solely from the Ohio Constitution.  R.C. 713.07 expressly provides 
that municipalities,  
 
in the interest of the promotion of the public health, safety, 
convenience, comfort, prosperity, or general welfare, may regulate 
and restrict the location of buildings and other structures and of 
premises to be used for trade, industry, residence, or other 
specified uses, and for such purposes may divide the municipal 
corporation into districts of such number, shape, and area as are 
best suited to carry out the purposes of this section. 
 
SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 
16 
 
Thus, in addition to power derived from the Home Rule Amendment, 
municipalities have statutory authority to regulate land uses within zoning 
districts to promote the public health, safety, convenience, comfort, prosperity, 
and general welfare.   
{¶ 42} We are obliged to accord “a strong presumption * * * in favor of 
the validity of [a zoning] ordinance.” Albrecht at 71.  In addition, R.C. 1.51 
provides that when statutory provisions such as R.C. 1509.02 and 713.07 appear 
to conflict, “they shall be construed, if possible, so that effect is given to both.”  
Generally, when construing a statute, our paramount concern is “the legislative 
intent in the statute's enactment, and to discern this intent, we read words and 
phrases in context according to the rules of grammar and common usage.”  Wilson 
v. Kasich, 134 Ohio St.3d 221, 2012-Ohio-5367, 981 N.E.2d 814, ¶ 13.  But 
pursuant to R.C. 1.42, “Words and phrases that have acquired a technical or 
particular meaning, whether by legislative definition or otherwise, shall be 
construed accordingly.” 
{¶ 43} R.C. 1509.02 vests ODNR with sole and exclusive authority to 
regulate the location and spacing of oil and gas wells, but “location” and 
“spacing” have specialized, technical meanings in oil and gas law.  As a leading 
treatise explains, 
 
The purposes of statutes and administrative orders fixing 
the location of oil and gas wells with respect to surface property 
lines and other wells are to protect the rights of land or mineral 
owners by preventing net drainage between tracts, to prevent 
economic waste resulting from the draining of unnecessary wells 
and to prevent physical waste which may be caused by crowded 
drilling operations. 
 
January Term, 2015 
17 
 
1 Summers, The Law of Oil & Gas, Section 5.1, at 268 (3d Ed.2004).  The 
“spacing and location of wells * * * maximize the efficient production of oil and 
gas,” id., Section 1.8, at 7, and protect correlative rights.  See Bernstein v. Bush, 
29 Cal.2d 773, 780, 177 P.2d 913 (1947) (“The wasteful use of offset wells was 
recognized as one of the evils sought to be minimized by the enactment of well 
spacing regulations”); Samson Resources Co. v. Corp. Comm., 1985 OK 31, 702 
P.2d 19, 22 (explaining that location and spacing orders are justified by the public 
interest in correlative rights); Coastal Oil & Gas Corp. v. Garza Energy Trust, 
268 S.W.3d 1, 15 (Tex.2008) (noting that spacing and density orders protect 
correlative rights of land owners while serving the state interest in conserving 
natural resources). 
{¶ 44} The terms “location” and “spacing” thus relate to the placement of 
wells on a tract in relation to the resource pool and to each other.  Scientific 
expertise regarding the physical characteristics of oil and gas reserves is required 
to efficiently produce oil and gas, prevent waste, and protect the correlative rights 
of neighbors, which is the basis for regulating the location and spacing of wells in 
the first place.  See generally 1 Summers, The Law of Oil & Gas, Sections 3.9 and 
4.28.  In contrast, that same scientific and regulatory expertise is not required to 
determine whether an oil and gas well is compatible with the character and 
aesthetics of a particular zoning district, such as a residential neighborhood, and 
we generally presume that zoning authorities are far more familiar with local 
conditions and therefore are better able to make land use decisions.  See generally 
Albrecht., 9 Ohio St.3d at 71, 458 N.E.2d 852.  We also expect that those who 
make land use decisions will be directly accountable to the people affected by 
them.  Regulators at ODNR, on the other hand, are not. 
{¶ 45} Courts of last resort in other jurisdictions have declined to view 
preemptive language in oil and gas statutes that preclude all local regulation of oil 
and gas drilling as irreconcilable with local zoning laws.  In Wallach v. Dryden, 
SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 
18 
 
23 N.Y.3d 728, 992 N.Y.S.2d 710 (2014), the Court of Appeals of New York held 
that a statute expressly superseding all local laws “relating to the regulation” of 
the oil and gas industry “preempt[s] only local laws that purport to regulate the 
actual operations of oil and gas activities, not zoning ordinances that restrict or 
prohibit certain land uses within town boundaries.”  Id. at 744, 746.  The Supreme 
Court of Pennsylvania in Huntley & Huntley, Inc. v. Oakmont Borough Council, 
600 Pa. 207, 964 A.2d 855 (2009), concluded that a statute superseding all 
municipal ordinances purporting to regulate oil and gas well operations does not 
preempt a local zoning restriction excluding oil and gas wells from certain 
residential districts.  Id. at 225-226.  The Supreme Court of Colorado, in holding 
that state regulation of the oil and gas industry did not preempt a county’s land 
use authority, put it aptly in explaining that “we reasonably may expect that any 
legislative intent to prohibit a county from exercising its land-use authority over 
those areas of the county in which oil development or operations are taking place 
or are contemplated would be clearly and unequivocally stated.”  La Plata Cty. 
Bd. of Commrs. v. Bowen/Edwards Assocs., Inc., 830 P.2d 1045, 1057 
(Colo.1992). 
{¶ 46} In enacting R.C. Chapter 1509, the General Assembly sought to 
preempt the inconsistent patchwork of local health and safety regulations 
governing the technical aspects of drilling that had been permitted by the former 
version of the statute.  See generally Newbury Twp. Bd. of Trustees v. Lomak 
Petroleum (Ohio), Inc., 62 Ohio St.3d 387, 389, 583 N.E.2d 302 (1992) (noting 
that former R.C. 1509.39 had provided that “local governments are not prevented 
from enacting and enforcing health and safety standards for the drilling and 
exploration of oil and gas, provided that they are not less restrictive than existing 
state requirements”).  If the legislature had intended to override all local zoning 
ordinances that affect oil and gas drilling, it could have declared that intent, such 
as it did in the case of hazardous waste facilities, R.C. 3734.05(E), public utilities, 
January Term, 2015 
19 
 
R.C. 519.211(A), casinos, R.C. 3772.26(A), and licensed residential facilities, 
R.C. 5123.19(P).  It could also have created a statutory scheme that addresses 
local land use and planning issues.  Yet it did not do so. 
{¶ 47} Nothing in R.C. Chapter 1509 expressly addresses zoning or 
requires ODNR to regulate the location of oil and gas wells to ensure 
compatibility with local land use, preserve property values, effectuate a 
municipality’s long-term plan for development, or uphold any of the other 
traditional goals of zoning.  It has not addressed those matters and instead permits 
ODNR to deny an oil and gas well permit if “there is a substantial risk that the 
operation will result in violations of this chapter or rules adopted under it that will 
present an imminent danger to public health or safety or damage to the 
environment. * * *”  R.C. 1509.06(F). 
{¶ 48} Accordingly, whether a municipality has authority to enact zoning 
ordinances that affect oil and gas wells within its territory is a question yet to be 
decided, and for that reason, I concur in the resolution of this case. 
KENNEDY, J., concurs in the foregoing opinion. 
______________________________ 
PFEIFER, J., dissenting. 
{¶ 49} The oil booms keep coming in Ohio.  With booms come creative 
and desperate methods of staking a claim.  In the 1890s, Ohio became the site of 
some of the world’s first offshore drilling, as oil derricks were constructed in the 
middle of Grand Lake St. Mary’s. Oeters & Gulick, Images of America: Miami 
and Erie Canal 79 (2014).  It’s said that during the boom in the villages of 
Bremen and New Straitsville in the early 1900s, “[w]ells were often so close 
together that a person could jump from one derrick floor to another.”   Spencer, A 
Journey Through Two Early Ohio Oil Booms: The Northwest Ohio and the 
Bremen-New Straitsville Booms, Oil-Industry History (Dec.2008), abstracted at 
http://www.petroleumhistory.org /journal/vol_9. html#spencer.  In the 1960s in 
SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 
20 
 
Morrow County, “wells [could] be seen in farm fields and backyards, around 
cemeteries and even on home-plate of what was a schoolyard baseball diamond in 
the village of Edison.” Oil Wells Bloom in Morrow County, 1 in Every 4 Good, 
Sandusky Register (Feb. 3, 1964) 5. 
{¶ 50} It appears that the General Assembly has attempted to bring order 
to Ohio’s historically scattershot way of dealing with oil booms.  I would find that 
R.C. 1509.02 leaves room for municipalities to employ zoning regulations that do 
not conflict with the statute.  By leaving some space for local control, the General 
Assembly has recognized that a “big picture” approach with local input is the best 
way to encourage the responsible and sustainable development of Ohio’s natural 
resources. 
{¶ 51} Accordingly, I join Justice Lanzinger’s dissent. 
______________________________ 
LANZINGER, J., dissenting. 
{¶ 52} Because it is not clear to me that the Munroe Falls zoning 
ordinances actually conflict with a general state statute, I respectfully dissent.  I 
believe that local zoning ordinances can have a place beside the state’s statutes 
regulating oil and gas activities. 
{¶ 53} The lead opinion restricts home-rule power using language from 
R.C. 1509.02, which sets forth the General Assembly’s intent to create the 
Division of Oil and Gas Resources Management within the Department of Natural 
Resources:   
 
Nothing in this section affects the authority granted to the director 
of transportation and local authorities in section 723.01 or 4513.34 
of the Revised Code, provided that the authority granted under 
those sections shall not be exercised in a manner that discriminates 
January Term, 2015 
21 
 
against, unfairly impedes, or obstructs oil and gas activities and 
operations regulated under this chapter. 
 
{¶ 54} But R.C. 723.01 relates to public roads, and R.C. 4513.34 to 
certain highway permits.  Neither mentions local zoning ordinances. 
{¶ 55} Article II, Section 36 of the Ohio Constitution vests the General 
Assembly with the power to pass laws providing for the “regulation of methods of 
mining, weighing, measuring and marketing coal, oil, gas and all other minerals.”  
(Emphasis added.)  R.C. 1509.02 has broad language stating that “regulation of 
oil and gas activities is a matter of general statewide interest that requires uniform 
statewide regulation” and that R.C. Chapter 1509 constitutes “a comprehensive 
plan with respect to all aspects of the locating, drilling, well stimulation, 
completing, and operating of oil and gas wells within this state, including site 
construction and restoration, permitting related to those activities, and the disposal 
of wastes from those wells.” 
{¶ 56} But the broad language of a preemption clause is not sufficient to 
create a conflict.  We have never held that a preemption statement alone is 
sufficient to divest municipalities of their constitutional right to home rule.  To the 
contrary, a declaration by the General Assembly of its intent to preempt a field of 
legislation “does not trump the constitutional authority of municipalities to enact 
legislation pursuant to the Home Rule Amendment, provided that the local 
legislation is not in conflict with general laws.”  Am. Fin. Servs. Assn. v. 
Cleveland, 112 Ohio St.3d 170, 2006-Ohio-6043, 858 N.E.2d 776, ¶ 31.  See also 
Ohioans for Concealed Carry, Inc. v. Clyde, 120 Ohio St.3d 96, 2008-Ohio-4605, 
896 N.E.2d 967, ¶ 29. 
{¶ 57} While important in determining whether a statute is a general law, 
a preemption statement alone has no relevance to the existence or nonexistence of 
any conflict between local and state regulations. 
SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 
22 
 
R.C. 1509.02 does not specifically prohibit local zoning regulation 
{¶ 58} R.C. Chapter 1509 and regulations governing the drilling of oil and 
gas wells reveal that there is no explicit reference to local zoning.  “In order for 
such a conflict [between state laws and local ordinances] to arise, the state statute 
must positively permit what the ordinance prohibits, or vice versa, regardless of 
the extent of state regulation concerning the same object.” Cincinnati v. Hoffman, 
31 Ohio St.2d 163, 169, 285 N.E.2d 714 (1972).  R.C. 1509.02 subjects the 
drillers of oil and gas wells to the supervision of a state agency—the Ohio 
Department of Natural Resources (“ODNR”).  But the statute itself does not set 
forth any requirements that conflict with the city’s zoning ordinances.  Nor does 
R.C. 1509.02 purport to take away authority from municipalities in enacting their 
own police, sanitary, and other similar regulations in this area.  The vague 
declaration of intent to occupy the field is insufficient to show an actual conflict, 
and nothing in the statute expressly prohibits supplemental, nonconflicting local 
regulation. There is room for both state and local regulation for the drilling of oil 
and gas. 
{¶ 59} A recent case is illustrative.  We recently severed part of R.C. 
4921.25 because it purported to preempt or limit legislative power of municipal 
corporations to pass police, sanitary, or similar regulations relating to tow-truck 
operations.  Cleveland v. State, 138 Ohio St.3d 232, 2014-Ohio-86, 5 N.E.3d 644, 
¶ 16.  We relied on Article XVIII, Section 3 of the Ohio Constitution, which 
provides that “[m]unicipalities shall have authority * * * to adopt and enforce 
within their limits such local police, sanitary and other similar regulations, as are 
not in conflict with general laws.” Id. at ¶ 16.  Although the statute had subjected 
towing entities to regulation by the Public Utilities Commission, we recognized 
that there were areas that might not be regulated by the PUCO, thus allowing 
municipalities to supplement the state law.  Id.  Because the second sentence of 
January Term, 2015 
23 
 
R.C. 4921.25 attempted to eliminate any municipal regulation, we held that it 
violated the Home Rule Amendment.  Id. 
{¶ 60} The General Assembly knows how to specifically prohibit the 
enforcement of local zoning ordinances as part of a statewide and comprehensive 
legislative scheme.  See, e.g.,  R.C. 3734.05(E) (hazardous waste—“No political 
subdivision of this state shall require any additional zoning or other approval, 
consent, permit, certificate, or condition for the construction or operation of a 
hazardous waste facility”); R.C. 3772.26(A) (casinos—“no local zoning, land use 
laws, subdivision regulations or similar provisions shall prohibit the development 
or operation of the four casino facilities”); R.C. 5103.0318 (foster homes—“No 
municipal, county, or township zoning regulation shall require a conditional 
permit or any other special exception certification for any certified foster home”); 
R.C. 5104.054 (day-care homes—“No municipal, county, or township zoning 
regulations shall require a conditional use permit or any other special exception 
certification for any such type B family day-care home”).  R.C. Chapter 1509 has 
no similar language. 
Municipalities may supplement general law with nonconflicting zoning 
ordinances  
{¶ 61} The city’s argument that there is no conflict because its ordinances 
and R.C. Chapter 1509 regulate different things is not “fanciful.”  Lead opinion at 
¶ 28.  The ordinances reflect traditional zoning concerns, while the state statutes 
control technical aspects of the drilling of an oil and gas well.  Local zoning exists 
to address such concerns as traffic control, traffic volume, property values, 
enhancement of municipal revenue, costs of municipal improvement, land use, 
nuisance abatement, and the general welfare and development of the community 
as a whole.  Willot v. Beachwood, 175 Ohio St. 557, 560, 197 N.E.2d 201 (1964).  
Municipalities are more familiar with local conditions and are in the best position 
to determine which zoning regulations will best promote the health, safety, and 
SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 
24 
 
general welfare of their communities.  Hudson v. Albrecht, Inc., 9 Ohio St.3d 69, 
71-72, 458 N.E.2d 852 (1984).  This is why a “strong presumption” exists in favor 
of the validity of the ordinances, id., a fact that the lead opinion does not mention. 
{¶ 62} Several cases are cited for the proposition that zoning regulations 
may not prohibit state licensing.  But two of the cases sidestepped any discussion 
of zoning.  See Auxter v. Toledo, 173 Ohio St. 444, 449, 183 N.E.2d 920 (1962) 
(addressing local liquor licensing ordinance and expressly declining to consider 
either the validity of any other local provisions purporting to regulate the business 
of selling liquor or the effect of municipal zoning regulations on that business); 
Anderson v. Brown, 13 Ohio St.2d 53, 59, 233 N.E.2d 584 (1968) (addressing 
portions of a township ordinance regulating health, safety, and licensing of trailer 
parks, but refusing to address other portions of the ordinance, which “may or may 
not be able to stand as zoning regulations”).  Aside from one case, the others did 
not mention zoning at all. 
{¶ 63} In Westlake v. Mascot Petroleum Co., Inc., 61 Ohio St.3d 161, 573 
N.E.2d 1068 (1991), we did hold that a municipality could not extinguish a state 
liquor license through local zoning enforcement.  But that decision rested in large 
part on statutory amendments that reserved the authority to regulate the sale and 
consumption of alcoholic beverages exclusively and unambiguously for the state.  
Id. at 167-168.  The same is not true here. 
{¶ 64} What I believe must be recognized is that the state and the local 
authority have differing interests in this important matter.  The purpose of 
comprehensive local zoning is exercise of local police power to promote the 
health, safety, and general welfare of the public. Negin v. Mentor Bd. of Bldg. & 
Zoning Appeals, 69 Ohio St.2d 492, 495, 433 N.E.2d 165 (1982). The purpose of 
R.C. Chapter 1509 is to regulate methods of producing oil and gas statewide.  
R.C. 1509.02.  These legislative purposes are distinct, and together they present 
dual conditions to the operation of the oil and gas industry. 
January Term, 2015 
25 
 
{¶ 65} The five ordinances of Munroe Falls were struck down by the 
court of appeals as though the city were attempting to impose its own 
requirements on the oil and gas drilling industry.  The court of appeals looked at 
the ordinances as supplanting rather than as supplementing state regulation.  No 
court has yet examined whether these city ordinances can stand separate and apart 
as zoning regulations that supplement the state regulatory scheme.  I would return 
this case to the appellate court to do so. 
{¶ 66} This case illustrates again the tension between local and state 
authorities and the exercise of the powers granted to each by the Constitution.  At 
the very least, there should be recognition of the distinct concerns of each 
legislative level and increased intergovernmental negotiations at the earliest 
opportunity. 
Other states have harmonized state and local regulation 
{¶ 67} Other jurisdictions have determined that local zoning is distinct 
from state regulation of the oil and gas industry and have decided that local and 
state governments can work together.  For example, the Colorado Supreme Court 
rejected an oil and gas developer’s request for a judgment declaring that the 
Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Act preempted county’s land-use regulations 
pertaining to oil and gas activities.  La Plata Cty. Bd. of Commrs. v. 
Bowen/Edwards Assoc., Inc., 830 P.2d 1045 (Colo.1992).  The Colorado Supreme 
Court concluded that state and local interests were distinct and not in express 
conflict, stating, 
 
While the governmental interests involved in oil and gas 
development and in land-use control at times may overlap, the core 
interests in these legitimate governmental functions are quite 
distinct.  The state’s interest in oil and gas development is centered 
primarily on the efficient production and utilization of the natural 
SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 
26 
 
resources in the state.  A county’s interest in land-use control, in 
contrast, is one of orderly development and use of land in a manner 
consistent with local demographic and environmental concerns.  
Given the rather distinct nature of these interests, we reasonably 
may expect that any legislative intent to prohibit a county from 
exercising its land-use authority over those areas of the county in 
which oil development or operations are taking place or are 
contemplated would be clearly and unequivocally stated.  We, 
however, find no such clear and unequivocal statement of 
legislative intent in the Oil and Gas Conservation Act. 
 
Id. at 1057.  In rejecting the notion that the state and local regulations were 
impliedly in conflict, the court stated: 
 
The state’s interest in oil and gas activities is not so patently 
dominant over a county’s interest in land-use control, nor are the 
respective interests of both the state and the county so 
irreconcilably in conflict, as to eliminate by necessary implication 
any prospect for a harmonious application of both regulatory 
schemes. 
 
Id. at 1058. 
{¶ 68} In a companion case, the Colorado Supreme Court determined that 
state law did preempt a city’s home-rule authority to ban all oil and gas 
development and production within its borders.  Voss v. Lundvall Bros., Inc., 830 
P.2d 1061 (Colo.1992).  But it also stated: 
 
January Term, 2015 
27 
 
If a home-rule city, instead of imposing a total ban on all 
drilling within the city, enacts land-use regulations applicable to 
various aspects of oil and gas development and operations within 
the city, and if such regulations do not frustrate and can be 
harmonized with the development and production of oil and gas in 
a manner consistent with the stated goals of the Oil and Gas 
Conservation Act, the city’s regulations should be given effect. 
 
Id. at 1068-1069. 
{¶ 69} The Pennsylvania Supreme Court found the reasoning in La Plata 
persuasive in deciding a similar issue.  Huntley & Huntley, Inc. v. Oakmont 
Borough Council, 600 Pa. 207, 225, 964 A.2d 855 (2009).  The preemption 
language in Pennsylvania’s Oil and Gas Act was limited to certain subjects.  
Because “the [zoning ordinance] serves different purposes from those enumerated 
in the Oil and Gas Act * * *,” the ordinance in question could not be considered 
to be preempted without clearer guidance from the legislature that the restriction 
in the ordinance was among the subjects covered by the preemption.  Id. at 225-
226. 
{¶ 70} Most recently, the New York Court of Appeals was asked to 
determine whether towns may ban or limit oil and gas production within their 
boundaries under their home rule authority by adopting local zoning laws.  
Wallach v. Dryden, 23 N.Y.3d 728, 16 N.E.3d 1188 (2014).  The court concluded 
that the statewide Oil, Gas and Solution Mining Law (“OGSML”) does not 
preempt the home-rule authority vested in municipalities to regulate land use.  Id. 
at 739.  It is well worth examining the facts of circumstances of this case because 
it has many similarities to ours. 
{¶ 71} Like Ohio, municipal home-rule authority arises from the state’s 
Constitution.  Under New York Constitution, Article IX, Section 2(c)(ii), “every 
SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 
28 
 
local government shall have power to adopt and amend local laws not inconsistent 
with the provisions of the this constitution or any general law * * * except to the 
extent that the legislature shall restrict the adoption of such a local law.”  The 
adoption of zoning ordinances is viewed as one of the core powers of local 
governance.  Id. at 743.  The appellants had acquired oil and gas leases in 
municipalities that banned such activity and claimed that local zoning was 
preempted by the OGSML, which states: 
 
 
The provisions of this article shall supersede all local laws 
or ordinances relating to the regulation of the oil, gas and solution 
mining industries; but shall not supersede local government 
jurisdiction over local roads or the rights of local governments 
under the real property tax law. 
 
N.Y. Envtl. Conserv. Law 23-0303(2); see id. at 744. 
{¶ 72} The New York Court of Appeals rejected the notion that the 
preemption clause should be read broadly to preempt local zoning ordinances.  It 
stated that the preemption clause was “most naturally read as preempting only 
local laws that purport to regulate the actual operations of oil and gas activities, 
not zoning ordinances that restrict or prohibit certain land uses within town 
boundaries.”  (Emphasis added.)  Id. at 746.  The court also noted that unlike the 
OGSML’s preemption clause, other statutes had clearly preempted home-rule 
zoning power while taking into account local considerations that otherwise would 
have been protected by traditional municipal zoning powers.  Id. at 748.  It held 
that because there was no inconsistency between the preservation of local zoning 
authority and the OGSML’s policies of preventing waste and promoting recovery 
of oil and gas, local zoning would not be preempted without a clear expression of 
that intent. 
January Term, 2015 
29 
 
{¶ 73} In states like Oklahoma, municipalities are authorized by statute to 
establish zones for the drilling of oil and gas wells.  See Vinson v. Medley, 737 
P.2d 932, 936 (Okla.1987). Other states have also recognized by regulation that 
local zoning can coexist with state laws regarding oil and gas development.  See 
Cal.Pub.Res.Code 3690 (stating that the oil and gas law shall not be deemed a 
preemption of existing rights of cities and counties to regulate oil-production 
activities); Wyo.Rules & Regs., Oil & Gas Conservation Comm., Chap. 2, Section 
1(b) (stating that owner or operator of oil and gas wells must also comply with 
applicable federal, local or other state permits or regulatory requirements). 
{¶ 74} I contend that Ohio, too, should make an effort to harmonize the 
laws of the state and local municipalities to avoid preemption, if possible.  See N. 
Ohio Patrolmen’s Benevolent Assn. v. Parma, 61 Ohio St.2d 375, 377, 402 
N.E.2d 519 (1980).  R.C. Chapter 1509 does not expressly prohibit the 
enforcement of local zoning ordinances.  Municipal zoning ordinances differ 
from, and can coexist with, R.C. Chapter 1509 and its statewide regulations 
governing drilling. 
Conclusion 
{¶ 75} There is no need for the state to act as the thousand-pound gorilla, 
gobbling up exclusive authority over the oil and gas industry, leaving not even a 
banana peel of home rule for municipalities.  I would reverse the judgment of the 
court of appeals and remand to that court for further proceedings. 
PFEIFER and O’NEILL, JJ., concur in the foregoing opinion. 
______________________________ 
O’NEILL, J., dissenting. 
{¶ 76} I join Justice Lanzinger’s well-written dissent.  Let’s be clear here.  
The Ohio General Assembly has created a zookeeper to feed the elephant in the 
living room.  What the drilling industry has bought and paid for in campaign 
contributions they shall receive.  The oil and gas industry has gotten its way, and 
SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 
30 
 
local control of drilling-location decisions has been unceremoniously taken away 
from the citizens of Ohio.  Under this ruling, a drilling permit could be granted in 
the exquisite residential neighborhoods of Upper Arlington, Shaker Heights, or 
the Village of Indian Hill—local zoning dating back to 1920 be damned. 
______________________________ 
 
Amer Cunningham Co., L.P.A., Jack Morrison Jr., Thomas M. Saxer, and 
Thomas R. Houlihan, for appellant. 
 
Vorys, Sater, Seymour & Pease, L.L.P., and John K. Keller, for appellees. 
 
Richard C. Sahli; and EarthJustice and Deborah Goldberg, urging reversal 
for amici curiae, health professionals Peggy Ann Berry, Samuel Kocoshis, 
Deborah Cowden, Katie Huffling, Angela Novy, Conleth Crotser, Bill Lonneman, 
Janalee Stock, Sue Papp, Rosemary Valedes Chaudry, Elaine McSweeney, 
Jonalea Neider, and Physicians, Scientists, and Engineers for Healthy Energy. 
 
Natural Resources Defense Council, Meleah Geertsma, Katherine Sinding, 
and Peter Precario, urging reversal for amici curiae cities of Broadview Heights, 
Euclid, Mansfield, and North Royalton, and village of Amesville. 
 
Morrison & Bindley and David C. Morrison, urging reversal for amicus 
curiae city of Heath. 
 
William W. Ellis, Jr. Ohio Environmental Law Center and Trent A. 
Dougherty, urging reversal for amici curiae Ohio local businesses Athens Electric, 
Cherry Orchards, Design Council, Donkey Coffee, Enviroscapes Landscaping 
Design, Fox Natural Builders, The Going Green Store, Green Edge Organic 
Gardens, Haulin’ Hoof, Herbal Sage, High Bottom Farm, Hyacinth Bean Florist, 
Laurel Valley Creamery, Mustard Seed Market, Shew’s Orchard, Snowville 
Creamery, Sticky Pete’s Maple Syrup, Sunpower, Inc., Village Bakery, Wide 
Angle Ranch, Zan Small Business Solutions, L.L.C., Kenneth Messinger-Rapport, 
Attorney L.L.C., Patricia Walker, attorney at law, retired business owners Donald 
January Term, 2015 
31 
 
Baker and Pam Miller (Gramercy Gallery), Louie Chodkiewz-Real Estate Broker, 
Shirley Sinn-Oil & Gas Consulting. 
 
Ice Miller, L.L.P., and Patrick A. Devine, urging affirmance for amicus 
curiae Ohio Contractors Association. 
 
Michael DeWine, Attorney General, Eric E. Murphy, State Solicitor, and 
Peter K. Glenn-Applegate, Deputy State Solicitor, urging affirmance for amicus 
curiae state of Ohio. 
 
Kincaid, Taylor & Geyer, William J. Taylor, and Scott D. Eickelberger, 
urging affirmance for amicus curiae Ohio Oil and Gas Association. 
 
Chorpenning, Good & Pandora Co., L.P.A., and Brian E. Chorpenning, 
urging affirmance for amici curiae Artex Oil Company, Eclipse Resources I, L.P., 
EnerVest Operating, L.L.C., Hess Ohio Developments, L.L.C., Hilcorp Energy 
Company, Paloma Resources, L.L.C.,  Sierra Resources, L.L.C.,  and American 
Energy Partners L.P. 
 
Brady, Coyle & Schmidt, Ltd., Brian P. Barger, and Amanda L. Coyle, 
urging affirmance for amici curiae Ohio Aggregates Association, Ohio Ready 
Mixed Concrete Association, and Flexible Pavements of Ohio. 
 
Benjamin Norris; Sidley Austin, L.L.P., Roger R. Martella Jr., Joseph R. 
Guerra, Samuel B. Boxerman, and Lowell J. Schiller; Porter, Wright, Morris & 
Arthur, L.L.P., and Kathleen M. Trafford; Linda Woggon; and Wuliger, Fadel & 
Beyer and Timothy R. Fadel, urging affirmance for amici curiae American 
Petroleum Institute, Ohio Chamber of Commerce, Canton Regional Chamber of 
Commerce, Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber, and International Union of 
Operating Engineers, Local 18. 
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