TITLE: Relating to the requirements for the casing and cementing of an oil or gas well.

SUMMARY: Relating to the requirements for the casing and cementing of an oil or gas well.

FULL TEXT:
AN ACT relating to the requirements for the casing and cementing of an oil or gas well. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Section 91.011, Natural Resources Code, is amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows: (a) Before drilling into the oil or gas bearing rock, the owner or operator of a well being drilled for oil or gas shall encase the well with good and sufficient wrought iron or steel casing,or with any other material that meets standards adopted by the commission,and cement the casing,particularly where wells could be subjected to corrosive elements or high pressures and temperatures, in a manner and to a depth that will exclude surface or fresh water from the lower part of the well from penetrating the oil or gas bearing rock, and if the well is drilled through the first into the lower oil or gas bearing rock, the well shall be encased and cemented [cased] in a manner and to a depth that will exclude fresh water above the last oil or gas bearing rock penetrated. (a-1) A well drilled for oil or gas shall be encased with a casing that is cemented to a depth of at least 50 feet below the base of the deepest formation transected by the well that contains water that is suitable as a source of drinking water supply. SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.