I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4781 
To amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to reauthorize a program to 
address orphaned, abandoned, or idled wells on Federal land, to establish 
a program to provide grants to States and Tribes to address orphaned 
wells, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 28, 2021 
Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania (for himself and Mr. CARBAJAL) introduced 
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to reauthorize 
a program to address orphaned, abandoned, or idled 
wells on Federal land, to establish a program to provide 
grants to States and Tribes to address orphaned wells, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Plugging Orphan Wells 
and Environmental Restoration Act of 2021’’ or the 
‘‘POWER Act of 2021’’. 
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SEC. 2. FEDERAL LANDS. 
Section 349(h)(1) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 
(42 U.S.C. 15907(h)(1)) is amended by striking 
‘‘$25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2006 through 2010’’ 
and inserting ‘‘$50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 
through 2026’’. 
SEC. 3. STATE AND TRIBAL LANDS. 
(a) STATE AND TRIBAL ORPHANED WELLS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 
the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 
the Interior shall establish a program to provide 
grants to States and Indian Tribes to remediate, re-
claim, and close orphaned oil and gas wells located 
on State, Tribal, or private lands. 
(2) ACTIVITIES.—Funds distributed under this 
subsection may be used by States and Indian Tribes 
for— 
(A) reclaiming, remediating, and closing 
orphaned wells; 
(B) reclaiming and remediating well pads 
and access roads associated with orphaned 
wells; 
(C) restoring native species habitat that 
has been degraded due to the presence of or-
phaned wells; 
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(D) seeking to determine the identities of 
potentially responsible parties associated with 
the orphaned well sites, or their sureties or 
guarantors, to the extent such information can 
be ascertained, and make efforts to obtain reim-
bursement for expenditures to the extent prac-
ticable; 
(E) identification and characterization of 
undocumented orphaned wells on State, Tribal, 
and private lands; 
(F) ranking orphaned or abandoned well 
sites based on factors such as public health and 
safety, potential environmental harm, and other 
land use priorities; 
(G) administration of a State or Tribal or-
phaned well closure program, provided that no 
more than 10 percent of the funds received by 
a State or Indian Tribe under this subsection 
may be used for this purpose; and 
(H) making information regarding the use 
of funds under this subsection available to the 
public. 
(3) PRIORITY.—In providing grants under this 
subsection, the Secretary shall give priority to States 
and Indian Tribes that have an established State or 
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Tribal program for the remediation, reclamation, or 
closure of abandoned, idled, or orphaned oil and gas 
wells. 
(4) RESTRICTIONS AND REQUIREMENTS.— 
(A) NO NEW OBLIGATIONS RELATED TO 
THE
BONDING, PLUGGING, OR
TRANSFER
OF 
STRIPPER WELLS.—No State or Indian Tribe 
receiving a grant under this subsection may use 
such grant funds to impose new obligations re-
lated to the bonding, plugging, or transfer of 
stripper wells. 
(B) PROCEDURES FOR THE PROTECTION 
OF
SMALL
BUSINESSES.—A State or Indian 
Tribe receiving a grant under this subsection 
shall be required to adhere to measures and 
procedures for the protection of small busi-
nesses comparable to those required by the 
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fair-
ness Act of 1996. 
(5) APPLICATION.—States and Indian Tribes 
shall be eligible for grants under this subsection 
upon application to the Secretary of the Interior. 
Such application shall include— 
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(A) a prioritized list of the wells, well sites, 
and affected areas that will be remediated, re-
claimed, or closed; 
(B) a description of the activities to be car-
ried out with the grant, including an identifica-
tion of the estimated health, safety, habitat, 
and environmental benefits of remediating, re-
claiming, or closing each well, well site, or af-
fected area; 
(C) an estimate of the cost of each pro-
posed project; 
(D) an estimate of the number of jobs that 
will be created or saved through the projects to 
be funded under this subsection; 
(E) an estimate of the funds to be spent 
on administrative costs; and 
(F) a description of how the information 
regarding the State’s or Indian Tribe’s activi-
ties under this subsection will be made available 
to the public. 
(6) ALLOCATION.—The Secretary shall, in con-
sultation with States, affected Indian Tribes, and 
the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, de-
velop a formula for the amount of grant funding 
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each State or Indian Tribe is eligible for under this 
subsection, taking into account— 
(A) the number of documented orphaned 
wells within the State or on each Indian Tribe’s 
lands; 
(B) the amount of oil and gas activity 
within the State or on Tribal lands in the pre-
vious 10 years; and 
(C) the number of jobs lost in the oil and 
gas sector since March 1, 2020. 
(b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Energy, in 
cooperation with the Secretary, shall establish a pro-
gram to provide technical assistance to oil and gas 
producing States and Indian Tribes to ensure prac-
tical and economical remedies for environmental 
problems caused by orphaned or abandoned oil and 
gas well sites on State, Tribal, or private land. 
(2) ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary of Energy 
shall work with the States, through the Interstate 
Oil and Gas Compact Commission, to assist the 
States in quantifying and mitigating environmental 
risks of onshore orphaned or abandoned oil or gas 
wells on State, Tribal, and private land. 
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(3) ACTIVITIES.—The program under para-
graph (1) shall include— 
(A) mechanisms to facilitate identification, 
if feasible, of the persons currently providing a 
bond or other form of financial assurance re-
quired under State or Federal law for an oil or 
gas well that is orphaned or abandoned; 
(B) criteria for ranking orphaned or aban-
doned well sites based on factors such as public 
health and safety, potential environmental 
harm, and other land use priorities; 
(C) information and training programs on 
best practices for remediation of different types 
of sites; and 
(D) funding of State mitigation efforts on 
a cost-shared basis. 
(c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than one year 
after the date of enactment of this section, and every year 
thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report 
on the programs established under this section, including 
the number of jobs created and the number of orphaned 
wells reclaimed. 
(d) LIABILITY PROTECTION.—A person who provides 
equipment, materials, or services to plug, or attempt to 
plug, an orphaned well pursuant to a grant awarded to 
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a State or Indian Tribe under this Act shall be immune 
from civil liability in any legal proceeding brought to en-
force an environmental law or otherwise impose liability 
for such conduct. 
(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi-
nitions apply: 
(1) ORPHANED
WELL.—The term ‘‘orphaned 
well’’ means any well not in operation for which 
there is no responsible party known to the Secretary 
to reclaim and remediate or close the well site. 
(2) RESPONSIBLE PARTY.—The term ‘‘respon-
sible party’’ has the meaning given to it by the rel-
evant State, or if the relevant State does not provide 
a definition, means any person, association, corpora-
tion, subsidiary, or affiliate that directly or indi-
rectly, controls, manages, directs, or undertakes the 
activities with respect to an oil and gas lease or any 
person or entity controlled by, or under common 
control with, such person or entity. 
(3) STRIPPER WELL.—The term ‘‘stripper well’’ 
means an onshore facility that produces, in a 12- 
month consecutive time period— 
(A) 15 barrels per well or less per calendar 
day of crude oil; or 
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(B) 90,000 cubic feet per calendar day or 
less of natural gas. 
(f) APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized to be 
appropriated 
to 
the 
Secretary 
of 
the 
Interior 
$400,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2025 
to carry out this section. 
Æ 
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