I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 3432
To direct the Minerals Management Service to grant the State of Louisiana
and its lessees a credit in the payment of Federal offshore royalties
to satisfy the authorization for compensation contained in the Oil Pollu-
tion Act of 1990 for oil and gas drainage in the West Delta field.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
NOVEMBER 17, 1999
Mr. JOHN (for himself, Mr. TAUZIN, Mr. BAKER, Mr. MCCRERY, Mr. JEF-
FERSON, Mr. COOKSEY, Mr. VITTER, Mr. ORTIZ, Mr. BRADY of Texas,
Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. SMITH of Texas, Mr. QUINN, Mr. PETERSON
of Pennsylvania, Mr. REYNOLDS, and Mr. ENGLISH) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources
A BILL
To direct the Minerals Management Service to grant the
State of Louisiana and its lessees a credit in the payment
of Federal offshore royalties to satisfy the authorization
for compensation contained in the Oil Pollution Act of
1990 for oil and gas drainage in the West Delta field.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. ROYALTY RELIEF.
(a) ROYALTY RELIEF.—The purpose of this Act is
to grant relief efficiently and expeditiously to the State
of Louisiana and the State lessees for moneys owed to the
State and the State lessees under section 6004(c) of Pub-
lic Law 101–380 (104 Stat. 558, 559) (herein referred
to as the ‘‘Oil Pollution Act of 1990’’). Payment of Fed-
eral offshore royalties owed by the State lessees to the
United States under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands
Act may be withheld by the State lessees if, on or before
the date that the royalty payment concerned is due and
payable to the United States, the State lessees make a
payment to the State of Louisiana at a rate of 44 cents
for every $1 of royalty withheld. Any royalty withheld in
accordance with this Act shall be treated as paid for pur-
poses of satisfying the royalty obligations of the State les-
sees. This subsection shall apply only to leased tracts (or
portions of leased tracts) lying seaward of the zone defined
and governed by section 8(g) of the Outer Continental
Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1337(g)) or lying within such
zone but to which such section 8(g) does not apply.
(b) PERIOD OF ROYALTY RELIEF.—The royalty relief
granted under subsection (a) shall commence with respect
to royalty payments due and payable to the United States
after the date 60 days after the enactment of this Act
and shall end when the total of the royalty relief granted
under subsection (a) is equal to $18,115,147, the full
amount of the total drainage claim for the West Delta
field, as set out on page 47 of Senate Report 101–534
(November 15, 1990), plus simple interest at 8 percent
per year on the outstanding principal balance from March
21, 1989, in accordance with section 6004(c) of Public
Law 101–380.
(c) MANNER OF PAYMENTS.—Payments by the State
lessees to the State of Louisiana under this Act shall be
made in a manner mutually agreed upon by the State of
Louisiana and the State lessees. Any dispute between the
State of Louisiana and the State lessees as to the manner
of payments to the State under this Act shall be resolved
by the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Direc-
tor of the Minerals Management Service, in the exercise
of his discretion.
(d) REPORTS.—The State lessees shall provide a
quarterly report to the Director of the Minerals Manage-
ment Service listing the Federal leases for which royalty
payments are withheld pursuant to this Act. For each such
Federal lease the report shall detail the amount and dates
of production from those leases, the value of royalties due
on production from any such leases, and the outstanding
balance, if any, of royalty relief still owed to the State
lessees and the State of Louisiana under section 6004(c)
of Public Law 101–380.
(e) DEFINITION OF STATE LESSEES.—As used in
this Act, the term ‘‘State lessees’’ means those companies
or individuals, and their successors and assigns, that, on
the date of enactment of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990,
held lease rights in the State of Louisiana leases
SL10087, SL10088, and SL10187, but did not hold lease
rights in Federal lease OCS–G–5669.
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