reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:1. Department established; appointment of commissioners; term; vacancies; jurisdiction; salary

RS 30:1 - Department established; appointment of commissioners; term; vacancies; jurisdiction; salary
A. There is established the state Department of Conservation, hereinafter referred to as the department. The department shall be directed and controlled by a commissioner of conservation, who shall be appointed by the governor, with the consent of the Senate, for a term of four years. In case of vacancy for any cause the governor shall, with consent of the Senate, fill the office by appointment for the unexpired term.
B. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law to the contrary, the salary of the commissioner of conservation shall be fixed by the governor.
C. All natural resources of the state not within the jurisdiction of other state departments or agencies are within the jurisdiction of the department.
D. The disposal of any waste product into the subsurface by means of a disposal well and the regulation of all surface and storage waste facilities incidental to oil and gas exploration and production, shall be within the jurisdiction of the department.
Amended by Acts 1959, No. 100, §1; Acts 1965, No. 53, §3; Acts 1970, No. 20, §1; Acts 1975, No. 388, §1; Acts 1976, No. 116, §1; Acts 1976, No. 122, §1; Acts 1978, No. 681, §1, eff. July 12, 1978; Acts 1979, No. 379, §1.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:4.2. Effective enforcement of wildlife and fisheries laws

RS 30:4.2 - Effective enforcement of wildlife and fisheries laws
The assistant secretary shall make, after notice and public hearing as provided in this Chapter, any reasonable rules, regulations, and orders which are necessary to prohibit the operators of oil and gas wells from performing any acts on lands subject to a drilling permit which may preclude agents of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries from effectively enforcing any of the provisions of Title 56 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950. The assistant secretary shall revoke any permit granted to an operator and deny any application for a permit to drill any well by an operator found to be in violation of the rules provided for in this Section.
Acts 1985, No. 1015, §1, eff. July 24, 1985.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:4.3. Financial Security

RS 30:4.3 - Financial Security
A. As required by R.S. 30:4, an applicant for a permit to drill or to amend a permit to drill for change of operator shall provide financial security as provided in this Section in a form acceptable to the commissioner. For an application for a permit to drill, the security shall be provided within thirty days of the completion date or from the date the operator is notified that financial security is required. For an application to amend a permit to drill for a change of operator, the security shall be provided as required by this Section or by establishing a site-specific trust account in accordance with R.S. 30:88 prior to the operator change.
B.(1) Except as provided in Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, the amount of the financial security shall be provided for in rules and regulations promulgated by the commissioner in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act. The amounts may be on an individual-well or multiple-well basis and may be categorized based on the well's location.
(2) For an individual well located on land of a depth equal to or less than three thousand feet, the financial security required shall be two dollars per foot. However, the commissioner may increase the financial security by rules and regulations promulgated after September 1, 2017, in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.
C. Financial security shall not be required for the following wells:
(1) Any well declared to be orphaned by the commissioner and subsequently transferred to another operator.
(2) Any well to be drilled by an operator who has an agreement with the office of conservation to plug a well that has been declared to be orphaned by the commissioner and that orphaned well is similar to the proposed well in terms of depth and location.
Acts 2016, No. 634, §1, eff. June 17, 2016.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:7. Orders fixing allowable productions; hearing to determine initial schedules; old fields, hearing unnecessary, summary hearing

RS 30:7 - Orders fixing allowable productions; hearing to determine initial schedules; old fields, hearing unnecessary, summary hearing
A. An order fixing allowable production of oil or gas or making changes therein for any month or other period shall be issued by the commissioner on or before the twenty-third day of the month preceding the month for which the order is to be effective and it shall be promulgated by immediate publication in the official journal of the state.
B.(1) In the case of old fields or pools for which schedules of allowables had been previously issued, it shall not be necessary for the commissioner to have a hearing prior to the issuance of any subsequent order fixing or changing the schedule of allowables unless there is a written request for a hearing by an interested person. This provision permitting the issuance of a schedule of allowables for old fields without a hearing is an exception to the general rule requiring notice and hearing prior to the issuance of an order by the commissioner.
(2) In the event a schedule of allowables is promulgated without previous notice and hearing, an aggrieved producer of oil or gas may file with the commissioner at his office within seventy-two hours from the publication of the order, a sworn written statement, giving in detail the grounds of his complaint. Thereupon, the commissioner shall hold a hearing within forty-eight hours. At this hearing, oral or documentary evidence may be received by the commissioner in favor of and against the complaint. After the hearing, the commissioner shall summarily render a decision. If his decision is not made on or before the effective date of the order complained of, that order shall be suspended until a decision is rendered. During this period, the former order shall remain in force. This provision permitting a summary hearing shall be restricted to cases involving a complaint made against a schedule of allowables under the circumstances set forth in this Subsection B(2).
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:8. Subpoenas, and production of records; service; excuses for disobedience; enforcement of subpoenas

RS 30:8 - Subpoenas, and production of records; service; excuses for disobedience; enforcement of subpoenas
A. The commissioner may subpoena witnesses and require their attendance and the giving of testimony before him. He may require the production of any books, papers, or records material to the questions lawfully before him.
(1) Subpoenas shall be served by any agent of the department of conservation, by the sheriff, or by any other officer authorized by law to serve process in this state.
(2) No person shall be excused from attending and testifying or producing books, papers, or records, or from obeying the subpoena of the commissioner or of a court of record on the ground that the testimony or evidence required of him may tend to incriminate him or subject him to penalty or forfeiture.
(3) Nothing contained in this Subsection shall be construed as requiring any person to produce books, papers, or records, or to testify in response to any inquiry not pertinent to some question lawfully before the commissioner or court for determination.
(4) No natural person shall be subjected to criminal prosecution or to any penalty or forfeiture on account of anything concerning which he may be required to testify or produce evidence before the commissioner or a court.
(5) No person testifying shall be exempt from prosecution and punishment for perjury.
B. In the case of failure or refusal of a person to comply with a subpoena issued by the commissioner, or in the case of the refusal of a witness to testify or answer as to a matter regarding which he may be lawfully interrogated, any district court on the application of the commissioner may, in term time or in vacation, issue an attachment for the person to compel him to comply with the subpoena and to attend before the commissioner with the desired documents and to give his testimony upon whatever matters are lawfully required.
The court may punish for contempt those disobeying its orders as in the case of disobedience of a subpoena issued by the court or refusal to testify therein.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:9.2. Cross-unit well

RS 30:9.2 - Cross-unit well
A. The following definitions shall apply where used in this Section:
(1) "Cross-unit person" means an interested owner, interested party, or represented party as defined in LAC 43:XIX, other than a mineral lessee.
(2) "Cross-unit well" means a well drilled horizontally and completed under multiple drilling units that is designated by the commissioner after notice and public hearing to serve as a unit well, substitute unit well, or alternate unit well for said units.
(3) "Short unit" means a unit in which the proposed well shall have less than five hundred feet of perforated lateral.
(4) "Timely objection" means an objection mailed to the commissioner and the applicant at least fifteen days prior to the application hearing.
B. The commissioner is authorized to permit the drilling of cross-unit wells as provided in this Section.
C. The commissioner shall not authorize or permit a cross-unit well that is proposed to have less than five hundred feet of perforated lateral in any unit to be served by the cross-unit well if one of the following occurs:
(1) The preapplication notice and hearing application do not expressly set forth the cross-unit person's right to object to the application.
(2) A timely objection is filed by a cross-unit person who owns an interest in a short unit and, on the date of the application hearing, the short unit either is not producing or is producing only from one or more horizontal laterals with a combined length of perforated lateral less than five hundred feet.
Acts 2015, No. 253, §1.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:11. Allocation of allowable production

RS 30:11 - Allocation of allowable production
A. Whenever the commissioner limits the total amount of oil or gas which may be produced, he shall allocate the allowable production among the fields. This allocation shall be made on a reasonable basis, giving, to each field with small wells of settled production, an amount which will prevent a general premature abandonment of the wells in the field.
B. The commissioner may limit the production of a pool to an amount less than that which the pool could produce if no restriction were imposed. This limitation may be imposed either as an incident to or without a limitation of the total amount of oil or gas which may be produced in this state. The commissioner shall prorate the allowable production among the producers in the pool on a reasonable basis so as to prevent or minimize avoidable drainage from each developed area which is not equalized by counter drainage, and so that each producer will have the opportunity to produce or receive his just and equitable share, subject to the reasonable necessities for the prevention of waste.
C. After the effective date of a rule, regulation, or order of the commissioner fixing the allowable production of oil or gas, or both, for a pool, no person shall produce from a well, lease, or property more than the allowable production which is applicable, nor shall the amount be produced in a different manner than that authorized.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:11.1. Filing and recording of orders creating drilling or production units

RS 30:11.1 - Filing and recording of orders creating drilling or production units
Within thirty days after the issuance thereof, the commissioner of conservation of the state of Louisiana shall cause to be filed and recorded in the conveyance records of the parish or parishes in which the immovable property affected thereby is situated certified copies of all orders and amendments thereof creating drilling or production units.
Acts 1952, No. 516, §1; Acts 1997, No. 231, §1, eff. June 16, 1997.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:13. Temporary restraining order or injunction; notice and hearing; bond

RS 30:13 - Temporary restraining order or injunction; notice and hearing; bond
A. No temporary restraining order or injunction shall be granted against the commissioner of conservation, the attorney general, or any agent, employee, or representative of the commissioner restraining the commissioner, or any of his agents, employees, or representatives, or the attorney general, from enforcing a statute of this state relating to conservation of oil and gas, or any of the provisions of this Chapter, or any rule, regulation, or order made hereunder, except after due notice to the commissioner, and to all other defendants, and after a hearing. It shall be clearly shown to the court that the act done or threatened is without sanction of law, or that the provisions of this Chapter, or the rule, regulation, or order complained of, is invalid, and that, if enforced against the complaining party, will cause an irreparable injury. The nature and extent of the probable invalidity of the law, or provision of this Chapter, or of any rule, regulation, or order thereunder involved in the suit, shall be recited in the order or decree granting the temporary relief, as well as a clear statement of the probable damage relied upon by the court as justifying temporary injunctive relief.
B. No temporary injunction against the commissioner, or the department of conservation, or its agents, employees, or representatives, or the attorney general, shall become effective until the plaintiff shall execute a bond in an amount and upon such conditions as the court directs.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:14. Suit by commissioner for violation of law; venue; relief obtainable

RS 30:14 - Suit by commissioner for violation of law; venue; relief obtainable
Whenever it appears that a person is violating or is threatening to violate a law of this state with respect to the conservation of oil or gas, or both, or a provision of this Chapter, or a rule, regulation, or order made thereunder, the commissioner shall bring suit to restrain that person from continuing the violation or from carrying out the threat.
Venue shall be in the district court in the parish of the residence of any one of the defendants or in the parish where the violation is alleged to have occurred or is threatened.
In this suit, the commissioner may obtain injunctions, prohibitory and mandatory, including temporary restraining orders and preliminary injunctions, as the facts warrant, including, when appropriate, injunctions restraining a person from moving or disposing of illegal oil, illegal gas, or an illegal product. Any or all of these illegal commodities may, in the court's discretion, be ordered impounded or placed under the control of an agent appointed by the court.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:15. Appeal

RS 30:15 - Appeal
In proceedings brought under authority of, or for the purpose of contesting the validity of, a provision of this Chapter, or of an oil or gas conservation law of this state, or of a rule, regulation, or order issued thereunder, appeals may be taken in accordance with the general laws relating to appeals. In appeals from judgments or decrees in suits to contest the validity of a provision of this Chapter, or a rule or regulation of the commissioner hereunder, the appeals when docketed in the proper appellate court shall be placed on the preference docket of the court and may be advanced as the court directs.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:16. Suit by party in interest upon commissioner's failure to sue

RS 30:16 - Suit by party in interest upon commissioner's failure to sue
If the commissioner fails to bring suit within ten days to restrain a violation as provided in R.S. 30:14, any person in interest adversely affected by the violation who has notified the commissioner in writing of the violation or threat thereof and has requested the commissioner to sue, may bring suit to prevent any or further violations, in the district court of any parish in which the commissioner could have brought suit. If the court holds that injunctive relief should be granted, the commissioner shall be made a party and shall be substituted for the person who brought the suit and the injunction shall be issued as if the commissioner had at all times been the complaining party.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:17. False reports or entries; penalty

RS 30:17 - False reports or entries; penalty
No person shall for the purpose of evading this Chapter, or any rule, regulation or order made thereunder:
(1) Make or cause to be made any false entry or statement of fact in any report required to be made by this Chapter or by any rule, regulation or order made hereunder, or
(2) Make or cause to be made any false entry in an account, record, or memorandum kept by any person in connection with the provisions of this Chapter or of any rule, regulation, or order made thereunder, or
(3) Omit or cause to be omitted full, true, and correct entries in these accounts, records, or memoranda, of all facts and transactions pertaining to the interest or activities in the petroleum industry of a person, as may be required by the commissioner under authority given in this Chapter or by any rule, regulation or order made thereunder, or
(4) Remove out of the jurisdiction of the state, or destroy or mutilate, alter, or by any other means falsify any book, record, or other paper, pertaining to the transactions regulated by this Chapter or by any rule, regulation or order made thereunder.
Whoever violates this Section shall be fined not more than five thousand dollars, or imprisoned not more than six months, or both.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:19. Sale, etc. of illegal products prohibited

RS 30:19 - Sale, etc. of illegal products prohibited
A. The sale, or acquisition, or the transportation, refining, processing, or handling in any other way, of illegal oil, illegal gas, or an illegal product is unlawful.
B. Unless and until the commissioner provides a method, by which a person may have an opportunity to determine whether a contemplated transaction or sale, or acquisition, or transportation, refining, processing, or handling in any other way, involves illegal oil, illegal gas, or illegal product, no penalty shall be imposed except under certain circumstances hereinafter stated. Penalties shall be imposed for the commission of each transaction prohibited in this Section when the transactor knows that illegal oil, illegal gas, or illegal product is involved or when he could have known by the exercise of reasonable diligence or from facts within his knowledge. However, regardless of lack of actual notice or knowledge, penalties as provided in this Chapter shall apply to any sale, or acquisition, and to the transportation, refining, processing, or handling in any other way, of illegal oil, illegal gas, or illegal product, where administrative provision is made for identifying the character of the commodity as to its legality. It likewise shall be a violation for which penalties shall be imposed for any person to sell, or acquire or to transport, refine, process, or handle in any other way, any oil, gas, or product without complying with all applicable rules, regulations, or orders of the commissioner relating thereto.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:21.2. Bohemia Spillway Cost Recovery

RS 30:21.2 - Bohemia Spillway Cost Recovery
Upon the final disposition of each claim filed with the Department of Energy and Natural Resources pursuant to Act No. 233 of the 1984 Regular Session of the Legislature, the secretary shall condemn one or more of the parties to the claim to pay the actual cost of administering the claim and may apportion the cost among the parties. The funds received pursuant to this Section shall be deposited immediately into the state treasury.
Acts 1987, No. 644, §1, eff. July 9, 1987; Acts 1992, No. 984, §§9, 18; Acts 2023, No. 150, §5, eff. Jan. 10, 2024.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:23.1. Recordation of notice of solution mined cavern

RS 30:23.1 - Recordation of notice of solution mined cavern
A. The owner or operator of a solution mined cavern shall record the survey plat of the well location for the solution mining injection well in the mortgage and conveyance records of the parish in which the property is located. Such notice shall be made in a form approved by the commissioner and within the time specified by the commissioner. If an owner or operator fails or refuses to record such notice, the commissioner may, if he determines that the public interest requires, and after due notice and an opportunity for a hearing has been given to the owner and operator, cause such notice to be recorded. The clerk of court shall forward to the office of conservation a copy of each notice recorded by an owner or operator in accordance with this Subsection.
B. The failure of an owner to file, or ensure that the operator has filed, the required notice may constitute grounds for an action in redhibition under the applicable provisions of Civil Code Article 2520 et seq., unless the purchaser has actual or constructive knowledge that the property has been used for such purposes.
C. Any action brought pursuant to the provisions of this Section shall be commenced within one year from the date the purchaser first knows of the existence of the fact that gives rise to the action, but in any event within three years of the date upon which the purchaser acquired his ownership interest in the property. Venue shall be in any parish in which the property or any portion thereof is located.
Acts 2013, No. 369, §2.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:24. Enforcement of well, structure, and pipeline rules, regulations, and orders

RS 30:24 - Enforcement of well, structure, and pipeline rules, regulations, and orders
A. Whenever, on the basis of any information, the commissioner determines that any person is in violation of any rule or regulation promulgated pursuant to R.S. 30:4(D), he shall give written notice to the violator of his failure to comply with such rule or regulation. If such violation extends beyond the thirtieth day after notification, the commissioner after notice and hearing may issue an order requiring compliance within a specified time period or he may commence a civil action in the district court in the parish in which the violation occurred for appropriate relief.
B. If such violator fails to take corrective action within the time specified in the order, he shall be liable for a civil penalty, to be assessed by the commissioner, of not more than two hundred dollars for each day of continued non-compliance. No penalty shall be assessed until the person charged shall have been given notice and an opportunity for a hearing on such charge. In determining the amount of the penalty, or the amount agreed upon in compromise, the gravity of the violation, and the demonstrated good faith of the person charged in attempting to achieve rapid compliance after notification of a violation, shall be considered by the commissioner.
Added by Acts 1979, No. 674, §2.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:26. Applications and notification of completeness

RS 30:26 - Applications and notification of completeness
A. Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, the secretary of the Department of Energy and Natural Resources and the commissioner of conservation shall, after notification by the department to the applicant that the application is complete, grant or deny all applications for all permits, licenses, registrations, or compliance in this or any other Title within sixty days. The notification of completeness shall be issued within fourteen days, exclusive of holidays, by the department. If the application is not complete, the department shall notify the applicant in writing of the deficiencies which cause the application not to be complete. If the secretary or the commissioner does not grant the application, he shall provide written reasons for his decision to deny, and copies of the decision shall be provided to all parties. The secretary and the commissioner may delegate the power to grant permits, licenses, registrations, variances, or compliance schedules to an assistant.
B. If the secretary does not grant or deny the application within the time period provided for in this Section, the applicant may file a rule as provided for in R.S. 49:978.
Acts 1990, No. 996, §3; Acts 1991, No. 828, §1; Acts 1992, No. 815, §1; Acts 2023, No. 150, §5, eff. Jan. 10, 2024.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:27. Authorization to enter lands of another

RS 30:27 - Authorization to enter lands of another
A. When the consent of a property owner has not been otherwise obtained, the issuance of a work order or compliance order by the commissioner of conservation or his agents shall constitute sufficient authorization for the operator, agents of the operator, or persons acting on behalf of the operator to enter the lands of another person, whether or not such operator or persons hold a valid lease regarding such property, for the purposes of conducting site assessments, site restoration, pit closure, plugging and abandonment operations, or any other matter covered by said work order or compliance order issued under the provisions of Title 30 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, or regulations adopted thereunder. The entering of the lands of another under the provisions of this Section shall be subject to the following:
(1) The entry shall be limited to areas and times reasonably necessary to perform the operations authorized by this Section.
(2) Written notice shall be given by the department or operator of a proposed entry to the last record owner of the property at least three calendar days prior to the entry.
(3) The operations authorized by this Section shall not unreasonably interfere with other activities or improvements upon the property.
B. An entry in accordance with the provisions of this Section shall not constitute a trespass or unauthorized entry for the purposes of imposition of civil or criminal liability.
C. The holder of the work order or compliance order may file an action in a court of competent jurisdiction to obtain an injunction or other appropriate relief in order to comply with the provisions of the work order or compliance order.
D. Failure of the holder of the work order or compliance order to seek relief before a court of competent jurisdiction shall not affect that parties' duties and obligations under said Title 30 or the rules, regulations, and orders of the office of conservation, nor shall it constitute a defense to any civil penalty issued due to noncompliance with the orders of the commissioner of conservation.
E. Nothing herein shall be deemed to alter, create, or affect any contractual rights or other rights including any claim for damages, between any party or parties.
F. No party to whom a work order or compliance order is issued shall be deemed to be a public employee or an agent of the office of conservation.
G. The department may promulgate rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this Section.
Acts 1997, No. 230, §1.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:28.1. Avoiding disturbance of privately owned water well

RS 30:28.1 - Avoiding disturbance of privately owned water well
A. An owner or operator of a permitted oil and gas well shall construct and maintain the drilling activity area in such a manner as to avoid disturbing the use of any privately owned active water well existing at the time of the application for the permit to drill.
B. An owner or operator of a permitted oil and gas well may negotiate with the owner of a privately owned active water well to relocate such water well. The owner or operator of a permitted oil and gas well shall pay for the relocation and plugging of the water well.
Acts 2010, No. 646, §1.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:29.1. Landowner notification of environmental testing

RS 30:29.1 - Landowner notification of environmental testing
If the owner or operator of any oilfield site or exploration and production (E&P) site covered by the provisions of R.S. 30:29 performs any environmental testing on land owned by another person, results of such environmental testing shall be provided to the owner or owners of the land within ten days from receipt of such results by the owner or operator, regardless of whether or not suit has been filed by the owner or owners of the land. The operator or owner or owners of land or anyone acting on their behalf who perform any environmental testing on land that is an oilfield or exploration and production (E&P) site shall provide the results of such testing to the department within ten days of receipt.
Acts 2006, No. 312, §1, eff. June 8, 2006.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:29.2. Alternative dispute resolution for disputes relating to remediation of oilfield sites and exploration and production sites

RS 30:29.2 - Alternative dispute resolution for disputes relating to remediation of oilfield sites and exploration and production sites
A. This Section establishes procedures that apply to any dispute subject to the provisions of R.S. 30:29.
B. Within sixty days after the end of the stay of litigation required by R.S. 30:29(B)(1), the parties shall meet and confer in an effort to assess the dispute, narrow the issues, and reach agreements useful or convenient for the litigation of the action.
C. On any party's motion filed subsequent to the close of all discovery or five hundred fifty days after commencement of the action, whichever occurs first, the court shall enter an order compelling the parties to enter nonbinding mediation. The motion shall be served on all parties, but a contradictory hearing shall not be required.
D. If the court enters an order compelling mediation, the clerk of court shall mail or otherwise deliver a copy of the order to all parties.
E.(1) If the court has entered an order compelling mediation and the parties cannot agree within fifteen days after notice of the order to such matters as the date, time, and place of the mediation, the identity of the mediator, provisions for compensation of the mediator, or any other details regarding the conduct of the mediation, the parties shall so notify the court and, after contradictory hearing, the court may issue orders reasonably necessary to determine such matters and any other matters, except as provided in Subsection F of this Section, necessary or convenient to provide for the conduct of the mediation.
(2) A mediator appointed pursuant to this Section shall qualify as a mediator pursuant to R.S. 9:4106(A)(1)(a) or (2).
F. Responsibility for the mediator's fees and any expenses associated with the location of the mediation shall be based on the parties' agreement. In the absence of an agreement, the party moving for the mediation shall be responsible for payment of those fees and expenses.
G. At any mediation held pursuant to this Section, a representative of each party who has settlement authority or who is in direct contact with a person having settlement authority on behalf of the party shall be present. If a party fails to comply with this requirement, the court may, in its discretion and after contradictory hearing, order that party to pay costs and attorney fees associated with the mediation.
Acts 2015, No. 448, §1.
NOTE: Applicable to actions filed after 8/1/15 and those for which actual date had not been set prior to 8/1/15, for which trial is set to begin after 2/1/16, or trial is continued after 2/1/16.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:31. Permitting gas well to go wild or burn prohibited; capping or plugging; notice

RS 30:31 - Permitting gas well to go wild or burn prohibited; capping or plugging; notice
No person shall negligently permit a natural gas well to become uncontrollable, or to wastefully burn. The owner, or person in possession of such a well shall prevent waste by escape or burning by securely closing the well by cap or plug or in any other fashion after five days written notice to do so. This notice may be given by any person with an interest in stopping the waste or, by a constable or justice of the peace of the parish wherein the well is located.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:32. Failure of owner, etc., to comply with notice; closing by department of public works; expenses

RS 30:32 - Failure of owner, etc., to comply with notice; closing by department of public works; expenses
A. When an owner, or person in possession of an uncontrollable, or wastefully burning well receives the notice provided in R.S. 30:31, he shall within five days thereafter commence in good faith to close the well so as to prevent the waste of natural gas. If he fails to do so, the governor, on the written complaint of any person having an interest, shall order the State Department of Public Works to take charge of the work and close the well.
B. To secure to the state the expense incurred by the department of public works, the well and sufficient ground adjacent thereto belonging to the owner or proprietor with all rents and revenues therefrom shall be retained by the state. When the owner pays in full this expense to the state less any rents or revenues received by the state from its possession of the well, the property shall be returned to him.
C. In the event the rents and revenues are insufficient to reimburse the state for the expense of closing the well, this expense shall operate as a privilege on all property of the owner of the well. The state shall proceed to enforce this privilege by suit as in other civil actions and judgment shall be executed in the manner provided by law. If the property seized and sold brings an excess over the expense of closing the well, this excess shall be paid to the owner.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:33. Setting fire to well or permitting well to catch fire, prohibited; penalty

RS 30:33 - Setting fire to well or permitting well to catch fire, prohibited; penalty
No person shall wilfully and intentionally set fire to a natural gas well, or negligently permit a natural gas well owned by him, or under his management, or in his possession to catch fire, or become uncontrollable, nor shall he negligently permit gas to wastefully escape or burn.
Whoever violates this Section shall be fined not less than five hundred dollars or imprisoned not less than three months or both.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:34. Abandoning gas well without closing prohibited; penalty

RS 30:34 - Abandoning gas well without closing prohibited; penalty
No person shall abandon a well in or adjacent to a natural gas field or an apparent natural gas field, without first placing a properly made plug both above and below the gas-producing sand, or otherwise sufficiently securing the well against the admission of water into the gas-producing sand.
Whoever violates this Section shall be fined not less than one hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned not less than thirty days nor more than four months, or both.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:41. Production of gas in excess of market demands, proportionate production

RS 30:41 - Production of gas in excess of market demands, proportionate production
In order to conserve the natural gas in the state, whenever the full production from any common source of supply of natural gas is in excess of the market demand, then any person having the right to produce gas from the common source of supply, may take therefrom only such proportion of the natural gas that may be marketed without waste, as the natural flow of the well or wells owned or controlled by the person bears to the total natural flow of the common source of supply having due regard to the acreage drained by each well, so as to prevent the person from securing an unfair proportion of the gas therefrom. The commissioner of conservation of Louisiana may by proper order, permit the taking of a greater amount whenever he deems it reasonable or equitable.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:42. Right to purchase gas

RS 30:42 - Right to purchase gas
Every person, engaged in the business of purchasing and selling natural gas in this state, shall be a common purchaser thereof, and shall purchase all of the natural gas which may be offered for sale which may be brought in pipes and connecting lines by the owner or proposed seller to its trunk lines, at the sellers' expense, or to its gathering lines, without discrimination in favor of one producer as against another, or in favor of any one source of supply as against another save as authorized by the commissioner of conservation after due notice and hearing. If a person is unable to purchase all the gas offered, then he shall purchase natural gas from each producer ratably, and each common purchaser of gas shall have the same right to purchase the production of a gas well that is not being utilized under the conditions of this Section. In the event the owner of the well refuses to sell, the common purchaser shall have the same rights of action against the owner as the seller has against the common purchaser who refuses to buy, and the seller refusing to sell shall be subject to the same penalties as are provided against the common purchaser who refuses to buy. This Section shall not affect in any way a municipal corporation engaged in buying and selling natural gas.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:43. Discrimination by purchaser

RS 30:43 - Discrimination by purchaser
No common purchaser shall discriminate between like grades and pressures of natural gas, or in favor of its own production or of production in which he may be directly or indirectly interested, either in whole or in part, but for the purpose of pro-rating the natural gas to be marketed, this production shall be treated in like manner as that of any other producer or person, and shall be taken only in the ratable proportion this production bears to the total production available for marketing.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:44. Gas to be measured by meter

RS 30:44 - Gas to be measured by meter
All gas produced from the deposits of this state when sold shall be measured by meter and the commissioner of conservation shall, upon notice and hearing, relieve any common purchaser from purchasing gas of an inferior quality or grade, and the commissioner shall from time to time make such regulations for delivery, metering and equitable purchase and taking as conditions may necessitate.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:45. Commissioner of conservation to enforce Part

RS 30:45 - Commissioner of conservation to enforce Part
The commissioner of conservation shall see that the provisions of this Part are fully and properly complied with and the district attorney in whose district a violation takes place shall, on application, bring suit if necessary to enforce the provisions of this Part. Any injunction which may be necessary shall be furnished without bond.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:46. Penalty

RS 30:46 - Penalty
Whoever violates the provisions of this Part shall be fined not less than fifty dollars nor more than five hundred dollars, or imprisoned for not more than thirty days, or both. Each day the violation continues shall constitute a separate offense.
Amended by Acts 1952, No. 132, §1.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:47. Cubic foot of gas defined

RS 30:47 - Cubic foot of gas defined
A. The term "cubic foot of gas" or "standard cubic foot of gas" means the volume of gas contained in one cubic foot of space at a standard pressure base and at a standard temperature base. The standard pressure base shall be 15.025 pounds per square inch absolute and the standard temperature base shall be sixty degrees Fahrenheit.
B. Whenever the conditions of pressure and temperature differ from the above standard, conversion of the volume from these conditions to the standard conditions shall be made in accordance with the Ideal Gas Laws with correction for deviation from Boyle's Law, which correction must be made unless the pressure at the point of measurement is two hundred pounds per square inch gauge, or less; all in accordance with methods and tables generally recognized by and commonly used in the natural gas industry.
C. For all purposes of computing standard cubic feet of gas under this Part the barometric pressure shall be assumed to be 14.7 pounds per square inch absolute at the place of measurement.
Acts 1992, No. 55, §2.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:48. Average specific gravity; average flowing temperature; field rules

RS 30:48 - Average specific gravity; average flowing temperature; field rules
A. The commissioner of conservation is hereby authorized and empowered, in the absence of the availability of satisfactory actual date based upon observed or recorded specific gravity and flowing temperature determinations, to determine the average specific gravity, and average flowing temperature of the gas at the point of measurement, as produced in each oil or gas field or pool in Louisiana, which after being so determined shall be used to calculate the standard cubic foot.
B. If for any reason the commissioner of conservation has not so determined such average specific gravity and average flowing temperature of the gas produced in any oil or gas field or pool in Louisiana, the average specific gravity shall be assumed to be six-tenths and the average flowing temperature shall be assumed to be sixty degrees Fahrenheit.
C. In the event that the commissioner of conservation finds the necessity therefor upon the request of any interested party, the commissioner of conservation shall give notice and hold a public hearing before making such determinations. Promptly upon such determination the commissioner of conservation shall make and publish such finding and promulgate such reasonable field rules as may be necessary to effectuate the provisions of this Part.
D. Any person, association of persons, or corporation shall be permitted to use the findings and field rules of the commissioner of conservation for all purposes under this Part, but if such findings or field rules are not so used in determining volumes under this Part, the volumes so otherwise determined shall be corrected to the basis of the "standard cubic foot of gas" as defined in R.S. 30:47. Nothing herein shall ever prevent the use of actual recorded values and actual test data where available, for all purposes under this Part, and the commissioner of conservation has been informed in writing of the intent so to use actual recorded values and actual test date.
Acts 1992, No. 55, §2.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:49. Reporting volumes of gas production

RS 30:49 - Reporting volumes of gas production
Any person required to report volumes of gas production under the laws of this state shall report such volumes in number of thousands of standard cubic feet calculated and determined under the provisions of this Part.
Acts 1992, No. 55, §2
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:50. Gas to be sold, purchased, and accounted for on basis of standard cubic foot of gas; penalties

RS 30:50 - Gas to be sold, purchased, and accounted for on basis of standard cubic foot of gas; penalties
A. Each and every sale, and each and every purchase, delivery and receipt of gas by volume hereafter made in this state, for which any accounting for the price paid or received for the gas so sold, purchased, delivered, or received must be made to an oil and gas lease owner, royalty owner thereunder, or other mineral interest owner, shall be made and such gas shall be measured, calculated, purchased, delivered, and accounted for on the basis of a standard cubic foot of gas as defined in R.S. 30:47, and as determined under this Part.
B. Whenever the provisions of this Part operate to change the basis of measurement provided for in existing contracts, then the price for gas, including royalty gas, provided for in such contracts shall, if either the purchaser or seller so desires, be adjusted to compensate for the change in the method of measuring the volume of gas delivered thereunder. This provision is intended to protect parties to contracts now in existence, so that after August 21, 1992, the total amount of money paid for a volume of gas purchased, or required to be accounted for, under existing contracts shall remain unaffected by this Part.
C. Nothing in this Section shall affect or apply to purchases or sales made on any basis other than a volume basis.
D. Any person, association of persons, or corporation who, as purchaser thereof, shall knowingly fail or refuse to so measure, calculate, or account for any such gas so purchased, shall be subject to a penalty of not less than ten dollars nor more than five hundred dollars for each offense recoverable in the name of the state in the district court of the parish in which the state capital is located, and each day of such violation shall constitute a separate offense.
E. Nothing herein shall prevent any aggrieved party from maintaining a civil suit for damages in the parish or parishes in which the gas is produced.
Acts 1992, No. 55, §2.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality › §30:51. Prescription of penalties

RS 30:51 - Prescription of penalties
Any suit by an official or agency responsible for the enforcement of a law, order, or regulation governing the production, transportation and marketing of oil and gas, or products thereof, to enforce in civil proceedings a penalty by means of a money judgment or a forfeiture of property, shall be instituted within three years after the violation shall have been made known to the attorney general. This Part shall not affect a suit heretofore filed or any violation occurring prior to its effective date.