Sec. 101. Orphaned well remediation program
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Section 17 of the Mineral Leasing Act ( 30 U.S.C. 226 ) is amended by adding at the end the following: In this subsection: The term inactive , with respect to a well under an oil or gas lease issued under this Act, has the meaning given the term in subsection (g)(1). The term orphaned , with respect to a well or well site under an oil or gas lease issued under this Act, means that the owner or operator of the well or well site— cannot be located; or is unable to plug and abandon the well.
The term responsible party , with respect to a well under a lease issued under this Act, has the meaning given the term in subsection (g)(1). The term Secretary means the Secretary of the Interior. Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall establish, in accordance with this subsection— in cooperation with the Secretary of Agriculture, a program to remediate, reclaim, and close orphaned oil and gas wells and well sites located on land administered by the land management agencies of the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture, respectively; and a program under which the Secretary shall distribute 75 percent of the amounts made available under paragraph
(9)to States and Indian tribes that have submitted to the Secretary an application to remediate, reclaim, and close orphaned oil and gas wells and well sites on land under the jurisdiction of the States and Indian tribes. The programs established under paragraph
(2)shall— use existing and updated inventories of orphaned well sites to establish priority for the distribution of funds under the programs for activities, including— remediating, reclaiming, and closing orphaned wells and well sites; remediating and reclaiming related well pads; reclaiming related access roads; and restoring land, water, and habitat impacted by orphaned wells and the prior operation of the wells; provide a public accounting of the costs of remediation, reclamation, and closure for each applicable orphaned oil or gas well and well site; and after remediation, reclamation, and closure of an orphaned well or well site, seek— to determine the identity, if unknown, of any potential responsible party associated with the orphaned well or well site, or a surety or guarantor of such a responsible party, to the extent such information can be ascertained; and to obtain from responsible parties reimbursement for applicable expenditures, to the maximum extent practicable. In carrying out the programs established under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall— work cooperatively with— the Secretary of Agriculture; and each State, local government, and Indian tribe within the jurisdiction of which an orphaned well site on Federal land is located; and consult with— affected States, local governments, and Indian tribes; the Secretary of Energy; and the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this subsection, and not less frequently than once every 2 years thereafter, the Secretary, in cooperation with the Secretary of Agriculture and in consultation with affected States and Indian tribes, shall submit to Congress a report describing the expenditures under, and the progress and achievements of, the programs established under paragraph (2). For the first 2 fiscal years beginning after the date of enactment of this subsection, the funds made available to remediate, reclaim, and close orphaned wells and well sites under the program established under paragraph (2)(B) shall be allocated based on a demonstration of— identified orphaned wells and well sites in need of remediation, reclamation, or closure, with a priority for sites posing the greatest adverse impacts to— public health and safety; and land, water, and other resources; and adequate programmatic and administrative capacity to expend the funds in a timely and effective manner. For the third fiscal year beginning after the date of enactment of this subsection, and each fiscal year thereafter, the Secretary shall make funds available under the program established under paragraph (2)(B) based on— the factors described in subparagraph (A); and a determination by the Secretary that an affected State or Indian tribe is— using bonds or other financial assurances that will fully cover costs associated with remediating and reclaiming orphaned oil and gas wells under the jurisdiction of the State or Indian tribe; or adopting and using— bonds described in subclause (I); or other financial assurances. In any case in which the Secretary determines that, for any fiscal year, a State or Indian tribe cannot effectively use any portion of the funds that otherwise would be made available to the State or Indian tribe under subparagraph
(A)or (B), the Secretary shall use those funds— to remediate, reclaim, and close orphaned wells and well sites on land administered by the Secretary or the Secretary of Agriculture; to review and update any inventory of orphaned or inactive wells, including wells previously identified as idle or abandoned, on land described in clause (i); to carry out subsection (g)(6)(E); to carry out paragraph (8); or to determine the identity of any potential responsible party associated with an orphaned well or well site, or a surety or guarantor of such a responsible party, to the extent such information can be ascertained; and to obtain from such a responsible party reimbursement for applicable expenditures, to the maximum extent practicable. Before conducting any oil or gas development or production leasing of Federal land that contains a well or well site that was remediated, reclaimed, or closed pursuant to this Act, the Secretary, or the Secretary of Agriculture with respect to National Forest System land, shall determine that— re-leasing and development of the land will not degrade the restored conditions accomplished pursuant to the remediation, reclamation, or closure; the land achieves compliance with all applicable standards adopted pursuant to subsection (g)(5) prior to being re-leased; and the party seeking to re-lease the land has provided to the Secretary a specific justification of the reasons why the land should be re-leased. Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture shall jointly develop, and make publicly available, a computer database to provide centralized data relating to operations, reclamation activities, and financial assurances for each oil and gas lease in effect under this Act. The database under subparagraph
(A)shall include, with respect to each lease described in that subparagraph, information relating to— the number, location, and status of each well subject to the lease; the number, location, and status of each inactive and orphaned well subject to the lease, and the length of time that each such well has not been producing; the names of all responsible parties for each well, including lessees and operators; whether the lease is part of a unit; the amount of the financial assurance that has been established for the lease; the history of financial assurance amounts for the lease, including dates of review and requested increases; inspection, violations, and enforcement actions taken with respect to the lease, including resolution of each violation, if any; whether the financial assurance on the lease has been released; payment status for royalties, rents, and fees; and any additional information required to be collected pursuant to subsection (g)(6). The Secretary shall— ensure that the database under subparagraph
(A)is made available to each field office of the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service, as applicable; and provide automatic and timely notification, on a lease-by-lease basis, of applicable requirements and deadlines to review financial assurances and inactive well status, in accordance with subsection (g). Except as provided in clause (ii), the Secretary may require that data for the database under subparagraph
(A)shall be provided and entered into the database— by the applicable lessee; and at the expense of the lessee. Any relevant data relating to a Federal inspection or enforcement action shall be provided and entered into the database under subparagraph
(A)by the applicable Federal enforcement official. The Secretary shall carry out such activities as the Secretary determines to be necessary to ensure the quality of the data included in the database under subparagraph (A). Notwithstanding any other provision of law, from the Federal share of royalty revenues deposited into the Treasury pursuant to section 35, the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary to carry out the programs established under paragraph (2), to remain available until expended— on October 1, 2020, $500,000,000; on October 1, 2021, $500,000,000; and on October 1, 2022, and on each October 1 thereafter through October 1, 2029, $250,000,000. The Secretary shall be entitled to receive, shall accept, and shall use to carry out this subsection the funds transferred under subparagraph (A), without further appropriation. . Section 349 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 ( 42 U.S.C. 15907 ) is amended by striking the section designation and heading and all that follows through Out of any in subsection
(i)and inserting the following: Out of any . The table of contents for the Energy Policy Act of 2005 ( Public Law 109–58 ; 119 Stat. 596) is amended by striking the item relating to section 349 and inserting the following: Sec. 349. Federally drilled wells. .
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- Pub. L. 109-58
- 119 Stat. 596
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Sec. 101
Orphaned well remediation program
Pub. L.Pub. L. 109-58
Stat.119 Stat. 596
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