NARO-Texas Legislative Updates
Prop
2 WINS !!! 78th Legislative Session a Success!
After almost three months of waiting, some negative press referring
to the "con's" described by the Legislative Council, and
some last minute help in 'getting out the vote' on the 13th NARO-Texas
saw it's legislative efforts pay-off with over 62% of the vote cast.
A quick analysis showed that the metropolitan cities where Prop
2 received endorsement from the media voted overwhelmingly for Prop
2. Vice President Dave Vinson, who spearheaded the effort
this last session, said that it was a "Good learning experience."
For complete election results - click
here
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First
Oklahoma and Now New Mexico - Who's Next???
Two years ago Oklahoma passed a bill authorizing a withholding on
out of state royalty owners. Now New Mexico has done the same.
Texas does not have a state income tax, but we have plenty of others
and the ad valorem/property tax issue will be discussed in all seriousness
next year. What will be the outcome? Tammy Naron, Apache
Corporation and COPAS Revenue Chair has written about the New Mexico
Senate Bill 621 - read
the article here
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Winneke
Testifies in Oklahoma Regarding Natural Gas Supplies
In late August NARO-Texas Board Member Greg Winneke traveled to
Oklahoma City to testify about natural gas in North America.
Read what he had to say - click
here
Royalty/Mineral
Owner Related Bills Filed in the 78th Legislature:
Other Bills catch Royalty Owners
eyes: Updated
HB
2689 , filed by Rep. Jim Keffer of Eastland, relates
to the practice of Law and is designed to further define who may
perform certain actions relating to Petroleum and Mineral Land Services.
The original bill was substituted in committee with CSHB
2689 and has now passed the House. The Senate
has now heard this bill in Jurisprudence and reported it out without
amendments and it is now recommended for the local and uncontested
calendar
SB
340 , filed by Senator Todd Staples, relates to the
rendition for taxation all tangible personal property used for the
production of income. This bill has now passed the Senate
and has been received in the House and referred to Local Government
Ways and Means chaired by Senator Fred Hill. The House has
now heard this bill, passed it out of committee without amendment,
but on the floor of the House two amendments were attached and it
passed and has been reported to the Senate.
Mineral Tax Sale Redemption
Bill Received in the Senate:
As of May 21st the Finance Committee has scheduled this HB
1125 and HJR 51 for a hearing on Thursday,
May 21st. Originally HJR 51 was referred
to the Senate Natural Resouces Committee, but on May 13th it was
rereferred to the Senate Finance Committee. The Senate companions
to these bills are still in the Senate which gives the House bills
the best chance of getting out and going to the Governor.
On April 28th HB 1125 was read for the first time
in the Senate and referred to the Finance Committee. HJR 51
has now been received in the Senate. There will likely be
a hearing in the Finance Committee on May 8th, the day our Convention
in Dallas starts, or the following week.
As of April 25th HB 1125 has been received in the
Senate and HJR 51 has been place on the Constitutional
Amendments Calendar. SB 832 had a public
hearing and testimony was taken - Dave Vinson testified on behalf
of NARO-Texas and answered several important questions - the bill
was voted on at the end of the hearing and was passed. SJR
37 has been referred to Natural Resources.
HB 1125 and HJR 51 were heard
on April 3rd in the Local Government Ways and Means Committee and
were reported favorably without amendments on April 8th and have
now been sent to Calendars. The next step is the House floor
for a vote.
Bills have been filed in both the House and Senate which seek to
extend the redemption period on mineral interests foreclosed under
delinquent tax suits to two years from the present six months.
Rep. Ismael (Kino) Flores has filed HB
1125 and HJR
51 while Sen. Todd Staples of Palestine has filed SB
832 and SJR
37 . Legislation such as this must be passed
by Constitutional Amendment, which requires a 75% vote in both Houses
and then approval by the Governor. The amendment is then
put on the ballots to be voted on in the next statewide election.
Rep. Flores is from District
36, a portion of which represents mineral-rich Hidalgo County and
has a record of being a staunch advocate of the rights of mineral
owners. Rep. Flores has invested much time in understanding
our problems and should be commended for his efforts.
Sen. Staples represents
District 3, which is comprised of all or a portion of 16 counties
in Southeast Texas which are quickly becoming a primary focus of
the oil industry. Sen. Staples' background in real estate
and tax appraisal has made him a leader in the legislature in tax
matters. As a member of the Natural Resources Committee,
he has a strong voice in matters that directly affect mineral owners.
- HB
1803 - Surface Use Act (Rep. David Swinford, R-Amarillo)
- SB
1376 - Surface Use Act (Senator Kenneth Armbrister,
D-Victoria)
relating to surface use planning and restoration for
oil and gas mineral leases...full
text HB 1803, SB 1376 and
(ROAR article)
Contact Numbers for the Authors of
the above Bills:
Rep. Kino
Flores - (512) 463-0704
Senator Todd Staples - (512) 463-0103
Rep. David Swinford
- (512) 463-0470 Senator
Kenneth Armbrister - (512) 463-0118
NARO-Texas, TIPRO, TXOGA Discuss Possible Legislation Posted Monday, May 6, 2002 by NARO-TX
Representatives of NARO-Texas, NARO, the Texas Oil and Gas Association, and Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association met for several hours on April 26 discussing ideas for treating mineral owners more fairly in the tax foreclosure sale process. All present agreed that there are several meaningful steps that probably can be taken in the 2003 Legislature. The issues will continue to be examined in coming months.
New Oil & Gas Royalty Reporting Requirements Become Law Posted Thursday, July 5, 2001 by NARO-TX
As originally filed, HB 981 (King, D-Uvalde and Armbrister, D-Victoria) would have required payors to provide excessive amounts of information that many payors do not have and many royalty owners do not want.
The compromise bill supported by NARO-Texas, TLMA, TxOGA, TIPRO, PPROA, PBPA and The Alliance requires:
· The property name, county, and state to be included on the check stub in addition to the items already required by law. Many payors already provide this information.
· A telephone number for contacting the company regarding payment information to be included on the check stub. Many payors already provide a telephone number.
· Payors to send notice to royalty owners it is paying advising them that the royalty owner may request additional information and how to obtain production information from the RRC.
· Payors to respond within 60 days to requests received by certified mail. Information that may be requested includes property descriptions, detail about deductions or adjustments, heating value (Btu content) of gas produced or sold, and the appropriate RRC numbers.
· Payors who do not respond to such a request in a timely manner by certified mail may be subject to a lawsuit or voluntary mediation. The remedy requires the loser to pay reasonable court costs and attorney fees.
· The law will become effective January 1, 2002, for the changes to the property description request requirement and September 1, 2002, where system changes are required.
This bill was signed by the Governor on June 14. Complete text of HB 981 and other bills may be accessed at Texas Legislature Online. For a wrap-up of issues affecting oil and gas operators and royalty owners, logon to the TIPRO website. TIPRO monitored and tracked over 300 bills with potential impact on oil and gas operators and/or royalty owners during the most recent session.
You can also visit the National Association of Royalty
Owners website for national legislative updates.
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