CHAPTER 1. Oil and Gas Conservation [3000. - 3473.]
Chapter 1 enacted by Stats. 1939, Ch. 93.
§§ 3000–3473 · 298 sections
ARTICLE 1. Definitions and General Provisions §§ 3000–3017 · 18 sections
- § 3000 Unless the context otherwise requires, the definitions hereinafter set forth shall govern the construction of this division.
- § 3001 “Department,” in reference to the government of this state, means the Department of Conservation.
- § 3002 “Division,” in reference to the government of this state, means the Geologic Energy Management Division in the Department of Conservation; otherwise “division”…
- § 3003 “Director” means the Director of Conservation.
- § 3004 “Supervisor” means the State Oil and Gas Supervisor.
- § 3005 “Person” includes any individual, firm, association, corporation, or any other group or combination acting as a unit.
- § 3006 “Oil” includes petroleum, and “petroleum” includes oil.
- § 3007 “Gas” means any natural hydrocarbon gas coming from the earth.
- § 3008 (a) “Well” means any oil or gas well or well for the discovery of oil or gas; any well on lands producing or reasonably presumed to contain oil or gas; any…
- § 3009 “Operator” means a person who, by virtue of ownership, or under the authority of a lease or any other agreement, has the right to drill, operate, maintain, or…
- § 3010 “Production facility” means any equipment attendant to oil and gas production or injection operations including, but not limited to, tanks, flowlines, headers,…
- § 3011 (a) The purposes of this division include protecting public health and safety and environmental quality, including reduction and mitigation of greenhouse gas…
- § 3012 The provisions of this division apply to any land or well situated within the boundaries of an incorporated city in which the drilling of oil wells is now or…
- § 3013 This division shall be liberally construed to meet its purposes, and the director and the supervisor, acting with the approval of the director, shall have all…
- § 3014 “District” means an oil and gas district as provided for in Section 3100.
- § 3015 For the purpose of implementing Section 503 of the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978, the supervisor may make the determinations entrusted to state agencies…
- § 3016 For purposes of this chapter, abandoned underground personal property, including a well, of an operator shall become the property of the mineral interest owner…
- § 3017 (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that the oil and gas industry pay for all necessary costs of plugging and abandonment and site restoration of oil and…
ARTICLE 2. Administration §§ 3100–3115 · 18 sections
- § 3100 For the purposes of this chapter, the state is divided into districts, the number and boundaries of which shall be fixed by the director. The director and the…
- § 3101 The supervisor shall appoint one chief deputy and at least one district deputy for each of the districts provided for in this chapter, and shall prescribe…
- § 3103 The chief deputy shall be a competent engineer or geologist, preferably licensed in the state, and experienced in the development and production of oil and gas.
- § 3104 Each district deputy shall be a competent engineer or geologist, preferably licensed in the state, and experienced in the development and production of oil and…
- § 3105 An office under the supervision of a district deputy may be maintained in each district. The office shall be conveniently accessible to the oil and gas…
- § 3106 (a) The supervisor shall so supervise the drilling, operation, maintenance, and abandonment of wells and the operation, maintenance, and removal or abandonment…
- § 3106.1 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, and notwithstanding any notice of intention, supplemental notice, well stimulation treatment permit, or similar…
- § 3106.5 Acting with the approval of the director, the supervisor may annually expend, from the amount appropriated to the division, up to ten thousand dollars…
- § 3107 A district deputy in each district, designated by the supervisor, shall collect all necessary information regarding the oil and gas wells in the district, with…
- § 3108 (a) On or before the first day of October of each year the supervisor shall make public, for the benefit of all interested persons, a report in writing…
- § 3108.5 (a) (1) On or before July 1, 2026, the supervisor shall make all public information collected or maintained by the division, with priority given to well…
- § 3109 The supervisor may publish any publications, reports, maps, or other printed matter relating to oil and gas, for which there may be public demand. If these…
- § 3110 All money paid to the Treasurer pursuant to Article 7 (commencing with Section 3400) shall be deposited to the credit of the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal…
- § 3111 (a) All money received in repayment of repair work done as provided in this chapter shall be returned and credited to the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal…
- § 3112 Notwithstanding any other provision of this code or of law and except as provided in the State Building Standards Law, Part 2.5 (commencing with Section 18901)…
- § 3113 (a) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, the division shall, in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code, annually prepare and…
- § 3114 (a) By July 30, 2019, and annually thereafter, the Department of Conservation, in consultation with the State Water Resources Control Board, shall report to…
- § 3115 On or before July 1, 2023, the division shall develop and implement an education and outreach program to provide training to local governmental entities on…
ARTICLE 2.3. Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Administrative Fund: Labor Standards for Funding §§ 3125–3125.3 · 4 sections
- § 3125 All work to plug and abandon wells, decommission production facilities, or otherwise remediate well sites that is undertaken, funded, or financed by the…
- § 3125.1 (a) Not later than June 30, 2024, the California Workforce Development Board shall consult with the division in developing and implementing the Oil and Gas…
- § 3125.2 (a) The division, with assistance from the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, shall develop a procurement process to group multiple projects involving the…
- § 3125.3 (a) This section applies only to work performed by contractors licensed by the Contractors State License Board under contracts for the performance of…
ARTICLE 2.5. Underground Injection Control §§ 3130–3132 · 3 sections
- § 3130 For purposes of this article, the following terms mean the following: (a) “Beneficial use” has the same meaning as set forth in subdivision (f) of Section…
- § 3131 (a) To ensure the appropriateness of a proposal by the state for an exempted aquifer determination subject to any conditions on the subsequent injection of…
- § 3132 (a) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply: (1) “Carbon dioxide capture project” means a project that uses a process to separate carbon…
ARTICLE 3. Well Stimulation §§ 3150–3161 · 12 sections
- § 3150 “Additive” means a substance or combination of substances added to a base fluid for purposes of preparing well stimulation treatment fluid which includes, but…
- § 3151 “Base fluid” means the continuous phase fluid used in the makeup of a well stimulation treatment fluid, including, but not limited to, an acid stimulation…
- § 3152 “Hydraulic fracturing” means a well stimulation treatment that, in whole or in part, includes the pressurized injection of hydraulic fracturing fluid or fluids…
- § 3153 “Well stimulation treatment fluid” means a base fluid mixed with physical and chemical additives, which may include acid, for the purpose of a well stimulation…
- § 3154 “Proppants” means materials inserted or injected into the underground geologic formation that are intended to prevent fractures from closing.
- § 3155 “Supplier” means an entity performing a well stimulation treatment or an entity supplying an additive or proppant directly to the operator for use in a well…
- § 3156 “Surface property owner” means the owner of real property as shown on the latest equalized assessment roll or, if more recent information than the information…
- § 3157 (a) For purposes of this article, “well stimulation treatment” means any treatment of a well designed to enhance oil and gas production or recovery by…
- § 3158 “Acid well stimulation treatment” means a well stimulation treatment that uses, in whole or in part, the application of one or more acids to the well or…
- § 3159 “Flowback fluid” means the fluid recovered from the treated well before the commencement of oil and gas production from that well following a well stimulation…
- § 3160 (a) On or before January 1, 2015, the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency shall cause to be conducted, and completed, an independent scientific study on…
- § 3161 (a) The division shall finalize the regulations governing this article on or before January 1, 2015. Notwithstanding any other laws, the regulations shall…
ARTICLE 3.5. Natural Gas Storage Wells §§ 3180–3187 · 10 sections
- § 3180 (a) As used in this article, “gas storage well” means an active or idle well used primarily to inject natural gas into or withdraw natural gas from an…
- § 3181 (a) The operator of a gas storage well shall submit for the supervisor’s approval the following materials: (1) Data describing the gas storage project and gas…
- § 3181.5 (a) (1) The operator of a gas storage well shall provide to the division a complete chemical inventory of the materials, of any phase, that may be emitted from…
- § 3182 On a weekly basis, the division shall post a list of notices received pursuant to Section 3203 on the division’s Internet Web site. Copies of any notice shall…
- § 3183 (a) The division, in consultation with the State Air Resources Board, shall determine and adopt by regulation what constitutes a reportable leak from a gas…
- § 3184 (a) Within 72 hours of being notified of a reportable leak, pursuant to Section 3183, the supervisor shall determine if the reportable leak poses a significant…
- § 3185 The division shall perform unannounced random onsite inspections of some gas storage wells annually. The results shall be posted and available to the public on…
- § 3186 An operator of a gas storage well shall develop and maintain a comprehensive gas storage well training and mentoring program for those employees whose job…
- § 3186.3 On or before July 1, 2021, in response to the independent root cause analysis of the 2015 well leak at the Aliso Canyon gas storage facility prepared by Blade…
- § 3187 All materials provided to the division and approved by the supervisor to comply with Sections 3181, 3184, and 3185 shall be posted and available to the public…
ARTICLE 3.6. Gravity-Based Energy Storage Well Pilot Program §§ 3190–3190.9 · 10 sections
- § 3190 For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply: (a) “Federal agency” means the United States Environmental Protection Agency, including Region 9…
- § 3190.1 (a) The supervisor, after consulting with the State Water Resources Control Board and an appropriate regional water quality control board, may authorize the…
- § 3190.2 A well that has been permitted or operated as a Class II well, as defined in Section 3130, shall not be authorized for use as a gravity-based energy storage…
- § 3190.3 (a) For purposes of this section, “plan” means the plan required pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 3206. (b) An idle well that is…
- § 3190.4 (a) The division shall require mechanical integrity testing before the conversion of a well to a gravity-based energy storage well, and not less than annually…
- § 3190.5 A gravity-based energy storage well that has lost its mechanical integrity shall be plugged and abandoned within one year or scheduled for plugging and…
- § 3190.6 Except as otherwise provided in this article, a gravity-based energy storage well shall meet all requirements applicable to a well specified in this division.
- § 3190.7 The division shall identify all wells converted to or being operated as gravity-based energy storage wells on its internet website.
- § 3190.8 (a) On or by January 1, 2033, the division, in consultation with entities operating gravity-based energy storage wells, the Secretary for Environmental…
- § 3190.9 (a) Except as provided in subdivision (c), this article shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2035, and as of that date is repealed. (b) The…
ARTICLE 4. Regulation of Operations §§ 3200–3238 · 58 sections
- § 3200 An owner or operator of a well or production facility shall designate an agent, giving his or her address, who resides in this state, to receive and accept…
- § 3201 (a) The operator of a well or production facility shall notify the supervisor or the district deputy, in writing, in the form that the supervisor or the…
- § 3202 (a) A person who acquires the right to operate a well or production facility, whether by purchase, transfer, assignment, conveyance, exchange, or other…
- § 3203 (a) The operator of any well, before commencing the work of drilling the well, shall file with the supervisor or the district deputy a written notice of…
- § 3203.5 (a) The division shall require a copy of the local land use authorization that supports the installation of a well at the time an operator submits the notice…
- § 3204 (a) An operator who, on or after January 1, 2018, engages in the drilling, redrilling, deepening, or in any operation permanently altering the casing, of a…
- § 3205 (a) An operator who engages in the drilling, redrilling, deepening, or in any operation permanently altering the casing, of 20 or more wells at any time, may…
- § 3205.1 (a) Notwithstanding Sections 3204 and 3205, a person who engages in the drilling, redrilling, or deepening, or in any operation permanently altering the…
- § 3205.2 (a) Notwithstanding Section 3204, any person who engages in the operation of a class II commercial wastewater disposal well, as defined in subdivision (d),…
- § 3205.3 (a) The division may require an operator filing an individual indemnity bond pursuant to Section 3204 or a blanket indemnity bond pursuant to Section 3205, as…
- § 3205.5 In lieu of the indemnity bond required by Sections 3204, 3205, 3205.1, 3205.2, 3205.8, and 3206, a deposit may, with the written approval of the supervisor, be…
- § 3205.6 Before July 1, 2020, the supervisor shall do all of the following: (a) Evaluate and estimate the costs associated with the decommissioning, including plugging…
- § 3205.7 (a) (1) Commencing July 1, 2022, the division shall begin requiring each operator of an oil or gas well to submit a report to the supervisor that demonstrates…
- § 3205.8 (a) (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, a person who acquires the right to operate a well or production facility, by purchase, transfer,…
- § 3206 (a) No later than May 1 of each year, the operator of any idle well shall do either of the following: (1) For each idle well that was an idle well at any time…
- § 3206.1 (a) By June 1, 2018, the division shall review, evaluate, and update its regulations pertaining to idle wells. The update shall include idle well testing and…
- § 3206.1.5 (a) On or before March 1, 2025, the division shall identify all low-production wells that are located in a county of the first class in an oil field that is…
- § 3206.2 (a) (1) The division, in consultation with the State Air Resources Board, shall initiate a study to be conducted by independent experts of fugitive emissions…
- § 3206.3 (a) (1) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, on or before July 1, 2019, and annually thereafter, the supervisor shall, in compliance with…
- § 3206.5 (a) Any city or county may request from the supervisor a list of all idle wells, as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 3008, within its jurisdiction. (b)…
- § 3207 (a) Any individual or blanket indemnity bond issued in compliance with this chapter may be terminated and canceled and the surety relieved of all obligations…
- § 3208 (a) For the purposes of Sections 3206 and 3207, a well is properly abandoned when it has been shown, to the satisfaction of the supervisor, that all proper…
- § 3208.1 (a) To prevent, as far as possible, damage to life, health, and property, the supervisor or district deputy may order, or permit, the reabandonment of any…
- § 3209 The provisions of Section 3207 as to termination and cancellation shall also apply to all bonds which have been heretofore filed with the supervisor as then…
- § 3210 The owner or operator of any well shall keep, or cause to be kept, a careful and accurate log, core record, and history of the drilling of the well.
- § 3211 The log shall show the character and depth of the formation passed through or encountered in the drilling of the well. The log shall show completely the…
- § 3212 The core record shall show the depth, character, and fluid content of cores obtained, so far as determined.
- § 3213 (a) The history shall show the location and amount of sidetracked casings, tools, or other material, the depth and quantity of cement in cement plugs, the…
- § 3214 The log shall be kept in the local office of the owner or operator, and, together with the tour reports of the owner or operator, shall be subject, during…
- § 3215 (a) Within 60 days after the date of cessation of drilling, rework, well stimulation treatment, or abandonment operations, or the date of suspension of…
- § 3216 The owner or operator of any well, or his local agent, shall file with the supervisor a copy of the log, history, and core record, or any portion thereof, at…
- § 3219 Any person engaged in operating any oil or gas well wherein high pressure gas is known to exist, and any person drilling for oil or gas in any district where…
- § 3219.5 (a) On or before July 1, 2001, the Department of Conservation shall report to the Governor and the Legislature on options for ensuring the existence of blowout…
- § 3220 The owner or operator of any well on lands producing or reasonably presumed to contain oil or gas shall properly case it with water-tight and adequate casing,…
- § 3222 The owner or operator of any well shall, at the request of the supervisor, demonstrate that water from any well is not penetrating oil-bearing or gas-bearing…
- § 3223 The district deputy or an inspector designated by the supervisor may be present at the test for shutoff. If the test is personally witnessed by the district…
- § 3224 The supervisor shall order those tests or remedial work as in the supervisor’s judgment are necessary to prevent damage to life, health, property, and natural…
- § 3224.5 (a) After making a determination, based upon a site inspection, that a well poses a risk to life, health, property, or natural resources, the supervisor may…
- § 3225 (a) An order of the supervisor or a district deputy issued pursuant to this chapter shall provide a clear and concise recitation of the acts or omissions with…
- § 3226 (a) Within 30 days after service of an order pursuant to Sections 3224 and 3225, or Section 3237, or if there has been an appeal from the order to the…
- § 3226.3 The division shall annually provide to the State Water Resources Control Board and the California regional water quality control boards an inventory of all…
- § 3227 (a) The owner of any well shall file with the supervisor, on or before the last day of each month, for the last preceding calendar month, a statement, in the…
- § 3227.5 The supervisor shall compile from statements filed pursuant to Section 3227 and publish monthly statistics, within 90 days of the end of each calendar month,…
- § 3227.6 As used in Sections 3227 and 3227.5, the following terms have the following meaning: (a) “Field” means the same general surface area which is underlain, or…
- § 3228 Before abandoning any well in accordance with methods approved by the supervisor or the district deputy, and under his or her direction, the owner or operator…
- § 3229 Before commencing any work to abandon a well, the owner or operator shall file with the supervisor or the district deputy a written notice of intention to…
- § 3230 The notice of intention to abandon shall contain the following information: (a) The total depth of the well to be abandoned. (b) The complete casing record of…
- § 3232 The supervisor or the district deputy shall, within 10 days after the receipt of a written report of abandonment, furnish the owner or operator with a written…
- § 3233 (a) The division may develop field rules which establish volumetric thresholds for emergency reporting by the operator of oil discharges to land associated…
- § 3234 (a) (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, all the well records, including production reports, of any owner or operator that are filed pursuant to…
- § 3235 (a) The supervisor may upon their own initiative or shall upon receipt of a written complaint from a person owning land, residing, or operating wells within a…
- § 3236 (a) An owner or operator, or employee thereof, who refuses to permit the supervisor or the district deputy, or the district deputy’s inspector, to inspect a…
- § 3236.2 (a) (1) Upon referral by the supervisor, a person who violates this chapter or a regulation implementing this chapter is subject to a civil penalty of not more…
- § 3236.3 (a) When the supervisor determines that a person has engaged in, is engaged in, or is about to engage in any acts or practices that constitute or will…
- § 3236.5 (a) A person who violates this chapter or a regulation implementing this chapter is, at the supervisor’s discretion, subject to an administrative civil penalty…
- § 3236.6 The supervisor, or the supervisor’s designee, may recover from the owner or operator all response, prosecution, and enforcement costs incurred by the division…
- § 3237 (a) (1) The supervisor or district deputy may order the plugging and abandonment of a well or the decommissioning of a production facility that has been…
- § 3238 (a) For oil and gas produced in this state from a well that qualifies under Section 3251 or that has been inactive for a period of at least the preceding five…
ARTICLE 4.1. Abandoned Wells §§ 3240–3243 · 3 sections
- § 3240 The supervisor, in cooperation with appropriate state and local agencies, shall conduct a study of abandoned oil and gas wells located in those areas of the…
- § 3241 The supervisor, in cooperation with appropriate state and local agencies, shall develop a strategy for extracting existing accumulations of methane gas and…
- § 3243 (a) On or before July 1, 2022, the supervisor shall establish a collections unit within the division. (b) The collections unit shall be responsible for…
ARTICLE 4.2. Hazardous Wells and Facilities §§ 3250–3258 · 10 sections
- § 3250 The Legislature hereby finds and declares that hazardous and certain idle-deserted oil and gas wells and hazardous and deserted facilities, as defined in this…
- § 3251 For the purposes of this article, the following definitions apply: (a) “Deserted facility” means a production facility determined by the supervisor to be…
- § 3251.5 (a) Notwithstanding Section 3251, a well shall be deemed a hazardous well if it has been determined by the supervisor to pose a present danger to life, health,…
- § 3252 As used in this article, “natural resources” includes land, water, air, minerals, vegetation, wildlife, historical or aesthetic sites, or any other natural…
- § 3253 If any provisions of this article or the application thereof in any circumstances or to any person or public agency is held invalid, the remainder of this…
- § 3254 This article shall be liberally construed and applied to promote its purposes.
- § 3255 (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this division, the supervisor may order to be carried out, or may undertake, any of the following operations, as…
- § 3256 (a) The division is hereby authorized to accept, and hold for and in the name of the state, by gift, exchange, purchase, negotiation, or eminent domain…
- § 3257 To effect the purpose of this article, the division is authorized to enter into agreements with any person, public agency, corporation, or other entity for the…
- § 3258 (a) The division shall not make expenditures from the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Administrative Fund pursuant to this article that exceed the following sum any…
ARTICLE 4.3. Oil and Gas Environmental Remediation Account §§ 3260–3262 · 3 sections
- § 3260 For purposes of this article, “account” means the Oil and Gas Environmental Remediation Account established under Section 3261.
- § 3261 (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, including the expenditure limitations of Section 3258, the division shall administer and manage the…
- § 3262 The division may adopt regulations to implement this article.
ARTICLE 4.4. Regulation of Production Facilities §§ 3270–3270.6 · 7 sections
- § 3270 (a) The division shall, by regulation, prescribe minimum facility maintenance standards for all production facilities in the state. The regulations shall…
- § 3270.1 Within three months of its acquisition of a production facility or at the time of the initial production at its production facility, the facility operator…
- § 3270.2 The division shall inspect production facilities to ensure compliance with the standards prescribed in the regulations promulgated pursuant to subdivision (a)…
- § 3270.3 In addition to any other remedy provided by law, the supervisor, upon his or her determination or that of the district deputy that a production facility is…
- § 3270.4 (a) In addition to the bonding requirements under Article 4 (commencing with Section 3200), for an operator with a history of violating this chapter or that…
- § 3270.5 (a) (1) By January 1, 2018, the division shall review and evaluate, and update as appropriate, its existing regulations regarding all active gas pipelines that…
- § 3270.6 Upon the discovery of a leak from an active gas pipeline that is within a sensitive area, as defined in Section 3270.5, the owner or operator of the pipeline…
ARTICLE 4.5. Interstate Cooperation in Oil and Gas Conservation §§ 3275–3277 · 3 sections
- § 3275 The Legislature of the State of California hereby ratifies and approves “The Interstate Compact to Conserve Oil and Gas,” and the amendment, extension, and…
- § 3276 The provisions of the interstate compact referred to in Section 3275 are as follows: An Agreement to Amend, Extend and Renew the Interstate Compact to Conserve…
- § 3277 The Governor is hereby designated as the official representative of the State of California on the Interstate Oil Compact Commission provided for in the…
ARTICLE 4.6. Health Protection Zones §§ 3280–3291 · 13 sections
- § 3280 For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply: (a) “Area” means surface area, and all measurement of distances is on the surface of the land.…
- § 3281 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, commencing January 1, 2023, the division shall not approve any notice of intention under Section 3203 within a health…
- § 3281.5 (a) The Legislature finds and declares that development of oil and gas fields into nonfossil fuel production and injection and related uses, including, but not…
- § 3282 Commencing July 1, 2026, all oil or gas production facilities or wells with a wellhead within a health protection zone shall be in compliance with all of the…
- § 3283 (a) All operators with a production facility or well with a wellhead in a health protection zone shall develop a leak detection and response plan that shall be…
- § 3284 (a) Before commencing any work that requires a notice of intention under Section 3203 in the health protection zone, the operator shall contact property owners…
- § 3285 (a) Every operator shall submit to the division by July 1, 2025, a sensitive receptor inventory and map that includes the following: (1) A list of all…
- § 3286 (a) Commencing July 1, 2030, and no less than annually on a date to be determined by the division, an operator with a wellhead or other production facility or…
- § 3287 Notwithstanding Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, on or before July 1, 2030, and annually thereafter, the division shall provide a legislative report to…
- § 3288 The division, the State Air Resources Board, and the State Water Resources Control Board may prescribe, adopt, and enforce any emergency regulations as…
- § 3289 (a) No provision of this article is a limitation on the authority or jurisdiction of the State Water Resources Control Board, the regional water quality…
- § 3290 The State Air Resources Board, relevant local air districts, the State Water Resources Control Board, and relevant local water quality control boards shall…
- § 3291 This article does not diminish or alter the authority of the supervisor to deny, revoke, or suspend permits to meet the division’s purpose to protect public…
ARTICLE 5. Unreasonable Waste of Gas §§ 3300–3314 · 15 sections
- § 3300 The unreasonable waste of natural gas by the act, omission, sufferance, or insistence of the lessor, lessee or operator of any land containing oil or gas, or…
- § 3301 Whenever the supervisor finds that it is in the interest of the protection of oil or gas from unreasonable waste, the lessors, lessees, operators or other…
- § 3302 Upon complaint being made to the director by any person operating in any oil field that there is occurring or threatened an unreasonable waste of gas in any…
- § 3303 Notice of the time and place of the hearing shall be given by publication in a newspaper printed and published in the county in which the unreasonable waste of…
- § 3304 The place of hearing shall be in the county or in any of the counties in which the unreasonable waste of gas is alleged to be taking place or to be threatened.
- § 3305 At the hearing all persons interested are entitled to be heard and may present testimony either oral or written. All witnesses shall be sworn, and a transcript…
- § 3306 Upon the conclusion of the hearing, the supervisor shall determine whether or not there is an unreasonable waste of gas in the field, in existence or…
- § 3307 If it appears that gas is being produced from any oil well or wells in quantities exceeding a reasonable proportion to the amount of oil produced from the same…
- § 3308 If the waste of gas is found to be unreasonable, an order shall be made by the supervisor directing that the unreasonable waste of gas be discontinued or…
- § 3309 A copy of the supervisor’s order shall be posted in a conspicuous place upon the property affected, and the order shall become final 10 days after posting,…
- § 3310 When the decision of the supervisor that there is an unreasonable waste of gas occurring or threatened has become final, a certified copy thereof shall be…
- § 3311 In those suits, a restraining order shall not be issued ex parte, and a temporary or permanent injunction issued in the proceedings shall not be refused or…
- § 3312 Whenever it appears to the director that the owners, lessors, lessees, or operators of any well or wells producing oil and gas or oil or gas are causing or…
- § 3313 In such suits a restraining order shall not be issued ex parte, and a temporary or permanent injunction issued in such proceedings shall not be refused or…
- § 3314 Proceedings to enjoin waste as contemplated by this chapter shall be special proceedings restricted to the single issue whether gas is being produced or is…
ARTICLE 5.5. Subsidence §§ 3315–3347 · 53 sections
- § 3315 It is hereby found and determined: (a) That the people of the State of California have a direct and primary interest in arresting and ameliorating the…
- § 3316 Unless the context otherwise requires, the general provisions and definitions contained in this chapter govern the construction of this article.
- § 3316.1 As used in this article, “person” means any natural person, corporation, association, partnership, limited liability company, joint venture, receiver, trustee,…
- § 3316.2 “Pool” means an underground reservoir containing, or appearing at the time of determination to contain, a common accumulation of crude petroleum oil or natural…
- § 3316.3 “Field” means the same general surface area which is underlaid or reasonably appears to be underlaid by one or more pools.
- § 3316.4 “Repressuring operations” means gas injection operations, water injection operations, water flooding operations, or any combination thereof, or any other…
- § 3316.5 “Subsidence” means sinking, lowering, collapsing, compaction or other movement of the land whether covered by water or not.
- § 3316.6 “Unit area” means all or part of a pool or pools included within the area embraced by a unit created pursuant to an order of the supervisor as provided in…
- § 3316.7 “Unit production” means all oil, gas and other hydrocarbon substances produced from a unit area from the effective date of the order of the supervisor creating…
- § 3316.8 “Fieldwide repressuring plan” means a plan based upon a competent engineering study or studies, prepared by a petroleum engineer licensed by the State, of all…
- § 3316.9 “Unit agreement” means and includes, in addition to the unit agreement, any unit operating agreement, consent agreement and other agreement entered into in…
- § 3316.10 “Increased production” means that portion of the oil or gas produced from all wells bottomed within a unit area, or within any other area where the supervisor…
- § 3316.11 “Working interest” means an interest held in lands by virtue of fee title, including lands held in trust, a lease, operating agreement or otherwise, under…
- § 3316.12 “Working interest owner” means a person owning a working interest.
- § 3316.13 “Royalty interest” means a right to or interest in oil and gas produced from any lands or in the proceeds of the first sale thereof other than a working…
- § 3316.14 “Royalty interest owner” means a person owning a royalty interest.
- § 3316.15 “Unit operator” means the person or persons designated by the unit agreement or in accordance with subdivisions (g) and (j) of Section 3322 as operator or…
- § 3316.16 “Land” means both surface and mineral rights.
- § 3317 This article applies only to lands, referred to in Section 3315, overlying or immediately adjacent to a producing pool or pools, when such lands are subsiding,…
- § 3318 An order of the supervisor which involves tide or submerged lands which may have been granted to any city, county, or city and county, or district, shall…
- § 3319 (a) The supervisor, upon the supervisor’s own motion, may, or shall, upon the application of any city, county, or city and county, any part of which is in a…
- § 3319.1 Prior to the adoption of a fieldwide repressuring plan and general specifications of the work to be done thereunder, as provided in Section 3319, the…
- § 3320 (a) The policy of conducting voluntary repressuring operations in a pool or pools, or portions thereof, in order to arrest or ameliorate subsidence, or for any…
- § 3320.1 (a) An agreement for the management, development and operation of two or more tracts in a pool or pools, or portions thereof, in a field as a unit without…
- § 3320.2 If the supervisor determines that sufficient of the working interest owners and royalty interest owners to make repressuring operations feasible in any pool or…
- § 3320.3 In determining, as required by Section 3320.2, whether the estimated cost of initiating and conducting such repressuring operations will exceed the estimated…
- § 3320.4 In order to encourage the initiation and conduct of repressuring operations with the greatest possible speed in a subsidence area, the State, or any city, or…
- § 3320.5 No working or royalty interest owner shall be liable for any loss or damage resulting from repressuring or other operations connected with the production of…
- § 3321 (a) Subject to the limitations specified in this article, the supervisor shall have the power to issue a compulsory unit order upon the petition of a city,…
- § 3322 An order of the supervisor requiring unit operation, pursuant to Section 3321, may include lands owned by any person as defined in Section 3316.1, and shall…
- § 3322.1 No order of the supervisor creating a unit and prescribing the plan of unitization applicable thereto shall become effective unless and until the plan of…
- § 3323 Notice of the time and place of any hearing to be held by the supervisor shall be given by publication in a newspaper of general circulation printed and…
- § 3324 At hearings all persons interested are entitled to be heard and present evidence, both oral and written. All such persons shall be sworn, and a transcript of…
- § 3325 The supervisor shall make and enforce all rules and regulations necessary or proper to accomplish the purposes of this article or to administer or enforce any…
- § 3326 An order requiring unit operation may be amended for good cause by a subsequent order entered by the supervisor, except that no such order or amendment shall…
- § 3327 Subject to the limitations in this article governing the creation of the unit previously established, the supervisor, by entry of a new order after a public…
- § 3328 (a) The portion of unit production allocated to a separately owned tract shall be deemed, for all purposes, to have been actually produced from such tract, and…
- § 3329 The unit operator shall be authorized on behalf of and for the account of all the respective owners or possessors of the mineral rights within the unit area to…
- § 3330 When unit expenses incurred by a unit operator on behalf of the unit have not been paid, the unit operator may, in order to secure payment of the amount due…
- § 3331 Any order issued by the supervisor pursuant to this article, from its effective date, shall be binding upon each person owning or claiming any legal or…
- § 3332 Within 30 days after the written notice of the entry of a final order of the supervisor, or within such further time as the supervisor may grant for good cause…
- § 3333 (a) A final order of the supervisor shall be subject to judicial review by filing a petition for a writ of mandate in accordance with the provisions of Chapter…
- § 3334 The pendency of actions before the superior court or proceedings for review before any other court of competent jurisdiction of itself shall not stay or…
- § 3335 If an action for judicial review has not been commenced within the time prescribed for such action, or, if filed, the time within which to process an appeal by…
- § 3336 The supervisor upon his own motion may, or shall upon the application of any interested person, hold a public hearing for the purpose of determining and…
- § 3337 The division shall exercise surveillance over all repressuring operations in the state.
- § 3341 At the termination of oil and gas production from a unit area established or approved pursuant to this article and the abandonment of attempts to obtain…
- § 3342 To the extent necessary to conform to the provisions and requirements of this article, and to any order of unitization or other order, rule or regulation of…
- § 3343 (a) Any person who willfully violates any provision of this article or any rule, regulation or order of the supervisor, shall be subject to a penalty of one…
- § 3344 (a) Whenever it appears that any person is violating or threatening to violate any provision of this article, or any rule, regulation or order of the…
- § 3345 No finding or determination made by the supervisor under the provisions of this article or by any court in proceedings involving the enforcement or review of…
- § 3346 The provisions of this article shall supersede any conflicting provisions contained in any legislative grant of tide and submerged lands, or in any law…
- § 3347 If any section, subsection, subdivision, sentence or clause of this article is adjudged to be unconstitutional or invalid, such adjudication shall not affect…
ARTICLE 6. Appeals and Review §§ 3350–3359 · 10 sections
- § 3350 (a) The operator of a well or a production facility to whom the supervisor or district deputy has issued an order pursuant to this chapter may file a notice of…
- § 3351 (a) A hearing shall be provided in accordance with Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code only in…
- § 3352 (a) A hearing conducted by the director shall adhere to the following: (1) When an order is not issued as an emergency order, within 30 days from the date of…
- § 3353 (a) Within 30 days after the close of a hearing conducted by the director, the director shall issue a written decision affirming, setting aside, or modifying…
- § 3354 (a) Following a hearing conducted by the director pursuant to Sections 3352 and 3353 or subdivision (b) of Section 3350, the operator may obtain judicial…
- § 3355 When an operator seeks judicial review of a decision of the director, including a decision following a hearing conducted in accordance with Chapter 5…
- § 3356 (a) If the operator does not appeal an order, if the operator does not timely seek judicial review of a decision affirming or modifying an order within the…
- § 3357 (a) In any proceeding before the director, and in any proceeding instituted by the supervisor for the purpose of enforcing or carrying out the provisions of…
- § 3358 Witnesses shall be entitled to receive the fees and mileage fixed by law in civil causes, payable from the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Administrative Fund.
- § 3359 In case of the failure or neglect on the part of any person to comply with any order of the supervisor or the director, or any subpoena, or upon the refusal of…
ARTICLE 7. Assessment and Collection of Charges §§ 3400–3434 · 38 sections
- § 3400 The charges directed to be levied by this article are necessary in the exercise of the police power of the State and to provide a means by which to supervise…
- § 3401 (a) The proceeds of charges levied, assessed, and collected pursuant to this article upon the properties of every person operating or owning an interest in the…
- § 3402 There shall annually be imposed upon the person operating each oil well in this state, or owning royalty or other interests in respect to the production from…
- § 3403 There shall annually be imposed upon the person operating each gas well in this state, or owning royalty or other interests with respect to the production from…
- § 3403.5 (a) The Legislature finds that there are underground storage facilities for gas that utilize depleted or partially depleted oil or gas reservoirs. Purchased…
- § 3403.6 (a) For the purposes of this section, “gravity-based energy storage well” has the same meaning as set forth in Section 3190. (b) To support the regulatory…
- § 3404 The charges authorized by this article are in addition to any and all charges, taxes, assessments, or licenses of any kind or nature paid by or upon the…
- § 3405 The department shall prescribe the form and contents of all reports for making the charge or for other purposes to carry out the intent and provisions of this…
- § 3406 Every person chargeable under this article, shall on or before March 15th of each year, file a report with the department. The report shall show all items of…
- § 3407 The department may, for good cause shown, by order entered upon its records, extend for not exceeding thirty days, the time for filing any report required by…
- § 3407.5 If the person filing the report required under Section 3406, by error or otherwise fails to include the full amount of oil or gas production in the report, the…
- § 3408 (a) If any person chargeable under this article fails or refuses to file with the department, within the time prescribed in this article, the verified report…
- § 3410 The department shall, on or before June 15th of each year, acting in conjunction with the Department of Finance, make an estimate of the amount of money which…
- § 3412 On or before June 15 of each year, the department shall determine the rate or rates that will produce the sums necessary to be raised as provided in Section…
- § 3413 Between the first of March and the 15th of June in each year, the department shall assess and levy the charges as provided in this article. The assessment…
- § 3417 The notice shall state: (a) That the assessment of property and levy of charges under this article has been completed. (b) That the records of assessments…
- § 3417.5 (a) The division shall send a notice to each operator subject to a fee pursuant to Section 3206 by April 1 of each year. The notice shall do both of the…
- § 3418 The department shall prepare each year a record called the “Record of Assessments and Charges” in which shall be entered each assessment and levy or charge…
- § 3419 On or before the first of July the department shall deliver to the State Controller the record of assessments and charges, certified to by the director, which…
- § 3420 (a) (1) No charges shall be levied for assessments on oil and gas production of less than ten dollars ($10). (2) The charges levied for assessments are due and…
- § 3421 Every payment on a delinquent charge shall be applied as follows: (a) First, to any interest due on the charge. (b) Second, to any penalty imposed by this…
- § 3423 (a) If any person fails to pay any charge or penalty imposed under this chapter at the time that it becomes due and payable, the amount thereof, including…
- § 3423.2 A warrant may be issued by the Controller or his or her duly authorized representative for the collection of any charges, interest and penalties and for the…
- § 3423.3 Notwithstanding any provisions of law to the contrary, the owner of said land may redeem from any execution sale within a period of three years upon payment of…
- § 3423.4 The sheriff shall receive, upon the completion of his or her services pursuant to a warrant, and the Controller is authorized to pay to him or her the same…
- § 3423.6 In the event that the lien of the charges, penalties or interest attaches to real property from which the oil or gas is extracted and more than one parcel of…
- § 3423.9 It is expressly provided that the remedies provided herein of the state shall be cumulative and that no action by the Controller shall be construed to be an…
- § 3424 All charges assessed and levied shall be paid to the State Treasurer upon the order of the Controller. The Controller shall record the payment of any charge.
- § 3425 Errors appearing upon the face of any assessment on the record of assessments, or overcharges may be corrected by the Controller, with the consent of the…
- § 3426 The Controller shall, on or before the thirtieth day of May next following the delinquency of any charge, bring an action in the name of the people of the…
- § 3427 The Attorney General shall commence and prosecute any such action to final judgment.
- § 3428 In such actions the record of assessments and charges, or a copy of so much thereof as is applicable, duly certified by the Controller, showing unpaid charges…
- § 3429 Payment of the penalties and charges, or the amount of the judgment recovered in the action, shall be made to the State Treasurer.
- § 3430 Any person claiming and protesting that the assessment made or charges assessed against him are void, in whole or in part, may bring an action against the…
- § 3431 Whenever an action is commenced under the provisions of Section 3430, a copy of the complaint and of the summons shall be served upon the treasurer or his…
- § 3432 (a) The Attorney General shall defend the action. (b) The provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure relating to pleadings, proofs, trials, and appeals are…
- § 3433 Failure to begin the action within the time specified in section 3430 is a bar to recovery of the charges. In any such action the court may render judgment for…
- § 3434 (a) If the department determines between June 15, 2024, and March 1, 2025, that the estimate made pursuant to Section 3410 of the amount of money that will be…
ARTICLE 8. Recommendation of Maximum Efficient Rates of Production §§ 3450–3451 · 2 sections
- § 3450 The Legislature takes notice of the existence of the Conservation Committee of California Oil Producers and of the fact that said committee for a number of…
- § 3451 “Maximum Efficient Rate,” commonly referred to as “MER,” is defined as the highest daily rate of production which can be sustained economically from a…
ARTICLE 9. Used Oil Recycling Act §§ 3460–3473 · 8 sections
- § 3460 (a) As used in this article: (1) “Used oil” has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 25250.1 of the Health and Safety Code. (2) “Recycle”…
- § 3462 The Legislature finds that almost 100 million gallons of used automotive and industrial oil are generated each year in the state; that used oil is a valuable…
- § 3463 It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this article that used oil shall be collected and recycled to the maximum extent possible, by means which are…
- § 3465 The board shall conduct a public education program to inform the public of the needs for and benefits of collecting and recycling used oil in order to conserve…
- § 3466 (a) The board shall prescribe guidelines for providing safe and conveniently located facilities for the deposit of used oil by persons possessing not more than…
- § 3469 The board, and every state officer and employee, shall encourage the purchase of recycled oil products represented as substantially equivalent to products made…
- § 3470 (a) All rules and regulations of the board shall be adopted, amended, and repealed in accordance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of…
- § 3473 If any provision of this article or the application of it to any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or…