On May 18, 2015, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 40 into law, putting restrictions on the ability of municipalities to regulate the oil and gas industry in their jurisdictions.
Fracking Bans
Texas Becomes First State To Ban Fracking Bans
By Eddy De Los Santos | Baker DonelsonSign up and get Breaking Energy news in your inbox.
We will never sell or share your information without your consent. See our privacy policy.Oklahoma Follows Texas’ Lead In Prohibiting Local Hydraulic Fracturing Bans
By Daniel Kavouras | BakerHostetler
Transportation Department acts on safety issues regarding crude and ethanol shipped by rail. The US Department of Transportation on April 17 issued regulatory changes it believes will address “some of the issues identified in recent train accidents involving crude oil and ethanol shipped by rail”.
‘Here We Go Again’: Oil and Gas Sector to Face New Regs in 2015
By Staton Childers, Gage Fender | LeClairRyan
Tracking regulatory changes in the oil and gas industry is no minor undertaking. After all, when someone speaks of “the oil and gas industry,” that person isn’t simply referencing some narrowly defined zone of activity.
A research paper touted as peer-reviewed science – and used to justify New York’s ban on shale gas development – was actually peer-reviewed by active opponents of shale gas development who concealed their bias from the scientific community and the general public. This violates at least four different codes of conduct for scientific research and… Keep reading →
New York Bans Hydraulic Fracturing
By Ted Bosquez IV, Daniel Carmeli, Kenneth Komoroski, Matthew Sepp | Morgan Lewis
The ban comes in light of a report from the New York State Department of Health claiming there is insufficient information to understand the health risks.
On December 17, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s administration announced that the State of New York will ban hydraulic fracturing in response to conclusions presented in a report prepared by the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) and comments made by the Acting Health Commissioner and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Commissioner.
In a decision loaded with potential economic and political consequence, the Cuomo administration today ended years of tortured consideration and said New York state would move to ban hydraulic fracturing, the controversial technique that uses pressurized fluids and sand to extract gas and oil from shale rock formations. At an Albany cabinet meeting, Acting Health… Keep reading →
In Colorado, Local Fracking Debate Holds National Implications
By Kate Rosow Chrisman
In Colorado, commercials on the benefits of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) pepper the airways like political messages in the lead up to a presidential election. An oil and gas boom over the past decade saw wells creep closer to the metropolitan areas along Colorado’s Front Range, a heavily populated area that includes Denver and Boulder, and… Keep reading →
The hydraulic fracturing technology that opened vast US natural gas shale resources could be snared in what one analyst calls “a regulatory race to the top.”
The industry is arguing that regulation of hydraulic fracturing should stay at the state level, where it is traditionally managed. Environmentalists disagree, saying the states’ record is spotty and tougher federal standards are needed. The Environmental Protection Agency is studying the issues, and aims for proposed rules in 2014. Keep reading →
