[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1919 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 1919

 To provide for the energy security of the Nation through encouraging 
the production of domestic oil and gas resources from stripper wells on 
                 Federal lands, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 2, 1998

   Mr. Murkowski (for himself, Mr. Nickles, Mrs. Hutchison, and Mr. 
   Domenici) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide for the energy security of the Nation through encouraging 
the production of domestic oil and gas resources from stripper wells on 
                 Federal lands, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be referred to as the ``Federal Oil and Gas Stripper 
Well Preservation Act of 1998''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    (a) In General.--In this Act:
            (1) Federal land.--The term ``Federal land'' means land 
        that is owned by the United States and administered by the 
        Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the 
        Bureau of Land Management;
            (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior; and,
            (3) Stripper well.--The term ``stripper well'' or 
        ``stripper well property'' means a federal lease or portion 
        thereof segregated for royalty purposes, a communitization 
        agreement, or a participating area of a unit agreement, 
        operated by the same operator, that produces an average of less 
        than 15 barrels of oil or 90 thousand cubic feet of natural gas 
        per eligible well per day. The Secretary shall provide by rule 
        the relevant period during which production shall be averaged 
        for purposes of this definition.

SEC. 3. AUTHORITY TO REDUCE ROYALTY RATES FOR STRIPPER WELLS ON FEDERAL 
              LANDS.

    (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary is 
hereby authorized and directed to provide permanent regulatory 
authority, which shall be updated from time to time, to provide royalty 
rate reductions for stripper well properties on Federal lands.
    (b) Current authority for stripper well royalty rate reductions 
contained in 43 C.F.R. part 3100 shall be amended in accordance with 
this Act.

SEC. 4. SUSPENSION OF MINIMUM ROYALTY AND PER ACRE RENTAL.

    (a) During the period of any royalty rate reduction for stripper 
well properties on Federal lands, the Secretary shall also suspend the 
minimum royalty and per acre lease rental for so long as the royalty 
rate reduction is in effect.
    (b) Once a royalty rate reduction for a stripper well property on 
Federal lands is terminated by the Secretary, the lease rental and 
minimum royalty shall be reinstated to the applicable rate(s) that 
would pertain without regard to any period of time elapsed during which 
the royalty rate reduction or suspension of lease rental rate or 
minimum royalty was in effect.
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