Colorado House passes legislation to protect surface owners' rights

Colorado House passes legislation to protect surface owners' rights

Feb. 10, 2001

Journal Staff Report

On Wednesday, the Colorado State Legislature unanimously passed Rep. Mark Larson’s (R-Cortez) bill to require oil and gas operators to compensate landowners for property damage caused by drilling.

"This is a question of fairness," Larson said in a press release. "I’ve had constituents say that they have oil rigs set up in their back yards and they did not feel they had adequate protections in the negotiation process. This bill doesn’t take away the rights of mineral owners, but it does recognize that there is indeed surface damage from oil and gas development."

Larson’s bill requires mineral owners to notify landowners of pending operations and negotiate agreements before drilling or mining occurs. Any dispute that cannot be resolved amicably will be settled in court.

Property damage will be appraised by a certified appraiser, and in the event of a disagreement, either party could request a jury trial.

Nine state currently have laws similar to H.B. 1062.

The bill was one of three pieces of legislation currently under consideration by the legislature that address conflicts between the rights of surface and mineral owners.

H.B. 1088, sponsored by Rep. Gregg Rippy, also passed the house on Wednesday. Rippy’s bill would require that any prospective buyer of surface rights would be notified if the mineral rights under the land have been "severed" and sold to another party.

The bill would also require the seller to disclose whether the mineral rights owners have the right to mine or drill for those underground resources at any time.

"In a perfect world," Rippy said, "everyone would ask the right questions. This is a consumer issue. It ensures that the buyer knows they’re buying...and what they’re not."

The bill also requires a surface property owner to inform the mineral right owners before the land is subdivided or re-zoned. This would allow the mineral owner the opportunity to extract resources before the surface owner develops the land.

"This bill encourages communication both ways, which is better all around," Rippy said.

A bill sponsored by Shawn Mitchell (R-Broomfield), was passed on Thursday. H.B. 1068 allows the reattachment of severed mineral rights to the surface property owner after the mineral rights have been "abandoned" for an extended period of time.

The Department of Natural Resources requested the three bills which now under consideration by the Senate.