(a) It is hereby declared to be the public policy of this state and in the public interest to: (1) Foster, encourage, and promote exploration for and development, production, utilization, and conservation of oil and gas resources;
(a) Upon receipt of a request for hearing, the commission shall set a time and place for such hearing not less than twenty and not more than forty-five days thereafter. Any scheduled hearing may be continued by the commission upon the commission's own motion or for good cause shown by any party to the hearing. […]
(a) Any party adversely affected by an order of the commission shall be entitled to judicial review thereof. All of the pertinent provisions of section four, article five, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, shall apply to and govern such judicial review with like effect as if the provisions of said section four were set forth […]
(a) Whenever it appears to the commission that any person has been or is violating or is about to violate any provision of this article, any reasonable rule promulgated by the commission hereunder or any order or final decision of the commission, the commission may apply in the name of the state to the circuit […]
Owners of leases on oil and gas for the exploration, development or production of oil or natural gas shall pay to the commission a special oil and gas conservation tax of 3¢ for each acre under lease, excluding from the tax the first twenty-five thousand acres. The commission shall deposit with the treasurer of the […]
(a) Any person who violates any provision of this article, any of the reasonable rules promulgated by the commission hereunder or any order or any final decision of the commission, other than a violation covered by the provisions of subsection (b) of this section, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall […]
Except as provided in subsection (c), section three of this article, this article shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the declaration of public policy set forth in section one of this article.
(a) All orders, determinations, rules, permits, grants, contracts, certificates, licenses, waivers, bonds, authorizations and privileges which have been issued, made, granted or allowed to become effective pursuant to any prior enactment of this article and which are in effect on the effective date of this article shall continue in effect according to their terms until […]
(a) As used in this article: (1) “Commission” means the Oil and Gas Conservation Commission and “commissioner” means the Oil and Gas Conservation Commissioner as provided for in 22C-9-4 of this code;
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, the provisions of this article shall apply to all lands located in this state, however owned, including any lands owned or administered by any government or any agency or subdivision thereof, over which the state has jurisdiction under its police power. The provisions of this […]
NOTE: West Virginia Code 22C-9-4 was amended by two bills passed during the 2022 Regular Session of the Legislature. When two acts of the Legislature amend the same section of the Code without express recognition in the bill of the action of the other bill, the Legislative Manager makes no determination as to the appropriate, […]
(a) The commission may propose rules for legislative approval in accordance with the provisions of 29A-3-1 et seq. of this code, to implement and make effective the provisions of this article and the powers and authority conferred and the duties imposed upon the commission under the provisions of this article. (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of […]
Waste of oil or gas is hereby prohibited.
(a) Drilling units. (1) After one discovery deep well has been drilled establishing a pool, an application to establish drilling units may be filed with the commission by the operator of such discovery deep well or by the operator of any lands directly and immediately affected by the drilling of such discovery deep well, or […]
(a) Declaration of public policy; legislative findings regarding unitization for all horizontal wells. The Legislature finds that horizontal drilling is a technique that effectively and efficiently recovers natural resources and should be encouraged as a means of production of oil and gas and it is hereby declared to be the public policy of this state […]
(a) Upon the application of any operator in a pool productive of oil the commission shall set a hearing and provide notice to all interested parties. Each notice shall describe the area for which an order is to be entered in recognizable, narrative terms; contain such other information as is essential to the giving of […]
No agreement between or among operators, lessees or other owners of oil or gas rights in oil and gas properties, entered into pursuant to the provisions of this article or with a view to or for the purpose of bringing about the unitized development or operation of such properties, shall be held to violate the […]