An effort by Rep. Richard Morrissette to repeal the State’s new law prohibiting cities and towns and counties from banning certain oil and gas activity is apparently dead for this session of the Oklahoma legislature.
He amended HB 1802, a measure by Rep. Tommy Hardin to put restrictions and new road and bridge requirements of injection well operators. But last week, despite being approved out of committee, HB 1802 was not heard by the House and it missed a deadline.
The measure had been opposed by energy groups including the Oklahoma Oil and Gas Association. The OKOGA indicated in its weekly highlights update that it felt HB 1802 would have been defeated anyway, had a vote been taken.
Morrissette’s amendment stated the measure would not have limited to restrict the government corporate and police powers and rights established under the law to “prevent oil or gas drilling within the corporate limits of the city or town and to adopt rules and regulations relating to well-spacing units, drilling or production.”
The Democrat legislator is a critic of the oil and gas industry and its watewater disposal wells and recently called for a complete shut-down of all wells, blaming them for the state’s surge in strong earthquakes. He also helped sponsor the visit to Oklahoma by environmental activist Erin Brockovich.
