Don't show this message again
42 U.S. Code § 13368. Ownership of coalbed methane
(a) Federal lands and mineral rights
In the case of any deposit of coalbed methane where the United States is the owner of the surface estate or where the United States has transferred the surface estate but reserved the subsurface mineral estate, the Secretary of the Interior shall administer this section. This section and the definitions contained herein shall be applicable only on lands within Affected States.
(b) Affected StatesNot later than 180 days after October 24, 1992, the Secretary of the Interior, with the participation of the Secretary of Energy, shall publish in the Federal Register a list of Affected States which shall be comprised of States—
(1)
in which the Secretary of the Interior, with the participation of the Secretary of Energy, determines that disputes, uncertainty, or litigation exist, regarding the ownership of coalbed methane gas;
(2)
in which the Secretary of the Interior, with the participation of the Secretary of Energy, determines that development of significant deposits of coalbed methane gas is being impeded by such existing disputes, uncertainty, or litigation regarding ownership of such coalbed methane;
(3)
which do not have in effect a statutory or regulatory procedure or existing case law permitting and encouraging the development of coalbed methane gas within that State; and
(4)
which do not have extensive development of coalbed methane gas.
The Secretary of the Interior, with the participation of the Secretary of Energy, shall revise such list of Affected States from time to time. Any Affected State shall be deleted from the list of Affected States upon the receipt by the Secretary of the Interior of a Governor’s petition requesting such deletion, a State law requesting such deletion, or a resolution requesting such deletion enacted by the legislative body of the State. A Governor intending to petition the Secretary of the Interior to delete a State from the list of Affected States shall provide the State’s legislative body with 6 months notice of such petition during a legislative session. At the end of such 6-month period, the Governor may petition the Secretary of the Interior to delete a State from the list of Affected States, unless during such 6-month period, the State’s legislative body has enacted a law or resolution disapproving the Governor’s petition. Until the Secretary of the Interior, with the participation of the Secretary of Energy, publishes a different list, the States of West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee, Indiana, and Illinois shall be the Affected States, effective on October 24, 1992. The States of Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Wyoming, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama shall not be included on the Secretary of the Interior’s list of Affected States or any extension or revision thereof.