ALERT!
TexOGA has backed out on the deal we made on HB 3838 and is now trying to amend the bill by tacking on HB 3372, Craddick’s division order statute bill. Below is the email I am sending to the Senate Committee. PLEASE CALL AND WRITE TODAY THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS TO STOP THIS. IT WILL LIKELY KILL HB 3838 IF WE DON’T GET THE AMENDMENT STOPPED. LINK IS BELOW.
https://capitol.texas.gov/Committees/Membership.aspx
Dear Committee Members:
As President of NARO-Texas, the National Association of Royalty Owners, we strenuously object and ask you to reject TexOGA’s attempt to resurrect HB 3372, the division order bill, by amending HB 3838.
The two issues are completely unrelated. HB 3838 is to stop a terrible fraud being committed on mineral and royalty owners known as a “royalty lease”. The other bill is an attempt to overwrite lease contracts that have been negotiated which place limits on when an operator can put an owners royalties in suspense over a title issue. They could not be any more different.
The attempts to amend HB 3838 are especially galling given our extended discussions AND AGREEMENT with TexOGA on a compromise on HB 3838 that passed out the House. We agreed to take out important additional protections, such as an explicit four year statute of limitations, and an explicit ability to recover punitive damages in the event statutory fraud was proven. TexOGA has, in extreme bad faith, now abandoned that agreement to try to resurrect an unrelated bill.
We hope you would see this for what it is - an attempt to kill a bill with great merit and benefit, out of spite for another bill being stalled that TexOGA wanted. It is hard to fathom why TexOGA feels this is justified, right, or fair.
Your time and consideration is appreciated.