Opiela–Final Judgment.pdf (213.9 KB) Yesterday, a district court in Austin ruled that the Texas Railroad Commission did not comply with the Texas Administrative Procedure Act when it adopted its rules for issuing permits for allocation and PSA wells. So, the validity of all allocation well permits are now in question. THIS IS A HUGE RULING!!
Unless this decision is reversed on appeal, the Railroad Commission will have to go through the rulemaking process under the APA, subject to notice and public comment, and issue new regulations on issuing permits for allocation and PSA wells. What the RRC does with the permitting process while the case is appealed remains to be seen. As a Texas oil and gas attorney, I’m very interested to see how this plays out!
A copy of the Final Judgment from the court is attached.