Of interest to the oil and gas industry and companies involved in hydraulic fracturing is a recent class action lawsuit filed by a group of oil and gas interest owners in Illinois state court. The case, Amy Pollard, et al. v. Pat Quinn, Governor of the State of Illinois, and Marc Miller, Director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, was filed in the Circuit Court for the Second Judicial Circuit in Wayne County, Illinois, last week. The plaintiffs raise the constitutional issue of takings and claim that the State of Illinois’ denial of fracking permits in Illinois is an unconstitutional taking.
Illinois passed legislation in 2013 to regulate fracking operations in the state. The Illinois laws are deemed to be the strictest in the country. The legislation forces oil and gas operators to register with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (“DNR”) and detail how wells will be drilled, the amount of fluid and fluid pressure to be used in the drilling, and how the company will draw water, contain waste, and disclose the chemicals used in the process.
The Illinois DNR is refusing to issue fracking permits until DNR codifies rules to implement the 2013 legislation. Amy Pollard and the other plaintiffs claim they leased the land over two years ago for hydraulic fracturing, but the operators have been stalled by the state’s rulemaking process. They claim this has resulted in an inverse condemnation which is equivalent to a taking.
For more information, stay tuned to this blog, or contact Toni Ellington at (504) 599-8500.
No comments:
Post a Comment