Section 11 AAC 85.106 - Leasing of land within or underlying a shallow natural gas lease(a) This section applies to land included within or underlying a shallow natural gas lease issued under AS 38.05.177.(b) If land within or underlying a gas lease is available under a first-come, first-served noncompetitive disposal under 11 AAC 83.100 for the purpose of issuing a coal lease, any coal lease applied for and offered for any land within or underlying the gas lease, without regard to depth from surface, will be offered first to the gas lessee. The commissioner will notify the gas lessee of record by certified mail at least 60 days before the issuance of a coal lease that includes land within or underlying a gas lease and will include with the notice a copy of the proposed coal lease and a statement of what the gas lessee must submit to the commissioner if the gas lessee wishes to obtain the proposed coal lease. Any other land included in a coal lease application that is not included within or does not underlie the gas lease will be considered to be applied for separately from the land within or underlying the gas lease and will not be subject to this section. The gas lessee will be awarded the coal lease for the land included within or underlying the gas lease upon receipt by the commissioner, within 30 days of the delivery by certified mail to the lessee of notice of the proposed coal lease disposal, of the following: (1) a statement of qualifications required under 11 AAC 82.205;(2) a statement of conformity to acreage limitations required under 11 AAC 85.210;(3) the coal lease executed by the gas lessee;(4) funds sufficient to pay any application fee and rentals required to be paid upon execution under the terms of the coal lease in the amount and form specified in the notice from the commissioner; and(5) any other requirements listed by the commissioner in the notice.(c) If land within or underlying a gas lease is to be offered by simultaneous filing and drawing in a noncompetitive disposal under 11 AAC 82.515 - 11 AAC 82.525 for the purpose of issuing a coal lease, the commissioner will provide notice of the disposal to the gas lessee by certified mail postmarked at least 60 days prior to the first day of any simultaneous filing period. The gas lessee will be deemed to be the first priority applicant for land applied for that are within or underlying the gas lease upon receipt by the commissioner within the simultaneous filing period of an application from the gas lessee applying for a coal lease covering land within or underlying the gas lease and complying with the requirements of 11 AAC 82.500 - 11 AAC 82.540, 11 AAC 85.210, and any other requirements listed by the commissioner in the notice.(d) If the gas lessee declines or fails to accept and be awarded a coal lease under (b) or (c) of this section, the commissioner will issue a coal lease for lands within or underlying the gas lease to, as the case may be, the qualified applicant who first applied for a coal lease in a first-come, first-served situation, or the next highest priority, qualified applicant in a simultaneous filing period situation.(e) When a coal lease is issued, after the effective date of a gas lease, for land within or underlying a gas lease to a party other than the gas lessee, the coal may not be mined or extracted from the land within the gas lease until the coal lessee provides to the director a copy of the agreement between the coal lessee and the gas lessee required under AS 38.05.177(l).(f) As used in this section, (1) "coal lease" refers to a noncompetitive coal lease issued under AS 38.05.150(b) or to a coal prospecting permit issued under AS 38.05.150(c);(2) "gas lease" refers to a shallow natural gas lease issued under AS 38.05.177 any part of which is included in a proposed noncompetitive coal lease disposal; and(3) "gas lessee" refers to the lessee of a shallow natural gas lease issued under AS 38.05.177 any part of which is included in a proposed noncompetitive coal lease disposal.Eff. 9/10/98, Register 147Authority:AS 38.05.020
AS 38.05.177
AS 38.05.180