Section 5-7-41 - Assignment of certain state-owned minerals to oil and gas royalty increment status-Required findingsThe commissioner of school and public lands may, upon his own motion or upon petition by an interested person assign, specific state-owned minerals to oil and gas royalty increment status. The assignment shall be made pursuant to the contested case requirements of chapter 1-26 and shall include a legal description of the state mineral lands assigned the status and a specific term, under ten years, during which the lands may be leased as on an oil and gas royalty increment status. The assignment may be made only upon a finding by the commissioner that:
(1) There has been no oil or gas production on the state-owned mineral land proposed to be assigned royalty increment status, and on private or federal minerals within the immediate area;(2) There has been no oil or gas lease issued on the state-owned mineral land proposed to be assigned royalty increment status within the last ten years;(3) There has been no oil or gas prospecting permit issued for the state-owned mineral land proposed to be assigned royalty increment status within the last five years;(4) There has been no exploration permit for oil or gas issued by the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources in the immediate area of the state-owned mineral land proposed to be assigned royalty increment status within the last five years;(5) The assignment of oil and gas royalty increment status to the state-owned minerals may encourage the development of oil or gas reserves on those lands; and(6) The assignment will not have a substantial impact on privately owned minerals within the immediate area surrounding the state-owned mineral land proposed to be assigned royalty increment status.SL 1992, ch 43, § 1; SL 2021, ch 1(Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 14, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.Amended by S.L. 2021, ch. 1,s. 14, eff. 4/19/2021.