[House Report 106-468]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
106th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session 106-468
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TO PROHIBIT OIL AND GAS DRILLING IN MOSQUITO CREEK LAKE IN CORTLAND,
OHIO
_______
November 15, 1999.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on
the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Young of Alaska, from the Committee on Resources, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 2818]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill
(H.R. 2818) to prohibit oil and gas drilling in Mosquito Creek
Lake in Cortland, Ohio, having considered the same, report
favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill
do pass.
purpose of the bill
The purpose of H.R. 2818 is to prohibit oil and gas
drilling on federal mineral rights beneath Mosquito Creek Lake
in Cortland, Ohio.
background and need for legislation
H.R. 2818 reflects the concerns of some of residents of
Trumbull County, Ohio, regarding a proposal for oil and gas
development of the mineral rights beneath a U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers-administered project known as Mosquito Creek Lake.
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) field office in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, concurrently prepared a planning analysis
and environmental analysis preparatory to a decision whether to
lease approximately 11,100 acres of mineral estate acquired by
the federal government when the Corps impounded this drainage
basin, creating a reservoir about one-mile wide and nine miles
long.
The BLM, as the lessor of mineral rights on public domain
and federal acquired mineral interests, has sought and obtained
surface owner consent from the Corps with stipulations
developed in the planning and environmental analyses, including
a ``no surface occupancy'' clause. In other words, to access
the federal minerals a successful bidder for the tract (should
it be leased) would have to directionally drill from private
lands nearby outside a buffer zone surrounding the lake.
Standard regulatory requirements of the BLM (commonly known as
``Onshore Oil and Gas Orders'') would be imposed, as well as
site-specific requirements for abatement of environmental
impacts examined in the planning and environmental analyses.
BLM was aided by studies conducted by the U.S. Geological
Survey and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
Furthermore, Youngstown State University researchers also
studied possible impacts from oil and gas development,
concluding that other factors affecting Mosquito Creek Lake
water quality pose more serious concerns than the leasing
proposal.
Local opposition to the BLM proposal remains strong,
primarily because of concerns about spills and contaminant
discharges from drilling upon surface and groundwater
resources. Nevertheless, the BLM is considering an oil and gas
lease sale for these tracts as early as December, 1999. The
need for the legislation stems from the Administration's
unwillingness to publically announce that a lease sale will not
occur for these lands.
committee action
H.R. 2818 was introduced on September 8, 1999, by
Congressman James A. Traficant, Jr. (D-OH). The bill was
referred to the Committee on Resources, and within the
Committee to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.
On October 21, 1999, the Subcommittee held a legislative
hearing on the bill hearing testimony from Congressman
Traficant; the Honorable Melissa Long, a member of the Cortland
City Council, Cortland, Ohio; Ms. Gwen Mason, Associate State
Director, Eastern States Office of the U.S. Bureau of Land
Management; General Hans Van Winkle, Deputy Commander for Civil
Works, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; and Mr. Tom Stewart,
Executive Vice President of the Ohio Oil and Gas Association.
In addition, Mr. Samuel Speck,Director of the Ohio Department
of Natural Resources submitted written testimony on H.R. 2818. Mr.
Traficant and Ms. Long supported the legislation, while all other
witnesses opposed the need for this bill. On October 27, 1999, the Full
Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee on
Energy and Mineral Resources was discharged from further consideration
of the measure by unanimous consent. No amendments were offered, and
the bill was ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives
by voice vote.
section-by-section analysis
H.R. 2818 has but one section, which is a simple provision
barring the commencement of drilling to extract oil or gas from
lands beneath the impoundment. Additionally, the bill directs
the Attorney General to enforce this prohibition.
H.R. 2818 does not bar the BLM from its proposed lease sale
of tracts beneath Mosquito Creek Lake, per se, and if the bill
were to be enacted before BLM held such a sale, presumably
whatever bidding interest now exists would be virtually
extinguished. However, the Committee believes that if the bill
were to become law subsequent to the issuance of oil and gas
leases, serious questions as to a taking of private property
would arise, given the contractual lease rights of lessees to
develop that which they have successfully bid upon.
committee oversight findings and recommendations
Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the
Committee on Resources' oversight findings and recommendations
are reflected in the body of this report.
constitutional authority statement
Article I, section 8 and Article IV, section 3 of the
Constitution of the United States grant Congress the authority
to enact this bill.
compliance with house rule xiii
1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B)
of that rule provides that this requirement does not apply when
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2)
of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this
bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in tax
expenditures. Enactment of this bill, according to the
Congressional Budget Office, could reduce offsetting receipts.
3. Government Reform Oversight Findings. Under clause
3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives, the Committee has received no report of
oversight findings and recommendations from the Committee on
Government Reform on this bill.
4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives and section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act
of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate
for this bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, November 10, 1999.
Hon. Don young,
Chairman, Committee on Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 2818, a bill to
prohibit oil and gas drilling in Mosquito Creek Lake in
Cortland, Ohio.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contacts are Megan
Carroll (for federal costs), and Marjorie Miller (for the state
and local impact).
Sincerely,
Barry B. Anderson
(For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
Enclosure.
H.R. 2818--A bill to prohibit oil and gas drilling in Mosquito Creek
Lake in Cortland, Ohio
CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 2818 would reduce
offsetting receipts by about $125,000 over the 2000-2004
period. Because the bill would affect offsetting receipts (a
form of direct spending), pay-as-you-go procedures would apply.
H.R. 2818 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
Counties in Ohio would lose about $75,000 per year if this bill
is enacted. The bill would impose no costs on other state,
local, or tribal governments.
H.R. 2818 would prohibit drilling to extract oil or gas
from lands beneath waters under the jurisdiction of the United
States in Mosquito Creek Lake in Cortland, Ohio. Under current
law, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is likely to lease
approximately 11,100 acres of the mineral estate under the lake
for oil and gas development. Based on information from BLM, we
estimate that leasing this land will generate annual receipts
of about $100,000 starting in fiscal year 2000. State and local
governments would receive 75 percent of such receipts.
Therefore, we estimate that enacting H.R. 2818 would reduce net
offsetting receipts to the government by about $25,000 a year
starting in 2000.
The CBO staff contacts are Megan Carroll (for federal
costs), and Marjorie Miller (for the state and local impact).
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4
This bill contains no unfunded mandates.
preemption of state, local or tribal law
This bill is not intended to preempt State, local or tribal
law.
changes in existing law
If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing
law.