| (a) Filing requirements.
(1) Except as provided under subsection (e) of this
section, no organization, including any person, firm, partnership,
joint stock association, corporation, or other organization, domestic
or foreign, operating wholly or partially within this state, acting
as principal or agent for another, for the purpose of performing operations
within the jurisdiction of the Commission shall perform such operations
without having on file with the Commission an approved organization
report and financial security as required by Texas Natural Resources
Code §§91.103 - 91.1091. Operations within the jurisdiction
of the Commission include, but are not limited to, the following:
(A) drilling, operating, or producing any oil, gas,
geothermal resource, brine mining injection, fluid injection, or oil
and gas waste disposal well;
(B) transporting, reclaiming, treating, processing,
or refining crude oil, gas and products, or geothermal resources and
associated minerals;
(C) discharging, storing, handling, transporting, reclaiming,
or disposing of oil and gas waste, including hauling salt water for
hire by any method other than pipeline;
(D) operating gasoline plants, natural gas or natural
gas liquids processing plants, pressure maintenance or repressurizing
plants, or recycling plants;
(E) recovering skim oil from a salt water disposal
site;
(F) nominating crude oil;
(G) operating a directional survey company;
(H) cleaning a reserve pit;
(I) operating a pipeline;
(J) operating as a cementer approved for plugging wells,
operating as a cementer cementing casing strings or liners, or operating
a well service company performing well stimulation activities, including
hydraulic fracturing; or
(K) operating an underground hydrocarbon or natural
gas storage facility.
(2) The Commission shall notify organizations that
perform operations not included in paragraph (1)(A) - (K) of this
subsection of any additional activities subject to the jurisdiction
of the Commission which require the filing of the organization report.
Such notification shall make the provisions of this section applicable
to such activities.
(3) Each organization performing activities subject
to the jurisdiction of the Commission shall maintain a current organization
report with the Commission until all duties, obligations, and liabilities
incurred pursuant to Commission rules, the Natural Resources Code,
Titles 3 (Subtitles A, B, C, and Chapter 111 of Subtitle D) and 5,
Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 401; Texas Utilities Code, §121.201,
and the Water Code, Chapters 26, 27, and 29, are fulfilled.
(4) The organization report shall contain the following
information:
(A) the name, street address, mailing address, telephone
number, and emergency after-hours telephone number of the organization;
(B) the plan of the business organization;
(C) for each officer, director, general partner, owner
of more than 25% ownership interest, or trustee (hereinafter controlling
entity) of the organization:
(i) that entity's or individual's full legal name,
the name(s) under which such entity or individual conducts business
in the State of Texas, and all assumed names;
(ii) the following:
(I) if the entity is an individual, his or her social
security number. Any individual who does not have a valid social security
number shall submit, at that person's option, either his or her valid
driver's license or Texas State Identification number;
(II) if the entity is not an individual, the name and,
at that person's option, either the valid driver's license, social
security, or Texas Identification number of each officer, director,
or other person, who, under Texas Natural Resources Code, §91.114,
holds a position of ownership or control of the organization, or an
active P-5 number for that entity. All controlling entities connected
to an organization which are not individuals shall provide the identification
of the individuals in ownership or control of those entities.
(iii) a street address different than that of the organization;
and
(iv) if different from the mailing address of the organization,
a mailing address;
(D) if a foreign or nonresident organization, the name
and street address of a resident agent.
(E) the name of any non-employee agent that the organization
authorizes to act for the organization in signing Oil and Gas Division
certificates of compliance which initially designate the operator
or change the designation of the operator. Organizations may designate
non-employee agents to execute subsequent organization reports. That
designation shall be authorized by the organization and not by a non-employee
agent.
(5) Any organization may designate a resident agent
with a street address different than that of the organization in place
of submitting the street addresses of the three (if applicable) primary
controlling entities of the organization. Any foreign or nonresident
organization identified in paragraph (1) of this subsection shall
designate and maintain a resident agent upon whom may be served any
process, notice, or demand required or permitted by law to be served
upon such entity by or on behalf of the Commission. Failure of such
organization to designate and maintain a resident agent shall render
the organization report invalid. (Reference Order Number 20-60,617,
effective January 1, 1971.)
(6) Failure by any organization identified in paragraph
(1) of this subsection to answer any subpoena, commission to take
deposition, or directive to appear at a hearing served upon such organization
by or on behalf of the Commission shall render the organization report
invalid.
(7) An organization shall refile an organization report
annually according to the schedule assigned by the Commission. Prior
to the filing date, the Commission shall mail notification and information
to each organization for update of the organization report file. An
organization shall file an amended organization report within 15 days
after a change in any information required to be reported in the organization
report. Only address changes may be made by letter.
(8) The Commission shall meet any requirement under
statute or Commission rule for an order to be sent or notice to be
given by the Commission to an organization by mailing the item to
the organization's mailing address shown on the most recently filed
organization report or the most recently filed letter notification
of change of address. Notices sent by regular first-class mail shall
be presumed to have been received if, upon arrival of the deadline
for any response to the notice, the wrapper containing the notice
has not been returned to the Commission. Any Commission action or
proceeding for which notice is required shall go forward on the basis
of the notice provided under this subsection, whether or not actual
notice has been received. Service of notices and orders sent by certified
mail is effective upon:
(A) acceptance of the item by any person at the address;
(B) initial failure to claim or refusal to accept the
item by any person at the address prior to its eventual return to
the Commission by the United States Postal Service; or
(C) return of the item to the Commission by the United
States Postal Service bearing a notation such as "addressee unknown,"
"no forwarding address," "forwarding order expired," or any similar
notation indicating that the organization's mailing address shown
on the most recently filed organization report or address change notification
letter is incorrect.
(9) An organization may also designate to the Commission
in writing a specified address for all Commission correspondence relating
to a particular district. If designated by an operator, this specified
address shall be used in lieu of the organization address for any
notices, other than hearing notices, pertaining to that district.
(10) The Commission may return, unapproved, to the
organization address an organization report which is submitted to
the Commission not fully completed according to the report's written
instructions and not timely corrected. In the event that the Commission
returns an organization report, all submitted financial assurances
shall remain non-refundable. If an organization report approved by
the Commission is found to contain information that was materially
false at the time it was submitted for approval, the Commission may
suspend or revoke the organization report after notice and opportunity
for hearing.
Cont'd... |
