Summary/Abstract
H.B. 966 was signed into law on August 1, 2024 to amend and reenact R.S. 30:28(D)(2), (3), (4), and (7) and (E) and 1104(A)(1) and to enact R.S. 30:1104.2 and 1113. The bill gives the Commissioner of Conservation the authority to unitize, pool, and consolidate all separately owned tracts within a unit for geologic storage in order to facilitate an orderly development of the state’s geologic storage resources and prevent waste. The order can only be issued after notice, public hearing, and a finding by the Commissioner that the unit is for a public and necessary purpose. The order must also provide for just and equitable compensation to all owners in interest, including the storage operators and landowners, whether they have consented or not to such operations. A minimum of 75% of pore space owners must be agreeable to unitization as a prerequisite to the application.