REGROW Act of 2021

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1076 To amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to require the Secretary of the Interior to establish a program to plug, remediate, and reclaim orphaned oil and gas wells and surrounding land, to provide funds to State and Tribal governments to plug, remediate, and reclaim orphaned oil and gas wells and surrounding land, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 12, 2021 Mr. LUJA´N (for himself and Mr. CRAMER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources A BILL To amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to require the Secretary of the Interior to establish a program to plug, remediate, and reclaim orphaned oil and gas wells and surrounding land, to provide funds to State and Tribal governments to plug, remediate, and reclaim orphaned oil and gas wells and surrounding land, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:50 May 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1076 IS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Revive Economic 2 Growth and Reclaim Orphaned Wells Act of 2021’’ or the 3 ‘‘REGROW Act of 2021’’. 4 SEC. 2. ORPHANED WELL SITE PLUGGING, REMEDIATION, 5 AND RESTORATION. 6 Section 349 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 7 U.S.C. 15907) is amended to read as follows: 8 ‘‘SEC. 349. ORPHANED WELL SITE PLUGGING, REMEDI- 9 ATION, AND RESTORATION. 10 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 11 ‘‘(1) FEDERAL LAND.—The term ‘Federal land’ 12 means land administered by a land management 13 agency within— 14 ‘‘(A) the Department of Agriculture; or 15 ‘‘(B) the Department of the Interior. 16 ‘‘(2) IDLED WELL.—The term ‘idled well’ 17 means a well— 18 ‘‘(A) that has been nonoperational for not 19 fewer than 4 years; and 20 ‘‘(B) for which there is no anticipated ben- 21 eficial future use. 22 ‘‘(3) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian Tribe’ 23 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 24 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 25 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1076 IS ‘‘(4) OPERATOR.—The term ‘operator’, with re- 1 spect to an oil or gas operation, means any entity, 2 including a lessee or operating rights owner, that 3 has provided to a relevant authority a written state- 4 ment that the entity is responsible for the oil or gas 5 operation, or any portion of the operation. 6 ‘‘(5) ORPHANED WELL.—The term ‘orphaned 7 well’— 8 ‘‘(A) with respect to Federal land or Tribal 9 land, means a well— 10 ‘‘(i) that is not used for an authorized 11 purpose, such as production, injection, or 12 monitoring; and 13 ‘‘(ii)(I) for which no operator can be 14 located; or 15 ‘‘(II) the operator of which is un- 16 able— 17 ‘‘(aa) to plug the well; and 18 ‘‘(bb) to remediate and reclaim 19 the well site; and 20 ‘‘(B) with respect to State or private 21 land— 22 ‘‘(i) has the meaning given the term 23 by the applicable State; or 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1076 IS ‘‘(ii) if that State uses different termi- 1 nology, has the meaning given another 2 term used by the State to describe a well 3 eligible for plugging, remediation, and rec- 4 lamation by the State. 5 ‘‘(6) TRIBAL LAND.—The term ‘Tribal land’ 6 means any land or interest in land owned by an In- 7 dian Tribe, the title to which is— 8 ‘‘(A) held in trust by the United States; or 9 ‘‘(B) subject to a restriction against alien- 10 ation under Federal law. 11 ‘‘(b) FEDERAL PROGRAM.— 12 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 60 days 13 after the date of enactment of the Revive Economic 14 Growth and Reclaim Orphaned Wells Act of 2021, 15 the Secretary shall establish a program to plug, re- 16 mediate, and reclaim orphaned wells located on Fed- 17 eral land. 18 ‘‘(2) INCLUDED ACTIVITIES.—The program 19 under this subsection shall— 20 ‘‘(A) include a method of— 21 ‘‘(i) identifying, characterizing, and 22 inventorying orphaned wells and associated 23 pipelines, facilities, and infrastructure on 24 Federal land; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1076 IS ‘‘(ii) ranking those orphaned wells for 1 priority in plugging, remediation, and rec- 2 lamation, based on— 3 ‘‘(I) public health and safety; 4 ‘‘(II) potential environmental 5 harm; and 6 ‘‘(III) other subsurface impacts 7 or land use priorities; 8 ‘‘(B) distribute funding in accordance with 9 the priorities established under subparagraph 10 (A)(ii) for— 11 ‘‘(i) plugging orphaned wells; 12 ‘‘(ii) remediating and reclaiming well 13 pads and facilities associated with or- 14 phaned wells; 15 ‘‘(iii) remediating soil and restoring 16 native species habitat that has been de- 17 graded due to the presence of orphaned 18 wells and associated pipelines, facilities, 19 and infrastructure; and 20 ‘‘(iv) remediating land adjacent to or- 21 phaned wells and decommissioning or re- 22 moving associated pipelines, facilities, and 23 infrastructure; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1076 IS ‘‘(C) provide a public accounting of the 1 costs of plugging, remediation, and reclamation 2 for each orphaned well; 3 ‘‘(D) seek to determine the identities of po- 4 tentially responsible parties associated with the 5 orphaned well (or a surety or guarantor of such 6 a party), to the extent such information can be 7 ascertained, and make efforts to obtain reim- 8 bursement for expenditures to the extent prac- 9 ticable; 10 ‘‘(E) measure and track— 11 ‘‘(i) emissions of methane and other 12 gases associated with orphaned wells; and 13 ‘‘(ii) contamination of groundwater or 14 surface water associated with orphaned 15 wells; and 16 ‘‘(F) identify and address any dispropor- 17 tionate burden of adverse human health or envi- 18 ronmental effects of orphaned wells on commu- 19 nities of color, low-income communities, and 20 Tribal and indigenous communities. 21 ‘‘(3) IDLED WELLS.—The Secretary, acting 22 through the Director of the Bureau of Land Man- 23 agement, shall— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1076 IS ‘‘(A) periodically review all idled wells on 1 Federal land; and 2 ‘‘(B) reduce the inventory of idled wells on 3 Federal land. 4 ‘‘(4) COOPERATION AND CONSULTATION.—In 5 carrying out the program under this subsection, the 6 Secretary shall— 7 ‘‘(A) work cooperatively with— 8 ‘‘(i) the Secretary of Agriculture; 9 ‘‘(ii) affected Indian Tribes; and 10 ‘‘(iii) each State within which Federal 11 land is located; and 12 ‘‘(B) consult with— 13 ‘‘(i) the Secretary of Energy; and 14 ‘‘(ii) the Interstate Oil and Gas Com- 15 pact Commission. 16 ‘‘(c) FUNDING FOR STATE PROGRAMS.— 17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall provide 18 to States, in accordance with this subsection— 19 ‘‘(A) initial grants under paragraph (3); 20 ‘‘(B) formula grants under paragraph (4); 21 and 22 ‘‘(C) performance grants under paragraph 23 (5). 24 ‘‘(2) ACTIVITIES.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1076 IS ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State may use 1 funding provided under this subsection for any 2 of the following purposes: 3 ‘‘(i) To plug, remediate, and reclaim 4 orphaned wells located on State-owned or 5 privately owned land. 6 ‘‘(ii) To identify and characterize un- 7 documented orphaned wells on State and 8 private land. 9 ‘‘(iii) To rank orphaned wells based 10 on factors including— 11 ‘‘(I) public health and safety; 12 ‘‘(II) potential environmental 13 harm; and 14 ‘‘(III) other land use priorities. 15 ‘‘(iv) To make information regarding 16 the use of funds received under this sub- 17 section available on a public website. 18 ‘‘(v) To measure and track— 19 ‘‘(I) emissions of methane and 20 other gases associated with orphaned 21 wells; and 22 ‘‘(II) contamination of ground- 23 water or surface water associated with 24 orphaned wells. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1076 IS ‘‘(vi) To remediate soil and restore 1 native species habitat that has been de- 2 graded due to the presence of orphaned 3 wells and associated pipelines, facilities, 4 and infrastructure. 5 ‘‘(vii) To remediate land adjacent to 6 orphaned wells and decommission or re- 7 move associated pipelines, facilities, and in- 8 frastructure. 9 ‘‘(viii) To identify and address any 10 disproportionate burden of adverse human 11 health or environmental effects of or- 12 phaned wells on communities of color, low- 13 income communities, and Tribal and indig- 14 enous communities. 15 ‘‘(ix) Subject to subparagraph (B), to 16 administer a program to carry out any ac- 17 tivities described in clauses (i) through 18 (viii). 19 ‘‘(B) ADMINISTRATIVE COST LIMITA- 20 TION.— 21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as pro- 22 vided in clause (ii), a State shall not use 23 more than 10 percent of the funds received 24 under this subsection during a fiscal year 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1076 IS for administrative costs under subpara- 1 graph (A)(ix). 2 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION.—The limitation 3 under clause (i) shall not apply to funds 4 used by a State as described in paragraph 5 (3)(A)(ii). 6 ‘‘(3) INITIAL GRANTS.— 7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 8 distribute— 9 ‘‘(i) not more than $25,000,000 to 10 each State that submits to the Secretary, 11 by not later than 180 days after the date 12 of enactment of the Revive Economic 13 Growth and Reclaim Orphaned Wells Act 14 of 2021, a request for funding under this 15 clause, including— 16 ‘‘(I) an estimate of the number 17 of jobs that will be created or saved 18 through the activities proposed to be 19 funded; and 20 ‘‘(II) a certification that— 21 ‘‘(aa) the State is a Member 22 State or Associate Member State 23 of the Interstate Oil and Gas 24 Compact Commission; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1076 IS ‘‘(bb) there are 1 or more 1 documented orphaned wells lo- 2 cated in the State; and 3 ‘‘(cc) the State will use not 4 less than 90 percent of the fund- 5 ing requested under this sub- 6 section to issue new contracts, 7 amend existing contracts, or 8 issue grants for plugging, remedi- 9 ation, and reclamation work by 10 not later than 90 days after the 11 date of receipt of the funds; and 12 ‘‘(ii) not more than $5,000,000 to 13 each State that— 14 ‘‘(I) requests funding under this 15 clause; 16 ‘‘(II) does not receive a grant 17 under clause (i); and 18 ‘‘(III) certifies to the Secretary 19 that— 20 ‘‘(aa) the State— 21 ‘‘(AA) has in effect a 22 plugging, remediation, and 23 reclamation program for or- 24 phaned wells; or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1076 IS ‘‘(BB) the capacity to 1 initiate such a program; or 2 ‘‘(bb) the funds provided 3 under this paragraph will be used 4 to carry out any administrative 5 actions necessary to develop an 6 application for a formula grant 7 under paragraph (4) or a per- 8 formance grant under paragraph 9 (5). 10 ‘‘(B) DISTRIBUTION.—The Secretary shall 11 distribute funds to a State under this para- 12 graph by not later than the date that is 30 days 13 after the date on which the State submits to 14 the Secretary the certification required under 15 clause (i)(II) or (ii)(III) of subparagraph (A), 16 as applicable. 17 ‘‘(C) DEADLINE FOR EXPENDITURE.—A 18 State that receives funds under this paragraph 19 shall reimburse the Secretary in an amount 20 equal to the amount of the funds that remain 21 unobligated on the date that is 1 year after the 22 date of receipt of the funds. 23 ‘‘(D) REPORT.—Not later than 15 months 24 after the date on which a State receives funds 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 13 •S 1076 IS under this paragraph, the State shall submit to 1 the Secretary a report that describes the means 2 by which the State used the funds in accord- 3 ance with the certification submitted by the 4 State under subparagraph (A). 5 ‘‘(4) FORMULA GRANTS.— 6 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.— 7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 8 shall establish a formula for the distribu- 9 tion to each State described in clause (ii) 10 of funds under this paragraph. 11 ‘‘(ii) DESCRIPTION OF STATES.—A 12 State referred to in clause (i) is a State 13 that, by not later than 45 days after the 14 date of enactment of the Revive Economic 15 Growth and Reclaim Orphaned Wells Act 16 of 2021, submits to the Secretary a notice 17 of the intent of the State to submit an ap- 18 plication under subparagraph (B), includ- 19 ing a description of the factors described in 20 clause (iii) with respect to the State. 21 ‘‘(iii) FACTORS.—The formula estab- 22 lished under clause (i) shall account for, 23 with respect to an applicant State, the fol- 24 lowing factors: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:35 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1076.IS S1076 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with BILLS 14 •S 1076 IS ‘‘(I) Job losses in the oil and gas 1 industry in the State during the pe- 2 riod— 3 ‘‘(aa) beginning on March 1, 4 2020; and 5 ‘‘(bb) ending on the date of 6 enactment of the Revive Eco- 7 nomic Growth and Reclaim Or- 8 phaned Wells Act of 2021. 9 ‘‘(II) The number of documented 10 orphaned wells located in the State, 11 and the projected cost— 12 ‘‘(aa) to plug or reclaim 13 those orphaned wells; 14 ‘‘(bb) to reclaim adjacent 15 land; and 16 ‘‘(cc) to decommission or re- 17 move associated pipelines, facili- 18 ties, and infrastructure. 19 ‘‘(iv) PUBLICATION.—Not later than 20 7 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]