February 24, 2011 09:15 PM UTC

HB1223: Have henhouse...need fox.

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• by: Duke Cox

( – promoted by Colorado Pols)

Recently elected Colorado representative Ray Scott, in keeping with a tradition among western slope Republican legislators, has now performed his first rite of passage. He has introduced his first “whatever the oil and gas industry lobby wants me to do” bill. His dance partner in the senate is the ever dapper, “King of the double dip”, himself, Senator Steve King.

HB1223 would revert the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission to the make-up that existed before the passage and implementation of HB1341, back in 2007…effectively repealing that bill. In effect, the Republicans are trying to give the keys to the henhouse back to the fox, by recreating an industry dominated panel.

The current make-up of the commission includes voices from several different stakeholders. Only three of the nine members of todays’ panel may be employed by the industry. One must represent local communities. Another is an environmental specialist. Yet another, a rancher with mineral rights.

When you include the directors of both the Colorado Department of Natural Resources and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, you get a pretty balanced point of view. Senator King and Rep. Scott would have you believe that balance is a bad thing…but it is not.

The previous commission was made up of seven members, five of whom were REQUIRED to be involved in the O&G business. The voices represented by all the other stakeholders ,mentioned above, were, when rarely heard, routinely ignored. The COGCC amounted to little more than a country club for O&G guys and the legislators that carry their water.

The natural gas industry has been taking it on the chin a bit lately due to the amazing greed with which they have overproduced their commodity. Natural gas prices are still languishing near $4.00/mcf, while oil prices continue their rapid ascent, further dulling incentive to “drill the living daylights” out of Colorados’ gas fields. Even so, natural gas production has increased the past three consecutive years, as have permit application numbers. The industry is healthy.

This bill yearns for the “good ol’ days when the O&G industry was allowed to do “whatever is reasonable”…and they decided what was reasonable. To my knowledge, there have been no significant complaints about the fairness and balance of the present commission and I trust Governor Hickenlooper will not forget those “other” voices that have a stake in Colorados’ energy future. Voices of the wind, the waterfall, the wild Elk and the Sage Grouse. The voices of our childrens’ children.

Thousands of Coloradoans worked and sacrificed to create a truly exceptional set of O&G development regulations and crafted a balanced and efficient board to implement them. Leave it like it is, it ain’t broke.