RE: House Land & Resource Management Committee—Interim Charge on Landowner’s Bill of Rights

Aug. 14, 2020

The Texas Alliance of Energy Producers submitted information to the House Land & Resource Management Committee regarding the committee’s interim charge two: Review, in coordination with the Office of Attorney General, the efficacy of the Landowner’s Bill of Rights (LBoR) in explaining to landowners the eminent domain condemnation process and their rights and responsibilities under Chapter 21 of the Property Code. Identify any omitted information which can enhance the landowner’s understanding of the condemnation process and determine whether any other changes should be made to the document to make it more user friendly. Determine whether it would be beneficial for the legislature to be more prescriptive in statute with the mandatory contents of the LBoR. Click here to download a copy of the letter.

Chairman Craddick and Committee Members—

The Texas Alliance of Energy Producers (the Alliance) appreciates the opportunity to comment on the committee’s second interim charge relating to reviewing the efficacy of the Landowner’s Bill of Rights. With over 2,600 members, the Alliance is the largest state oil and gas association in the United States. Our members hail from nearly 30 states and 300 cities. We represent the exploration and production segment of the oil and gas industry; our members are oil and gas operators/producers, service and drilling companies, royalty owners, and a host of affiliated companies and industries in Texas and beyond.

As we have testified to this committee before, we believe an eminent domain process that works well, which provides certainty for critical infrastructure projects and protects private property rights, is vital to not only the wellbeing of our industry, but to the entire state’s economy. We appreciate the Committee on Land and Resource Management taking the issue of eminent domain reform so seriously. The Alliance believes that eminent domain reform is needed in Texas and we are committed to working with all stakeholders and this committee toward that end.

We believe that Senate Bill 421 during the 86th Legislative Session, as passed out of this committee and the full House, is a great starting point for legislation in the 87th Legislative Session. That bill struck a fine balance between the landowner interests that must be protected and the importance of infrastructure projects to Texas’ economy.

Regarding the committee’s second interim charge, the Alliance would like to see the statutory requirements of the Landowner’s Bill of Rights (LBoR) be amended by the legislature in the upcoming session. As currently written, the LBoR puts the parties in land negotiation deals on confrontational footing unnecessarily, which sets up the rest of the transaction to be much more difficult than it should be. We believe this document can be helpful to informing landowners of their rights and know it would be beneficial for all parties if the legislature provides more prescriptive direction to the LBoR’s construction.

We applaud your leadership of this committee for taking up these issues of critical importance and look forward to working with you in the upcoming legislative session toward a resolution that protects our economy and strives to incorporate concerns from all stakeholders.

Sincerely,

Jason Modglin

President