Oil & Gas Division
Severance/Seal Orders
Among the Commission's other enforcement methods, the Oil & Gas Division has the authority to cancel an operator's Certificate of Compliance and order that production be shut in at the lease or well level for noncompliance with Commission rules, effectively blocking that operator's ability to sell oil and gas from a lease. Before the operator can resume production, it must correct the violation and pay a statutory fee for restoration of the Certificate of Compliance.
Data as of 03/12/13
| Fiscal Year (Sept. 1 - Aug. 31) | Notices Issued | Resolved without Severance/Seal Order | Resolved after Severance/Seal Order | Unresolved Notices | Severance Fee Revenue | |||
| 2003 | 22,411 | 12,908 | 57.6% | 8,695 | 38.8% | 808 | 3.6% | $ 469,500.00 |
| 2004 | 23,468 | 14,716 | 62.7% | 8,057 | 34.3% | 695 | 3.0% | $ 933,100.00 |
| 2005 | 18,929 | 11,610 | 61.3% | 6,789 | 35.9% | 530 | 2.8% | $ 850,400.00 |
| 2006 | 20,080 | 11,469 | 57.1% | 7,496 | 37.3% | 1,115 | 5.6% | $ 1,157,575.00 |
| 2007 | 17,120 | 10,204 | 59.6% | 6,315 | 36.9% | 601 | 3.5% | $ 952,520.00 |
| 2008 | 31,680 | 20,056 | 63.3% | 9,799 | 30.9% | 1,825 | 5.8% | $ 1,486,800.00 |
| 2009 | 27,655 | 17,495 | 63.3% | 8,933 | 32.3% | 1,227 | 4.4% | $ 1,364,027.00 |
| 2010 | 24,583 | 15,511 | 63.1% | 7,539 | 30.7% | 1,533 | 6.2% | $ 1,147,375.00 |
| 2011 | 31,666 | 20,076 | 63.4% | 9,417 | 29.7% | 2,173 | 6.9% | $ 1,261,625.00 |
| 2012 | 24,085 | 15,440 | 64.1% | 6,565 | 27.3% | 2,080 | 8.6% | $ 1,937,670.00 |
| 10-Yr Average | 24,168 | 14,949 | 61.9% | 7,961 | 32.9% | 1,259 | 5.2% | $ 1,156,059.20 |
| 2013 YTD | 14,493 | 7,809 | 53.9% | 2,330 | 16.1% | 4,354 | 30.0% | $ 1,393,450.00 |
For the 10-year period 2003-2012, 94.8% of violations managed through this process have been resolved. 61.9% of violations were corrected by the operator promptly upon notice with no further action needed by the Commission; another 32.9% were resolved following issuance of a severance/seal order. Compliance is verified by lease/well inspections in the case of field violations, or file review in the case of reporting violations. Where the violation remains unresolved, the Commission will pursue the matter through other appropriate enforcement action.
(Note: Percentage totals may be affected by rounding.)
For further severance information on a lease or well basis, please see the Severance Query on the Commission's website. Click here