Posts tagged legal
Fracking headed to Boulder County
Feb 2nd
Boulder County, Colo. – Boulder County is concerned about the potential for significantly expanded oil and gas drilling within the county, and supports appropriate, tighter restrictions on drilling and increased local control to mitigate the impacts of these activities.
However, Boulder County and other local governments in Colorado do not have complete authority to regulate drilling. In order to ensure both our Comprehensive Plan and Land Use regulations are as thorough and up-to-date as possible, today we approved a temporary moratorium on the processing of the required development plans for local oil and gas permits under the county Land Use Code (Resolution 2012-16). This will give us time to make sure that, within the limits of our legal authority, we are able to mitigate local impacts from these activities and to maximize protection for the people and environment of Boulder County.
Boulder County does not voluntarily allow oil and gas drilling on its open space properties. Like many private landowners, we often do not own the rights to a given property’s oil and gas deposits. In other cases, the mineral rights were leased prior to acquisition of the land by the county. In those instances, the county does not have the ability to prohibit drilling, even though it is the surface landowner. As the surface owner, we do negotiate surface use agreements prior to drilling, and in doing so, we attempt to minimize those impacts to the maximum extent possible.
Through our Land Use Code, we do have some local authority over oil and gas drilling on private and public land; however, substantial authority for regulation of oil and gas operations lies with the state and federal governments, so there are limits on what we can restrict. For instance, it is unlikely that Boulder County could simply prohibit hydraulic fracturing on either public or private land in the county.
Boulder County has and is actively supporting efforts to strengthen state regulation, and to expand local authority in the area of oil and gas drilling. We supported legislation signed by former Gov. Bill Ritter to strengthen oil and gas rules and to reform the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. We have also advocated for a stronger disclosure requirements of fracking fluids, although the COGCC ultimately approved requirements that did not include our requests for a process that would allow any leaks to be traced, nor for pre- and post-drilling water monitoring. Finally, we are supportive of legislation that Rep. Matt Jones of Louisville is sponsoring in the 2012 General Assembly to expand local authority over drilling.
We also authorized staff to set a public hearing for Thursday, March 1 to take public testimony on the local impacts associated with oil and gas development, and on the appropriateness of continuing or amending the temporary moratorium on the processing of land use applications for oil and gas development which we approved today. This meeting will begin at 4 p.m. in the Commissioners’ Hearing Room on the third floor of the Boulder County Courthouse at 1325 Pearl St. in Boulder. Staff from several county departments will be making presentations regarding our current regulations and the development we have seen on our open space properties.
Boulder gets heavy hitter law firm for first swing at Xcel
Jan 23rd
The City of Boulder has selected the law firm of Duncan, Ostrander & Dingess, PC to help the city as it begins potential condemnation proceedings for the electric utility system within city limits that is currently owned by Xcel Energy. The firm will advise the city in all matters related to the acquisition of electrical distribution facilities and will work to determine the fair value of those facilities.
The city has retained this counsel to provide expert assistance as it moves towards potential municipalization of the electrical distribution system in Boulder, which stems from the passage of ballot items 2B and 2C in November. The city has said it intends to hire outside legal counsel, as well as engineering consultants, to perform some of the work necessary to determine the final costs associated with acquiring Xcel’s system and starting a city-owned electrical utility. City Council will not make a decision about whether to issue bonds to pursue municipalization until those costs are known.
If the city decides to proceed with asset acquisition, and a price cannot be negotiated with Xcel Energy, Duncan, Ostrander & Dingess, PC will file all legal actions that may be necessary to work through the condemnation process. The firm will work closely with city staff and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) counsel, engineers and appraisers as the city creates a separation plan and conducts negotiations.
Duncan, Ostrander & Dingess, PC was chosen from a field of 10 original submissions that was narrowed down to three finalists after a review of all credentials. In evaluating submitted proposals, the city looked at whether the firm had prior experience representing governments in condemnation proceedings, and the nature and extent of its practice in Colorado.
Duncan, Ostrander & Dingess, PC has more than 30 years (as individuals and then as a firm) of service helping governments, urban renewal authorities and utility companies to acquire property for public projects in a timely manner and at fair prices, and has previously represented the City of Boulder in condemnation proceedings. In 2011, U.S. News & World Report designated the law firm as “Best Lawyers Tier One – Eminent Domain and Condemnation, and Litigation – Eminent Domain and Condemnation.”
The firm and its individual members have served as lead counsel for a number of high-profile public projects that required acquisition of multiple parcels in numerous jurisdictions under time restraints imposed by bond financing or other public financing. These include E-470, T-REX, Prairie Waters, FasTracks, the White Cliffs Pipeline and the Rocky Mountain Express Pipeline.
For more information on Duncan, Ostrander & Dingess, PC, visit www.dodpc.com. Visit www.BoulderEnergyFuture.com for more information on the city’s work related to potential municipalization.
Boulder council moves ahead on municipalization questions; final vote scheduled for Aug. 16
Aug 3rd
One final vote on this issue is scheduled for Aug. 16, but council has indicated this can go on the consent agenda, so no significant changes are anticipated.
The approved ballot language includes several provisions that place limitations on the authority to issue bonds and chart out clear citizen involvement and representation on an advisory board to guide future decisions. These include:
A provision that rates cannot exceed those offered by the current provider, Xcel Energy, on the date that the city purchases the system from Xcel;
Guiding principles for the municipal utility, once established, that make rate parity and the city’s commitment to lowering greenhouse gas emissions key factors in future ratemaking and operations decisions;
A commitment to a nine-member advisory board, appointed by City Council, with staggered five-year terms; the board can include up to four non-residents (to allow for involvement of business owners and employees of businesses that pay electric bills within city limits), and council will seek broad, but not rigidly defined, representation of customer classes; and lastly,
A guarantee that the city will cover taxes that would have been paid to the Boulder Valley School District as well as a mechanism to allow for the payment of similar taxes to other governmental entities.
Each of these issues is covered in the ballot language and accompanying ordinance for the first of two measures voters will be asked to consider.
The second, related question will ask voters to approve an increase in the Utility Occupation Tax that Xcel currently collects from customers. This increase is necessary to fund legal and engineering costs the city will incur while working to determine a final price to purchase Xcel’s system. The tax, which would raise up to $1.9 million a year, would last either until Dec. 13, 2017, or until the city makes a decision about whether or not to proceed with buying the system, whichever occurs first. The idea of the tax is to provide the funding for the period before the city could actually launch a utility without having to move forward on issuing bonds. This period is expected to last three to six years.
“This is an exciting time for Boulder, and it was very satisfying to see council come to some important conclusions last night,” said Mayor Susan Osborne. “The language that we expect to go before voters includes carefully thought out opportunities and limitations that address both the city’s economic and environmental objectives. Although there are still some differences of opinion on council, we are unanimous that it is time to ask voters to play their part in charting out our future.”
More details, including specific ballot language and staff memos to council, are available at http://www.boulderenergyfuture.com. A complete broadcast of the council meeting is available for viewing under http://www.bouldercolorado.gov/channel8 under the Council Archives menu item.