U.S. Code
»
Title 30
» Chapter CHAPTER 29— OIL AND GAS ROYALTY MANAGEMENT › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— FEDERAL ROYALTY MANAGEMENT AND ENFORCEMENT
30 U.S.C. § 1719
Civil penalties
(a) Failure to comply with applicable law, to permit inspection, or to notify Secretary of assignment; exceptions to application of penaltyAny person who—(1) after due notice of violation or after such violation has been reported under subparagraph (A), fails or refuses to comply with any requirements of this chapter or any mineral leasing law, any rule or regulation thereunder, or the terms of any lease or permit issued thereunder; or(2) fails to permit inspection authorized in section 1718 of this title or fails to notify the Secretary of any assignment under section 1712(a)(2) 11 See References in Text note below. of this titleshall be liable for a penalty of up to $500 per violation for each day such violation continues, dating from the date of such notice or report. A penalty under this subsection may not be applied to any person who is otherwise liable for a violation of paragraph (1) if:(A) the violation was discovered and reported to the Secretary or his authorized representative by the liable person and corrected within 20 days after such report or such longer time as the Secretary may agree to; or(B) after the due notice of violation required in paragraph (1) has been given to such person by the Secretary or his authorized representative, such person has corrected the violation within 20 days of such notification or such longer time as the Secretary may agree to.(b) Failure to take corrective actionIf corrective action in not taken within 40 days or a longer period as the Secretary may agree to, after due notice or the report referred to in subsection (a)(1), such person shall be liable for a civil penalty of not more than $5,000 per violation for each day such violation continues, dating from the date of such notice or report.
(c) Failure to make royalty payment; failure to permit lawful entry, inspection, or audit; failure to notify Secretary of well productionAny person who—(1) knowingly or willfully fails to make any royalty payment by the date as specified by statute, regulation, order or terms of the lease;(2) fails or refuses to permit lawful entry, inspection, or audit; or(3) knowingly or willfully fails or refuses to comply with section 1712(b)(3) of this title,shall be liable for a penalty of up to $10,000 per violation for each day such violation continues.(d) False information; unauthorized removal, etc., of oil or gas; purchase, sale, etc., of stolen oil or gasAny person who—(1) knowingly or willfully prepares, maintains, or submits false, inaccurate, or misleading reports, notices, affidavits, records, data, or other written information;(2) knowingly or willfully takes or removes, transports, uses or diverts any oil or gas from any lease site without having valid legal authority to do so; or(3) purchases, accepts, sells, transports, or conveys to another, any oil or gas knowing or having reason to know that such oil or gas was stolen or unlawfully removed or diverted,shall be liable for a penalty of up to $25,000 per violation for each day such violation continues.(e) HearingNo penalty under this section shall be assessed until the person charged with a violation has been given the opportunity for a hearing on the record.
(f) Deduction of penalty from sums owed by United StatesThe amount of any penalty under this section, as finally determined 22 So in original. Probably should be followed by a comma. may be deducted from any sums owing by the United States to the person charged.
(g) Compromise or reduction of penaltiesOn a case-by-case basis the Secretary may compromise or reduce civil penalties under this section.
(h) NoticeNotice under this 33 So in original. subsection (a) shall be by personal service by an authorized representative of the Secretary or by registered mail. Any person may, in the manner prescribed by the Secretary, designate a representative to receive any notice under this subsection.
(i) Reasons on record for amount of penaltyIn determining the amount of such penalty, or whether it should be remitted or reduced, and in what amount, the Secretary shall state on the record the reasons for his determinations.
(j) ReviewAny person who has requested a hearing in accordance with subsection (e) within the time the Secretary has prescribed for such a hearing and who is aggrieved by a final order of the Secretary under this section may seek review of such order in the United States district court for the judicial district in which the violation allegedly took place. Review by the district court shall be only on the administrative record and not de novo. Such an action shall be barred unless filed within 90 days after the Secretary’s final order.
(k) Failure to pay penaltyIf any person fails to pay an assessment of a civil penalty under this chapter—(1) after the order making the assessment has become a final order and if such person does not file a petition for judicial review of the order in accordance with subsection (j), or(2) after a court in an action brought under subsection (j) has entered a final judgment in favor of the Secretary,the court shall have jurisdiction to award the amount assessed plus interest from the date of the expiration of the 90-day period referred to in subsection (j). Judgment by the court shall include an order to pay.(l) Nonliability for leases automatically terminatedNo person shall be liable for a civil penalty under subsection (a) or (b) for failure to pay any rental for any lease automatically terminated pursuant to section 188 of this title.
(Pub. L. 97–451, title I, § 109, Jan. 12, 1983, 96 Stat. 2454.)Editorial NotesReferences in TextSection 1712(a) of this title, referred to in subsec. (a)(2), was amended generally by Pub. L. 104–185, § 6(g), Aug. 13, 1996, 110 Stat. 1715, and, as so amended, no longer contains a par. (2). See section 1712(a) of this title.
Notes of Decisions
Kodiak Oil & Gas (USA) Inc. v. Mary Seaworth, 932 F.3d 1125 (8th Cir. 2019).
“103, and federal law provides for penalties for failure to pay royalties due under a lease, see 30 U.S.C. § 1719 . Relevant to this case, the Department of the Interior has issued a notice specifically addressing the issue of "Royalty or Compensation for Oil and Gas Lost" by…”
Statoil USA E&P Inc. v. U.S. Dep't of the Interior, 352 F. Supp. 3d 748 (S.D. Tex. 2018).
· cites it 5× “See 30 U.S.C. § 1719 (d)(1). This case is an Administrative Procedure Act ("APA") challenge to an administrative penalty imposed under Section 1719(d)(1).”
Mobil Expl. & Producing U.S., Inc. v. Dep't of Interior, 180 F.3d 1192 (10th Cir. 1999).
· cites it 2× “With respect to whether Plaintiffs’ claim objecting to the document request letter was ripe for review, and relying partly on the government’s disavowal that it would pursue penalties against Plaintiffs under *1196 30 U.S.C. § 1719 (c)(2), the district court found that the…”
Jicarilla Apache Nation v. U.S. Dep't of the Interior, 892 F. Supp. 2d 285 (D.D.C. 2012).
· cites it 3× “30 U.S.C. § 1719 (e); 30 C.F.R. § 241.54 (“You may request a hearing on the record on a Notice of Noncompliance by filing a request within 30 days of the date you received the Notice.”
Coosewoon v. Meridian Oil Co., 25 F.3d 920 (10th Cir. 1994).
· cites it 2× “Plaintiffs next challenge the district court’s dismissal of Count VII of their complaint which alleged Meridian committed negligence per se through violations of 30 U.S.C. § 1719 (c)(1), (d)(1) and (3) of the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act (“FOGRMA”), 30 U.”
Am. Petroleum Inst. v. U.S. Dep't of the Interior, 366 F. Supp. 3d 1292 (D. Wyo. 2018).
· cites it 4× “In general, API alleges the rule arbitrarily and unlawfully places federal and Indian oil and gas lessees at risk for enforcement actions under the most severe civil, and even criminal, penalties provided by the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act (FOGRMA), 30 U.S.C. §…”
Fed. Energy Regulatory Comm'n v. Barclays Bank PLC, 247 F. Supp. 3d 1118 (E.D. Cal. 2017).
“, 30 U.S.C. § 1719 (j) (regarding judicial review of a final order assessing a penalty by the Secretary of the Interior, “[rjeview by the district court shall be only on the administrative record and not de novo”); 7 U.”
Mesa Operating Ltd. P'ship v. United States Dep't of the Interior, 17 F.3d 1288 (10th Cir. 1994).
“Shortly thereafter plaintiff filed the instant case in the Northern District of Oklahoma for injunctive relief and declaratory judgment, arguing that the defendant cannot enforce the MMS administrative order to pay because it failed to file suit or counterclaim against plaintiff…”
Phillips Petroleum Co. v. Lujan, 963 F.2d 1380 (10th Cir. 1992).
“In his affidavit, Mr. Sant stated that, when collecting data and documents from a lessee, the MMS auditors make informal requests either orally or in writing.”
Statoil USA E&P, Inc. v. United States Dep (5th Cir. 2020).
· cites it 2× “30 U.S.C. § 1719 (a)-(d). Section 1719(a) is the lowest tier and penalizes general violations such as “fail[ing] or refus[ing] to comply with any requirements of this chapter or any mineral leasing law, any rule or regulation thereunder, or the terms of any lease or permit…”
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