CO HB1273

Creates a local government designee fee that oil and gas operators must pay to the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission when applying for a permit to drill, with fees deposited into a newly established Local Government Designee Fund in the state treasury.

Commission shall annually set the designee fee amount by rule after consulting with local governments, based on cumulative costs incurred by local governments in maintaining designees and total number of permits issued in the previous fiscal year.

Commission shall quarterly distribute fund revenues to local governments that have registered a designee through a grant application process with evaluation criteria considering local government financial ability, oil and gas revenues from other sources, number of permits and facilities, and existing mill levy.

Repeals the prohibition on local governments charging taxes or fees to conduct inspections or monitoring of oil and gas operations, while preserving local authority to charge reasonable fees for road damage inspection, fire code compliance, land use permits, and building code compliance.

Appropriates $42,367 for fiscal year 2013 to the Department of Natural Resources for implementation, including $41,440 for computer center services and $927 for legal services, plus $11,407 to the Oil and Gas Conservation Commission for personnel services and rulemaking hearing expenses.