House Bill 905 Summary

• Changes severance tax liability for oil and gas from operators/producers to interest owners, who must pay taxes regardless of residency or where the product is sold.

• Surface estate owners become eligible for a 25% exemption from ad valorem taxes when nonproducing oil, gas, or mineral interests are owned separately; owners/holders of those separate interests pay a prorated portion of the remaining 25%.

• Establishes tax collection and sale procedures for nonproducing mineral interests, including that if a mineral interest fails to sell at tax sale, it reverts to the surface owner who then becomes liable for delinquent taxes and their prorated share of ad valorem taxes.

• Requires tax collectors to provide chancery court clerks with separate lists of nonproducing mineral interests sold for nonpayment of taxes and those that reverted to surface owners.

• Creates similar tax liability and sale procedures for separately owned oil, gas, and mineral interests that apply statewide, including provisions for surface owner redemption rights before mineral interest ownership reverts.