ND SB2341

Mineral developers must pay surface owners yearly compensation for damages to agricultural production and income caused by oil and gas operations.

Damage formulas must be mutually agreeable and include consideration of lost land use, increased maintenance costs, nuisance impacts, land use limitations, property value decreases, and cost-of-living adjustments every one to three years.

Surface owners may elect to receive compensation as annual payments or a single lump sum payment instead of yearly installments.

Surface owner and mineral developer may request mediation to resolve compensation disputes.

Compensation cannot be reserved or assigned apart from the surface estate, except to surface tenants who are entitled to recover their proportional share of damages if no division agreement exists.