Sec. 81.070. ESTABLISHMENT OF SURCHARGES ON FEES

(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), the commission by rule shall provide for the imposition of reasonable surcharges as necessary on fees imposed by the commission that are required to be deposited to the credit of the oil and gas regulation and cleanup fund as provided by Section 81.067 in amounts sufficient to enable the commission to recover the costs of performing the functions specified by Section 81.068 from those fees and surcharges.

(b) The commission may not impose a surcharge on an oil-field cleanup regulatory fee on oil collected under Section 81.116 or an oil-field cleanup regulatory fee on gas collected under Section 81.117.

(c) The commission by rule shall establish a methodology for determining the amount of a surcharge that takes into account:

(1) the time required for regulatory work associated with the activity in connection with which the surcharge is imposed;

(2) the number of individuals or entities from which the commission's costs may be recovered;

(3) the effect of the surcharge on operators of all sizes, as measured by the number of oil or gas wells operated;

(4) the balance in the oil and gas regulation and cleanup fund; and

(5) any other factors the commission determines to be important to the fair and equitable imposition of the surcharge.

(d) The commission shall collect a surcharge on a fee at the time the fee is collected.

(e) A surcharge collected under this section shall be deposited to the credit of the oil and gas regulation and cleanup fund as provided by Section 81.067.

(f) A surcharge collected under this section shall not exceed an amount equal to 185 percent of the fee on which it is imposed.

Added by Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., 1st C.S., Ch. 4 , Sec. 19.02, eff. September 28, 2011.