May 10, 2013 10:53 AM UTC

Denver Post Not Fooled by Hick's Late Fracking Move

•  
• by: Colorado Pols

The editorial board of the Denver Post weighs in today on the legislature's failure to pass a bill that would have increased fines for oil and gas rules violations:

The bill that would have rewritten the fine structure, however, died on the issue of minimum mandatory daily fines. Sponsors could not muster the votes for the idea, which faced substantial opposition from industry and Gov. John Hickenlooper.

So, instead of compromising and accepting a bill without the minimums, the whole measure died. That shouldn't have happened…

…The governor's order that the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission address the fine structure is really more political cover than substantive policy change. [Pols emphasis]

This may all seem like inside baseball, but it has broader implications and is illustrative of the forces at work in shaping oil and gas regulation in Colorado. There must be fewer all-or-nothing battles and more realism and cooperation when it comes to industry regulation.

Fox 31's Eli Stokols reported earlier in the week that Hickenlooper badly wanted to see this bill move forward — albeit after his office lobbied heavily to make sure it was watered down — so that he could try to get out from the growing pile of accusations that he is doing the bidding of the oil and gas industry. It's not good for the Governor when Democratic lawmakers are openly questioning Hickenlooper's interference on all things fracking. Here's Fox 31 from Wednesday:

“The attempt is to hold the worst offenders accountable,” said Rep. Mike Foote, D-Lafayette, the bill’s sponsor and a former prosecutor. “As someone who’s job has been to impose punishment for the last 10 years, I know that the threat of a maximum fine is meaningless unless the agency has a true intention to impose.”

Foote also argued that the minimum fines would only apply to serious mishaps…

…All day Tuesday, representatives from Gov. John Hickenlooper’s office tried to reach a deal with the bill’s House sponsor, Foote and House Majority Leader Dickey Lee Hullinghorst, D-Boulder.

Hickenlooper, whose administration has resisted some key pieces of the Democratic package of bills aimed at tightening oversight on the oil and gas industry, wanted to be able to sign this bill into law, to have at least one win with environmental groups after siding mostly with the industry…

…Minutes after the session adjourned sine die Wednesday afternoon, Hickenlooper issued an executive order to encourage the COGCC to reassess its application of oil and gas fines; but the current scale, allowing for fines between zero and $1,000 a day, will stay in place.

So there it is.