In Bass Energy, Inc. v. City of Broadview Heights, Cuyahoga Common Pleas Court Case no. CV-14-828074, two oil and gas companies sued the City of Broadview Heights, seeking a declaratory judgment to declare the city’s ban on drilling invalid. The City claims the ban is protected by the Home Rule provision of the Ohio Constitution, while the companies claim the city’s ban is preempted by state law.
A similar case is pending in the Ohio Supreme Court, State of Ohio ex rel. Jack Morrison, Jr., Law Director City of Munroe Falls, Ohio, et al. v. Beck Energy Corporation, et al., Ohio Supreme Court Case No. 2013-0465. See our prior post Does Sole Authority of Ohio Department of Natural Resources to Regulate Oil and Gas Drilling Violate Home Rule? The Munroe Falls case involves the energy company’s violation of city zoning ordinances, street and right of way ordinances, as well as ordinances specific to oil and gas, such as a notice of drilling requirement. The Ohio Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the Munroe Falls case on February 26, 2014. A decision is expected shortly.
Court docket in Bass Energy (with links to full text filings)
See Midwest Energy News: Ohio Town, Seeking to Limit Drilling, is Latest at Odds with State
