Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by hunter777 on September 27, 2009 at 3:21pm

So far, it seems as if they are waiting to see what the state legislature is going to do about it. They originally wanted to roll back taxes on the entire acreage, with a 36% interest on the sixth year back, 30% on fifth, etc.

Have you heard about the Friendsville Group and their lease agreement with Fortuna? They are currently signing leases for $5500/acre and 20% royalty, and are still offering the same to add-on acreage. The lease provides that if the landowner is assessed a rollback of taxes, Fortuna will pay it.

http://www.thefriendsvillegroup.org/

Permalink Reply by tina on September 27, 2009 at 6:40pm

I just heard rumor today that the disputes on the early gas leases made it to the supreme court, and they found that any leases that are paying out the 12 1/2% minus expenses are going to be nulled. Did you hear anything on this or is it just that rumor?

Permalink Reply by hunter777 on September 27, 2009 at 8:57pm

That is currently in court.

http://www.scrantontimes.com/state_supreme_court_to_hear_case_over_...

Permalink Reply by Rita McConnell on September 28, 2009 at 10:05am

There's a bill out there on this, but since everyone's "focused" on the budget in PA, it'll probably take some time for the decision. But what I've heard is that only acreage used for drilling will be removed from clean and green. So, if you have 100 acres, but the drillers only use say, 5 acres, only 5 comes out of c&g. I believe Senator Yaw has been leading the charge to make sure that landowners don't face rollback on their entire acreage -- you may want to call his office to see what the status is...

Permalink Reply by hunter777 on September 28, 2009 at 12:26pm

As a follow-up to this, here is the link to Mr. Yaw's website:

http://www.senatorgeneyaw.com/Press/2009/0609/061709.htm

Permalink Reply by Gary on October 1, 2009 at 8:26pm

You have to go over that info when negotiating your lease agreement. You will lose C&G status only on the acres that are being used including the total acreage of road needed to the site. You should be able to get the gas company to pay for any loss you may incur. Make sure you have good representation before signing your lease. The upfront money will easily cover his fees.