On July 1, 2015, the
Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas dismissed a suit against the state of
Ohio and Governor John Kasich, concerning preemption of local drilling
regulations. A copy of the judge’s order is available by searching for docket
no. CV-14-836899 on the Cuyahoga County Clerk of Courts website.
On December 4, 2014, an
Ohio non-profit corporation, Mothers against Drilling in Our Neighborhood sued
the state of Ohio seeking to prevent hydraulic fracturing operations in the
City of Broadview Heights. The corporation claimed that the state law
allowing well stimulation violated residents’ constitutional rights to local
self-governance based on the local
Community Bill of Rights Charter Amendment Art. XV,
Section (i). Art XV of the Community Bill of Rights, which was approved by
Broadview Heights voters in 2012, prohibits shale gas extraction using
hydraulic fracturing.
This lawsuit came after
two drilling companies, Bass Energy Inc. and Ohio Valley Energy, filed
an action against Broadview Heights over its prohibition on the use of
hydraulic fracturing for unconventional wells drilling. Both companies alleged
that Art. XV, banning hydraulic fracturing, is “unenforceable and preempted
because it directly conflicts with [state law]” which gives exclusive authority
to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to regulate oil and gas activities.
Information on this case can be find at docket no. CV-14-828074.
Written by Chloe Marie - Research Fellow
07/07/2015
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