Today, Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher (TX-07) celebrated the announcement that the Biden administration will send $80 million in federal funding to the State of Texas to plug orphaned wells across the state.  The program was made possible by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which included Congresswoman Fletcher’s bill, the Revive Economic Growth and Reclaim Orphaned Wells (REGROW) Act.  The REGROW Act aims to plug every documented orphaned well in the country by investing $4.6 billion toward cleaning up these sites, creating tens of thousands of energy jobs for skilled oil and gas workers.  

“As the lead House sponsor of the REGROW Act, I could not be prouder to see this funding reach Texas,” said Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher.  “Orphaned wells can harm our environment and create public health risks for neighboring communities, and this funding will help eliminate dangerous environmental conditions and pollution across our state while creating good jobs here in Texas.”

While oil and gas operators are required to clean up wells at the end of production, companies sometimes become defunct and cease to exist.  With no solvent owner of record, the wells are designated “orphaned” wells.  These orphan wells leak toxic chemicals into the air, contaminate groundwater, and emit methane, posing significant risks to neighboring communities and exacerbating climate change.

In June 2021, Congresswoman Fletcher introduced the bipartisan REGROW Act, H.R. 3585, to address these problems and clean up orphan oil and gas wells.  In November 2021, she voted for the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which included the REGROW Act.  President Biden signed the bill into law later that month.  And in February 2022, she announced that the State of Texas would receive $343,695,029 in federal funds to clean up abandoned oil and gas wells as a direct result of her legislation.

There are more than 56,000 documented orphan oil and gas wells across the country.  The REGROW Act aims to plug every documented orphan well in the country by investing $4.6 billion toward cleaning up these sites, creating tens of thousands of energy jobs for skilled oil and gas workers.