The Arkansas Public Policy Panel held a press conference at the Capitol today to announce the findings of their latest report, “Model Oil and Gas Laws, Regulations and Ordinances.” The report examined how other states with active shale plays regulate the natural gas industry and found – no big surprise here – that most of them have better protections in place than the Natural State. APPP also offered up some recommendations for state legislators and regulators.

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This is the second in a series of reports (check here for a link to the first one). Bill Kopsky, executive director of APPP, said other states have longer histories with gas exploration and have had time to build up relationships with gas companies and a sensible regulatory structure. “The industry moved into Arkansas so fast,” he says, “that Arkansas regulators haven’t really had time to figure it out.” Kopsy was flanked by state representatives that have filed bills in the state legislature aimed at creating regulations for the industry that protect citizens’ health and the environment including Rep. Kathy Webb. “I’m a small business owner,” Webb said. “I own a business that’s very highly regulated. I serve the public every single day. And it’s my responsibility as a business owner to make sure I do no harm to the customers who come into my place of business. So I think it is quite logical to think that if you have a business that impacts the citizens of Arkansas, then there’s going to need to be a fair amount of regulation.”

Good luck. In a legislature that seems more concerned with big business than the small landowner, meaningful regulation might be hard to come by. Every time a bill dealing with the natural gas industry comes up in a committee the room is packed with industry reps and “ordinary citizens” recruited by the companies to sing their praises. Read the full press release on the jump. See comments from Kopsky and Webb in the video above.

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