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Ohio landowners and oil and gas well owners will see several changes to state law beginning Sept. 23, when Senate Bill 219 takes effect.
Gov. Mike DeWine signed the legislation June 25, marking the first major update to Ohio’s oil and gas laws since 2012. According to The Ohio State University Farm Office, the law includes several provisions affecting private landowners, oil and gas leases, well owners, permitting, and orphaned wells.
One significant change establishes a 10-year statute of limitations for claims alleging an oil and gas lease has terminated or is no longer in effect. The provision replaces a longer timeframe established by a 2019 Ohio Supreme Court decision.
S.B. 219 also changes how Ohio Department of Natural Resources orders can be appealed. Appeals must now go first to the Ohio Oil and Gas Commission rather than directly to a county court of common pleas.
Other provisions modify expedited drilling and well-plugging permit reviews, streamline the process for assigning or transferring wells, and clarify that landowners may plug orphaned wells on their property and seek reimbursement from ODNR.
The law also gives ODNR authority to regulate portions of interstate wells located in Ohio and extends the optional renewal period in standard oil and gas leases used by state agencies from three to five years.
S.B. 219 takes effect Sept. 23, 2026. Additional information about the changes is available from The Ohio State University Farm Office at farmoffice.osu.edu/blog.
