NOTICE OF HEARING BEFORE THE BOARD OF OIL, GAS AND MINING DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES STATE OF UTAH

THE STATE OF UTAH TO ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE FOLLOWING MATTER: (Docket No. 2021-001): NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Board of Oil, Gas and Mining (the “Board”), State of Utah, will conduct a hearing on Wednesday, January 27, 2021, at 10:00 a.m., or as soon thereafter as possible. It is anticipated the hearing will be conducted electronically and without an anchor location, pursuant to Utah Code Ann. § 52-4-207(4) and that the Board Chairman will issue a written determination in advance of the aforesaid hearing concluding that holding an in-person meeting presents a substantial risk to the health and safety of the participants due to COVID-19. The written determination required under Utah Code Ann. § 52-4-207(4) will be based on the public health and safety conditions existing at the time of the January 27, 2021 hearing. In the event the Board Chairman’s determination is that an electronic hearing is unnecessary for the prescribed hearing date, the meeting will be held in the auditorium of the Department of Natural Resources, 1594 West North Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah. The hearing will be streamed live on the Department of Natural Resources YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/R4UUkPO_Qe8.

DOCKET NO. 2021-001 CAUSE NO. C/007/0045C: Petition for Review of Proposed Individual Civil Penalty. THE HEARING WILL BE CONDUCTED as a formal administrative adjudication in accordance with the rules of the Board as set forth in Utah Administrative Code R641 et seq. and as provided for in Utah Code Ann. § 40-10-1 et seq. and Utah Code Ann. §§ 63G-4-101 through 601. THE PURPOSE OF THE PROCEEDING will be for the Board to receive testimony and evidence regarding a Petition for Review of Proposed Individual Civil Penalty, filed by John J. Siegel Jr. of Louisville, Kentucky (“Mr. Siegel”), by and through counsel, that the Board enter an order: 1. Finding that Mr. Siegel is not individually liable for the Notice of Proposed Individual Civil Penalty Assessment (“Petition”) issued by the Utah Division of Oil, Gas & Mining (“Division”) on October 23, 2020 against Mr. Siegel in the amount of $2,300,760; 2. Setting aside the Proposed Individual Civil Penalty Assessment against Mr. Siegel; and 3. Providing such other equitable relief as may be just and reasonable based on the evidence and arguments provided at the hearing. OBJECTIONS to the Petition for Review of Proposed Individual Civil Penalty must be filed with the Secretary of the Board at the address listed below no later than the 11th day of January, 2021. A party must file a timely written objection or other response in order to participate as a party at the Board hearing. Failure to participate can result in a default judgment. Natural persons may appear and represent themselves before the Board. All other representation of parties before the Board will be by attorneys licensed to practice law in the State of Utah, or attorneys licensed to practice law in another jurisdiction which meet the rules of the Utah State Bar for practicing law before the Utah Courts. Persons interested in this matter may participate pursuant to the procedural rules of the Board. The Petition for Review of Proposed Individual Civil Penalty, and any subsequent pleadings, may be inspected at the office of the undersigned, and inspected online at the Utah Board of Oil, Gas and Mining’s website at http://ogm.utah.gov/amr/boardtemp/redesign/books.html. 

Pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act, persons requiring auxiliary communicative aids and services to enable them to participate in this hearing should call Julie Ann Carter at (801) 538-5277, at least three working days prior to the hearing date. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ability of the virus to spread from person-to-person rapidly, Governor Gary Herbert has implemented numerous Executive Orders directed at controlling the spread of the virus by minimizing face-to-face interactions and the Utah legislature has amended public meeting requirements under the Open and Public Meetings Act. At this time, public gatherings are strongly discouraged by the Center for Disease Control, State of Utah, and local health departments since they facilitate face-to-face contact and pose an elevated risk for virus transmission. The Board Chairman has determined, at the present time, that public gatherings at normally scheduled public meetings before the Board present substantial risks to the health and safety of those who attend. As such, as indicated above, it is anticipated the Board will conduct this public meeting using a fully electronic format. This meeting format is authorized by recent amendment to Utah Code Ann. § 52-4-207(4). The electronic format will be temporarily used in place of the in-person public meeting until the Board is otherwise directed it is safe to hold in-person public meetings. Anyone wishing to comment on the January public meeting’s agenda topics should contact the Board Secretary prior to the hearing for accommodation. Anyone who may wish to observe the public meeting may do so by logging on to the YouTube channel specified above.

DATED this 28th day of December, 2020.

STATE OF UTAH
BOARD OF OIL, GAS AND MINING
Chris D. Hansen, Chairman
/s/ Julie Ann Carter
Board Secretary
1594 West North Temple, Suite 1210
Salt Lake City, Utah 84116
(801) 538-5277

Published in the ETV Newspaper on January 6, 2021.

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