Scott Douglass lawyers Mark Hanna and Ross Sutherland led the effort for a major lithium developer in working with the Railroad Commission to draft and adopt new rules with regards to lithium mining in Texas.

In 2023, the Texas Legislature amended Texas Water Code in order to clarify the Railroad Commission’s jurisdiction over brine mining under state law includes the authority to regulate brine production wells and brine injection wells (“spent brine return injection wells”) used for lithium mining, which requires re-injecting naturally occurring brines into the formation from which they were produced after the extraction of minerals.

In response, the Railroad Commission has adopted new rules and amendments to implement the requirements of Senate Bill 1186.

At its open meeting on January 29, 2025, the Railroad Commission adopted new 16 Texas Administrative Code Section 3.82 and amendments to various rules in Chapter 3 to implement the requirements of Senate Bill 1186 (88th Legislature, Regular Session, 2023).

The new rule will allow the Railroad Commission to seek primary enforcement authority from the EPA for the spent brine return injection wells, which are Class V UIC wells.