{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-82-82-1020.16","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 82, § 82-1020.16","heading":"Commercial drilling or plugging license – Inspections","body":"- Deposit of fees - Penalties.\n\nA. All persons engaged in the commercial drilling or commercial\n\nplugging of groundwater wells, monitoring wells, observation wells,\n\nwells utilized for heat exchange purposes, including but not limited\n\nto heat pump wells and geothermal wells, and in the commercial\n\ndrilling or plugging of geotechnical borings and all persons engaged\n\nin the commercial installation of water well pumps in this state\n\nshall make application for and become licensed with the Oklahoma\n\nWater Resources Board. Persons required to be licensed pursuant to\n\nthis section shall pay an annual fee as required by the Board. The\n\nfees shall be deposited and expended as provided in subsection D of\n\nthis section.\n\nB. The Board may prepare examinations and establish other\n\nrequirements for applicants to obtain, maintain, and renew licenses\n\nand operator certifications. The examinations shall test the\n\nknowledge and skills of:\n\n1. Water well drillers in the construction, alteration, and\n\nrepair of wells and boreholes, including proper sealing and\n\nabandonment of wells and boreholes, and the rules promulgated by the\n\nBoard regarding water well and borehole drilling and plugging; and\n\n2. Pump installers in the planning, installation, operation,\n\nand repair of pumping equipment and water wells including sealing\n\nand abandonment, pumping efficiency, and the rules promulgated by\n\nthe Board regarding pump installation.\n\nC. The Board may inspect any water well, monitoring well,\n\nboring, water well pump, or abandoned well and borehole. Upon\n\nconsent of the owner of the land on which the well or borehole is\n\nlocated or as allowed by district court order, authorized\n\nrepresentatives of the Board may enter upon and shall be given\n\naccess to the premises for the purpose of inspection. If the Board\n\nfinds noncompliance with applicable laws or rules or that a health\n\nhazard exists, the Board may disapprove use of the well and shall\n\nprovide notice to the owner of the land on which the well is located\n\nand to the well driller, if known, of the disapproval. If a well\n\nhas been disapproved, it shall not be used until brought into\n\ncompliance and any health hazard is eliminated. Any person\n\naggrieved by the disapproval of a well may request a hearing before\n\nthe Board.\n\nD. 1. There is hereby created within the Oklahoma Water\n\nResources Board the Well Drillers and Pump Installers Remedial\n\nAction Indemnity Fund. The Indemnity Fund shall be administered by\n\nthe Board.\n\n2. The Indemnity Fund shall be excluded from budget and\n\nexpenditure limitations. Except as otherwise provided by subsection\n\nE of this section, the monies deposited in the Indemnity Fund shall\n\nat no time become part of the general budget of the Oklahoma Water\n\nResources Board or any other state agency. Except as otherwise\n\nprovided by subsection E of this section, no monies from the\n\nIndemnity Fund shall be transferred for any purpose to any other\n\nstate agency or any account of the Board or be used for the purpose\n\nof contracting with any other state agency or reimbursing any other\n\nstate agency for any expenses. Monies in the Indemnity Fund shall\n\nonly be expended for remedial actions necessary, without notice and\n\nhearing, to protect groundwater from pollution or potential\n\npollution from wells, or boreholes under the jurisdiction of the\n\nBoard that do not meet minimum standards for construction or that\n\nhave been abandoned or as may be recommended by the Well Drillers\n\nand Pump Installers Advisory Council.\n\n3. The fees collected pursuant to subsection A of this section\n\nshall be first credited to the Well Drillers and Pump Installers\n\nRemedial Action Indemnity Fund. The Indemnity Fund shall be\n\nmaintained at Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00).\n\n4. Expenditures from the Indemnity Fund required pursuant to\nabandoned or as may be recommended by the Well Drillers\n\nand Pump Installers Advisory Council.\n\n3. The fees collected pursuant to subsection A of this section\n\nshall be first credited to the Well Drillers and Pump Installers\n\nRemedial Action Indemnity Fund. The Indemnity Fund shall be\n\nmaintained at Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00).\n\n4. Expenditures from the Indemnity Fund required pursuant to\n\nthe provisions of this section shall be made pursuant to the\n\nprovisions of The Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act upon terms and\n\nconditions established by the Office of Management and Enterprise\n\nServices and shall not exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) for\n\neach well, borehole or pump for which action is taken.\n\n5. Except in situations where the Board has assessed and\n\ndeclared a health or safety emergency and a claim by the owner of\n\nthe well or borehole for costs of remedial action is not paid by\n\nprivate insurance or other relief, the Board shall seek\n\nreimbursement as recommended by the Well Drillers and Pump\n\nInstallers Advisory Council for any remedial action taken or\n\nrequired by the Board. Any monies received as reimbursement shall\n\nbe deposited in the Well Drillers and Pump Installers Remedial\n\nAction Indemnity Fund except as otherwise provided in subsection C\n\nof this section.\n\nE. When the Well Drillers and Pump Installers Remedial Action\n\nIndemnity Fund reaches Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), the\n\nfees, monies received as reimbursement, and administrative penalties\n\nrecovered under paragraph 1 of subsection G of this section shall be\n\ndeposited in a separate account in the Water Resources Board\n\nRevolving Fund designated as the Well Drillers and Pump Installers\n\nRegulation Account, which shall be a continuing account not subject\n\nto fiscal year limitations. Monies in said account shall be used by\n\nthe Board for inspections, licensing, enforcement and education,\n\nreimbursing per diem and travel costs for members of the Well\n\nDrillers and Pump Installers Advisory Council pursuant to the State\n\nTravel Reimbursement Act, and as otherwise determined to be\n\nnecessary to implement the provisions of this section.\n\nF. Before any person or firm licensed pursuant to this section\n\nshall commence the commercial drilling or plugging of any well or\n\nborehole or commence commercial installation of any pump, the person\n\nor firm shall file with the Board all data or information as the\n\nBoard may by rule require to assure the protection of the\n\ngroundwater in the well or borehole. After completion, the driller\n\nshall file a completion report showing all such data together with a\n\nlog of the well and pumping test data if applicable.\n\nG. 1. The Board may, after notice and hearing, impose on any\n\nperson administrative penalties of up to Five Thousand Dollars\n\n($5,000.00) and may revoke, suspend or deny renewal of any license\n\nor operator certification for each violation of the rules of the\n\nBoard regarding license or certification requirements, the\n\nrequirement to obtain a license or certification, or minimum\n\nconstruction or installation standards. The administrative\n\npenalties shall be deposited in the Well Drillers and Pump\n\nInstallers Remedial Action Indemnity Fund except as otherwise\n\nprovided in subsection E of this section.\n\n2. In addition to imposing administrative penalties, the Board\n\nmay issue orders prohibiting actions by holders of valid licenses\n\nand operator certifications and by persons who are required to\n\nbecome licensed under the provisions of this section that constitute\n\nviolations of rules promulgated pursuant to this section and\n\nrequiring actions to remedy violations or other noncompliance with\n\nminimum standards rules for the construction of wells and borings,\n\nthe plugging of wells and borings, and the commercial installation\n\nof water well pumps.\n\nH. If a respondent fails, refuses or neglects to comply with an\nthe provisions of this section that constitute\n\nviolations of rules promulgated pursuant to this section and\n\nrequiring actions to remedy violations or other noncompliance with\n\nminimum standards rules for the construction of wells and borings,\n\nthe plugging of wells and borings, and the commercial installation\n\nof water well pumps.\n\nH. If a respondent fails, refuses or neglects to comply with an\n\norder of the Board to pay an administrative penalty or to take\n\ncertain action, the Board may present the matter to the Attorney\n\nGeneral who is empowered to take action to collect the\n\nadministrative penalty or to compel compliance with the order of the\n\nBoard. One-half (1/2) of all penalties collected by the Attorney\n\nGeneral shall be deposited in the Well Drillers and Pump Installers\n\nRegulation Account established pursuant to subsection E of this\n\nsection and one-half (1/2) shall be deposited in the Attorney\n\nGeneral's Revolving Fund created in Section 20 of Title 74 of the\n\nOklahoma Statutes.\n\nI. The Board is authorized to create a Well Drillers and Pump\n\nInstallers Advisory Council. The Board shall establish rules\n\nstating the qualifications for membership and organization of the\n\nCouncil. Meetings of the Council shall be held at the call of the\n\nExecutive Director of the Board. The Council shall have the\n\nfollowing duties:\n\n1. To recommend rules to the Board, provided such written\n\nrecommendations have been concurred upon by a majority of the\n\nmembership of the Council; and\n\n2. To review and recommend approval or denial of use of monies\n\nin the Well Drillers and Pump Installers Remedial Action Indemnity\n\nFund for:\n\na. remedial actions to protect groundwater from pollution\n\nor potential pollution from wells, or boreholes under\n\nthe jurisdiction of the Board which do not meet\n\nminimum standards for construction or that have been\n\nabandoned, and\n\nb. inspections, licensing, the pursuit of enforcement\n\naction with the proper authorities and education by\n\nthe Board.","path":["OK Code","Title 82"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os82.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"591275909a53d1bcdeb99d02f32b549f034e789c1f02e32595f4985be6d803bb","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-82-82-1020.15","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-82-82-1020.17"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}