A coalition of small operators in the oil and gas industry Friday asked Gov. Jared Polis to pause rulemaking by the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. 

The Small Operator Society, which represents 50 small and family-owned oil and gas operations across the state with about 7,000 wells, said that in a matter of days they faced a “double black swan” event: historic low prices for oil and gas, as well as the deadly novel coronavirus.

It’s mean that producers are “already stretched thin and fighting for survival…We are on the brink of collapse,” wrote Sam Bradley, the group’s founder.

The group asked the state to delay “the sweeping series” of rulemakings currently being considered by the COGCC as a result of Senate Bill 19-181. “As small business owners we absolutely must be focusing all our limited time and resources to avoiding lay-offs and doing everything we can to get our businesses through the coming months.”

Monday’s state revenue forecasts attributed some of the forecasted drop in state revenues, more than $800 million, to the decline in oil prices. A barrel of oil last week was selling for $31.50, and state economists said that’s less than what it costs to pull the oil out of the ground for many operators.

“Now is not the time to trade saving jobs and facilities for administrative rulemaking that can and should wait,” Bradley wrote.

But the heart of the letter appeared to be complaints that the rulemaking process has not been fair. “These are not ‘business as usual’ rulemakings,” Bradley wrote. They “represent a wholesale rewrite of COGCC program carrying serious and lasting consequences,” and “it’s preposterous” to think such a massive undertaking can fairly be accomplished via conference call. The society is most afraid, Bradley wrote, that small operators and related service providers will get lost in the shuffle, which they said present “serious constitutional due process concerns.” They asked for a delay until the professional Commission, which is supposed to be in place on July 1, can be installed, which would establish a fair and reasonable schedule.”

The governor said that like most state functions, he would not surprised if the rulemaking process slowed down. However, he said he did not see a “nexus” between the COGCC and the state’s response to the novel coronavirus, COVID-19. He pointed to deferments in tax payments and a delay in the 2019 state tax returns, now pushed back to July 15, as ways he is working to help small businesses.

The COGCC has delayed some of its rulemaking, such as on wellbore integrity, to the end of April. It’s also making its March 25 and subsequent hearings accessible via remote access rather than in-person.