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A North Dakota program created to help mineral owners get answers about oil company royalty deductions has failed to live up to its promises, according to an investigation by the North Dakota Monitor and ProPublica. The “postproduction royalty oversight program” was established in 2023 after mineral owners complained that companies were withholding significant portions of their payments without explanation.
However, the program has resolved 69 cases so far with none involving postproduction deductions – the main issue it was designed to address. The program operates voluntarily and cannot compel oil companies to provide information or change payment practices.
Many mineral owners say they don’t trust the program and call it toothless, while Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring considers it successful, attributing this to favorable industry feedback and the lack of related legislation this session, which has not happened for nearly a decade.
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