Our operations are subject to extensive federal, state, tribal, local and other laws, rules and regulations, including with respect to environmental matters, worker health and safety, wildlife conservation, the gathering and transportation of oil, gas and NGL, conservation policies, reporting obligations, royalty payments, unclaimed property and the imposition of taxes. Such regulations include requirements for permits to drill and to conduct other operations and for provision of financial assurances (such as bonds) covering drilling, completion and well operations. If permits are not issued, or if unfavorable restrictions or conditions are imposed on our drilling or completion activities, we may not be able to conduct our operations as planned. For example, in March 2024, the United States Environmental Protection Agency ("USEPA") issued its final methane rules to reduce methane emissions from both new and existing oil and natural gas facilities and the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 ("IRA 2022") established the Methane Emissions Reduction Program, which imposes a charge on methane emissions from the same facilities, the rule for which was finalized in November 2024. However, the methane emissions charge rule was repealed in February 2025 and the imposition of the charge under the IRA 2022 was postponed until 2034 under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of July 2025. In December 2025, the USEPA issued a final rule extending several compliance deadlines and timeframes associated with the 2024 methane rules. Further, the BLM issued a final Methane Waste Prevention Rule on April 10, 2024. The rule adds additional requirements for operators on federal and Indian leases and includes new air quality requirements along with waste prevention provisions. In November 2025, BLM announced it will delay enforcement of two provisions of the Waste Prevention Rule that had been scheduled to take effect in December 2025 as it reviews the underlying rule and considers revisions. Litigation challenging the 2024 rule is currently held in abeyance. Constrained supply chain for environmental control devices along with the significant estimated costs of compliance with these new and proposed rules could have a material impact on our operations. We may be required to make large, sometimes unexpected, expenditures to comply with applicable governmental laws, rules, regulations, permits or orders.
In addition, changes in public policy have affected, and in the future could further affect, our operations. Regulatory changes could, among other things, restrict production levels, impose price controls, alter environmental protection requirements and increase taxes, royalties and other amounts payable to the government. Our operating and compliance costs could increase further if existing laws and regulations are revised or reinterpreted or if new laws and regulations become applicable to our operations. We do not expect that any of these laws and regulations will affect our operations materially differently than they would affect other companies with similar operations, size and financial strength. Although we are unable to predict changes to existing laws and regulations, such changes could significantly impact our profitability, financial condition and liquidity. As is discussed below this is particularly true of changes related to pipeline safety, seismic activity, hydraulic fracturing, climate change and endangered species designations. As of January 2025, however, the Trump Administration issued a series of executive orders that signal a shift in the United States' energy polices, including directing federal agencies to identify and exercise emergency authorities to facilitate conventional energy production, transportation, and refining, and call for the use of emergency regulations to expedite energy infrastructure projects, promote energy exploration and production on federal lands and waters, and mandate a review of existing regulations that may burden domestic energy development.
Pipeline Safety. The pipeline assets owned by our midstream service providers are subject to stringent and complex regulations related to pipeline safety and integrity management. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration ("PHMSA") has established a series of rules that require pipeline operators to develop and implement integrity management programs for gas, NGL and condensate transmission pipelines as well as certain low stress pipelines and gathering lines transporting hazardous liquids, such as oil, that, in the event of a failure, could affect "high consequence areas." Recent PHMSA rules have also extended certain requirements for integrity assessments and leak detections beyond high consequence areas. Further, legislation funding PHMSA through 2023 requires the agency to engage in additional rulemaking to amend the integrity management program, emergency response plan, operation and maintenance manual, and pressure control recordkeeping requirements for gas distribution operators; to create new leak detection and repair program obligations; and to set new minimum federal safety standards for onshore gas gathering lines. At this time, we cannot predict the cost of these requirements or other potential new or amended regulations, but they could be significant, and any such costs incurred by our midstream service providers could result in increased midstream gathering and processing expenses for us. Moreover, violations of pipeline safety regulations by our midstream service providers could result in the imposition of significant penalties which may impact the cost or availability of pipeline capacity necessary for our operations.
Seismic Activity. Earthquakes in some of our operating areas and elsewhere have prompted concerns about seismic activity and possible relationships with the energy industry. For example, the OCC issued guidance to operators in the SCOOP and STACK areas for management of certain seismic activity that may be related to hydraulic fracturing or water disposal activities. Legislative and regulatory initiatives intended to address these concerns may result in additional levels of regulation or other requirements that could lead to operational delays, increase our operating and compliance costs or otherwise adversely affect our operations. In addition, we could be subject to third-party lawsuits seeking damages or other remedies as a result of alleged induced seismic activity in our areas of operation.
Hydraulic Fracturing. Several states have adopted or are considering adopting regulations that could impose more stringent permitting, public disclosure or well construction requirements on hydraulic fracturing operations. Several states including New York, Maryland and Vermont, have banned or imposed a moratorium on the use of high-volume hydraulic fracturing. In addition to state laws, some local municipalities have adopted or are considering adopting land use restrictions, such as city ordinances, that may restrict or prohibit the performance of well drilling in general or hydraulic fracturing in particular. There have also been certain governmental reviews that focus on deep shale and other formation completion and production practices, including hydraulic fracturing. Governments may continue to study hydraulic fracturing. We cannot predict the outcome of future studies, but based on the results of these studies to date, federal and state legislatures and agencies may seek to further regulate or even ban hydraulic fracturing activities. In addition, if existing laws and regulations with regard to hydraulic fracturing are revised or reinterpreted or if new laws and regulations become applicable to our operations through judicial or administrative actions, our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be adversely affected.
We cannot predict whether additional federal, state or local laws or regulations applicable to hydraulic fracturing will be enacted in the future and, if so, what actions any such laws or regulations would require or prohibit. If additional levels of regulation or permitting requirements were imposed on hydraulic fracturing operations, our business and operations could be subject to delays, increased operating and compliance costs and potential bans. Additional regulation could also lead to greater opposition to hydraulic fracturing, including litigation.
Climate Change. Continuing political and social attention to the issue of climate change has resulted in legislative, regulatory and other initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide and methane, and incentivizing energy conservation or the use of alternative energy sources. Policy makers at both the federal and state levels have introduced legislation and proposed new regulations designed to quantify and limit the emission of greenhouse gases through inventories, limitations or taxes on greenhouse gas emissions and encourage consumers to the alternative energy sources. The IRA 2022, both imposes new climate related requirements on oil and gas operations and appropriates significant federal funding for renewable energy initiatives. Also, for the first time ever, the law imposes a fee on GHG emissions from certain facilities. The emissions fee and funding provisions of the IRA 2022 could increase our operating costs and accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels, which could in turn adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial position. Under the Trump Administration, however, there has been a shift away from the previous administration's GHG program. For example, in February 2025, the U.S. House and Senate approved a joint resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act to repeal the methane emissions charge rule, which President Trump signed into law. In September 2025, the USEPA announced a proposal to end the GHG Reporting Program for all sectors except petroleum and natural gas systems (excluding reporting for natural gas distribution, which would also be eliminated under the proposal) and deferring reporting for petroleum and natural gas systems until 2034. In December 2025, the USEPA issued a final rule extending several compliance deadlines and timeframes associated with its 2024 methane rules. On February 12, 2026, the USEPA announced the repeal of its 2009 "Endangerment Finding" under the Clean Air Act, which found that GHGs endanger the public health and welfare of current and future generations and emissions of GHGs from motor vehicles contribute to GHG pollution. The repeal calls into question EPA's authority to regulate GHGs, as well as EPA's prior scientific assessment of climate change risks. Litigation regarding the repeal is anticipated and it is unclear how the repeal will impact EPA's regulation of GHG emissions going forward. However, state and local GHG initiatives may continue despite shifts in the federal approach to climate change.
States in which we operate have imposed venting and flaring limitations designed to reduce methane emissions from oil and gas exploration and production activities. Legislative and state initiatives to date have generally focused on the development of cap and trade or carbon tax programs. Renewable energy standards (also referred to as renewable portfolio standards) require electric utilities to provide a specified minimum percentage of electricity from eligible renewable resources, with potential increases to the required percentage over time. The development of a federal renewable energy standard, or the development of additional or more stringent renewable energy standards at the state level or other initiatives to incentivize the use of renewable energy could reduce the demand for oil and gas, thereby adversely impacting our earnings, cash flows and financial position. Cap and trade programs offer greenhouse gas emission allowances that are gradually reduced over time. A cap and trade program or expanded use of cap and trade programs at the state level could impose direct costs on us through the purchase of allowances and could impose indirect costs by incentivizing consumers to shift away from fossil fuels. In addition, federal or state carbon taxes could directly increase our costs of operation and similarly incentivize consumers to shift away from fossil fuels.
In addition, activists concerned about the potential effects of climate change have directed their attention at sources of funding for fossil-fuel energy companies, which has resulted in certain financial institutions, funds and other sources of capital restricting or eliminating their investment in oil and natural gas activities. Ultimately, this could make it more difficult to secure funding for exploration and production activities. Members of the investment community have also begun to screen companies such as ours for sustainability performance, including practices related to greenhouse gases and climate change, before investing in our common units. Any efforts to improve our sustainability practices in response to these pressures may increase our costs, and we may be forced to implement technologies that are not economically viable to improve our sustainability performance and to meet the specific requirements to perform services for certain customers. If we are unable to meet the sustainability standard or investment, lending, ratings, or voting criteria and policies set by these parties, we may lose investors, investors may allocate a portion of their capital away from us, we may become a target for sustainability-focused activism, our cost of capital may increase, the price of our securities may be negatively impacted, and our reputation may also be negatively affected.
These various legislative, regulatory and other activities addressing greenhouse gas emissions could adversely affect our business, including by imposing reporting obligations on, or limiting emissions of greenhouse gases from, our equipment and operations, which could require us to incur costs to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases associated with our operations. Limitations on greenhouse gas emissions could also adversely affect demand for oil and gas, which could lower the value of our reserves and have a material adverse effect on our profitability, financial condition and liquidity. Furthermore, increasing attention to climate change risks has resulted in increased likelihood of governmental investigations and private litigation, which could increase our costs or otherwise adversely affect our business.
Severe weather events, such as storms, hurricanes, droughts, or floods, which may be exacerbated by climate change, could have an adverse effect on our operations and could increase our costs. Potential adverse effects could include damages to our facilities, the costs of less efficient or non-routine operating practices necessitated by weather events, or increased costs for insurance coverage. If climate changes result in more intense or frequent severe weather events, the physical and disruptive effects could have a material adverse impact on our operations and assets.
Air Emissions. The US Federal Clean Air Act and associated state laws and regulations restrict the emission of air pollutants from many sources, including oil and natural gas operations. New facilities may be required to obtain permits before operations can commence, and existing facilities may be required to obtain additional permits, and incur capital costs, in order to remain in compliance. Federal and state regulatory agencies can impose administrative, civil and criminal penalties for non-compliance with air permits or other requirements of the Clean Air Act and associated state laws and regulations. In general, we believe that compliance with the Clean Air Act and similar state laws and regulations will not have a material impact on our operations or financial condition.
Endangered Species. The Endangered Species Act ("ESA") prohibits the taking of endangered or threatened species or their habitats. While some of our assets and lease acreage may be located in areas that are designated as habitats for endangered or threatened species, we believe that we are in material compliance with the ESA. However, the designation of previously unidentified endangered or threatened species in areas where we intend to conduct construction activity or the imposition of seasonal restrictions on our construction or operational activities could materially limit or delay our plans.