New York Local Drilling Ban Cases Proceed to Appellate Review

A mid-level New York State appellate court recently heard oral arguments in reviewing two trial court decisions which upheld municipal zoning laws that ban oil and gas drilling within the upstate towns of Dryden and Middlefield.  The appeals focus on whether New York’s oil and gas law preempts a local government’s authority to prohibit gas drilling within its borders through zoning laws.  More than 50 New York municipalities have banned gas drilling in anticipation that the state will lift its five-year moratorium on high-volume hydraulic fracturing.  To date, three trial courts have rejected challenges to local ordinances that prohibit gas drilling.  The Dryden and Middlefield decisions are the first to undergo appellate review, and the court is expected to issue a decision in approximately six weeks.