Senate Bill 1444, which would streamline helium exploration in Arizona while preventing contamination of aquifers, has moved one step closer to becoming law, having passed the Senate Natural Resources Committee with a 5-2 vote.
The bill requires that helium exploration companies ensure their operations are designed, constructed, operated, and maintained to not discharge a contaminant into an aquifer.
Additionally, it hopes to provide a viable new source of revenue for the state to support education in some of the most economically challenged counties in Arizona.
The bill now advances to the Rules Committee, with a full Senate vote expected soon before proceeding to the Arizona House of Representatives.
The proposed legislation has garnered strong support from key industry organisations, including the Arizona Chamber of Commerce, Arizona Technology Council, and Americans for Prosperity.
Helium exploration and production company Desert Mountain Energy had to previously move its helium operations from Arizona to New Mexico due to repeated delays and long lead times associated with enhanced recovery permitting.
The company’s CEO, Robert Rohlfing, welcomed the progress of Senate Bill 1444 and says he will continue to work closely with legislators, regulators, and stakeholders to ensure the safe and responsible development of Arizona’s helium resources.
“This legislation represents an important step towards establishing clear and concise regulations for helium extraction in Arizona,” he said in response to the progress.
In August 2024, Desert Mountain Energy said it was also working to get helium back on the United States Geological Survey’s (USGS) critical mineral list.
Helium was removed from the USGS’s critical minerals list in November 2021. The USGS, an agency under the Department of the Interior (DOI), is required by the Energy Act of 2020 to refresh the list of critical minerals at least every three years.
At the time of writing, helium is not reinstated on the USGS’s critical minerals list.
