DENVER (AP) – A lawmaker representing a rural Colorado district wants to require that prospective home buyers be told whenever someone else owns mineral rights to the property.
Republican Representative Marshal Looper of El Paso County says many people are unaware who owns those rights when they buy a house.
Looper says many of her constituents say they learned only when they got a letter or a knock at the door from an energy company wanting to exploit minerals below ground. Looper plans to introduce legislation addressing the issue this spring.
Her bill would require property sellers to provide the name and contact information of any mineral rights owner.
