Sec. 91.173.  DEFINITIONS.  In this subchapter:
(1)  "Person" means any natural person, partnership or other combination of natural persons, corporation, group of corporations, trust, or governmental entity.
(2)  "Gas utility" means a gas utility as defined in Section 101.003, Utilities Code, or Subchapter A, Chapter 121, Utilities Code.
(3)  "Natural gas" means any gaseous material composed predominantly of the following hydrocarbons or mixtures thereof:  methane, ethane, propane, butane (normal or isobutane), in either its original or manufactured state, or gas which has been processed to separate it into one or more of its component parts after its withdrawal from the earth.
(4)  "Native gas" means:
(A)  natural gas which has not previously been withdrawn from the earth;  or
(B)  natural gas which has been withdrawn from the storage facility, processed, and reinjected into the storage facility.
(5)  "Storage facility" means any subsurface sand, stratum, or formation used or to be used for the underground storage of natural gas and all surface and subsurface rights and appurtenances necessary to the operation of a facility for the underground storage of natural gas.
(6)  "Storer" means (A) a gas utility, (B) a wholly owned subsidiary of a gas utility, (C) the parent corporation of a gas utility, or (D) a wholly owned subsidiary of a parent corporation which also wholly owns a subsidiary gas utility, but a nonutility storer included in category (B), (C), or (D) must operate the storage facility pursuant to a contract with its affiliated gas utility that provides that all withdrawals of natural gas from the storage facility must be delivered to the affiliated gas utility.
(7)  "Substantially depleted" means that at least 75 percent of the estimated volume of recoverable native gas reserves originally in place in any gas-bearing sand, formation, or stratum have been withdrawn from the sand, formation, or stratum.
(8)  "Interested person" means any person who enters an appearance at the commission hearing required by Section 91.174 of this code.
(9)  "Commission" means the Railroad Commission of Texas.
Added by Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 1996, ch. 785, Sec. 3, eff. June 13, 1979.  Amended by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 62, Sec. 18.41, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.