Supreme Court rules against anti-fracking home rule law

COLUMBUS — Local drilling and zoning ordinances in Munroe Falls cannot be enforced because they conflict with the state law regulating oil and gas wells and operations, the Ohio Supreme Court concluded this morning.

The court ruled that a Munroe Falls’ zoning ordinance and four local laws governing oil and gas drilling are not an appropriate exercise of the city’s home rule powers. The city had obtained a court order stopping Beck Energy Corporation from drilling until the company complied with local law.

In the Supreme Court’s lead opinion, Justice Judith L. French wrote that home rule does not allow a municipality “to discriminate against, unfairly impede, or obstruct oil and gas activities and operations that the state has permitted under R.C. Chapter 1509.”

The decision upholds the judgment of the Ninth District Court of Appeals.