Texas RRC Field Rule Tables: Special Rules, Standard Fallbacks, and Rescission Dates

Direct answer for mineral owners

The reviewed historical RRC export uses og_field_rule for field-specific rows and og_std_field_rule for standard fallbacks when field-specific rows are absent. Preserve the exact table, oil-or-gas role, raw rule code, source code, depth band, effective date, rescission date, and source vintage. Verify current applicability separately through the live Field Rules Query, current rules, any controlling order, and qualified review.

Key takeaways for mineral owners

• The historical manual separates field-specific og_field_rule rows from standard og_std_field_rule rows.
• Its fallback sequence is a source-vintage rule: McCulloch discovery county, county regular for districts 7B or 09, otherwise statewide.
• rule_type_code separates base and optional field-specific rows; derived_rule_type_code records the historical source class used for field information.
• effective_dt and rescind_dt describe different events and must not be collapsed into one generic date.
• Current applicability requires current RRC sources and, when material, the applicable final order and qualified review.

Historical table interpretation, not a current rule decision. This page explains selected fields in a dated Texas Railroad Commission export manual. It does not decide which rule or order currently governs a well, permit, lease, tract, depth, operator, owner, or proposed location. MRX provides educational information and resources only and does not buy mineral rights.

The direct answer is: in the reviewed historical export, start with og_field_rule for field-specific rule rows and use og_std_field_rule only for the standard fallback path described by that manual. Keep base and optional rows separate. Keep the source class, depth band, spacing fields, effective date, and gas-rule rescission date separate too.

That result is a historical data interpretation, not proof of the rule that governs a real well or permit today. Verify current applicability through the live Field Rules Query, current Texas Administrative Code, relevant final or special orders, and qualified review.

The two rule tables answer different questions

The RRC Oil and Gas Field Information data dictionary describes an Oracle export dated August 10, 2005. In that source, the rule tables have distinct roles:

Historical table	Source-described role	Safe interpretation
og_field_rule	Field-specific base and optional rule rows	Preserve every matching row, its oil-or-gas role, depth context, values, and effective date
og_std_field_rule	Standard rule rows applied when field-specific rules are absent under the manual’s fallback procedure	Preserve the selected standard class and exact lookup reason; do not present it as a current opinion
og_field_info	Type-specific field information, including source-class and rescission fields	Keep it linked by exact source keys and oil-or-gas context; do not merge it into a rule row

The presence or absence test comes first. The manual says a field with special field rules has a row in og_field_rule and uses those field-specific rules. When that row is absent, its documented standard-rule lookup is used. A blank result in a copy, filtered extract, or query view does not prove that a controlling rule never existed.

Preserve field-specific base and optional rows

The og_field_rule definition includes oil_or_gas_code, field_id, field_rule_id, rule_type_code, spacing and acreage fields, diagonal fields, depth-related context, and effective_dt. Its data dictionary defines rule_type_code as base (b) or optional (o).

Do not translate base and optional into primary and superseded. Those are different words with unsupported consequences. Preserve the source value, row identity, and related fields, then ask what the current query and order history show.

A defensible extract keeps one record per source row:

Evidence field	Record
source_table	og_field_rule
field_id	Exact source key
field_rule_id	Exact rule-row key
oil_or_gas_code	Exact row role
rule_type_code	Raw base or optional value
depth_scope	Exact source depth field or linked standard interval, without invented conversion
spacing_fields	Lease distance, well distance, acres per unit, tolerance, and diagonal fields as present
effective_dt	Raw source date plus normalized display date
source_object	File or query identity, version, access time, and retained hash

If two rows exist, retain both. If a value is blank, keep it blank and label the evidence gap. Do not fill it from a different field, oil-or-gas role, depth interval, manual, or current page merely because the headings look similar.

Read the historical fallback sequence exactly

For fields without field-specific rows, the manual states this historical order:

1. If the field’s discovery county is McCulloch County, use the McCulloch County rules.
2. Otherwise, if the field is in district 7B or 09, use county-regular rules.
3. In all other cases, use statewide rules.

That sequence belongs to the dated export description. It is not a free-standing rule engine for current work. Record both the selected historical class and why the source procedure selected it.

The same manual defines derived_rule_type_code labels for county regular (Cr), McCulloch County (Mc), special (Sp), and statewide (Sw). The og_std_field_rule table separately includes a standard-rule code, a standard-rule row ID, minimum and maximum depth, lease and well distances, and acres per unit.

Do not collapse these fields:

• rule_type_code says base or optional for a field-specific rule row.
• derived_rule_type_code records the source class described for field information.
• std_field_rule_code identifies a standard-rule category.
• std_field_rule_id identifies a relative row within that category.

The labels may look like one hierarchy, but each comes from a different field and has its own function.

Treat effective and rescission dates as different events

The historical schema places effective_dt on og_field_rule. It places rescind_dt on og_field_info. The dictionary describes rescind_dt as the date gas rules were rescinded and the gas field reverted to statewide spacing rules.

That wording supports a bounded record:

gas-rule row → source rescission date → source-described reversion to statewide spacing

It does not establish that every other field rule, order, product role, depth interval, exception, or permit consequence ended on the same date. A historical rescission date is also not a substitute for the current query or current rules.

Use distinct audit fields:

Date field	Meaning in the reviewed source	Do not infer
field_rule_effective_dt	Effective date carried on a field-specific rule row	Current validity, priority, or complete order history
gas_rule_rescind_dt	Date the manual says gas rules were rescinded	Rescission of every oil rule, order, exception, or condition
source_export_dt	August 10, 2005 Oracle export date	Date the current RRC system was last updated
retrieval_accessed_at	When the reviewer obtained the current page, query, or document	Effective date of a legal rule

Separate historical schema from current evidence

The current RRC download catalog lists Oil & Gas Field Rules as a monthly dataset and describes it as spacing and production rules for a producing area with a common reservoir. The current Field Data page separately links the Oil & Gas Field Information Query and Proration Schedule by Field.

The RRC Online Research Queries page lists the Field Rules Query as a nightly-updated route. It also says online datasets are continually updated, informational, not authoritative public records, and have no legal force or effect. Users remain responsible for accuracy, completeness, currency, and suitability.

Those current pages establish available routes and source limitations. They do not prove that a historical table row remains current.

The RRC Current Rules page identifies the Texas Administrative Code as the official rules source and warns that printable chapter PDFs are informational snapshots. When a current rule question matters, preserve the official rule route, the access date, the applicable section, and the facts that connect it to the field and proposal.

Use order history for special-rule context

The RRC Oil and Gas Well Records page says hearing files can cover new field designations, statewide rules, field rules, and exceptions. Depending on the file, materials can include a notice of hearing, final or special order, maps, engineer notes, reservoir data, and exhibits.

The RRC Drilling Permits W-1 Online Filing User Guide shows that the field-rules display can separate oil, gas, and special horizontal rule sections and can provide a final-order link in its history area for fields with special rules. The guide also distinguishes statewide, county-regular, and special-field-rule contexts in the permit workflow.

This article does not retrieve or interpret a particular order. Instead, it preserves a stop condition: if current applicability, spacing, density, an exception, or a permit depends on a special rule, identify the exact current field and depth, retrieve the live rule display, retain the cited order, and obtain qualified review.

A reproducible rule-path record

Use one row per reviewed path, not one conclusion per field:

Audit field	Required entry
audit_id	Neutral workflow identifier
field_identity_source	Exact current or historical source object
field_id_and_number	Exact identifiers kept in their own source lanes
oil_or_gas_role	Exact row role
field_specific_rows_found	Count and row IDs, or a documented not-located state
historical_fallback_reason	McCulloch discovery county, district 7B/09, statewide, unresolved, or not run
rule_codes	Raw rule, derived-source, and standard codes in separate fields
depth_and_spacing_fields	Source-recorded values and units from the selected rows
effective_and_rescind_dates	Separate raw and normalized dates
current_query_status	Not run, located, not located, ambiguous, changed, or access-limited
order_status	Not required, not retrieved, retrieved exact, ambiguous, or qualified-review stop
source_hashes	Hashes for retained files and exports
review_status	Historical interpretation only, current-source checked, or specialist stop

Do not use not located as not applicable. Do not use a found row as currently controlling. Those conclusions require additional evidence.

Reconcile without overwriting evidence

When historical and current sources differ, keep both:

1. Hash and retain the historical manual or export used.
2. Record the historical row path without editing its labels or dates.
3. Capture the current query route, criteria, access time, and result state separately.
4. Identify any matching field number, name, district, product role, and depth without converting a partial match into identity.
5. Retrieve a cited final or special order when current applicability depends on it.
6. Record the current TAC section separately from the field-specific evidence.
7. Classify the outcome as historical_only, current_route_checked, source_changed, order_needed, ambiguous, or qualified_review_stop.

Never delete the older record because a newer page exists. Version differences are evidence about the research path.

Stop before a private or regulatory conclusion

The field-rule tables do not establish:

• that a proposed well is regularly located;
• that a spacing or density exception is or is not required;
• that an operator may drill or complete a well;
• that a special order applies to every depth or product role;
• that a field row is complete, current, authoritative, or legally controlling;
• that a lease, tract, unit, or owner is connected to the field; or
• that a mineral interest has a particular production profile, reserve, value, offer, or transaction outcome.

Those are different jobs with different evidence. The Texas RRC Field Search Retrieval Provenance Worksheet owns a reproducible query attempt. The Texas RRC Drilling-Permit Query Retrieval Provenance Worksheet owns permit-query retrieval. Article 301 owns G/O/B field classification and type-row cardinality. Article 300 owns district file-value conversion.

Evidence claim ledger and source status

Claim ID	Bounded claim	Primary source
C302-01	The historical export separates field-specific and standard-rule tables	RRC Oil and Gas Field Information manual
C302-02	The manual supplies a McCulloch, district 7B/09, then statewide fallback procedure	RRC Oil and Gas Field Information manual
C302-03	Base/optional and county/McCulloch/special/statewide labels come from separate fields	RRC Oil and Gas Field Information manual
C302-04	The manual distinguishes field-rule effective date from gas-rule rescission date	RRC Oil and Gas Field Information manual
C302-05	The current catalog lists a monthly Oil & Gas Field Rules dataset	RRC Data Sets Available for Download
C302-06	The current query catalog lists a nightly Field Rules Query and states its informational limitation	RRC Online Research Queries
C302-07	Hearing records may include field-rule final or special orders	RRC Oil and Gas Well Records
C302-08	Current official rules are maintained through the TAC route identified by the RRC	RRC Current Rules

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between og_field_rule and og_std_field_rule?

In the reviewed historical export manual, og_field_rule stores field-specific base or optional rule rows. og_std_field_rule stores standard rule rows used when the historical lookup does not find field-specific rules. This describes that export, not a current legal determination.

What was the historical standard-rule fallback order?

The manual says to use McCulloch County rules when the discovery county is McCulloch, county-regular rules for a field in district 7B or 09, and statewide rules otherwise. Preserve this as a dated source rule and verify current applicability separately.

Does rule_type_code say whether a rule is special or statewide?

No. The manual defines rule_type_code as base or optional for an og_field_rule row. It separately defines derived_rule_type_code values for county regular, McCulloch County, special, or statewide source classes.

What does rescind_dt mean?

The reviewed manual describes rescind_dt as the date gas rules were rescinded and the gas field reverted to statewide spacing rules. Record the date and source context; do not assume it resolves every current rule, order, depth, or permit question.

Can I use this article to decide whether a well needs a spacing exception?

No. That decision depends on current field information, current rules, the applicable field and depth, any special order, the proposed location, and the actual filing facts. Use the current RRC systems and qualified review.

Next steps for mineral owners

Keep the historical rule-path record with the live query evidence and any order history, but do not merge it into ownership, production, or valuation evidence. For broader context, open the Texas mineral-rights guide. If the next question is a directional review of a specific mineral interest, request an MRX review after sensitive records and regulatory questions are separated into the appropriate professional lanes.

Mineral Rights Xchange provides educational information and directional underwriter review, not a title opinion, legal or tax advice, a regulatory interpretation, a permit decision, an engineering opinion, an appraisal opinion, or assurance of an offer, sale, drilling result, or closing. Current rule applicability, field orders, spacing, density, exceptions, permitting, title, ownership, and transaction decisions require the actual facts and qualified professional review. MRX provides educational information and resources only and does not buy mineral rights.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between og_field_rule and og_std_field_rule?

In the reviewed historical export manual, og_field_rule stores field-specific base or optional rule rows. og_std_field_rule stores standard rule rows used when the historical lookup does not find field-specific rules. This describes that export, not a current legal determination.

What was the historical standard-rule fallback order?

The manual says to use McCulloch County rules when the discovery county is McCulloch, county-regular rules for a field in district 7B or 09, and statewide rules otherwise. Preserve this as a dated source rule and verify current applicability separately.

Does rule_type_code say whether a rule is special or statewide?

No. The manual defines rule_type_code as base or optional for an og_field_rule row. It separately defines derived_rule_type_code values for county regular, McCulloch County, special, or statewide source classes.

What does rescind_dt mean?

The reviewed manual describes rescind_dt as the date gas rules were rescinded and the gas field reverted to statewide spacing rules. Record the date and source context; do not assume it resolves every current rule, order, depth, or permit question.

Can I use this article to decide whether a well needs a spacing exception?

No. That decision depends on current field information, current rules, the applicable field and depth, any special order, the proposed location, and the actual filing facts. Use the current RRC systems and qualified review.

Sources reviewed for this article

• Texas RRC Oil and Gas Field Information data dictionary (accessed 2026-08-31)
• Texas RRC Data Sets Available for Download (accessed 2026-08-31)
• Texas RRC Field Data (accessed 2026-08-31)
• Texas RRC Online Research Queries (accessed 2026-08-31)
• Texas RRC Oil and Gas Well Records (accessed 2026-08-31)
• Texas RRC Drilling Permits W-1 Online Filing User Guide (accessed 2026-08-31)
• Texas RRC Current Rules (accessed 2026-08-31)